Power of Attorney: Types, How to Make One, and the Rules in Every State

A power of attorney is a signed document that lets someone you choose act for you. Most people need one for money (a financial power of attorney) and a separate one for medical decisions (a health care power of attorney). The point is simple: if an accident, illness or dementia leaves you unable to sign checks or talk to a doctor, the person you picked can step in without a court case. This guide covers the types, how to sign one, what your agent may and may not do, when it ends, and the signing rules we read in each state's statute.

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The Short Answer

• A power of attorney (POA) names an agent to act for you. A financial POA covers money and property. A health care POA (also called a health care proxy) covers medical decisions and gives no power over money.
• Get a durable one. A durable POA keeps working if you lose capacity, which is when you need it most. Of the 42 jurisdictions whose statutes we could verify, 29 make a POA durable automatically; in the other 13 the document must say it survives incapacity.
• Signing rules depend on your state. In 17 of the 42 a notary is required for every financial POA, and 3 more require one for a durable POA. Eight require witnesses, and 3 accept either a notary or two witnesses. Even where a notary is optional, use one: a notarized signature is presumed genuine and banks expect it.
• 32 jurisdictions have adopted the Uniform Power of Attorney Act or a close version, according to the Uniform Law Commission. Under its model rules, a business must accept a notarized POA or ask for a certification within 7 business days.
• It ends when you die. After that, your will or trust controls. You can revoke a POA at any time while you can still make decisions.
• It does not cover Social Security or VA benefits. An agent needs a separate appointment from those agencies (a representative payee or VA fiduciary).

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What a Power of Attorney Is

A power of attorney is a legal document in which one person (the principal) gives another person (the agent) authority to act for them. The agent is also called the attorney-in-fact. The agent does not need to be a lawyer: most people name a spouse, an adult child or a close friend.

Signing a POA does not take anything away from you. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's guide for agents puts it plainly: you can still manage your own money and property after signing, "as long as" you are able to make decisions. The agent simply gains the right to act too, within the powers you wrote down.

The rules come from state law. Most states have a power of attorney statute, and 32 jurisdictions have adopted the Uniform Power of Attorney Act (UPOAA), a model law the Uniform Law Commission approved in 2006, or a substantially similar version. The table below shows which.

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Types of Power of Attorney

The labels overlap. A single document can be, for example, a general, durable, financial POA. These are the terms you will see:

Type	What it does	Typical use
General (financial)	Broad authority over money and property: banking, bills, investments, real estate, taxes, insurance	Planning for incapacity or long absences
Limited or special	Authority for one task or one asset only	Closing a home sale while you are out of town
Durable	Stays in effect if you lose capacity	The standard choice for estate planning
Non-durable	Ends if you lose capacity	Short-term business or travel needs
Springing	Starts only on a future event, usually your incapacity	People who do not want the agent to have power yet
Health care (medical) POA or health care proxy	Names a health care agent to make medical decisions when you cannot	Paired with a living will as an advance directive

Financial vs health care. These are separate documents with separate state rules. MedlinePlus, the National Library of Medicine's health site, explains that a health care power of attorney lets you name a health care agent or proxy, and "It does not give power to anyone to make legal or financial decisions for you." A living will is different again: it records the treatment you want, but you cannot name a decision maker in it, and it does not deal with money. You can name the same person in both POAs or different people.

Hot powers. Under the uniform act, some powers are too risky to be implied by general wording. The agent can make gifts, create or change a trust, change a beneficiary designation, change rights of survivorship, or waive your survivor benefit under a retirement plan only if the POA expressly grants that power (UPOAA section 201). If you want your agent to keep up a pattern of family gifts, or to do Medicaid planning, the document has to say so.

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Durable vs Springing

Durable is about when a POA ends. A durable POA survives your incapacity; a non-durable one stops working just when your family needs it. The uniform act makes every POA durable "unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the incapacity of the principal" (section 104). Its official comment notes this reverses the older uniform law and assumes most people want durability "as a hedge against the need for guardianship."

