50-State Surveys › Power of Attorney Requirements by State
Power of Attorney Requirements by State
What does it take to execute a valid durable (financial) power of attorney in each state?
51 of 51 jurisdictions verified
every entry statute-checked, oldest 2026-07-04
What this survey covers
A power of attorney (POA) is a document in which one person (the principal) authorizes another (the agent, sometimes called an attorney-in-fact) to act for them. A durable power of attorney keeps working if the principal later becomes incapacitated, which is the main reason most people sign one.
Every state sets its own execution requirements: who must sign, whether the signature must be notarized, whether witnesses are required, and what happens when a POA signed in one state is used in another. Getting a formality wrong can mean a bank, title company, or county recorder refuses the document exactly when it is needed.
This survey answers one question, state by state: what does it take to execute a valid durable financial power of attorney? Each state's page states the rule in plain English, quotes the statute it comes from, and shows the date we last verified the statutory text.
The patterns across all 51 jurisdictions
Most states — roughly three in four — have adopted some version of the Uniform Power of Attorney Act (the modern 2006 uniform law, or its immediate predecessor). A notable minority never did and instead run their own execution scheme: New Jersey, Massachusetts, Indiana, Missouri, Minnesota, Kansas, Oregon, Tennessee, Mississippi, North Dakota, Rhode Island, and Louisiana each wrote (or in Louisiana's case, never separately wrote) their own rules, several of them predating the modern uniform law by decades. Louisiana is the deepest outlier of all: as a civil-law state, a power of attorney is a "mandate," governed by ordinary contract law, with no signature, notary, or witness formality at all unless the mandate authorizes an act — chiefly transferring real property — that the law itself requires be in a specific form.
Notarization is the dimension states vary on most, and the majority rule is not what most people assume. In most Uniform Power of Attorney Act states, notarizing the principal's signature is optional: it only creates a legal presumption that the signature is genuine, and an unnotarized signature is still fully valid. But a real cluster of states makes notarization mandatory for basic validity — Utah, Iowa, Nebraska, West Virginia, Maine, New Hampshire (for a general power of attorney), South Dakota, Alaska, and the District of Columbia all require acknowledgment before a notary or it isn't a valid power of attorney at all. A few more tie notarization specifically to durability rather than basic validity (Kansas, Missouri).
Witness requirements are a genuine minority pattern. Most states require no witnesses whatsoever. Arizona, Maryland, Connecticut, Delaware, South Carolina, and, until a 2023 modernization, Vermont are the outliers that require one or more witnesses — Maryland and Delaware combine a witness requirement with mandatory notarization, and Connecticut and South Carolina require witnesses on top of an acknowledgment step, making them the most formality-heavy states in the survey.
Default durability doesn't track UPOAA adoption as cleanly as expected. Most modern UPOAA states made a power of attorney durable unless it says otherwise. But several states that otherwise look like modern UPOAA jurisdictions — Washington, South Dakota, North Dakota, Alaska, Kansas, and Missouri — kept (or independently chose) the older rule: the document must contain specific trigger language for the agent's authority to survive the principal's incapacity. Rhode Island, Delaware, and Mississippi are the same way for unrelated historical reasons. Getting this backwards is the most consequential mistake a reader can make with this survey: assuming durability is automatic in a state that requires opt-in language means the power of attorney can silently stop working exactly when it's needed.
Real estate use almost always adds a step the everyday version of the document doesn't need, but that step lives outside the power of attorney act itself in most states — in the general deed-recording or conveyancing title — and the specifics vary widely: some states make recording the power of attorney itself mandatory before it can be used for a real estate transaction (Hawaii, South Carolina), most make it optional but require notarization if it is recorded, and a few impose no extra rule at all.
How to read the table
Each column is one requirement, answered the same way for every state, with the statutory citation compressed into the cell. Click a state for the full plain-English page: the requirements one by one, the traps people actually hit, and the verbatim statutory text with official source links.
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| State | Governing law | Who must sign | Notarization | Witnesses | Statutory form | Durable by default? | Springing POA allowed? | Real estate extras | Out-of-state POAs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama verified 2026-07-04 | Alabama Uniform Power of Attorney Act, Ala. Code §§ 26-1A-101 to -404 (Title 26, Ch. 1A, based on the UPOAA), applies to POAs executed on or after Jan. 1, 2012 (§ 26-1A-103(a)) | Principal, or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual directed by the principal to sign the principal's name (§ 26-1A-105) | Not required for basic validity; acknowledging the signature before a notary public or other individual authorized to take acknowledgments creates a presumption that the signature is genuine (§ 26-1A-105) | None required by the Act itself (§ 26-1A-105 names no witness requirement) | Yes — an optional statutory form is set out at § 26-1A-301, with a companion Agent's Certification form at § 26-1A-302 | Yes. A power of attorney to which the Act applies 'is durable, unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the incapacity of the principal' (§ 26-1A-104) | Yes (§ 26-1A-109(a)). If triggered by incapacity and no determiner is named, a physician or licensed psychologist (or, for non-medical incapacity, an attorney-at-law, judge, or governmental official) makes the determination (§ 26-1A-109(c)) | A power of attorney conferring authority to convey real property (or to satisfy a mortgage or other lien) may be proved or acknowledged and recorded 'in the same manner' as a conveyance itself, and is admissible as evidence to the same extent (Ala. Code § 35-4-28) | Yes. A power of attorney executed outside Alabama is valid in the state if its execution complied with Alabama law, with the law of the jurisdiction that governs its meaning and effect under § 26-1A-107, or with the federal military power of attorney statute (§ 26-1A-106(c)) |
| Alaska verified 2026-07-04 | Alaska's own power-of-attorney article, AS 13.26.600-.695 (effective January 1, 2017, enacted by 2016 SLA ch. 60 (SCS CSHB 8)), part of Title 13's chapter on protection of minors and incapacitated persons; Alaska has not adopted the national Uniform Power of Attorney Act's full 2006 text | The principal signs the power of attorney, or, if physically unable to sign, directs another individual to sign the principal's name in the principal's conscious presence (§ 13.26.600(a)(1)); a notary public may treat that direction, made in the notary's presence, as satisfying the signing requirement (§ 13.26.600(b)) | Mandatory for basic validity, not merely a presumption aid: the principal must 'acknowledge the signature before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments' (§ 13.26.600(a)(2)) | None required by statute. Section 13.26.600 conditions validity only on signature and notarial acknowledgment | Yes — an optional 'General Power of Attorney' statutory form at § 13.26.645, with additional optional provisions at § 13.26.650 and interpretation rules at § 13.26.665; the form itself includes check-boxes for choosing durability and springing effect | No. Under § 13.26.620(a)(2), a power of attorney terminates on the principal's incapacity 'if the power of attorney is not durable.' Section 13.26.675(a) makes a power of attorney durable only if the writing contains the words 'This power of attorney shall become effective upon the incapacity of the principal,' or 'This power of attorney shall not be affected by the subsequent incapacity of the principal,' or substantially similar words showing that intent | Yes, by the first quoted formula in § 13.26.675(a) itself ('shall become effective upon the incapacity of the principal'). The statutory form's completion rules separately provide that if the principal fails to indicate an effective date, the document takes effect on signing (§ 13.26.660(2)), and if the principal fails to address the effect of later incapacity, it is revoked by incapacity rather than surviving it (§ 13.26.660(3)) | AS 13.26.600-.695 imposes no recording requirement of its own. If an agent uses the power of attorney to convey Alaska land, the resulting conveyance must be acknowledged before an authorized officer (or proved) like any other conveyance before it can be recorded (§ 34.15.150(a)), and the general property-recording chapter's formal requisites and place-of-recording rules apply (AS 40.17) | AS 13.26.600-.695 contains no choice-of-law or out-of-state-recognition provision addressing whether Alaska recognizes a power of attorney validly executed under another state's law |
| Arizona verified 2026-07-04 | Arizona Revised Statutes Title 14, Chapter 5, Article 5 (§§ 14-5501 to 14-5507); Arizona has not adopted the Uniform Power of Attorney Act | Signed or marked by the principal, or signed in the principal's name by another individual in the principal's conscious presence and at the principal's direction (§ 14-5501(D)(2)) | Required for validity, and required together with a witness (not as an alternative to one): the instrument must be acknowledged by the principal and attested by affidavit of the witness before a notary public, evidenced by the notary's certificate under official seal (§ 14-5501(D)(4)) | One witness required, who must be someone other than the agent, the agent's spouse, the agent's children, or the notary public; the witness swears an affidavit before the same notary (§ 14-5501(D)(3)-(4)) | No fill-in form for granting powers — the statute prescribes only the notary/witness acknowledgment and affidavit language that the certificate must follow 'in substantially the following form' (§ 14-5501(D)(4)) | No — the instrument must contain words demonstrating the principal's intent that authority continue despite later disability or incapacity and regardless of elapsed time (unless it states a definite termination time); the statute supplies suggested wording (§ 14-5501(A)-(B)) | Yes — the same required intent language may instead state that the power 'is effective on the disability or incapacity of the principal,' letting it spring into effect rather than starting immediately (§ 14-5501(B)(2)) | No separate execution step for the power of attorney itself; a sworn continuance-of-authority affidavit by the agent is separately recordable alongside a recordable instrument when the transaction requires one (§ 14-5505(B)) | Yes — a power of attorney executed in another U.S. jurisdiction is valid in Arizona if it was validly executed in the jurisdiction where it was created (§ 14-5501(C)) |
| Arkansas verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act, Ark. Code Ann. §§ 28-68-101 to 28-68-406 (Act 805 of 2011, eff. 2012-01-01) | Principal, or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual directed to sign the principal's name (§ 28-68-105) | Not mandatory for validity; a signature acknowledged before a notary is presumed genuine (§ 28-68-105) | None required by statute | Yes — optional statutory form power of attorney (§ 28-68-301); using it is not mandatory | Yes. Durable unless the document expressly provides it terminates on the principal's incapacity (§ 28-68-104) | Yes; effective when executed unless the document states a future date or event, and the principal may name someone to certify the event occurred (§ 28-68-109) | A POA that conveys real estate or affects it must be acknowledged or proved, certified, and recorded with the deed (Ark. Code § 18-12-501) | Yes — a POA executed outside Arkansas is valid here if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that governs its meaning and effect, or with the federal military-POA statute (§ 28-68-106(c)) |
