Membership Rules

1.

According to article 5 of the statutes the association may comprise active, associate and honorary members.

2.

Annual membership fees for all membership categories shall be established by the Board.

Each membership will be valid per calendar year.

Renewals of memberships can be made as from December 1st of each calendar year and will be in force as from January 1st of the following calendar year.

Exceptionally all entries of new memberships made after the yearly challenge organized by the association shall be valid until December 31st of the following calendar year.

The membership fees are not divisible pro rata temporis.

In case of dismissal, refusal or exclusion of a member the fee paid by this member will not be reimbursed, not even partially.

The entry of active members shall always subject to the condition that the membership will be admitted by the Board. Pending this admission the candidate active member shall be considered as an active member and will benefit al rights and obligations linked to the active membership except the right to vote at the General Assembly.

The annual membership fee needs to be payed within 30 calendar days after receipt of the demand. If no payment has been received one reminder will be sent. Members who fail to pay their fee within 15 calendar days after receipt of the reminder are considered to be retiring. If they would renew their membership afterwards it will not be considered as the entry of a new membership.

3.

Memberships shall include specific membership benefits delineated for different categories and levels of financial support, as approved by the Board.

4.

Active members alone have full membership, including the right to vote at the General Assembly. Active members are the founding members and those who are admitted as such by the Board after application for admission.

The names of all active members are indicated in the members-register.

According to article 6 of the statutes the candidate must at least fulfil one of the following conditions to be able to join the association as an active member,:

  • perform or promote music both in his home country and in other countries, with the emphasis on blues and roots music;
  • be a an blues association, festival, a concert promoter, a record label, a booking agency, a radio or TV show or a magazine (on paper or on the internet), whose activity concentrates on blues and roots music;
  • be well informed about the blues & roots music and musical life of his own country or region, or be in a position to provide information and materials on blues musicians, composers, the blues & roots music and musical life of his home country or region;

Applications from potential members for admission to the association must be submitted in writing to the Board. An electronic application form will be available on the website of the association, by which the candidate active members can register their application.
The Board decides on whether or not to admit a new member. It may decide to admit or reject the applicant, or invite the applicant to apply again at a later time.

The following fees will be due to active members – thereafter the membership is valid until 31 December 2017:

  • Individuals and small business/associations: 100 EUR
  • Large business/associations (turnover > 15.000 EUR/year): 200 EUR

Following specific membership benefits shall apply to active members:
– access to the Newsletter of the association.

Following specific membership benefit shall apply to individual and small business/association active members:

  • 1 free entrance valid for 3 nights at the yearly challenge organized by the association
  • A free table at the Blues Market that every year runs in conjunction with the EBC
  • 1 free banner in the country webpage

Following specific membership benefit shall apply to large business/associations active members:

  • the right to delegate two persons at the General Assembly. This delegation shall however have only one vote according to article 22 of the statutes.
  • 2 free entrances valid for 3 nights at the yearly challenge organized by the association

A further description of the rights and obligations of the active members will be laid down in the internal rules and regulations that need to be drawn up by the Board.

5.

Associate members are only affiliated to benefit from the activities of the non-profit association. They do not have the right to vote at the General Assembly.

The following may join the association as associate members:

  • other non-profit organisations, supporting the functioning and activities of the association,
  • individual persons, supporting the functioning and activities of the association,
  • business members, meaning commercial organisations, wishing to support the functioning and activities of the association

An electronic form will be available on the website of the association by which the candidate associate members can register their application. The candidates will be considered as associate members once the payment of the corresponding fee has been received.

Associate members, like active members, are entitled to take part in projects undertaken by the association.

The General Assembly decides to determine following categories of associate membership:
EBU fan

Following fees will be due by the associate members as from the start of the association until December 31st 2023:

  • EBU fan: 20 EUR (below the age of 18 no membership fee is due to become a EBU fan)

Following specific membership benefits shall apply to associate members:

  • EBU fan: access to the Newsletter of the association

A further description of the rights and obligations of the associate members will be laid down in the internal rules and regulations that need to be drawn up by the Board.

6.

Honorary members can be conferred, on the recommendation of the Board, by a decision of the General Assembly on the basis of a simple majority of the members present or represented, to persons rendering or having rendered notable services to the association. Honorary members may participate in the General Assembly with consultative powers, but without voting rights. There shall be no annual fees required of honorary members.

A further description of the rights and obligations of the honorary members will be laid down in the internal rules and regulations that need to be drawn up by the Board.

Download Membership Rules in pdf here