Not every state follows that default. In 13 of the jurisdictions we verified, including California, Florida, Texas, Washington and Massachusetts, a POA is durable only if it contains words such as "This power of attorney shall not be affected by subsequent incapacity of the principal." Michigan adds a twist: a POA there is durable only if it was notarized or signed before two witnesses. If you use a form, check that the durability clause is there.

Springing is about when a POA starts. Under the uniform act a POA is effective when signed unless it says it starts on a future date or event (section 109). If it springs on incapacity and you did not name someone to decide that, the act lets a physician (or, in states that chose to add them, a licensed psychologist) confirm it in writing, or for some kinds of incapacity a lawyer, judge or government official.

The trade-off: a springing POA keeps the agent's power on the shelf, but your agent must prove you are incapacitated before acting, which can mean doctor's letters and delays while bills pile up. Many people choose an immediately effective durable POA and simply give it to someone they trust. If you would not trust the person with power today, that is usually a sign to pick someone else, not to make it springing.

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How to Make a Power of Attorney

1. Pick your agent and a backup. Choose someone honest, organized and willing. Name a successor agent in case the first cannot serve. You can name co-agents, but say whether they must act together or may act alone.
2. Use your state's form or a document drafted for your state. Many states publish a statutory form in the statute itself. A form from another state may be valid but harder to get accepted.
3. Decide the scope. General or limited, effective now or springing, and which hot powers (gifts, trusts, beneficiary changes) to grant.
4. Confirm it is durable. In a state that requires durability language, the form must include it.
5. Sign it the way your state requires. See the table below. A notary is required in many states and advisable everywhere. If witnesses are required, check who cannot serve (often the agent, the agent's relatives, or your care providers).
6. Have the agent sign any acknowledgment the state requires. Pennsylvania, New Hampshire and Delaware, for example, require an agent's signed acknowledgment or certification.
7. Give copies to your agent, and consider giving one to your bank and brokerage now so they can review it before an emergency.
8. Record it if it will be used for real estate. County recorders usually require the document to be notarized before they record it.

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Power of Attorney Rules by State

We read the current power of attorney statute for each state on the state legislature's own website (or an archived copy of that official page when the site blocked us). "Uniform act" shows the Uniform Law Commission's enactment record. "Durable by default" means a financial POA survives incapacity unless it says otherwise. "Signing" is the rule for a general financial POA; special forms (real estate, vehicle titles, health care) can differ. Where we could not read the statute from an official source, the row says "Check state law" rather than guess.

Notes: "Presumed genuine" means the statute does not require a notary, but a notarized signature is legally presumed to be real, which is what banks and title companies rely on. In Kansas, Missouri and Texas the notary rule is part of the definition of a durable POA. Rules can change: confirm with the official statute linked in each row, or a lawyer, before you sign.

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What Your Agent Must and Cannot Do

An agent who accepts the job is a fiduciary, meaning the law requires them to put your interests first. The CFPB's guide lists four basic duties:

1. Act only in your best interest.
2. Manage your money and property carefully.
3. Keep your money and property separate from their own.
4. Keep good records.

The uniform act spells out the same idea. Whatever the document says, the agent must act in good faith, within the authority granted, and in line with your reasonable expectations as far as the agent knows them (section 114). Unless the POA says otherwise, the agent must also keep a record of "all receipts, disbursements, and transactions," avoid conflicts of interest, and try to preserve your estate plan. Under section 113, an agent accepts the role simply by acting under the POA.

Can the agent be paid? Under the uniform act, yes by default: the agent is entitled to reimbursement of reasonable expenses and "compensation that is reasonable under the circumstances" unless the POA says otherwise (section 112). Many family agents serve for free. If yours will be paid, the CFPB advises keeping detailed records of the work and time.