| California verified 2026-07-04 | Power of Attorney Law, Cal. Prob. Code §§ 4000–4545 (California's own 1994 act, not the UPOAA) | Principal, or another adult in the principal's presence and at the principal's direction; document must be dated (Prob. Code § 4121) | Not mandatory for validity: notary OR two witnesses (§ 4121(c)); exception — the statutory form itself must be acknowledged (§ 4402(c)) | Two adult witnesses as the alternative to a notary; the agent may not be a witness; each must witness the signing or the principal's acknowledgment of it (§ 4122) | Yes — optional Uniform Statutory Form Power of Attorney (Prob. Code § 4401); valid if wording substantially complies, form is completed, and signature is acknowledged (§ 4402) | No. Durable only with express language, e.g. “This power of attorney shall not be affected by subsequent incapacity of the principal” or similar words (§ 4124) | Yes (§ 4030); principal may name person(s) whose written declaration under penalty of perjury conclusively establishes that the trigger occurred (§ 4129) | To be recorded, the POA must be acknowledged; subscribing-witness proof is not accepted for POAs (Gov't Code § 27287). A POA to execute a mortgage must be recorded (Civ. Code § 2933) | Yes — a durable POA executed in compliance with the law of the state where it was signed (or with California law) is valid and enforceable in California (§ 4053) |
| Colorado verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act, C.R.S. Title 15, Article 14, Part 7 (§§ 15-14-701 to -745), effective January 1, 2010 (§ 15-14-701, § 15-14-706(1)) | Signed by the principal, or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual directed by the principal to sign the principal's name on the power of attorney (§ 15-14-705) | Optional, not required for validity: a signature is only presumed to be genuine if the principal acknowledges it before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments (§ 15-14-705) | Not required — Part 7 has no witness requirement for execution (§ 15-14-705) | Yes — the State of Colorado Statutory Form Power of Attorney (§ 15-14-741) | Yes, for a power of attorney created on or after January 1, 2010: durable unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the principal's incapacity; a power of attorney existing on December 31, 2009 is durable only if it was durable under the prior law it was made under (§ 15-14-704) | Yes — effective when executed unless the principal states a future date or event/contingency; the principal may designate someone to determine that occurred, with statutory fallback determiners for incapacity (a physician or licensed psychologist, or an attorney-at-law, judge, or appropriate governmental official) (§ 15-14-709) | Part 7 adds no extra execution step, but a power of attorney used to convey, encumber, or affect real property may be recorded with the county clerk and recorder like a deed; Colorado is a race-notice state, so an unrecorded power of attorney is not valid against a later party who records first (§ 38-35-109(1)) | Yes — a power of attorney executed outside Colorado is valid here if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that determines its meaning and effect, or with the federal military power of attorney statute (§ 15-14-706(3)) |
| Connecticut verified 2026-07-04 | Connecticut Uniform Power of Attorney Act, Conn. Gen. Stat. §§ 1-350 to 1-353b (P.A. 15-240, eff. Oct. 1, 2016, as amended by P.A. 21-39) | Dated and signed by the principal, or in the principal's conscious physical presence by another individual directed by the principal to sign the principal's name (§ 1-350d) | Not required for basic validity; a signature is presumed genuine if acknowledged before a notary public, a commissioner of the Superior Court, or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments (§ 1-350d) | Two witnesses are required for every power of attorney, not just as an alternative to a notary (§ 1-350d) — a departure from the standard UPOAA notary-or-witness choice | Yes — an optional short form and long form are set out at § 1-352, plus a separate optional agent's certification form at § 1-352a | Yes. A power of attorney is durable unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the principal's incapacity (§ 1-350c) | Yes. Effective when executed unless the principal states a future date or event; the principal may name who determines the event occurred, with two independent physicians or a judge as fallback for an incapacity determination (§ 1-350h) | A power of attorney used to execute a conveyance must be recorded with the deed in the land records of the town where the property lies, unless it was already recorded there and the deed refers to it (Conn. Gen. Stat. § 47-10(a)) | Yes. A POA executed elsewhere is valid in Connecticut if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that governs its meaning and effect under § 1-350f, or with the federal military power of attorney statute (§ 1-350e(c)) |
| Delaware verified 2026-07-04 | Durable Personal Powers of Attorney Act, 12 Del. C. ch. 49A (§§ 49A-101 to -217+), enacted 2010 (77 Del. Laws c. 467); governs a power of attorney executed by an individual acting for himself or herself. A separate, older Chapter 49 (Durable Powers of Attorney) continues to govern durable powers of attorney that chapter 49A excludes, such as those granted by someone acting in a fiduciary or entity-representative capacity | Principal, or another individual subscribing the principal's name in the principal's presence and at the principal's express direction (§ 49A-105(a)(2)) | Mandatory: the power of attorney must be 'signed in the presence of a notarial officer' (§ 49A-105(a)(4)) | Mandatory, in addition to notarization, not as an alternative: one adult witness who is neither related to the principal by blood, marriage, or adoption, nor entitled to any portion of the principal's estate under the principal's then-existing will, codicil, or trust instrument (§ 49A-105(a)(5)) | Yes — optional Durable Personal Power of Attorney Form at § 49A-301, with a companion Agent's Certification form at § 49A-114; a document that varies from the statutory form is not invalid solely because of that variance (§ 49A-301) | No default. A power of attorney is durable only if it contains words showing the principal's intent that it survive incapacity — e.g., 'This power of attorney shall not be affected by the subsequent incapacity of the principal' or similar language (§ 49A-104) | Yes (§ 49A-109(a)). The principal may authorize one or more persons to determine in writing that a triggering event occurred; if the power becomes effective on incapacity and no one is authorized (or the person authorized can't or won't decide), a physician or the Court of Chancery (or other court of competent jurisdiction) makes the incapacity determination (§ 49A-109(c)) | No POA-specific recording rule inside chapter 49A, but a 'letter of attorney concerning lands or tenements,' once acknowledged or proved and duly certified, is recorded in the recorder's office for the county where the land sits, the same way a deed is (25 Del. C. § 151); an unrecorded letter of attorney is not itself usable as evidence (25 Del. C. § 155) | Limited. A personal power of attorney is validly executed if it complies with § 49A-105, UNLESS the document itself provides that it is governed by another jurisdiction's law, in which case it must comply with that other jurisdiction's law instead (§ 49A-106(a)) — Delaware has no default rule recognizing a POA merely because it was validly executed where signed, absent that election |
| District of Columbia verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act of 2022, D.C. Code ch. 26 of Title 21 (§§ 21-2601.01 to 21-2604.03), enacted by D.C. Law 24-244 (B24-0121) and effective February 23, 2023; applies to powers of attorney executed on or after that date | The principal signs the power of attorney, or, in the principal's conscious presence, directs another individual to sign the principal's name on it (§ 21-2601.05(a)) | Mandatory for basic validity, an outlier among UPOAA jurisdictions: 'A power of attorney executed under this chapter is not valid unless it is acknowledged before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgment' (§ 21-2601.05(b)) -- DC's law also separately states that an acknowledged signature is 'presumed to be genuine' (§ 21-2601.05(a)), but subsection (b) makes acknowledgment a validity requirement, not just a presumption aid | None required by statute. Section 21-2601.05 conditions validity only on signature and notarial acknowledgment | Yes -- an optional 'District of Columbia Statutory Power of Attorney Form' at § 21-2603.01, with a companion optional Agent's Certification form at § 21-2603.02; DC's older 1998 Uniform Statutory Form Power of Attorney Act form (§ 21-2101) remains in the Code for powers executed before the 2023 effective date but is superseded going forward by the chapter 26 form | Yes. 'A power of attorney created under this chapter is durable unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the incapacity of the principal' (§ 21-2601.04) | Yes. The statutory form itself states 'This power of attorney is effective immediately unless I have stated otherwise in the Special Instructions' (§ 21-2603.01), and the companion Agent's Certification form (§ 21-2603.02) contemplates a power of attorney 'drafted to become effective upon the happening of an event or contingency'; chapter 26 does not name a mechanism for determining when that event or contingency (such as incapacity) has occurred, so the document should specify one | If the power of attorney authorizes the agent to sell, grant, or release an interest in real property, it 'shall be executed in the same manner as a deed and shall be recorded with or prior to the deed executed pursuant to the power of attorney,' and the deed must reference the power of attorney's recording data if the power of attorney was recorded first; the document must also carry a specific real-estate notice legend at the top of its front page (§ 21-2603.03) | Yes. A power of attorney executed outside the District is valid in DC if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that determines the power of attorney's meaning and effect (ordinarily the jurisdiction named in the document, or the jurisdiction of execution if none is named), or with the federal military power-of-attorney statute (§ 21-2601.06(c), § 21-2601.07) |
| Florida verified 2026-07-04 | Florida Power of Attorney Act, Fla. Stat. §§ 709.2101–709.2402 (2011 act based on the UPOAA, with significant Florida departures) | Principal; if the principal is physically unable to sign, the notary taking the acknowledgment may sign the principal's name (§ 709.2105(2)–(3)) | Required — the principal must acknowledge the POA before a notary public or other officer under Fla. Stat. § 695.03 (§ 709.2105(2)) | Two subscribing witnesses required, in addition to notarization (§ 709.2105(2)) | None. The Florida Power of Attorney Act (§§ 709.2101–709.2402) publishes no statutory form | No. Durable only with the words “This durable power of attorney is not terminated by subsequent incapacity of the principal except as provided in chapter 709, Florida Statutes,” or similar words (§ 709.2104) | No, for POAs executed on or after Oct. 1, 2011 (§ 709.2108(3)); exceptions: deployment-contingent military POAs (§ 709.2106(4)) and pre-Oct-2011 springing POAs, activated by physician affidavit (§ 709.2108(2)) | No extra execution step, but an original (not a copy) may be required for recording when the POA affects title to real property (§ 709.2106(5)); originals may be recorded with the clerk of the circuit court (§ 709.2106(6)) | Yes — valid if execution complied with the law of the state of execution; a third party may request an opinion of counsel about such a POA at the principal's expense (§ 709.2106(3)) |
