Making a power of attorney

There are 3 types of power of attorney in England and Wales: lasting power of attorney, enduring power of attorney and ordinary power of attorney.

Lasting power of attorney

There are 2 types of lasting power of attorney (LPA) that can be used in England and Wales:

• finance and property lasting power of attorney
• health and welfare lasting power of attorney

Both types must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian before they are effective. The Office of the Public Guardian is a government agency which registers who has powers of attorney for other people in England and Wales.

You can choose to make one type or both. It is always best to complete lasting power of attorney forms before they are needed.

Find out more about the Office of the Public Guardian and access their online tools on their website.

Finance and property lasting power of attorney

A finance and property LPA allows your attorney to deal with financial matters, such as:

• paying your bills for you
• collecting your pensions
• dealing with your bank or building society accounts
• selling your home or other property you own, if necessary.

You can choose for the finance and property LPA to apply while you still have mental capacity. In this case, the attorney will need your consent to use it. Otherwise, it will apply once you no longer have mental capacity.

Health and welfare lasting power of attorney

A health and welfare LPA allows your attorney to make decisions about your health and social care when you can’t do so because of mental incapacity. It used to be called a personal welfare LPA.

This can include:

• whether to accept or refuse medical care or life-sustaining treatment for you
• your care arrangements
• where you should live
• who has access to confidential information, such as your health records.

How to set up a lasting power of attorney (LPA)

You can complete a power of attorney yourself and register it online. Or a solicitor can help you prepare these documents.

Using a solicitor to set up an LPA

A solicitor will charge a fee for assisting you with an LPA. These costs vary between solicitors. If you decide to get professional advice, it’s a good idea to ask a few different law firms before you choose a solicitor.

Completing the LPA forms yourself

If you decide to complete the forms yourself, you can:

• order physical copies by calling 0300 456 0300
• download the LPA forms from GOV.UK
• complete the LPA online application form on GOV.UK.

It’s important to be careful if you fill the forms out yourself. If there are any mistakes, your application may be rejected and you will need to pay to resubmit.

You can get advice on completing the forms from the Office of the Public Guardian by calling 0300 456 0300. Visit the Office of the Public Guardian website.

Read more about making, registering or ending a power of attorney at GOV.UK.

Once you have completed the forms, they need to be signed in a specific order and each signature needs to be witnessed.

1. You need to sign first as the donor. Your signature must be witnessed.
2. Then the "Certificate Provider" must sign.
3. Finally, your attorney must sign the form and their signature must be witnessed.

The Certificate Provider is someone (other than your attorney) who certifies that you understand what the LPA is and that you have not been put under any pressure to sign it. The Certificate Provider must be someone you have known for at least 2 years, or a professional such as a doctor, social worker, or solicitor. Certain people are not allowed to be your Certificate Provider, including your partner or any other family members.

Witnessing means that you and your attorney must sign the form in the presence of a witness who physically sees you or your attorney signing the document. The witness must then sign a statement confirming that the form was signed by you or your attorney.

Your witness should be at least 18 years old and have mental capacity to act as a witness. The same person may act as witness for both your and your attorney’s signatures. If you and your attorney sign the form at different times, you can use different witnesses. However, you cannot witness your attorney’s signature and they cannot witness yours.

Enduring power of attorney

The enduring power of attorney is only for financial decisions. In 2007 it was replaced in England and Wales by the finance and property LPA. No new enduring power of attorneys can be made.

However, you can continue to use an enduring power of attorney that was signed and witnessed before October 2007. Alternatively, you can cancel it and set up a replacement finance and property LPA. If you have an enduring power of attorney and wish to keep this in place, you can also set up a health and welfare LPA to deal with health and social care decisions.

Ordinary power of attorney

An ordinary power of attorney (OPA) can be used for financial decisions and is only valid while you still have mental capacity.

You can limit the power you give to your attorney, such as only giving them power to deal with a specific bank account.

An OPA can be useful if you need someone to help you with your finances during a:

• hospital stay
• holiday
• period when you might find it difficult to go to the bank or post office.

However, if you are worried about losing mental capacity an LPA may be a more appropriate solution.

There is no standard form to complete to set up an OPA, but you must use particular wording. If you want to set up an OPA, it’s best to contact Citizens Advice or a solicitor for help.

In Scotland, there are three types of power of attorney: the ordinary power of attorney, which is similar to the use described above for England; and:

• A continuing power of attorney (CPA) deals with money or financial matters. A CPA can be used as soon as it has been registered, or you can state you only want a CPA to be used at a later date, such as when a doctor says you are no longer able to make any decisions.
• A welfare power of attorney (WPA) relates to personal and health care matters and only comes into effect if you lose mental capacity.

It’s also possible to make a single power of attorney that deals with both financial and welfare and care matters.

You can prepare the  power of attorney documents yourself.

Find more information on the documents you will need on the Office of the Public Guardian (Scotland) website.

Or you can pay a solicitor to help prepare your power of attorney documents.

To be valid, your power of attorney must be signed by yourself and include a certificate of capacity from either your attorney or a professional (such as a solicitor, advocate, or doctor) certifying that they:

• interviewed you immediately before you signed the power of attorney
• believe you understand what the power of attorney entitles your attorney to do
• have no reason to believe that anyone has put pressure on you to sign.

Once you have completed and signed your power of attorney, it must then be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian (Scotland). Until the power of attorney is registered, your attorney will not have authority to act on your behalf.

For more information call the Office of the Public Guardian (Scotland) on 01324 678 300. Visit the Office of the Public Guardian (Scotland) website.  

In Northern Ireland, there are 2 types of power of attorney. They are an ordinary power of attorney (also known as a general power of attorney) which is similar to the one described above for England, and an enduring power of attorney. 

There is currently no way of appointing an attorney with responsibility for health and welfare decisions in Northern Ireland.

Enduring power of attorney

To give someone power of attorney in Northern Ireland that continues if you lose mental capacity, you will need to make an enduring power of attorney. It will only cover property and financial affairs, not health and welfare decisions.

You can prepare an enduring power of attorney yourself. Alternatively, advice from a solicitor, usually on a fee paying basis, can help you consider what powers you wish to give your attorney and prevent future issues. For example, your attorney could be given power to handle your money, but not the power to sell your house.

To become effective, all enduring powers of attorney need to be registered with the High Court (specifically the Office of Care and Protection). Registration is not required until your attorney believes you can no longer manage your affairs.

You will be told when an attorney has applied to the court. The court may question the attorney's handling of your affairs. If it is not satisfied that the attorney is acting in your best interests, it can cancel their power at any time.

If a person becomes mentally incapacitated and has not appointed an enduring power of attorney, the High Court may appoint a "controller" to deal with the day to day management of their affairs.

All matters regarding enduring power of attorney and controllership are handled by the High Court (Office of Care and Protection) in Belfast.

For more information, you can call the Northern Ireland Department of Justice on 028 9072 4733. Alternatively, visit the Northern Ireland Department of Justice website.