Microsoft Word - Footnote remains on the original page after moving the original reference up

Issue

I encountered an issue in Microsoft Word where moving the original footnote reference to an earlier location in the document did not move the footnote itself. The footnote remained on its original page even though the reference had been moved.

This was particularly problematic because the same footnote was referenced multiple times throughout the document using cross-references.

Cause

The footnote is anchored to the original footnote reference in the main text.

In my case, Word had somehow lost track of that original anchor, so the footnote stayed on its original page while all cross-references continued to point to it.

Solution

1. Hold Ctrl and click the misplaced footnote reference. Word jumps to the original footnote reference in the main text.
2. Cut the original footnote reference (Ctrl+X).
3. Paste it in the correct location using Keep Source Formatting.
4. Press Ctrl+A, then F9 to update all fields.
5. Verify that:
   1. the footnote has moved to the correct page,
   2. the numbering has updated correctly,
   3. all cross-references still work.

In my document, one footnote had previously lost its connection to the original reference, so its numbering did not update automatically. That one had to be repaired manually.

Important

Do not create a new footnote or copy the footnote text itself.

Move the original footnote reference in the main text. This preserves the existing footnote, its numbering, and every cross-reference that points to it.

I hope this helps someone else. It took me quite a while to figure out what was happening.