| Georgia verified 2026-07-04 | Georgia Power of Attorney Act, O.C.G.A. §§ 10-6B-1 to 10-6B-81 (enacted 2017, renamed from 'Uniform Power of Attorney Act' in 2018; diverges from the model UPOAA on execution) | Principal, or another individual in the principal's presence at the principal's express direction (§ 10-6B-5(a)(1)) | Required for validity, not merely a presumption booster: the power of attorney must be attested by an officer under § 44-2-15 — a notary public, a judge of a court of record, a magistrate, or a clerk/deputy clerk of certain courts — almost always a notary in practice (§ 10-6B-5(a)(3)) | One competent witness required in addition to the notarizing officer; the witness cannot also be named as an agent in the document (§ 10-6B-5(a)(2)) | Yes — an optional form is set out in full (§ 10-6B-70) | Yes — durable unless the power of attorney expressly provides that it is terminated by the principal's incapacity (§ 10-6B-4) | Yes — effective when executed unless the principal states a future date or a future event/contingency; the principal may name who determines the trigger, with statutory fallbacks (a physician or licensed psychologist for incapacity; an attorney, judge, or government official if the principal is missing, detained, or abroad) (§ 10-6B-9) | No extra signing step: a power of attorney used to record a real-property conveyance must be 'in a form that complies with' the general deed-recording law, which the standard witness-plus-officer execution already satisfies; photocopies and electronic copies otherwise have the same effect as the original (§ 10-6B-6(c)) | Yes — a power of attorney executed outside Georgia is valid if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction governing its meaning and effect, or with the federal military power of attorney statute (§ 10-6B-6(b)) |
| Hawaii verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act, Haw. Rev. Stat. ch. 551E (enacted 2014, eff. Jan. 1, 2015) | Principal, or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual directed to sign the principal's name (§ 551E-3(b)) | Not mandatory for validity; a signature acknowledged before a notary is presumed genuine (§ 551E-3(b)) | None required by statute | Yes — optional Statutory Form Power of Attorney (§ 551E-51); using it is not mandatory | Yes. Durable unless the document expressly provides it terminates on the principal's incapacity (§ 551E-3(a)) | Yes; effective when executed unless the document states a future date or event, and the principal may name someone to certify the event occurred (§ 551E-5) | Mandatory. A power of attorney for the transfer of real property in Hawaii must be recorded in the Bureau of Conveyances, or it is not binding against third parties or conclusive of their rights (§ 502-84) | Yes — a POA executed outside Hawaii is valid here if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that governs its meaning and effect, or with the federal military-POA statute (§ 551E-3(d)) |
| Idaho verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act, Idaho Code §§ 15-12-101 to 15-12-403 (Title 15, Uniform Probate Code, Chapter 12; enacted 2008, amended 2017) | Principal, or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual directed to sign the principal's name (§ 15-12-105) | Not mandatory for basic validity; a signature acknowledged before a notary is presumed genuine (§ 15-12-105). Mandatory before the power of attorney can be recorded or used for a real-property instrument (§ 55-805; statutory form itself) | None required by statute | Yes — optional Idaho Statutory Form Power of Attorney (§ 15-12-301); using it is not mandatory | Yes. Durable unless the document expressly provides it terminates on the principal's incapacity (§ 15-12-104) | Yes; effective when executed unless the document states a future date or event, and the principal may name someone to certify the event occurred (§ 15-12-109) | A power of attorney authorizing an attorney-in-fact to execute a real estate instrument must itself be filed for record before that instrument can be recorded (§ 55-806), and recording requires acknowledgment (§ 55-805) | Yes — a POA executed outside Idaho is valid here if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that governs its meaning and effect, or with the federal military-POA statute (§ 15-12-106(3)) |
| Illinois verified 2026-07-04 | Illinois Power of Attorney Act, 755 ILCS 45 (art. II general provisions; art. III, the Statutory Short Form Power of Attorney for Property Law); Illinois' own act, not the UPOAA | Principal signs and dates; the statutory form's notice states the document will not take effect without the principal's signature (755 ILCS 45/3-3(c)–(d)) | Required — the principal's signature must be acknowledged before a notary public; on the statutory form the notary certifies that the principal appeared before the notary and the witness (755 ILCS 45/3-3(b), (d)) | At least one witness for POAs executed on or after June 9, 2000; the notary may not also sign as witness; the agent, the attending physician or mental-health provider, health-facility owners, and close relatives of the principal or agent are disqualified (755 ILCS 45/3-3(d), (f)) | Yes — the “statutory property power” (755 ILCS 45/3-3): a 14-point-type notice coversheet, the form, and a Notice to Agent; substantial compliance suffices, and other forms remain lawful | Yes — unless the agency states an earlier termination date, it continues until the principal's death notwithstanding lapse of time, the principal's disability or incapacity, or appointment of a guardian (755 ILCS 45/2-5) | Yes — the principal may specify the event or time when the agency begins (755 ILCS 45/2-4(a)); the statutory form's paragraph 6 offers delayed effectiveness, e.g. on a physician's written determination of incapacity (755 ILCS 45/3-3(d)) | POAs relating to or affecting title to real estate shall be recorded in the county where the real estate is situated (765 ILCS 5/28); officers who may take the acknowledgment are listed in 765 ILCS 5/20 | No express recognition provision; the Act governs every agency “whenever and wherever executed” when exercised in Illinois (755 ILCS 45/2-4(b)), and persons dealing with an agent may presume the document was validly executed (755 ILCS 45/2-8(c)) |
| Indiana verified 2026-07-04 | Indiana Power of Attorney Act, IC 30-5, applies to powers of attorney created after June 30, 1991 (§ 30-5-1-1); not based on the Uniform Power of Attorney Act | Signed by the principal, or by another person at the principal's direction, in the presence of either a notary public or attesting witnesses (§ 30-5-4-1(a)(4)) | An alternative to witnesses, not an additive requirement: the principal's signature must be made in the presence of a notary public OR in the presence of witnesses, principal's choice; if someone else signs at the principal's direction, the notary must state that fact (§ 30-5-4-1(a)(4), (b)) | Required only if the signature is not notarized: at least two attesting witnesses (§ 30-5-4-1.5(b)); the power of attorney is void if it cannot be proved without the testimony or signature of a witness who has an interest in it — named as attorney in fact/successor, given a beneficial interest, or the spouse or descendant of such a person (§ 30-5-4-1.3(c)-(e)) | No fill-in form for principals to sign; instead a power of attorney can incorporate the statute's list of powers by referring to their descriptive language or citing the specific section (§ 30-5-5-1(a)) | Yes — a power of attorney is not terminated by the principal's incapacity unless the document itself states otherwise (§ 30-5-10-3(a)) | Yes — a power of attorney may specify a future effective date or become effective on a future event; if the trigger is incapacity and no determiner is named (or that person cannot or will not act), a physician, licensed psychologist, or judge must set out the incapacity determination in writing (§ 30-5-4-2(b)-(c)) | No recording is required to use a power of attorney, except that an attorney in fact must record it before presenting any document that itself must be recorded; a recorded power of attorney must meet ordinary recording requirements (notary and preparation statements), though a witness-only (non-notarized) power of attorney can still be recorded if a signed witness 'proof' is attached (§ 30-5-3-3) | Yes — a power of attorney is valid in Indiana if it was valid when executed under this article, prior Indiana law, common law, the law of another state or foreign country, or the federal military power of attorney statute (§ 30-5-3-2) |
| Iowa verified 2026-07-04 | Iowa Uniform Power of Attorney Act, Iowa Code ch. 633B (§§ 633B.101–633B.403), eff. 2014-07-01 | Principal, or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual (other than any prospective agent) directed by the principal to sign the principal's name (§ 633B.105) | Required for validity, not merely a presumption: the power of attorney must be acknowledged before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments; the named agent may not notarize the principal's signature (§ 633B.105) | None required. Section 633B.105, the Act's execution section, requires only signature plus notarial acknowledgment, no witnesses | Yes — an optional statutory form is set out at § 633B.301, plus a separate optional agent's certification form at § 633B.302 | Yes. A power of attorney created under the Act is durable unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the principal's incapacity (§ 633B.104) | Yes. Effective when executed unless the principal states a future date or event; the principal may name who determines the event occurred (§ 633B.109) | No POA-specific recording rule; Iowa's Uniform Power of Attorney Act imposes no extra execution or recording step for real estate use beyond the general instrument-recording statute (Iowa Code § 558.41), and § 558.36 confirms an attorney-in-fact may personally acknowledge the deed's own execution | Yes. A POA executed elsewhere is valid in Iowa if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that determines its meaning and effect under § 633B.107, or with the federal military power of attorney statute (§ 633B.106(3)) |
| Kansas verified 2026-07-04 | Kansas Power of Attorney Act, K.S.A. 58-650 to 58-665 (Kansas's own act, not the UPOAA; enacted 2003, last amended 2021) | Principal, or an adult designee who signs the principal's name in the principal's presence and at the principal's direction, in front of a notary (K.S.A. 58-652(a)(3)) | Mandatory to be durable: the writing must be 'dated and acknowledged in the manner prescribed by the revised uniform law on notarial acts' (K.S.A. 58-652(a)(3)) | None required by statute | Effectively yes — a POA executed on/after 2021-07-01 is deemed sufficient if it substantially complies with the Kansas Judicial Council's power of attorney form, which the Act requires the council to develop (K.S.A. 58-652(f)); the form itself is not printed in the statute | No. The writing must be denominated a 'durable power of attorney' AND contain a prescribed durability statement (K.S.A. 58-652(a)(1)-(2)) | Yes; the grant of authority may be made effective only on a specified future date, event, or condition, and a third party may rely on the attorney in fact's affidavit that the trigger occurred (K.S.A. 58-652(e)) | Recording is not required for validity; a POA may optionally be recorded like a land conveyance, and any later revocation must be recorded the same way to be effective against a recorded POA (K.S.A. 58-652(c)) | Yes — a durable POA validly made under another state's durable power of attorney act is governed by that state's law and remains durable and enforceable in Kansas (K.S.A. 58-663(c)); the principal may also choose whichever of Kansas law, the law of their residence, or the law of the place of execution is most favorable (K.S.A. 58-663(d)) |
| Kentucky verified 2026-07-04 | Kentucky Uniform Power of Attorney Act (2006), KRS ch. 457 (§§ 457.010-.460), based on the national UPOAA; applies to powers of attorney executed on or after July 14, 2018 (§ 457.030) | Principal, or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual directed by the principal to sign the principal's name, with the reason for that method stated in the document (§ 457.050(1)) | Not required for validity; a signature is presumed genuine if the principal acknowledges it before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments (§ 457.050(2)) | None under current law. The Act as originally enacted in 2018 required two disinterested witnesses, but a 2020 amendment removed that requirement entirely — some older summaries still describe the repealed rule (§ 457.050, as amended 2020 Ky. Acts ch. 41) | Yes — an optional statutory form is set out at § 457.420, with a companion optional Agent's Certification form at § 457.430 | Yes. A power of attorney created under the chapter 'is durable unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the incapacity of the principal' (§ 457.040). But a later court appointment of a conservator or guardian over the principal's property automatically ends it unless the court orders it to remain in effect (§§ 457.080(2), 457.100(1)(c)) | Yes (§ 457.090(1)). If triggered by incapacity and no determiner is named, a physician, advanced practice registered nurse, qualifying licensed psychologist or social worker, attorney-at-law, or judge makes the determination (§ 457.090(3)); the specific social-worker licensing cross-reference is set to narrow slightly on July 15, 2026 under an already-enacted conforming amendment — see pending_legislation | A power of attorney used to convey or release real or personal property may be acknowledged, proved, and recorded like the conveyance itself; once recorded, it cannot be treated as revoked until a written revocation is likewise lodged for record, or a signed revocation memorandum is noted in the margin of the recorded power (KRS 382.370) | Yes. A power of attorney executed outside Kentucky is valid here if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that governs its meaning and effect under § 457.070, or with the federal military power of attorney statute (§ 457.060(3)) |