What the agent cannot do:

• Use your money for their own benefit, unless the POA allows it.
• Make gifts, change beneficiaries or change your trust without an express grant (the hot powers above).
• Manage your Social Security or VA benefits. The CFPB guide says an agent cannot manage government benefits "unless you get a separate appointment from the government agency as, for example, a representative payee or VA fiduciary."
• Represent you before the IRS on a POA alone in most cases. The IRS uses Form 2848, and the person you authorize "must be a person eligible to practice before the IRS."
• Make or change your will. Only you can make a will.
• Act after you die.

If you suspect an agent is stealing or neglecting your parent, the CFPB suggests contacting adult protective services, the police or a lawyer.

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When a Bank Refuses a Power of Attorney

Refusals are common. A 2002 national survey cited in the uniform act's official comments found that 63% of respondents had occasional and 17% had frequent difficulty getting POAs accepted. Banks worry about forged or revoked documents, and some insist on their own form.

The uniform act tries to fix this. Its rules protect a business that relies in good faith on a notarized ("acknowledged") POA, and its model section 120 (Alternative A) says the business:

• must accept a notarized POA, or ask for an agent's certification, an English translation or a lawyer's opinion, no later than 7 business days after it is presented;
• must then accept it no later than 5 business days after receiving what it asked for;
• "may not require an additional or different form of power of attorney" for authority the POA already grants.

A business that refuses in violation of the rule can face a court order to accept the POA and pay the reasonable attorney's fees and costs. It may still refuse in listed situations, for example if it knows the POA was revoked, believes in good faith the agent lacks authority, or has reported suspected abuse to adult protective services.

Two caveats. States changed section 120 when they adopted it: the model offers an Alternative B that covers only statutory-form POAs, and some states rewrote the deadlines. And states that never adopted the act have their own acceptance rules or none. Check your state's version, linked in the table.

Hypothetical example: an agent presents a notarized POA at a bank branch on a Monday in a state that adopted Alternative A unchanged. If the bank wants a certification, it must ask by the following Wednesday (7 business days, with no holidays in between). If the agent delivers the certification that Thursday, the bank must accept the POA within 5 business days after that.

Practical steps that help: use your state's statutory form, have it notarized, give the bank a copy while you are healthy, and keep an agent's certification ready.

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When a Power of Attorney Ends

Under the uniform act (section 110), a POA ends when:

• you die;
• you become incapacitated, if it is not durable;
• you revoke it;
• it reaches an end date or its purpose is done; or
• you revoke the agent's authority, or the agent dies, becomes incapacitated or resigns, and no other agent is named.

A spouse's authority as agent also ends when either of you files for divorce, annulment or legal separation, unless the POA says otherwise. A POA does not expire just because time passes.

Death ends it. The CFPB guide tells agents that "your authority ends when she dies," even for bills that are easy to pay. After death, the executor named in the will (or an administrator appointed by the court) takes over. If the estate is small, your state's small estate affidavit may let heirs collect assets without full probate.

How to revoke. You can revoke at any time while you can still make decisions. Put it in writing, sign and date it (a notarized revocation is easier for banks to accept, and one used for real estate may need to be recorded), send it to the agent, and send copies to every bank or business that has the old POA. Under the uniform act, signing a new POA does not cancel an old one unless the new one says so, so include a sentence revoking prior POAs.

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What a Power of Attorney Costs

The legal minimum can cost very little: many states print a free statutory form in the statute itself, and you pay only for the notary if one is required or wanted. Notary fees are set by state law and vary. Witnesses cost nothing.

A lawyer costs more but helps if you own a business or real estate in several states, want gifting or Medicaid planning powers, have a blended family, or expect someone to challenge the document. Many estate planning lawyers prepare a will, financial POA and health care directive together.

Compare that with the alternative. Without a POA, your family may need a court-appointed guardian or conservator, which involves filing fees, lawyers, court supervision and delay.

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Power of Attorney vs Guardianship

A guardian or conservator (terms vary by state) is appointed by a court to manage money or make personal decisions for someone who can no longer do it. A POA is the private, cheaper alternative: you choose the person in advance, and no judge is involved.

