Minnesota: Power of Attorney Requirements

The short answer

Minnesota never adopted the Uniform Power of Attorney Act. Its own 1984
Powers of Attorney chapter sets a short baseline rule: "the power of attorney
is validly executed when it is dated and signed by the principal and, in the
case of a signature on behalf of the principal, by another, or by a mark,
acknowledged by a notary public" (§ 523.01). Read closely, that means
notarization only kicks in when the principal doesn't sign personally —
someone else signs for them, or they sign with a mark. A principal who signs
their own name needs nothing more than a date and a signature. There's no
witness requirement anywhere in the chapter.

Durability isn't automatic: the document needs language such as "this power
of attorney shall not be affected by incapacity or incompetence of the
principal," or similar wording, to survive the principal's later incapacity
(§ 523.07). Minnesota also publishes an optional statutory short form (§
523.23), but that form imposes its own stricter rule — the principal's
signature must always be notarized to qualify as that specific form, even
though the general validity rule in § 523.01 wouldn't otherwise require it.

Requirements one by one

Governing law

Minnesota's own Powers of Attorney chapter, Minn. Stat. ch. 523 (§§
523.01-.26), enacted in 1984. It predates, and was never replaced by, the
Uniform Power of Attorney Act that most states use today.

Who must sign

The principal signs and dates the document. Someone else may sign on the
principal's behalf, or the principal may sign with a mark, but either of
those alternate signature methods must be acknowledged before a notary public
to be validly executed (§ 523.01).

Notarization

Not required for the principal's own signature under the chapter's general
validity rule (§ 523.01) — a dated signature is enough on its own. It becomes
mandatory only in two situations: when another person signs on the
principal's behalf, or when the principal signs by a mark. Separately, the
statutory short form has its own independent formality: "to constitute a
'statutory short form power of attorney,' ... the signature of the principal
must be acknowledged" (§ 523.23, subd. 3) — that requirement applies to the
statutory form specifically, regardless of who signs.

Witnesses

None. Chapter 523 has no witness requirement for executing a power of
attorney of any kind. (The chapter's only references to a "witness" appear
in the list of litigation powers at § 523.24 — the power to hire an "expert
witness" for a lawsuit — and have nothing to do with how the document itself
is signed.)

Statutory form

Yes. Minnesota publishes the "Statutory Short Form Power of Attorney" (§
523.23). To count as that form, "the wording and content of the form ...
must be duplicated exactly and with no modifications, parts First, Second,
and Third must be properly completed, and the signature of the principal
must be acknowledged" (§ 523.23, subd. 3). Failing to name a successor
attorney-in-fact, provide an expiration date, or complete part Fourth does
not invalidate the form.

Durable by default?

No. A power of attorney "is durable if it contains language such as 'This
power of attorney shall not be affected by incapacity or incompetence of the
principal' or 'This power of attorney shall become effective upon the
incapacity or incompetence of the principal,' or similar words showing the
intent of the principal that the authority conferred is exercisable
notwithstanding the principal's later incapacity or incompetence" (§ 523.07).
Without that language, the power of attorney is nondurable and ends if the
principal becomes incapacitated.

Springing POA allowed?

Not addressed. Chapter 523 names no statutory mechanism, default effective
date, or default determiner of incapacity for a power of attorney meant to
take effect only at a future date or event. (Note that the same durability
statute, § 523.07, treats "shall become effective upon the incapacity ...
of the principal" as one of the phrasings that also makes a power of
attorney durable — Minnesota's chapter folds the springing question into
durability language rather than addressing it as a separate mechanism the
way newer Uniform Power of Attorney Act states do.)

Real estate extras

A power of attorney used where the transaction itself requires "execution
and delivery of any instrument which is recordable" is itself recordable,
but only once "authenticated for record in conformity with section 507.24"
(§ 523.05). Section 507.24 requires that any instrument affecting real
estate, including a power of attorney, "be legible and archivable,"
"executed, acknowledged by the parties executing the same, and the
acknowledgment certified, as required by law" before a county recorder will
record it (§ 507.24, subd. 1).