| Louisiana verified 2026-07-04 | Louisiana Civil Code Title XV, 'Of Mandate,' arts. 2989-3034; Louisiana never adopted the UPOAA — a power of attorney is a mandate (procuration), governed by general contract principles | No mandate-specific signature rule. A mandate is a contract requiring no particular form (art. 2993) unless it authorizes an act the law requires to be in a certain form, e.g., transferring immovable property (art. 1839) | Not required for an ordinary mandate. Required only when the authorized act itself demands an authentic act — e.g., a mandate to convey or mortgage immovable property must be an authentic act, executed before a notary and two witnesses (art. 1833), or an act under private signature (art. 1839) | None for an ordinary mandate. Two witnesses are required only when the authorized act must be an authentic act, such as a mandate to sell or mortgage immovable property (arts. 1833, 1839) | No. Louisiana publishes no optional statutory mandate or power-of-attorney form; the contract of mandate is governed by general obligations and contract law, not a fill-in template | Yes. Absent a contrary agreement, 'neither the contract nor the authority of the mandatary is terminated by the principal's incapacity, disability, or other condition' (art. 3026); there is no separate durability election | Not addressed by a mandate-specific article; general Civil Code rules on suspensive conditions (art. 1767) let a mandate, like any contract, become enforceable only once a stated future event occurs, but no mandate-law provision names a mechanism for determining incapacity the way other states' statutes do | A mandate authorizing the sale or other transfer of immovable property must itself be an authentic act or an act under private signature (art. 1839), and, like the underlying conveyance, has effect against third persons only once filed for registry in the parish where the property is located (art. 1839) | No mandate-specific choice-of-law article; Louisiana's general conflict-of-laws rules (Civil Code Book IV) determine which state's law governs a mandate's form and effect. Separately, a federally insured financial institution presented with a power of attorney, procuration, or mandate may rely on it as being in full force unless it receives written notice of revocation (La. R.S. § 6:311.1) |
| Maine verified 2026-07-04 | Maine Uniform Power of Attorney Act, 18-C M.R.S. Art. 5, Part 9, §§ 5-901 to 5-964 (UPOAA-based, enacted 2017) | Principal, or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual directed by the principal to sign the principal's name (§ 5-905(1)) | Mandatory for validity, not merely a presumption aid: 'not valid unless it is acknowledged before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments' (§ 5-905(1)) | None required by the Act | No general fill-in POA form. Part 9's only statutory form is an optional Agent's Certification (§ 5-951), used to certify facts to third parties after the POA already exists — it does not create the POA | Yes. Durable unless the document 'expressly provides that it is terminated by the incapacity of the principal' (§ 5-904); a durable POA must also carry mandatory statutory notices to the principal and agent (§ 5-905(2)) | Yes (§ 5-909(1)); the principal may name person(s) to determine in writing that the trigger occurred, or if incapacity and no one is named, a physician or an attorney/judge/government official makes that determination (§ 5-909(2)-(3)) | No separate execution step, but a POA used to convey real property is treated as a recordable conveyancing instrument: it must be acknowledged before recording like a deed (33 M.R.S. § 203), and § 353-A expressly lists 'a power of attorney' among the instruments this real-property recording scheme covers | Yes — a POA executed outside Maine is valid if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction indicated in the POA (or, if none indicated, the jurisdiction of execution), or with the federal military-POA statute (§ 5-906(4), § 5-907) |
| Maryland verified 2026-07-04 | Maryland General and Limited Power of Attorney Act, Est. & Trusts §§ 17-101 to 17-116, loosely modeled on but departing from the Uniform Power of Attorney Act (§ 17-116) | Signed by the principal, or by another person for the principal in the principal's physical presence and at the principal's express direction (§ 17-110(a)(2)) | Required, and required in addition to witnesses, not as an alternative: the principal's signature must be acknowledged before a notary public in the notary's physical or electronic presence (§ 17-110(a)(3)) | Required in addition to notarization: attested and signed by two or more adult witnesses who sign in the principal's presence and each other's (physically or electronically); the notary before whom the principal acknowledges the power of attorney may also serve as one of the two witnesses (§ 17-110(a)(4), (b)) | Yes — the Maryland Statutory Form Personal Financial Power of Attorney (§ 17-202) and the Maryland Statutory Form Limited Power of Attorney (§ 17-203); a person may not demand a different or additional form for authority granted in a statutory form power of attorney (§ 17-104(a)) | Yes — a power of attorney designated in writing is a durable power of attorney unless its terms provide otherwise (§ 17-105(c)) | Yes — effective when executed unless the principal states a future date or a future event/contingency; the principal may authorize someone to determine that the event occurred, with statutory fallback determiners for incapacity (a physician or licensed psychologist, or an attorney at law, judge, or governmental official) (§ 17-111(a)-(c)) | A power of attorney authorizing an agent to sell or grant property must be executed the same way as a deed and generally recorded before or with the deed made under it, with a narrow after-the-fact recording option if strict conditions are met (Real Prop. § 4-107(a)-(b)) | Yes — a power of attorney executed outside Maryland is valid and enforceable here as to persons dealing with the agent if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that determines its meaning and effect, or with the federal military power of attorney statute (§ 17-108(b)) |
| Massachusetts verified 2026-07-04 | Massachusetts Uniform Probate Code, M.G.L. c. 190B, Article V, Part 5 (§§ 5-501 to 5-507); Massachusetts has not adopted the Uniform Power of Attorney Act | No statutory signing ceremony beyond a writing designating the attorney in fact; the principal must put the appointment and the required durability wording in writing (§ 5-501(a)) | Not required for basic validity — the statute imposes no notarization or acknowledgment requirement. Mandatory only when the power of attorney is used to convey real estate, because 'the law relative to the acknowledgment and recording of deeds shall apply to letters of attorney for the conveyance of real estate' (G.L. c. 183, § 32) | None required by the durable power of attorney statute for basic validity | No — §§ 5-501 to 5-507 govern only durability, revocation, and third-party reliance; Massachusetts publishes no fill-in power of attorney form | No — a power of attorney is durable only if 'the writing contains the words' showing the principal's intent that authority continue despite later disability or incapacity and lapse of time, using the statute's suggested wording or similar words (§ 5-501(a)) | Yes — the same required wording may instead state that the power 'shall become effective upon the disability or incapacity of the principal,' letting it spring into effect later rather than immediately (§ 5-501(a)) | The general law on acknowledgment and recording of deeds applies to a power of attorney used to convey real estate, which requires it to be notarized (acknowledged) and recorded at the registry of deeds for the county where the property sits, just like the deed itself (G.L. c. 183, § 32) | No provision in c. 190B, Article V, Part 5 states a rule for recognizing an out-of-state power of attorney; none of §§ 5-501 to 5-507 address it |
| Michigan verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act, MCL 556.201–556.505 (UPOAA, effective July 1, 2024; replaced the durable-POA provisions formerly in the Estates and Protected Individuals Code, MCL 700.5501–.5505) | Principal, or another individual in the principal's conscious presence directed by the principal to sign the principal's name (MCL 556.205(1)) | Not required for basic validity, but required to make the power durable unless witnessed instead: acknowledgment before a notary public or other individual authorized to take acknowledgments is one of two ways to satisfy the durability requirement (MCL 556.205(2)) | Not required for basic validity; 2 witnesses (neither may be the nominated agent) are the alternative way to make the power durable, and are mandatory if someone other than the principal signed for them (MCL 556.205(2)–(3)) | Yes — optional statutory form at MCL 556.401; if the power is durable, the agent must also separately sign an 'Agent's Acknowledgment' of duties before acting (MCL 556.402) | No — durability is not automatic. A power created under the Act is durable only if executed with a notarized acknowledgment or 2 qualified witnesses; without one of those it is effective but not durable (MCL 556.204) | Yes — effective when executed unless the principal states a future date or event; the principal may name a determiner, with a statutory fallback of a physician or licensed psychologist, or an attorney, judge, or government official (MCL 556.209) | No mandatory recording of the power of attorney itself before a real estate transfer; a letter of attorney granting power to convey land MAY be recorded with the county register of deeds, and once recorded, a later revocation isn't effective against third parties unless the revocation is also recorded there (MCL 565.36–.37). The deed itself must still be independently acknowledged like any conveyance (MCL 565.8). | Yes — a power of attorney executed elsewhere is valid if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction governing its meaning and effect, the law of the principal's domicile at execution, or the federal military power of attorney statute; photocopies and electronic copies have the same effect as the original (MCL 556.206) |
| Minnesota verified 2026-07-04 | Minnesota's own Powers of Attorney chapter, Minn. Stat. ch. 523 (§§ 523.01-.26), enacted 1984 — not the Uniform Power of Attorney Act (§ 523.01) | Dated and signed by the principal; a signature made by another person on the principal's behalf, or by a mark, must additionally be acknowledged before a notary public (§ 523.01) | Not required for the principal's own signature under the general validity rule — only required when someone else signs on the principal's behalf or the principal signs by a mark (§ 523.01). Separately, to qualify specifically as the statutory short form, the principal's signature must always be acknowledged before a notary (§ 523.23, subd. 3) | None — chapter 523 sets no witness requirement for executing any power of attorney (§ 523.01, § 523.23) | Yes — the Statutory Short Form of General Power of Attorney (§ 523.23), but only if its wording is duplicated exactly, Parts First, Second, and Third are completed, and the principal's signature is acknowledged (§ 523.23, subd. 3) | Opt-in — a power of attorney is durable only if it contains language such as "This power of attorney shall not be affected by incapacity or incompetence of the principal" or similar wording showing that intent (§ 523.07) | Not addressed — chapter 523 names no mechanism, default effective date, or default determiner for a power of attorney that becomes effective only at a future date or event such as incapacity | A power of attorney used for a recordable real estate transaction is itself recordable, but only once "authenticated for record" in the same manner as any instrument affecting real estate: executed, acknowledged by the principal, with the acknowledgment certified (§ 523.05; § 507.24, subd. 1) | Yes — a power of attorney validly created under the law of another state or country is a validly executed power of attorney in Minnesota (§ 523.02) |
