When did the Church start sending out 19 year old missionaries?

Question

Dear Gramps,

When did the church first start sending out 19-year-old missionaries?

Brent

Answer

Brent,

Originally, there was considerable variability in missionary eligibility. Young men and, on occasion, women were called at different ages. Sometimes, special exceptions were made due to global circumstances, such as war or shifting educational norms. For much of the early 20th century, missionary service was neither explicitly expected nor required of every young man. In fact, President Spencer W. Kimball’s 1970s teachings, emphasizing that “every young man should fill a mission,” marked a turning point in establishing that expectation within Latter-day Saint culture.

During the Korean War, when national draft pressures were high, Church leadership faced the difficult situation of balancing the spiritual benefits of missionary service with the civic duty of military conscription. The First Presidency made the pivotal decision to temporarily lower the missionary age from twenty to nineteen, giving young men a chance to serve a mission before they faced the temptations of military life should they be drafted. This first use of age 19 was pragmatic—a response to a once-in-a-generation social and political climate.

On July 21, 1960, a landmark statement from the First Presidency officially set 19 as the minimum age for missionary service for young men—even for those who had not met previous requirements relating to education or military status. This decision removed significant barriers, making missionary work immediately accessible to more young men. By the early 1960s, missionary training underwent further professionalization, with the establishment of the Language Training Institute at Brigham Young University, followed by the Language Training Mission, and later, the Missionary Training Center in Provo, Utah.

Because of the war in Vietnam, in September 1965, the United States established a quota of only 2 missionaries per ward to comply with Selective Service requirements.  During the Korean War, older men were called to serve missions, even those who were married.

By September 1978, further adjustments in training length and missionary preparation reflected the Church’s commitment to adapting the experience to the evolving needs of its ever-expanding global membership.

In April 1982, the term of service for single young men serving a mission was reduced to 18 months.  On November 26, it was announced that the term of full-time missionary service for young men would again be 24 months.

A dramatic age change came in October 2012. President Thomas S. Monson, in a historic announcement, stated, 

“I am pleased to announce that effective immediately all worthy and able young men who have graduated from high school or its equivalent, regardless of where they live, will have the option of being recommended for missionary service beginning at the age of 18, instead of age 19…” and for young women, at age 19 instead of 21.

This decision would lead to an unprecedented surge in missionary applications and fundamentally alter the rhythm of young adulthood for thousands in the Church worldwide.

The immediate effect of the 2012 announcement was a dramatic increase in the number of missionaries serving worldwide. Within a year, the missionary force grew from just under 59,000 to more than 83,000, a jump not seen in decades. Sister missionaries, in particular, saw a sharp increase: the ratio of elders to sisters shifted from 6:1 to 3:1, altering the demographics and culture in the field in powerful ways.

But while the number of those serving soared, the number of converts per missionary actually decreased. Church spokesman Eric Hawkins explained that a more secular world was a contributing factor, but clarified that “it would be a mistake to say missionary work is less impactful as the number of converts last year was the highest since 1999.” Church historian Richard Bushman added, “the age change is still predicted to have a long-range positive impact on the Church and its members, despite recent statistics. One thing is for sure, the Church will not stop trying to convert people, however difficult it may seem. That is part of who we are.”

For many young people, the age change meant going straight from high school to a mission—sidestepping the so-called “mission gap” where some would drift away from Church activity before leaving for two years of service. 

But the cultural expectation intensified—especially for young women. Although serving is still a matter of personal desire for sisters (unlike the priesthood duty expected of young men), some felt increasing pressure to go. For girls turning 19, the pressure to serve a mission is surprisingly intense. It’s the so-called ‘next step’: go to high school, go on a mission, go to college, get married. 

As ages have become closer together, missionary companionships, districts, and zones have become more uniform in age and experience. Notably, there’s been an uptick in young adults meeting and eventually marrying fellow returned missionaries whom they met while serving. The opportunities for leadership among sister missionaries have also expanded, with new positions such as “sister training leader” created to oversee and support growing numbers of women serving in the field.

Prior to the 1970s, it was not universally taught that every able young man should serve a mission. Anecdotal recollections and research show that, for example, men born in the early 1940s were not taught that missionary service was expected or mandatory. The tide began to shift with President Spencer W. Kimball’s addresses in the early 1970s and 1974, emphasizing the obligation of missionary service for all who were worthy and able. “The question is frequently asked: Should every young man fill a mission? And the answer has been given by the Lord. It is ‘Yes’,” President Kimball declared. This teaching has since become woven into the fabric of Latter-day Saint doctrine and expectation.

The period following the age change also featured innovations in training programs and missionary preparation. With new centers like the Missionary Training Center in Provo, Utah, and continued refinement of curriculum and duration, the Church demonstrated its willingness to continually adapt and raise the bar for preparation and worthiness. President Gordon B. Hinckley’s famed counsel in the early 2000s, encouraging missionaries to “raise the bar,” built on this legacy of adaptation and striving for higher standards.

The last change to ages for sister missionaries came as recently as November 2025. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints lowered the minimum age for young women to serve full-time missions from 19 to 18, allowing them to serve immediately after high school graduation. This change provides equal age requirements for all, offering greater flexibility for education and life planning.

Gramps