	Power of attorney	Guardianship or conservatorship
Who chooses the decision maker	You, while you have capacity	A judge
Court involvement	None, unless there is a dispute	Petition, hearing and ongoing reports
When it is possible	Only while you can still sign	After you have lost capacity
Your rights	You keep full control	The court may remove your right to make some decisions

A POA can also help if a guardianship happens anyway. The uniform act lets you nominate the guardian or conservator you would want, and an agent stays accountable to any court-appointed fiduciary (section 108). The CFPB notes an agent's authority "may end" if a court names a guardian of property, depending on the POA and state law.

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Power of Attorney vs Will vs Living Trust

These documents cover different time periods, which is why most plans include all three or at least the first two.

	Power of attorney	Will	Living trust
Works while you are alive	Yes	No	Yes
Works after death	No	Yes	Yes
Who acts	Your agent	Your executor	Your trustee, then a successor trustee
Covers	Whatever the POA grants	Assets in your name at death	Only assets moved into the trust
Avoids probate	No	No	Yes, for trust assets

A living trust also plans for incapacity, because a successor trustee can take over trust assets. But anything left outside the trust (a car, a retirement account, a new bank account) still needs a POA. A will does nothing until you die. For a house, a transfer on death deed or, in a few states, a lady bird deed can pass it at death without probate, but neither lets anyone manage the home while you are alive. Our estate planning basics guide shows how the pieces fit, and long-term care insurance covers the cost side of the same planning.

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FAQ

What does a power of attorney do?
It gives the person you name (your agent) legal authority to act for you, such as paying bills, managing bank accounts, filing insurance claims or selling property, within the limits you set. A health care power of attorney does the same for medical decisions.

How do I get power of attorney for a parent?
Your parent must sign it while they still have capacity to understand what they are signing. You cannot sign it for them. If they have already lost capacity, the usual route is a court guardianship or conservatorship.

Does a power of attorney need to be notarized?
In 17 of the 42 jurisdictions we verified, yes for every financial POA, and in Kansas, Missouri and Texas for a durable one. Elsewhere it is often optional, but a notarized signature is presumed genuine and most banks and county recorders expect it. Check your state's row in the table above.

Does a power of attorney end at death?
Yes. The agent's authority ends when the principal dies. The executor named in the will, or a court-appointed administrator, then handles the estate.

What is the difference between a durable and a springing power of attorney?
Durable means it keeps working if you lose capacity. Springing means it does not start until a future event, usually your incapacity. A POA can be both. A non-durable POA ends when you lose capacity.

Can a power of attorney be used across state lines?
Usually. Under the uniform act (section 106), a POA signed in another state is valid if its signing met the law of the state that governs it, which is normally the state where it was signed. Banks may still be more comfortable with the local statutory form, so people who move often sign a new one.

Can my agent change my will or beneficiaries?
An agent cannot sign a will for you. Under the uniform act, an agent can change a beneficiary designation, make gifts or change a trust only if the POA expressly grants that power.

Can the agent manage my Social Security?
No. The Social Security Administration and the VA appoint their own fiduciaries (a representative payee or VA fiduciary). The agent must apply separately.

How long is a power of attorney good for?
Until you revoke it, die, or it ends by its own terms. Under the uniform act, the passage of time alone does not end it, but a bank may look harder at a very old document.

This article is for general information and is not legal advice. State rules are from each state's power of attorney statute on the state legislature's website (or an archived copy of that official page), read 2026-10-27 to 2026-10-29, with quotes and links stored for every state; uniform act enactments from the Uniform Law Commission's enactment map for the Power of Attorney Act, read 2026-10-29; model rules from the Uniform Power of Attorney Act (2006) with official comments; agent duties and benefits rules from the CFPB's "Help for agents under a power of attorney" guide; health care proxy and living will definitions from MedlinePlus; IRS Form 2848 rules from irs.gov, all read 2026-10-29. The bank timeline example is hypothetical. Laws change; confirm with your state's current statute or a licensed attorney before signing.