| Mississippi verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Durable Power of Attorney Act (the 1979 model act, not the modern 2006 UPOAA), Miss. Code Ann. §§ 87-3-101 to 87-3-113 (Laws 1994, ch. 336); general execution/recording rules for all powers of attorney sit separately at §§ 87-3-1 to 87-3-17 | No statutory signing ceremony is prescribed; a letter of attorney 'need only express plainly the authority conferred' (§ 87-3-7(1)) | Not required by statute for validity; § 87-3-1 makes acknowledgment optional ('may be acknowledged or proved ... and may be recorded') | None required by statute; the Act contains no witness provision for a financial power of attorney | No. Mississippi publishes no optional statutory form for a financial power of attorney | No. Durable only if the writing contains the statutory trigger words, e.g. 'This power of attorney shall not be affected by subsequent disability or incapacity of the principal, or lapse of time,' or similar words (§ 87-3-105) | Yes, but only through the durability definition itself: the alternative phrase 'This power of attorney shall become effective upon the disability or incapacity of the principal' both makes the POA durable and defers its start to incapacity (§ 87-3-105); the Act has no separate, general future-date/event provision | A letter of attorney used to convey land may be acknowledged or proved and recorded like a conveyance (§ 87-3-1); a conveyance so executed by the attorney in fact has the same force as if executed by the principal (§ 87-3-3) | No statute addresses this directly; the Act, unlike the modern UPOAA, contains no provision recognizing powers of attorney executed under another state's law |
| Missouri verified 2026-07-04 | Durable Power of Attorney Law of Missouri, §§ 404.700-404.735 (RSMo Ch. 404) (§ 404.700); not based on the Uniform Power of Attorney Act | Subscribed (signed) by the principal (§ 404.705(1)(3)); the chapter's execution formalities apply to making a power of attorney durable, not to an ordinary non-durable power of attorney, which the chapter otherwise leaves to general agency law (§ 404.703(8)) | Required for durability, not addressed for an ordinary power of attorney: to be durable, the document must be 'dated and acknowledged in the manner prescribed by law for conveyances of real estate' — the same notarial acknowledgment used for deeds (§ 404.705(1)(3)) | Not required — the Durable Power of Attorney Law imposes no witness requirement for validity or durability (§ 404.705) | No fill-in form for principals; the law only requires the denomination, one of two prescribed durability statements, and the acknowledgment described above (§ 404.705(1)) | No — durability is opt-in and requires all three: the document must be denominated a 'Durable Power of Attorney,' include one of two exact statutory statements, and be subscribed and acknowledged as prescribed for real estate conveyances (§ 404.705(1)) | Yes, recognized in the statute's own wording: one of the two approved durability statements addresses authority 'when effective,' contemplating a power of attorney that takes effect later; if there is a dispute, any interested person may petition the probate court to determine and declare whether the principal is disabled or incapacitated (§ 404.705(1)(2)(b), § 404.727(4)) | Not required to bind the principal and attorney in fact, except to the extent recording is required for real estate transactions: a power of attorney used to convey or affect real estate must be acknowledged, certified, and recorded the same as other instruments conveying real estate (§ 404.705(3), § 442.360) | Yes — a power of attorney is durable in Missouri if durable under the law of the place where executed, the principal's residence when executed, or a place designated in the document with a reasonable relationship to its purpose; a power of attorney made durable under another state's Uniform Durable Power of Attorney Act or similar law is governed by that state's law and enforceable in Missouri if durable there (§ 404.703(4), § 404.730(5)) |
| Montana verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act, Mont. Code Ann. tit. 72, ch. 31, part 3 (§§ 72-31-301 to -367), enacted 2011; applies to POAs executed on or after October 1, 2011 (§ 72-31-306(1)) | Principal, or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual directed by the principal to sign the principal's name (§ 72-31-305) | Not required for validity; a signature acknowledged before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments is presumed genuine (§ 72-31-305) | None required by statute | Yes — optional Montana Statutory Form Power of Attorney at § 72-31-353, with a companion optional Agent's Certification form at § 72-31-354 | Yes. A power of attorney created under the part 'is durable unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the incapacity of the principal' (§ 72-31-304) | Yes (§ 72-31-309(1)). The principal may name someone to certify in writing that a future event or incapacity has occurred; absent that, a physician (or, for the missing-or-abroad definition of incapacity, an attorney at law, judge, or government official) makes the determination (§ 72-31-309(2)-(3)) | No mandatory recording requirement for validity. A power of attorney to convey real estate is one of the instruments a county clerk must accept for recording on payment of the fee, alongside deeds and mortgages (§ 7-4-2613(1)(a)(i)) | Yes. A power of attorney executed outside Montana is valid here if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that governs its meaning and effect, or with the federal military power-of-attorney statute (§ 72-31-306(3)) |
| Nebraska verified 2026-07-04 | Nebraska Uniform Power of Attorney Act, Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 30-4001 to 30-4045 (enacted 2012, effective Jan. 1, 2013) | Principal, or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual directed to sign the principal's name, or by mark (§ 30-4005) | Mandatory for validity — the POA is not valid unless acknowledged before a notary public or other individual authorized to take acknowledgments (§ 30-4005) | None for a normally signed POA. If the principal signs by mark or has a notary sign for them, notary law requires 2 witnesses unaffected by the document (§ 64-105.02) | Yes — optional Nebraska Statutory Form Power of Attorney (§ 30-4041); using it is not mandatory | Yes, for POAs created after January 1, 2013. Durable unless the document expressly provides it terminates on the principal's incapacity (§ 30-4004) | Yes; effective when executed unless the document states a future date or event, and the principal may name someone to certify the event occurred (§ 30-4009) | Not mandatory for validity. A POA conveying real estate may (not must) be recorded with the county register of deeds once acknowledged, giving it the same evidentiary effect as a recorded deed (Neb. Rev. Stat. § 76-204) | Yes — a POA executed outside Nebraska is valid here if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that governs its meaning and effect, or with the federal military-POA statute (§ 30-4006(3)) |
| Nevada verified 2026-07-04 | Power of Attorney (Uniform Act), NRS 162A.200–162A.660 (Nevada's 2009 enactment of the UPOAA) | Principal, or in the principal's conscious presence by another adult directed to sign the principal's name (NRS 162A.220(1)) | Not mandatory for validity; a signature acknowledged before a notary is presumed genuine (NRS 162A.220(1)) | None required by statute for a financial POA (contrast: the separate health-care POA under NRS 162A.790 requires 2 witnesses or a notary) | Yes — optional Statutory Form Power of Attorney (NRS 162A.620); using it is not mandatory | Yes. Durable unless the document expressly provides it terminates on the principal's incapacity (NRS 162A.210) | Yes; effective immediately unless the POA states a future date or event, and the principal may name someone to certify the event occurred (NRS 162A.260) | A POA that conveys or affects real property, or authorizes the agent to do so, must be recorded like any other conveyance of real property (NRS 162A.480(2)) | Yes — a POA executed outside Nevada is valid here if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that governs its meaning and effect, or with the federal military-POA statute (NRS 162A.230(3)) |
| New Hampshire verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act, RSA 564-E:101 to 564-E:403 (enacted 2017, eff. Jan. 1, 2018) | Principal, or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual directed to sign the principal's name; must not be an electronic signature for a general POA, one to convey real estate, or the required disclosure statement (§ 564-E:105(a)-(b)) | Mandatory for a 'general power of attorney' (not limited to a specific transaction, purpose, or asset) and for a POA to convey real estate; NOT required for any other (narrower, transaction-specific) power of attorney (§ 564-E:105) | None required for any power of attorney under the Act | Yes — optional Statutory Power of Attorney (§ 564-E:301); using it is not mandatory, and the agent has no authority to act until signing a separate agent's acknowledgment attached to it | Yes. Durable unless the document expressly provides it terminates on the principal's incapacity (§ 564-E:104) | Yes; effective when executed unless the document states a future date or event, and the principal may name someone to certify the event occurred (§ 564-E:109) | A power of attorney to convey real estate must be signed and acknowledged, and may (not must) be recorded at the county registry of deeds the same way a deed is (RSA 477:9) | Yes — a POA executed outside New Hampshire is valid here if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that governs its meaning and effect, or with the federal military-POA statute (§ 564-E:106(c)) |
| New Jersey verified 2026-07-04 | Revised Durable Power of Attorney Act, N.J.S.A. 46:2B-8.1 to 46:2B-8.14 (enacted 2000; New Jersey has not adopted the Uniform Power of Attorney Act) | The principal — the Act doesn't provide a mechanism for another person to sign on the principal's behalf (N.J.S.A. 46:2B-8.9) | Required — the power of attorney must be signed and acknowledged before an authorized officer (notary public, attorney admitted in New Jersey, county clerk/register, or surrogate) in the manner set out in R.S. 46:14-2.1, which also permits remote online notarization via approved communication technology | None required — the formality is acknowledgment before an authorized officer; having a subscribing witness swear to the signing is only an alternative 'proof' method when acknowledgment isn't used, not an added requirement on top of it (R.S. 46:14-2.1(b)) | No — the Act sets requirements for what a power of attorney must contain and how it must be signed, but supplies no optional fill-in statutory form | No — a power of attorney is durable only if it contains the statutory language (or similar words) showing the principal's intent that it survive incapacity; without that language it is not durable (N.J.S.A. 46:2B-8.2(b)) | Yes — the same durability clause can instead say the power 'shall become effective upon the disability or incapacity of the principal,' making it springing rather than immediate (N.J.S.A. 46:2B-8.2(b)); the Act does not supply a default mechanism for determining incapacity, leaving that to the document | Not required by the Act — no statute requires recording the power of attorney itself before a real estate transfer; the deed the agent executes must still independently satisfy Title 46's acknowledgment requirements like any conveyance (R.S. 46:14-2.1) | Not addressed by a specific statute — unlike the Uniform Power of Attorney Act, New Jersey's Revised Durable Power of Attorney Act contains no choice-of-law or out-of-state-execution provision |
