Power of Attorney UK: Everything You Need to Know 2026

Power of attorney in the UK, explained

Power of attorney is the legal arrangement that lets someone you choose act for you. This guide covers the whole subject for England and Wales: the types, what each one does, what it costs, how the process works, and the mistakes to avoid.

The terms, quickly

• Donor: the person making the power of attorney (you)
• Attorney: the person you appoint to act for you (not a lawyer; usually a spouse, adult child or friend)
• OPG: the Office of the Public Guardian, the government body that registers LPAs
• Mental capacity: the ability to understand and make a particular decision at the time it needs making

The three types

Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA)

The one most people mean, and the one this site exists for. There are two kinds, and they are separate documents:

• Property and financial affairs: bank accounts, bills, pensions, investments, buying and selling property, running a business. You choose whether it can be used as soon as it is registered or only once you lose capacity.
• Health and welfare: medical treatment, care arrangements, where you live, and (if you grant it) life-sustaining treatment decisions. It can only ever be used once you cannot make the decision yourself.

Most people make both. The two types are compared properly here.

Ordinary power of attorney

A temporary arrangement for a specific job, often used while someone is abroad or in hospital. It only works while you still have capacity, which is exactly when an LPA is not needed. It does not need OPG registration and it is not a substitute for an LPA.

Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA)

The old system, closed to new applicants since October 2007. An existing EPA is still valid, but it only covers finances. If you or a parent holds one, consider adding a health and welfare LPA alongside it.

Scotland and Northern Ireland run their own separate systems with different documents. Everything here applies to England and Wales only.

What it costs

Making an LPA can be free: the government's tool on GOV.UK is free, and so is ours — with the difference that a qualified estate planner rings you and checks your answers before you sign. Solicitors typically charge £300 to £650 per LPA.

The unavoidable cost is registration. The OPG charges £92 per LPA, so both types together cost £184, and a couple making all four documents pays £368. On certain means-tested benefits the fee is waived; on a gross income under £12,000 it is halved. The full cost picture is here.

The process, step by step

Decide what you need. If you own property or have savings, you need the financial LPA. If you care who makes your medical decisions, you need the welfare one. Most people do both at once.

Choose your attorneys. Up to four people, 18 or over, who you trust without reservation. If you appoint more than one, decide how they act: jointly (all must agree, and the LPA can fail if one drops out) or jointly and severally (any one can act, the more resilient choice for most families). Name a replacement attorney as a backup.

Choose a certificate provider. An independent person who confirms you understand the document and are not under pressure: either someone who has known you for two years, or a professional. Not family, and not your attorneys. Who qualifies, in detail.

Fill in the forms. Our free tool asks plain-English questions and produces the official OPG forms, then an estate planner rings you to check the answers.

Sign in the right order. The donor signs first, then the certificate provider, then the attorneys, each with a witness where the form requires one. Getting this order wrong is one of the most common reasons LPAs are rejected.

Register with the OPG. Post the forms with the fee. Registration currently takes roughly eight to ten weeks, and the LPA cannot be used until it is done. That is one of the best arguments for registering now rather than when a crisis arrives.

Choosing attorneys well

The role needs someone trustworthy, willing, and practically able to act. A few things people wish they had thought about sooner: an attorney who lives abroad can act but everything is slower; an undischarged bankrupt cannot act on a financial LPA; and an attorney who never knew they were appointed is no use in an emergency. Tell your attorneys, and tell them what you would want.

The safeguards

The system has protection built in. The certificate provider checks you are acting freely. You can name people to be notified when the LPA is registered, giving family a chance to raise concerns. Attorneys are legally bound by the Mental Capacity Act to act in your best interests. And the OPG investigates complaints about attorneys and can remove them through the courts.

The mistake that outranks all others

Waiting. An LPA can only be made while you have mental capacity. Lose it first, and your family's only route is a deputyship through the Court of Protection: slower, far more expensive, and decided by a judge instead of you.

Start your LPA — free to make, checked by a person before you sign. Or read how the whole service works first.