Rhode Island: Power of Attorney Requirements

The short answer

Rhode Island is one of the few states that never adopted the Uniform Power of
Attorney Act. Its only power-of-attorney execution statute is the Rhode
Island Short Form Power of Attorney Act, R.I. Gen. Laws chapter 18-16, enacted
in 1996. It sets out one optional statutory form (§ 18-16-2(a)) and requires
that its execution "be duly acknowledged by the principal in the manner
prescribed for the acknowledgement of a conveyance of real property"
(§ 18-16-2(b)) — notarization, not witnesses, is the formality that matters.
Because Rhode Island has no default-durability statute, the form is durable
only because its own printed text says "this power of attorney shall not be
affected by the subsequent incompetency of the donor." The chapter lets you
use "any other or different form" instead (§ 18-16-2(c)), but no statute
spells out what formalities that alternative form must satisfy.

Requirements one by one

Governing law

Chapter 18-16, the Rhode Island Short Form Power of Attorney Act, is the only
statute addressing financial-POA execution. It governs the optional statutory
short form; § 18-16-2(c) expressly preserves the parties' ability to use a
different form by agreement, but that alternative isn't itself regulated by
any Rhode Island statute.

Who must sign

The principal signs, in the signature block built into the statutory form
itself (§ 18-16-2(a)). The chapter doesn't separately address signing by
someone else on the principal's behalf.

Notarization

Mandatory for the statutory short form. Under § 18-16-2(b), execution "shall
be duly acknowledged by the principal in the manner prescribed for the
acknowledgement of a conveyance of real property" — the same acknowledgment
procedure used for a deed. This is a validity requirement, not a mere
evidentiary presumption.

Witnesses

None required by the statute. Section 18-16-2 conditions the short form's
validity on notarial acknowledgment alone; it says nothing about witnesses.

Statutory form

Yes, and it's the chapter's whole subject: the full "Short Form Power of
Attorney" text appears at § 18-16-2(a), including its warning notice,
subject-matter checklist, and duration clause. Using it is voluntary
(§ 18-16-2(c)).

Durable by default?

No. Rhode Island has no statute making a power of attorney durable unless it
says otherwise. Instead, the statutory short form itself contains the
sentence "This power of attorney shall not be affected by the subsequent
incompetency of the donor" (§ 18-16-2(a)) — durability exists only because
that clause is printed into the form, not because of any default rule of
law.

Springing POA allowed?

No statutory mechanism. Chapter 18-16 doesn't address making the short form
effective only at a future date or upon a future event like incapacity; the
form's own "Second" clause lets the principal set an end date but has no
comparable start-date or triggering-event option.

Real estate extras

Mandatory recording, tied to the conveyance itself. Under § 34-11-34, a
conveyance executed by an attorney-in-fact is valid, but the power of
attorney and the deed executed under it "shall be signed, acknowledged,
delivered and recorded with like formalities prescribed by law concerning
deeds from grantors in person" — in effect, if the deed gets recorded, the
POA must be too. Separately, § 34-13-1(1) lists "letters of attorney" among
the instruments a town clerk records generally, on request.

Out-of-state POAs

No provision. Rhode Island has no statute stating whether, or under what
conditions, a power of attorney validly executed in another state will be
honored here.

What trips people up

• The "short form" isn't automatically durable. Because Rhode Island has
  no default-durability statute, leaving out or altering the form's printed
  incompetency clause can leave you with a power of attorney that lapses
  exactly when it's needed most.
• There's no rulebook for a homemade POA. Chapter 18-16 only regulates the
  statutory short form. If you draft a different document instead, no Rhode
  Island statute tells you what signature or notarization formality makes it
  valid — a real gap compared to UPOAA states.
• Real estate use ties the POA's recording to the deed's. Section
  34-11-34 requires the power itself to be recorded with "like formalities"
  as the deed it authorizes — treat the POA as part of the closing paperwork,
  not a side document you can keep in a drawer.
• No springing option on the statutory form. If you want the power to
  begin only upon incapacity, chapter 18-16 gives you no built-in mechanism
  for that — it's a gap you'd have to address outside the statutory form.

Common questions

Do I need to get my Rhode Island power of attorney notarized? Yes, if you
use the statutory short form — § 18-16-2(b) requires the principal's
acknowledgment before a notary, in the same manner as a deed.

Does my Rhode Island POA need witnesses? No. The statute requires only
notarial acknowledgment; it doesn't mention witnesses.

Will an out-of-state power of attorney work in Rhode Island? Rhode Island
has no statute answering this either way — there's no out-of-state
recognition rule to rely on.

Can I make my POA effective only if I become incapacitated? Not through
the statutory short form — chapter 18-16 has no springing-POA mechanism. That
would need to be addressed in a customized, non-statutory document instead.

Statutes and sources

All quotations are from the Rhode Island Short Form Power of Attorney Act and
the general property-recording statutes, accessed 2026-07-04.

• R.I. Gen. Laws § 18-16-1 — "The statutory form of short form power of
  attorney, as set forth in § 18-16-2, may be used in the creation of a power
  of attorney for the purposes set forth in that section; and when used and
  created, shall be construed in accordance with the provisions of this
  chapter."
  View official text (webserver.rilegislature.gov)
• R.I. Gen. Laws § 18-16-2 — "(b) The execution of this statutory short
  form power of attorney shall be duly acknowledged by the principal in the
  manner prescribed for the acknowledgement of a conveyance of real property.
  (c) No provision of this chapter shall be construed to bar the use of any
  other or different form of power of attorney desired by the parties
  concerned." Plus the full statutory form text, including "This power of
  attorney shall not be affected by the subsequent incompetency of the
  donor."
  View official text (webserver.rilegislature.gov)
• R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-11-34 — "Any conveyance executed by attorney shall
  be as valid as if executed by the grantor himself, providing that a power
  of attorney be given by such grantor for this purpose; which power and the
  deed executed by the attorney thereunder shall be signed, acknowledged,
  delivered and recorded with like formalities prescribed by law concerning
  deeds from grantors in person."
  View official text (webserver.rilegislature.gov)
• R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-13-1 — "Any of the following instruments shall be
  recorded or filed by the town clerk or recorder of deeds, in the manner
  prescribed by law, on request of any person and on payment of the lawful
  fees therefor: (1) Letters of attorney."
  View official text (webserver.rilegislature.gov)