| New Mexico verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act, NMSA 1978 §§ 45-5B-101 to 45-5B-403 (Chapter 45, Uniform Probate Code, Article 5B; enacted 2007, recompiled 2011) | Principal, or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual directed to sign the principal's name (§ 45-5B-105) | Not mandatory for validity; a signature acknowledged before a notary is presumed genuine (§ 45-5B-105) | None required by statute | Yes — optional Statutory Form Power of Attorney (§ 45-5B-301); using it is not mandatory | Yes. Durable unless the document expressly provides it terminates on the principal's incapacity (§ 45-5B-104) | Yes; effective when executed unless the document states a future date or event, and the principal may name someone to certify the event occurred (§ 45-5B-109) | A POA authorizing a conveyance of real estate, or by which real estate may be affected, must be acknowledged, certified, filed, and recorded like other conveyances (NMSA § 47-1-7) | Yes — a POA executed outside New Mexico is valid here if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that governs its meaning and effect, or with the federal military-POA statute (§ 45-5B-106(C)) |
| New York verified 2026-07-04 | N.Y. Gen. Oblig. Law art. 5, title 15 (§§ 5-1501 – 5-1514); New York's own act, not the UPOAA, substantially revised effective June 13, 2021 | Principal signs, initials, and dates (or a person other than the agent signs the principal's name at the principal's direction, in their presence); each agent must also sign and date (§ 5-1501B(1)(b)–(c)) | Required — the principal's and each agent's signatures must be acknowledged in the manner prescribed for the acknowledgment of a conveyance of real property (§ 5-1501B(1)(b)–(c)) | Two witnesses, who may not be named as agents or as permissible recipients of gifts; the notary taking the acknowledgment may serve as one of the two (§ 5-1501B(1)(b)) | Yes — statutory short form at Gen. Oblig. Law § 5-1513; every POA must substantially conform to its “Caution to the Principal” and “Important Information for the Agent” wording (§ 5-1501B(1)(d)) | Yes — “A power of attorney is durable unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the incapacity of the principal” (§ 5-1501A(1)) | Yes — may take effect on a stated date or contingency; a written declaration by a person identified in the document that the contingency occurred satisfies the requirement (§ 5-1501B(3)(b)) | Nothing extra at signing (every POA is already acknowledged like a deed); a POA containing a power to convey real property may be recorded with the county recording officer (Real Prop. Law § 294(1)) | Yes — a POA executed in another jurisdiction in compliance with that jurisdiction's law or New York law is valid in New York, regardless of the principal's domicile (§ 5-1512) |
| North Carolina verified 2026-07-04 | North Carolina Uniform Power of Attorney Act, G.S. Chapter 32C (UPOAA, effective January 1, 2018) | Principal, or another individual in the principal's conscious presence directed by the principal to sign the principal's name (G.S. 32C-1-105) | Required for validity — the power of attorney must be acknowledged before a notary public or other individual authorized to take acknowledgments, not merely signed (G.S. 32C-1-105) | None required — G.S. 32C-1-105 requires only signature and acknowledgment; the statutory form has no witness line, only a notary block | Yes — optional, nonexclusive statutory short form at G.S. 32C-3-301, plus a separate limited form for real estate transactions at G.S. 32C-3-303; gifts, survivorship changes, and other listed acts need express, initialed authority | Yes — durable unless the instrument expressly provides that it terminates on the principal's incapacity (G.S. 32C-1-104) | Yes — effective when executed unless the principal states a future date or event; the principal may name who determines that the event occurred, with a statutory fallback of two examining physicians/psychologists, or an attorney, judge, or government official for incapacity (G.S. 32C-1-109) | Before an agent transfers real property, the power of attorney or a certified copy must be registered with the register of deeds in the county where the principal is domiciled or the property lies; late recording relates back and does not void the transfer, but is an infraction (G.S. 47-28) | Yes — a power of attorney executed elsewhere is valid if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that governs its meaning and effect, or with the federal military power of attorney statute; photocopies and electronic copies have the same effect as the original (G.S. 32C-1-106) |
| North Dakota verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Durable Power of Attorney Act (the 1979 Uniform Probate Code version), N.D.C.C. ch. 30.1-30 (§§ 30.1-30-01 to -06); North Dakota never adopted the modern 2006 Uniform Power of Attorney Act | Chapter 30.1-30 imposes no signature ceremony of its own — it only requires that the durable power of attorney be 'in writing' and contain the statutory durability words (§ 30.1-30-01). General agency law separately requires written authorization only when the underlying act itself must be in writing (N.D.C.C. § 3-02-06) | Not required for basic validity — the Century Code names no notary requirement for a financial power of attorney. Notarization (acknowledgment) becomes mandatory only if the power of attorney is to be recorded, since an instrument's execution must be established by acknowledgment before recording (§ 47-19-03) | None required by statute for validity. Recording an unacknowledged instrument can alternatively be proved by a subscribing witness (§ 47-19-21, § 47-19-22), but that is a recording-proof alternative, not a witness requirement for the power of attorney itself | No. Chapter 30.1-30 publishes no statutory or safe-harbor power-of-attorney form; the North Dakota Court System separately offers a non-statutory self-help 'General Durable Power of Attorney' convenience form | No. A power of attorney is durable only if the writing contains the words 'This power of attorney is not affected by subsequent disability or incapacity of the principal or by lapse of time,' or 'This power of attorney becomes effective upon the disability or incapacity of the principal,' or similar words showing that intent (§ 30.1-30-01) | Yes, by the second quoted formula in § 30.1-30-01 itself ('becomes effective upon the disability or incapacity of the principal'). Chapter 30.1-30 names no mechanism for determining when incapacity has occurred | Recording is permissive, not mandatory, for any instrument affecting real property (§ 47-19-01). If the power of attorney IS recorded, its execution must first be established by acknowledgment (or, if unacknowledged, by a subscribing witness or handwriting proof) before the recorder may record it (§ 47-19-03); a later revocation of a recorded power must itself be acknowledged, certified, and recorded in the same office (§ 47-19-44) | Chapter 30.1-30 contains no choice-of-law or out-of-state-recognition provision for a power of attorney's execution |
| Ohio verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act, Ohio Rev. Code §§ 1337.21–1337.64 (UPOAA, effective March 22, 2012) | Principal, or another individual in the principal's conscious presence directed by the principal to sign the principal's name (§ 1337.25) | Not required for validity; an acknowledged signature is presumed genuine (§ 1337.25). Required in practice for real estate: a POA used for a real property instrument must be acknowledged (§ 1337.04(B)) | None required — § 1337.25 requires only the (signed) record; no witness provision | Yes — optional statutory form at § 1337.60 (initialed subjects including digital assets; gifts and other listed actions need express, initialed authority); its execution block is signature plus notary acknowledgment | Yes — “durable unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the incapacity of the principal” (§ 1337.24) | Yes — effective when executed unless it states a future date or contingency; the principal may name who determines the trigger, with statutory fallbacks (physician or psychologist; attorney, judge, or official) (§ 1337.29) | A POA used to execute a deed, mortgage, land installment contract, or lease must be executed and acknowledged before that instrument and recorded with the county recorder before the instrument is recorded; late recording can be cured by affidavit (§ 1337.04) | Yes — valid if execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that determines the POA's meaning and effect, or with 10 U.S.C. § 1044b; photocopies have the same effect as originals (§ 1337.26(C)–(D)) |
| Oklahoma verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act, Okla. Stat. tit. 58, §§ 3001–3045 (Laws 2021, c. 332, eff. Nov. 1, 2021), replacing the former Uniform Durable Power of Attorney Act | Principal, or another individual in the principal's conscious presence and at the principal's direction (§ 3005) | Not required for basic validity; a signature is merely presumed genuine if the principal acknowledges it before a notary public or other authorized officer (§ 3005) | None required. Section 3005, the Act's execution section, names only a signature requirement and an optional notarial acknowledgment — no witnesses | Yes — an optional statutory form is set out at § 3041; a document substantially in that form has the meaning and effect the Act prescribes | Yes. A power of attorney created under the Act is durable unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the principal's incapacity (§ 3004) | Yes. Effective when executed unless the principal states a future date or event; the principal may authorize someone to determine the event occurred, with a physician or licensed psychologist as fallback for an incapacity determination (§ 3009) | To convey real estate or execute/release a mortgage, the POA itself must be executed, acknowledged, and recorded in the county where the land sits before any deed, mortgage, or release under it can be recorded (16 O.S. § 20) | Yes. A POA executed elsewhere is valid in Oklahoma if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction indicated in the document (or, absent an indication, the jurisdiction of execution) under § 3007, or with the federal military power of attorney statute (§ 3006(C)) |
| Oregon verified 2026-07-04 | ORS 127.002–127.045 (Oregon's own short chapter; Oregon never adopted the Uniform Power of Attorney Act) | Principal designates the agent "by a power of attorney in writing" (ORS 127.005(1)); the statute does not separately spell out a signature, dating, or execution ceremony | Not required for basic validity; required only to record the document for a real estate transaction, via the general conveyance-acknowledgment statute (ORS 93.670(1)) | None required anywhere in ORS 127.002–127.045 for a financial power of attorney (the 2-witness-or-notary rule in ORS 127.515 applies only to health care advance directives, a separate topic) | None. Chapter 127's only statutory forms (ORS 127.527, 127.529) are for the health care advance directive; no fill-in form exists for a financial power of attorney | Yes. The agent's powers survive the principal becoming "financially incapable" unless the power of attorney itself contains words that "delay or limit the period of time of its effectiveness" (ORS 127.005(1)) | Yes. The document may become effective at a future time or event, such as incapacity; it may name who decides the event occurred, and if no one is named or willing, "any physician" may make that determination in writing (ORS 127.005(2)-(3)) | To use the POA to convey land, it must be acknowledged (notarized) in the manner used for conveyances before the county clerk may record it; once recorded, it is not treated as revoked unless the revocation is also recorded there (ORS 93.670) | No provision in the financial-POA chapter (ORS 127.002–127.045). Oregon's only statutory out-of-state-execution clause is in the health care advance directive statute (ORS 127.515(3)), outside this topic's scope |
| Pennsylvania verified 2026-07-04 | 20 Pa. Cons. Stat. ch. 56 (§§ 5601–5614); Pennsylvania's own chapter, extensively revised by Act 95 of 2014 (execution rules effective Jan. 1, 2015) | Principal signs and dates, by signature or mark; another individual may sign at the principal's specific direction if the principal is unable (§ 5601(b)(1)) | Required for POAs executed on or after Jan. 1, 2015 — acknowledged before a notary or other authorized officer, who may not be the designated agent (§ 5601(b)(3)(i)) | Two witnesses, each 18 or older; a witness may not be the agent, the notary, or the individual who signed for the principal (§ 5601(b)(3)(ii)) | No complete statutory form. The statute mandates a capital-letters notice signed by the principal (§ 5601(c)) and an agent's acknowledgment (§ 5601(d)), and offers short phrases that incorporate defined powers by reference (§ 5602(a)) | Yes — “Unless specifically provided otherwise in the power of attorney, all powers of attorney shall be durable” (§ 5601.1) | Yes — the POA may provide that it becomes effective at a specified future time or on a specified contingency, including the principal's disability or incapacity (§ 5604(a)) | Recording is permissive: an acknowledged POA may be recorded with the recorder of deeds of the principal's county and each county where affected real property is located; certified copies have the force of the original (§ 5602(c)) | Yes — valid if execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction indicated in the POA (or, absent an indication, where executed), or with 10 U.S.C. § 1044b military POA rules (§ 5611) |
