Frequently Asked Questions
Who do I need to give notice to immediately upon execution?As soon as practicable, you must give notice of the execution of the Power of Attorney to at least two persons. None of them may be an attorney under the power. At least one must be the donor's spouse, if they are living together. If the donor is unmarried, widowed or separated, notification must be given to at least one child of the donor (if applicable) or otherwise to at least one relative (i.e. parent, sibling, grandchild, widow/er of child, nephew or niece). The prescribed form of notice is provided in the additional documents section of the print/download page.Do I need to register my Power of Attorney?An Enduring Power of Attorney can only come into force when it has been registered. In order to register an EPA, the future attorney makes an application for registration to the Registrar of Wards of Court, once there is reason to believe that you are or are becoming mentally incapable. The attorney must have a medical certificate confirming that you are incapable of managing your affairs.
Five weeks before making this application, the attorney must notify you and the notice parties of his/her intention to do so. Within the 5 weeks, the donor or a notice party can lodge a notice of objection on one of the grounds given in Section 10 (3) of the Act with the Registrar of Wards of Court.Who must be notified of the attorney's intention to apply for registration?In addition to the donor, at least three persons from the following list are entitled to receive notice of the attorney's intention to apply for registration (by order of precedence):
- the donor's husband or wife;
- the donor's children;
- the donor's parents;
- the donor's brothers and sisters, whether of the whole or half blood;
- the widow or widower of a child of the donor;
- the donor's grandchildren;
- the children of the donor's brothers and sisters of the whole blood;
- the children of the donor's brothers and sisters of the half blood.
Not including the donor, more than three persons may be entitled to receive notice if there is more than one person falling within one of the categories listed above and at least one of those persons would be entitled to receive notice.
For example: If the donor has a wife and two children then the attorney only needs to notify those three persons. However, if the donor has a wife and one child then the attorney will also need to notify the donor's parents.
The prescribed form of notice is provided in the additional documents section of the print/download page.What statements do I need to complete this Power of Attorney?You will need statements from:
- a doctor verifying that in his/her opinion you had the mental capacity at the time that the document was executed to understand the effect of creating the power; and
- a solicitor that he/she is satisfied that you understood the effect of creating the power of attorney and that you were not acting under undue influence.