Out-of-state POAs

Recognized. A written power of attorney is a validly executed power of
attorney in Minnesota if it was "validly created pursuant to ... the law of
another state or country" (§ 523.02) — the same section also recognizes
powers of attorney made under Minnesota's own pre-1984 law and under the
common law.

What trips people up

• Assuming the principal's own signature needs a notary. It doesn't,
  under the general rule in § 523.01 — but nearly every practical use (the
  statutory short form, any real estate transaction) triggers a notarization
  requirement anyway, so skipping it rarely helps in practice.
• Confusing the general validity rule with the statutory short form's
  rule. A common-law or custom-drafted power of attorney only needs
  notarization if signed by another or by mark (§ 523.01); the statutory
  short form always needs the principal's signature notarized to count as
  that form (§ 523.23, subd. 3), even when signed personally.
• Assuming durability is automatic. It isn't. Without one of the
  trigger phrases in § 523.07, the power of attorney ends the moment the
  principal becomes incapacitated — exactly when it's usually needed most.
• Skipping notarization on a document meant for a real estate deal.
  Nothing in § 523.01 requires it for the principal's own signature, but
  the recording statutes do (§ 523.05, § 507.24) — an unacknowledged power
  of attorney can't be recorded with the county at all.

Common questions

Does my Minnesota power of attorney need to be notarized? Not if you
sign it yourself, under the general validity rule (§ 523.01). It does need
notarization if someone else signs it for you, if you sign by a mark, if
you use the statutory short form, or if you're using it for a real estate
transaction.

Does Minnesota require witnesses? No. Chapter 523 sets no witness
requirement for any power of attorney.

Is a Minnesota power of attorney durable automatically? No. It needs
language such as "this power of attorney shall not be affected by
incapacity or incompetence of the principal," or similar wording, to survive
your later incapacity (§ 523.07).

Is there an official Minnesota power of attorney form? Yes, the
Statutory Short Form Power of Attorney (§ 523.23) — but it only counts as
that form if its wording is unchanged, the required parts are completed, and
your signature is notarized.

Will my out-of-state power of attorney work in Minnesota? Yes, if it was
validly created under the law of the state or country where you made it (§
523.02).

Statutes and sources

Quotations for §§ 523.01, 523.02, 523.04, 523.05, 523.07, and 523.23 are from
Minn. Stat. ch. 523 (Powers of Attorney), and § 507.24 is from ch. 507
(Conveyances of Land), both as published by the Minnesota Office of the
Revisor of Statutes at revisor.mn.gov, accessed 2026-07-04.

• § 523.01 — the general validity rule: dated, signed by the principal,
  notarized only for another's signature or a mark. Quoted above.
  View official text (revisor.mn.gov)
• § 523.02 — recognizes powers of attorney made under prior Minnesota
  law, the common law, or the law of another state or country. Quoted above.
  View official text (revisor.mn.gov)
• § 523.04 — presumption of valid execution for a dated, purportedly
  signed power of attorney. Quoted above.
  View official text (revisor.mn.gov)
• § 523.05 — makes a power of attorney recordable once authenticated for
  record. Quoted above.
  View official text (revisor.mn.gov)
• § 523.07 — the durability trigger language. Quoted above.
  View official text (revisor.mn.gov)
• § 507.24 — the general real-estate-instrument recording requirements
  (execution, acknowledgment, certification). Quoted above.
  View official text (revisor.mn.gov)
• § 523.23 — the statutory short form and its own acknowledgment
  requirement. Quoted above.
  View official text (revisor.mn.gov)

One bill currently pending in the Minnesota legislature would change how a
power of attorney can be signed and witnessed: MN SF 3602 (2025-2026),
described above under pending legislation.