| Rhode Island verified 2026-07-04 | Rhode Island Short Form Power of Attorney Act, R.I. Gen. Laws ch. 18-16 (§§ 18-16-1 to -15, enacted 1996). Rhode Island never adopted the Uniform Power of Attorney Act; the chapter's rules govern the optional statutory short form only, and expressly permit using 'any other or different form' instead (§ 18-16-2(c)) | Principal signs, per the statutory short form's own signature block (§ 18-16-2(a)); the chapter's only signing rule is that the form be 'duly acknowledged by the principal' (§ 18-16-2(e)) | Mandatory for the statutory short form. Execution 'shall be duly acknowledged by the principal in the manner prescribed for the acknowledgement of a conveyance of real property' (§ 18-16-2(b)) — not a mere presumption aid. No statute addresses execution formalities for a POA that doesn't use the statutory form | None required by chapter 18-16's text. Some commercial form templates add witness signature lines as a practice matter, but the statute conditions the short form's validity only on notarial acknowledgment | Yes — the Rhode Island Short Form Power of Attorney, set out in full at § 18-16-2(a), is the state's only statutory form; using it is voluntary, not mandatory (§ 18-16-2(c)) | No default-durability rule exists. The short form is durable only because its own printed text includes the sentence 'This power of attorney shall not be affected by the subsequent incompetency of the donor' (§ 18-16-2(a)) — durability comes from including that clause, not from a statutory presumption | No provision. Chapter 18-16 does not address making the short form effective at a future date or event; the printed form (§ 18-16-2(a)) lets the principal set only an end date, not a start trigger | Mandatory when the POA is used for a real estate conveyance. The power itself, and any deed executed under it, 'shall be signed, acknowledged, delivered and recorded with like formalities prescribed by law concerning deeds from grantors in person' (§ 34-11-34); 'letters of attorney' are separately listed among instruments a town clerk records on request (§ 34-13-1(1)) | No provision. Chapter 18-16 contains no choice-of-law or out-of-state-validity rule for a power of attorney executed under another state's law |
| South Carolina verified 2026-07-04 | South Carolina Uniform Power of Attorney Act, S.C. Code §§ 62-8-101 to -403 (Title 62, Art. 8; based on the UPOAA but omits its optional statutory form), eff. Jan. 1, 2017 | Principal, or in the principal's presence by another individual directed by the principal to sign the principal's name (§ 62-8-105(1)) | Required, not optional: the document must be 'acknowledged or proved' under the deed-acknowledgment statute, § 30-5-30 — acknowledged before a notary or other qualifying officer, or proved by a subscribing witness's affidavit before one (§ 62-8-105(3)) | Two witnesses, attesting 'with the same formality and with the same requirements as to witnesses as a will' (§ 62-8-105(2), incorporating § 62-2-502); Article 8 names no separate witness disqualification | No. South Carolina's Act left out the UPOAA's optional statutory form; the only form provided is an optional Agent's Certification for third parties (§ 62-8-119(f)) | Yes. A power of attorney is durable unless it 'expressly provides that it is terminated by the incapacity of the principal' (§ 62-8-104) | Yes (§ 62-8-109(a)). If effective on incapacity and no determiner is named, a physician or licensed psychologist (or, for non-medical incapacity, an attorney, court, or government official) makes the determination (§ 62-8-109(a)(2)) | Broader than real estate: an agent cannot exercise ANY authority after the principal's incapacity until the power of attorney is recorded like a deed in the principal's county of residence (or, for an out-of-state principal, a county where the principal's property sits) — recording is a precondition on all post-incapacity use, not just real estate transactions (§ 62-8-109(c)) | Yes. A power of attorney executed elsewhere is valid in South Carolina if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction named in the document (or, if none is named, the jurisdiction where it was executed), or with the federal military power of attorney statute (§§ 62-8-106(c), 62-8-107) |
| South Dakota verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act, S.D. Codified Laws ch. 59-12 (§§ 59-12-1 to -43), enacted 2020 (SL 2020, ch. 214), based on the national UPOAA; applies to a power of attorney executed in South Dakota on or after July 1, 2020 (§ 59-12-5(1)) | Principal, or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual directed by the principal to sign the principal's name (§ 59-12-4) | Mandatory, not merely a presumption aid: 'Any signature under this section shall be acknowledged before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments' (§ 59-12-4) | None required by statute | Yes — optional South Dakota Statutory Form Power of Attorney at § 59-12-41, with companion optional Agent's Certification (§ 59-12-42) and Revocation (§ 59-12-43) forms | No. South Dakota kept the older opt-in model instead of the modern default-durable rule: the document must contain words such as 'This power of attorney shall not be affected by disability of the principal' or similar language for the agent's authority to survive the principal's later incapacity (§ 59-12-3); without it, incapacity ends the power like an ordinary, non-durable one | Yes (§ 59-12-8(1)). The principal may name one or more persons to certify in writing that a triggering event occurred; for an incapacity trigger with no one named, or the named person unable or unwilling, a physician or licensed psychologist (or, for the missing/detained/abroad definition of incapacity, an attorney at law, judge, or government official) makes the determination (§ 59-12-8(3)) | No mandatory recording requirement for validity. A power of attorney may be recorded with the register of deeds, and if so, must meet the same general document-formatting rules as any other recorded real estate instrument (§§ 43-28-23, 7-9-1, cross-referenced at § 59-12-41) | Yes. A power of attorney executed outside South Dakota is valid here if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that governs its meaning and effect, or with the federal military power-of-attorney statute (§ 59-12-5(3)) |
| Tennessee verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Durable Power of Attorney Act, Tenn. Code Ann. Title 34, Chapter 6, Part 1 (§§ 34-6-101 to 34-6-112), enacted 1983; a 2019 bill to repeal this part and adopt the newer Uniform Power of Attorney Act did not pass, so this older act remains current law | No signature ceremony beyond a writing designating the attorney in fact; Part 1 does not specify who must sign or how (§ 34-6-102) | Not required for basic validity — Part 1 imposes no notarization requirement. Matters only if the power of attorney is submitted for county registration: a registrable instrument's signature must be 'either acknowledged according to law or proved by at least two (2) subscribing witnesses' (§ 66-22-101(a)) | None required by Part 1 for basic validity; two subscribing witnesses are only an alternative to notarization if the power of attorney is registered with the county (§ 66-22-101(a)) | No fill-in form — Part 1 covers only durability, effect during incapacity, revocation, and an option to incorporate a separate statutory list of powers by reference (§ 34-6-108); it does not supply a template for the document itself | No — a power of attorney is durable only if 'the writing contains the words' showing the principal's intent that authority continue despite later disability or incapacity, using the statute's suggested wording or similar words (§ 34-6-102) | Yes — the same required wording may instead state that the power 'shall become effective upon the disability or incapacity of the principal,' letting it spring into effect later rather than immediately (§ 34-6-102) | Powers of attorney authorizing the sale, transfer, or conveyance of real or personal estate may be registered with the county register (§ 66-24-101(a)(2)); to be recordable, the signature must meet the same authentication standard as any registrable instrument — acknowledged or proved by two subscribing witnesses (§ 66-22-101(a)) | Not addressed by Part 1 — none of §§ 34-6-101 to 34-6-112 states a rule for recognizing a power of attorney executed under another state's law |
| Texas verified 2026-07-04 | Durable Power of Attorney Act, Tex. Est. Code, Title 2, Subtitle P (chs. 751–752); Texas's own act, revised in 2017 drawing in part on the UPOAA | Adult principal, or another adult in the principal's conscious presence and at the principal's direction (Est. Code § 751.0021(a)(2)) | Required. The instrument must be acknowledged before an officer authorized to take acknowledgments to deeds of conveyance and administer oaths (§ 751.0021(a)(4)) | None required; the statute's execution elements are a signed record, durability wording, and acknowledgment (§ 751.0021) | Yes — optional “statutory durable power of attorney” form set out in Est. Code § 752.051 | No. Must contain “This power of attorney is not affected by subsequent disability or incapacity of the principal,” the springing variant, or similar words (§ 751.0021(a)(3)) | Yes — the wording may make it effective on the principal's disability or incapacity (§ 751.0021(a)(3)); unless the document says otherwise, a physician's written certification establishes incapacity (§ 751.00201) | A POA used for a real-property transaction requiring a recorded instrument must be recorded with the county clerk where the property is located within 30 days after the instrument is filed (§ 751.151) | Yes — valid if, when executed, execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that determines the POA's meaning and effect (§ 751.0023(b)); photocopies have the effect of originals (§ 751.0023(c)) |
| Utah verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act, Utah Code §§ 75A-2-101 to 75A-2-303 (renumbered from Title 75, ch. 9 to Title 75A, ch. 2, eff. 2024-09-01; originally enacted 2016) | Principal, or another individual in the principal's conscious presence at the principal's direction; the principal must have sufficient mental capacity to understand that they are appointing an agent to handle their financial affairs (§ 75A-2-105(1)) | Required for validity, not merely a presumption: the power of attorney must be signed before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments (§ 75A-2-105(1)(a)(i)) | None required. Section 75A-2-105, the Act's execution section, requires only notarization, not witnesses | Yes — an optional statutory form is set out at § 75A-2-301 | Yes. A power of attorney created under the Act is durable unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the principal's incapacity (§ 75A-2-104) | Yes. Effective when executed unless the principal states a future date or event; the principal may name who determines the event occurred, with a physician (or, for certain incapacity types, an attorney, judge, or government official) as fallback (§ 75A-2-109) | The Act itself addresses this: for real property transactions, a photocopy or electronically transmitted copy of the power of attorney may be recorded in the county where the transaction lies, attached to an affidavit of the person accepting the power of attorney (§ 75A-2-106(4)) | Yes. A POA executed elsewhere is valid in Utah if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that determines its meaning and effect under § 75A-2-107, or with the federal military power of attorney statute (§ 75A-2-106(3)) |
