Alaska: Power of Attorney Requirements

The short answer

Alaska's power-of-attorney law is its own article, AS 13.26.600 through
.695, effective January 1, 2017. Under § 13.26.600, a power of attorney is
valid once the principal signs it and acknowledges that signature before a
notary public — notarization is mandatory, not optional, and no witnesses
are required. Unlike states that follow the modern default-durable rule,
Alaska treats durability as an opt-in choice: under § 13.26.620 and
§ 13.26.675, a power of attorney ends when the principal becomes incapacitated
unless the writing contains specific words saying otherwise.

Requirements one by one

Governing law

Financial powers of attorney are governed by Alaska's own power-of-attorney
article, AS 13.26.600-.695, part of Title 13's chapter on protection of
minors and incapacitated persons and their property. The article took effect
January 1, 2017, replacing Alaska's older statutory-form-only power of
attorney law. Alaska has not adopted the full national Uniform Power of
Attorney Act text used by most other UPOAA states.

Who must sign

The principal signs the power of attorney. If the principal is physically
unable to sign, another individual may sign the principal's name instead, but
only while directed to do so "in the principal's conscious presence"
(§ 13.26.600(a)(1)). A notary public may treat that in-person direction,
made in the notary's own presence, as satisfying the signing requirement
(§ 13.26.600(b)).

Notarization

Mandatory. Section 13.26.600(a)(2) requires the principal to "acknowledge
the signature before a notary public or other individual authorized by law
to take acknowledgments." Without that acknowledgment, the signing
requirement itself is not satisfied.

Witnesses

None required by statute. Section 13.26.600 conditions validity only on the
principal's signature and its notarial acknowledgment.

Statutory form

Yes, but optional. Alaska publishes a "General Power of Attorney" statutory
form at § 13.26.645, with additional optional provisions at § 13.26.650 and
interpretation rules for its listed powers at § 13.26.665. The form itself
carries check-boxes letting the principal choose whether the power of
attorney is durable and whether it springs into effect on incapacity. A
document that satisfies § 13.26.600 is valid without using this form.

Durable by default?

No. Section 13.26.620(a)(2) ends a power of attorney on the principal's
incapacity "if the power of attorney is not durable." Section 13.26.675(a)
supplies the opt-in rule: the writing must contain 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. Leave
that language out, and the power of attorney ends the moment the principal
becomes incapacitated.

Springing POA allowed?

Yes. The first quoted formula in § 13.26.675(a) — "shall become effective
upon the incapacity of the principal" — is itself a springing clause. For the
statutory form specifically, if the principal doesn't indicate an effective
date, the document takes effect immediately on signing (§ 13.26.660(2)); if
the principal also fails to address the effect of later incapacity, the
document is revoked by incapacity rather than surviving it (§ 13.26.660(3)) —
another reason the durability language can't be skipped.

Real estate extras

AS 13.26.600-.695 sets no recording requirement of its own. If an agent uses
the power of attorney to convey Alaska real property, the resulting
conveyance must first be acknowledged before an authorized officer, or proved
as a conveyance, "as directed" by Alaska's general conveyancing chapter
before it can be recorded (§ 34.15.150(a)), and the general public-records
recording chapter's formal requisites apply (AS 40.17).

Out-of-state POAs

AS 13.26.600-.695 contains no provision addressing whether Alaska recognizes
a power of attorney validly executed under another state's law.

What trips people up

• Durability isn't automatic here. A power of attorney copied from a
  default-durable state's template, or one that simply omits the
  survives-incapacity language, can silently stop working exactly when the
  principal becomes incapacitated.
• Notarization is a validity requirement, not an option. Alaska folds
  acknowledgment into the signing requirement itself (§ 13.26.600(a)(2)); an
  unnotarized signature does not satisfy the statute, unlike states where
  notarization is optional and only affects a presumption.
• The statutory form's default answer is "not durable." Under
  § 13.26.660(3), failing to check a box addressing incapacity on the
  statutory form results in revocation on incapacity, not survival — the
  opposite of what many people assume a "durable" power of attorney does by
  default.

Common questions

Do I need a notary for my Alaska power of attorney? Yes. Under
§ 13.26.600, the principal's signature must be acknowledged before a notary
public or another officer authorized to take acknowledgments — there's no
unnotarized option.

Does Alaska require witnesses on a power of attorney? No. Neither
§ 13.26.600 nor the statutory form provisions require a witness.

Is my Alaska power of attorney durable automatically? No. It's durable
only if it contains the specific words required by § 13.26.675(a) showing
your intent that the agent's authority survive your later incapacity.

Does Alaska have an official power of attorney form? Yes, an optional
"General Power of Attorney" statutory form at § 13.26.645. Any document that
meets § 13.26.600's signing and notarization requirements is valid even
without using it.

Statutes and sources

All quotations are from Alaska's power-of-attorney article and general
conveyancing chapter as published in the Alaska Statutes, accessed
2026-07-04.

• AS 13.26.600 — "A power of attorney executed in this state is valid if
  the principal (1) signs the power of attorney or, if the principal is
  physically unable to sign the power of attorney, directs, in the
  principal's conscious presence, another individual to sign the principal's
  name on the power of attorney; and (2) acknowledges the signature before a
  notary public or other individual authorized by law to take
  acknowledgments."
  View source text (law.justia.com)
• AS 13.26.620 — "Except as provided in AS 13.26.625, a power of attorney
  terminates when ... there is an incapacity of the principal, if the power
  of attorney is not durable...."
  View source text (law.justia.com)
• AS 13.26.675 — "The subsequent incapacity of a principal does not
  revoke or terminate the authority of an agent who acts under a power of
  attorney in a writing executed by a principal if the writing contains the
  words 'This power of attorney shall become effective upon the incapacity of
  the principal,' or contains the words 'This power of attorney shall not be
  affected by the subsequent incapacity of the principal,' or words
  substantially similar showing the intent of the principal...."
  View source text (law.justia.com)
• AS 13.26.660 — "If the principal has failed to indicate when the
  instrument shall become effective, the instrument shall become effective
  upon the date of the principal's signature; ... if the principal ... has
  failed to indicate the effect of the principal's subsequent incapacity on
  the instrument, the instrument shall be revoked by the subsequent
  incapacity of the principal...."
  View source text (law.justia.com)
• AS 13.26.645 — "A person who wishes to designate another as agent by a
  power of attorney may execute a statutory power of attorney set out in
  substantially the following form: GENERAL POWER OF ATTORNEY...."
  View source text (law.justia.com)
• AS 34.15.150 — "A conveyance executed in the state of land or an
  interest in land in the state shall be acknowledged before a person
  authorized to take acknowledgments in AS 09.63.010 or proved in accordance
  with AS 34.15.210 or 34.15.220."
  View source text (law.justia.com)