| Vermont verified 2026-07-04 | Vermont Uniform Power of Attorney Act, 14 V.S.A. ch. 127 (§§ 4001-4063), enacted by 2023 Act No. 60 and effective July 1, 2023, replacing the repealed chapter 123 | The principal signs the power of attorney, or, in the principal's conscious presence, directs another individual to sign the principal's name on it (§ 4005) | Optional for basic validity, a presumption aid only: 'A signature on a power of attorney is presumed to be genuine if the principal acknowledges the signature before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments' (§ 4005). Vermont's statutory forms (§§ 4051, 4052) each include a built-in notarial acknowledgment block, so using them means notarizing in practice, but a non-statutory-form document is valid on signature alone | None required by statute for a general financial power of attorney (§ 4005 is silent on witnesses); Vermont's former chapter 123 required one witness, but chapter 127 dropped that requirement | Yes -- a general 'Vermont Statutory Form Power of Attorney' at § 4051, a 'Statutory Short Form Power of Attorney for Real Estate Transactions' at § 4052, and a companion optional Agent's Certification form at § 4053 | Yes. 'A power of attorney created under this chapter is durable unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the incapacity or unavailability of the principal' (§ 4004) | Yes (§ 4009(a)). The principal may authorize one or more people to determine in writing that a future event or contingency has occurred (§ 4009(b)); for an incapacity or unavailability trigger with no one named, or the named person unwilling or unable, a licensed health-care professional (for incapacity) or an attorney, judge, or appropriate government official (for unavailability) makes the determination (§ 4009(c)) | A deed or other conveyance of Vermont real property made through a power of attorney 'shall not be of any effect or admissible in evidence unless the power of attorney is signed, acknowledged, and recorded in the office where the deed is required to be recorded' -- ordinarily the town or city clerk where the land lies (27 V.S.A. § 305(a)); notarization, optional for the power of attorney's basic validity, becomes mandatory in this specific real-estate-use context | Yes. A power of attorney executed outside Vermont is valid in Vermont if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that determines its meaning and effect, or with the federal military power-of-attorney statute (§ 4006(c), § 4007); for real estate use specifically, § 305(b) separately preserves the enforceability of a power of attorney validly executed under another state's law |
| Virginia verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act, Va. Code §§ 64.2-1600–64.2-1642 (UPOAA, effective July 1, 2010) | Principal, or another individual in the principal's conscious presence directed by the principal to sign the principal's name (§ 64.2-1603) | Not required for basic validity; an acknowledged signature is presumed genuine (§ 64.2-1603). Effectively required for real estate use: a power of attorney must satisfy § 55.1-600's acknowledgment (or two-witness proof) requirement to be recordable | None required for basic validity; proof by two subscribing witnesses before the clerk is only an alternative to notarization when the power of attorney needs to be recordable (§ 55.1-600) | No — the Act does not include an optional power of attorney form for principals to fill in; Article 3 supplies only an optional Agent's Certification form for use after the fact (§ 64.2-1639) | Yes — a power of attorney created under the Act is durable unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the incapacity of the principal (§ 64.2-1602) | Yes — effective when executed unless it states a future date or event; the principal may name who determines the trigger, with statutory fallbacks (the attending physician plus a second physician or licensed clinical psychologist, or an attorney, judge, or governmental official) (§ 64.2-1607) | No separate mandate to record before a transfer, but a power of attorney must satisfy § 55.1-600 (acknowledgment, or proof by two witnesses, before the clerk) to be recordable at all — needed whenever the agent will sign a deed or other instrument affecting real property (§ 64.2-1603) | Yes — valid if execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that determines the power's meaning and effect, with the federal military power of attorney statute, or with Virginia law; photocopies and electronic copies have the same effect as the original (§ 64.2-1604) |
| Washington verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act, RCW ch. 11.125 (§§ 11.125.010–.903), effective January 1, 2017 | Signed and dated by the principal; a principal physically unable to sign may direct another to make a mark under RCW 11.12.030, or execute under RCW 64.08.100 (§ 11.125.050(1)-(2)) | Optional alternative, not mandatory: the signature must be either acknowledged before a notary public (or other officer authorized to take acknowledgments) OR attested by two or more qualifying witnesses — the principal's choice, not both (§ 11.125.050(1)) | Two or more competent witnesses required only if the signature is not notarized; a witness cannot be the principal's home care provider or a care provider at the principal's adult family home or long-term care facility, and must be unrelated to the principal or agent by blood, marriage, or state registered domestic partnership (§ 11.125.050(1)) | No — the chapter's only form is an agent's after-the-fact certification of validity for third parties, not a fill-in power of attorney for principals to sign (§ 11.125.430) | No — a departure from the usual UPOAA pattern: authority terminates on the principal's incapacity unless the writing contains words such as 'This power of attorney shall not be affected by disability of the principal' or 'shall become effective upon the disability of the principal' (§ 11.125.040) | Yes — effective when executed unless the principal states a future date or a future event/contingency; the principal may name a determiner, with statutory fallbacks (an unrelated physician or licensed psychologist who personally examined the principal, or a judge or appropriate governmental official) (§ 11.125.090) | None imposed by this chapter — no chapter 11.125 provision requires recording a power of attorney before or with a real-property conveyance; the real-property section only defines the scope of an agent's default authority once granted (§ 11.125.270) | Yes — a power of attorney executed elsewhere is valid in Washington if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction governing its meaning and effect, or with the federal military power of attorney statute (§ 11.125.060(3)) |
| West Virginia verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act, W. Va. Code §§ 39B-1-101 to 39B-4-403 (Chapter 39B; enacted 2012, eff. 2012-06-28) | Principal, or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual directed to sign the principal's name (§ 39B-1-105) | Mandatory for validity — the power of attorney 'must ... be acknowledged by the principal before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments' (§ 39B-1-105) | None required by the Uniform Power of Attorney Act itself | Yes — optional Statutory Form Power of Attorney (§ 39B-3-101); using it is not mandatory | Yes. Durable unless the document expressly provides it terminates on the principal's incapacity (§ 39B-1-104) | Yes; effective when executed unless the document states a future date or event, and the principal may name someone to certify the event occurred (§ 39B-1-109) | No POA-specific rule inside the Act. A power of attorney, like a deed, is admitted to record by the county clerk once acknowledged by the signer or proved by two witnesses (§ 39-1-2), the same general gateway used for real estate instruments | Yes — a POA executed outside West Virginia is valid here if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that governs its meaning and effect, or with the federal military-POA statute (§ 39B-1-106(c)) |
| Wisconsin verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney for Finances and Property Act, Wis. Stat. ch. 244 (§§ 244.01-244.64), effective September 1, 2010 (§ 244.01, § 244.06(1)) | Signed by the principal, or by an individual 18 or older at the principal's express direction and in the principal's physical presence (§ 244.05(1)) | Optional, not required for validity: a signature acknowledged before a notarial officer is only presumed to be genuine (§ 244.05(2)); it becomes practically necessary if the power of attorney will later be recorded for a real estate transaction, since any recorded instrument needs a notarial-style acknowledgment (Wis. Stat. § 706.05(2)(b)) | Not required for an ordinary, in-person signing; two remote witnesses supervised by a Wisconsin-licensed attorney are only one alternative path to a presumption of genuineness for a power of attorney signed remotely via 2-way, real-time audiovisual technology (§ 244.05(3)) | Yes — the Wisconsin Statutory Form Power of Attorney for Finances and Property (§ 244.61) | Yes — a power of attorney created under this chapter is durable unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the principal's incapacity (§ 244.04) | Yes — effective when executed unless the principal states a future date or a future event/contingency; the principal may authorize someone to determine that occurred, with statutory fallback determiners for incapacity (a licensed physician or psychologist, or an attorney at law, judge, or governmental official) (§ 244.09(1)-(3)) | Chapter 244 imposes no extra recording step of its own; if the power of attorney is recorded in connection with a real estate transaction, it must satisfy the state's general recording-authentication rule for any instrument affecting title to land, which requires signatures as required by law and an authentication (notarial acknowledgment) under Wis. Stat. § 706.06 or ch. 140 (Wis. Stat. § 706.05(2)(a)-(b)) | Yes — a power of attorney executed outside Wisconsin is valid here if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that determines its meaning and effect (§ 244.06(3)(a)); that jurisdiction is the one named in the power of attorney or, if none is named, the one where it was executed (§ 244.07(1)) |
| Wyoming verified 2026-07-04 | Uniform Power of Attorney Act, Wyo. Stat. tit. 3, ch. 9 (W.S. 3-9-101 to 3-9-403), enacted by 2017 Senate File 105 effective January 1, 2018, repealing Wyoming's older durable-power-of-attorney provisions | The principal signs the power of attorney, or, in the principal's conscious presence, directs another individual to sign the principal's name on it (W.S. 3-9-105) | Optional for basic validity, a presumption aid only: 'A signature on a power of attorney is presumed to be genuine if the principal acknowledges the signature before a notary public or other person authorized by law to take acknowledgments' (W.S. 3-9-105) | None required by statute. Section 3-9-105 conditions validity only on the principal's signature | Yes -- an optional 'State of Wyoming Statutory Form Power of Attorney' at W.S. 3-9-301, with a companion optional Agent's Certification form at W.S. 3-9-302 | Yes, for a power of attorney created on or after January 1, 2018: 'A power of attorney created on or after the effective date of this act is durable unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the incapacity of the principal' (W.S. 3-9-104(a)); one existing before that date is durable only if it was durable under the law in effect when it was executed (W.S. 3-9-104(b)) | Yes (W.S. 3-9-109(a)). The principal may name one or more persons to determine in writing that a future event or contingency has occurred (W.S. 3-9-109(b)); for an incapacity trigger with no one named, or the named person unable or unwilling, a physician or licensed psychologist makes the determination (W.S. 3-9-109(c)) | No mandatory recording requirement for validity. A letter of attorney containing a power to convey land 'only when acknowledged by such owner, may be recorded by the county clerk of any county in which the lands...may be situated,' after which the record 'may be read in evidence in the same manner and with like effect as a conveyance recorded in such county' (W.S. 34-1-104); recording is optional but, once recorded, a later revocation is not effective against the recorded power unless the revocation is itself recorded in the same office (W.S. 34-1-105) | Yes. A power of attorney executed outside Wyoming is valid in Wyoming if its execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction that determines the power of attorney's meaning and effect, or with certain other statutory or federal military power-of-attorney requirements (W.S. 3-9-106(c)) |
All 51 jurisdictions verified. Each state page shows the statute text and verification date behind its row.