2
types of LPA
Property and Financial Affairs, and Health and Welfare. Each is a separate document registered separately with the Office of the Public Guardian.
£82
registration fee, per LPA
Verify the current fee at GOV.UK before applying — it is subject to change. Two LPAs cost £164 in total to register.
~20 weeks
registration wait time
Verify at GOV.UK — this fluctuates significantly. An unregistered LPA cannot be used. Start well before you think you might need it.
Why an LPA matters — and why most people wait too long
The most common reason people do not have an LPA is that they associate it with a specific kind of older person with a specific kind of illness. That association is wrong, and it is dangerous.
Mental capacity can be lost at any age, for any reason. A brain injury from a road accident. A serious stroke. A period of severe mental illness. If that happens and you have no LPA in place, the people closest to you have no legal authority to act on your behalf, no matter the nature of your relationship. Your spouse cannot access a sole bank account in your name. Your adult child cannot make medical decisions on your behalf. Nobody can, without going to court.
That court process is called the Court of Protection, and it is neither quick nor cheap. A family member must apply to become a deputy, which involves assessments, legal fees, court fees, and a process that typically takes over a year from application to appointment. After that, the deputy is supervised annually by the Office of the Public Guardian. The ongoing administrative burden is significant.
Two LPAs, registered through GOV.UK, cost £164 in total (verify at GOV.UK). The comparison makes the case more powerfully than anything else on this page.
The two types of lasting power of attorney
| Type | What it covers | When attorneys can use it | Can be used while you have capacity? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property and Financial Affairs | Bank accounts, property, investments, bills, pension income, contracts | Once registered — you can choose whether attorneys can act while you still have capacity, or only after you lose it | Yes, if you choose this option when setting it up |
| Health and Welfare | Medical treatment, care arrangements, where you live, life-sustaining treatment decisions | Only after you have lost mental capacity | No |
The Property and Financial Affairs LPA
This LPA covers everything to do with your money and property. Your attorneys can manage bank accounts, pay bills, collect income and benefits, deal with property transactions, and handle investments on your behalf.
One detail that surprises people: you can choose whether your attorneys can use this LPA while you still have mental capacity, or only after you have lost it. This flexibility is useful in practical situations, such as recovering from a serious illness, living abroad for an extended period, or dealing with a temporary medical condition that limits your ability to manage financial admin. If you do not specify, the default is that attorneys can act immediately once the LPA is registered.
The Health and Welfare LPA
This LPA covers decisions about your body and your care. Your attorneys can make decisions about medical treatment, where you live (including care home decisions), the care services you receive day to day, and what you eat or how you are dressed if you lack capacity to decide for yourself.
Critically: this LPA can only be used once you have lost mental capacity. It cannot be activated while you are able to make decisions yourself.
There is one decision that requires specific authorisation in the LPA document: life-sustaining treatment. If you want your attorney to have the power to consent to or refuse treatment that could keep you alive, you must explicitly authorise this. Think carefully about what you actually want, and make your wishes clear. This is the most significant decision in the entire LPA process.
Setting up a will at the same time is worth considering
A will deals with what happens to your estate after you die. An LPA deals with what happens if you lose capacity while still alive. They address different situations, but they are often set up together, because both require you to think seriously about who you trust and what you want. If you have not yet written a will, our will writing guide explains what makes a will valid, what it can and cannot cover, and what happens if you die without one.
How to set up an LPA: step by step
1. Decide who your attorneys will be
Your attorneys are the people who will make decisions on your behalf. Choose people you trust completely, who understand your values and wishes, and who are capable of the administrative and (potentially) emotional weight of the role. You can appoint more than one attorney. You can also name replacement attorneys who step in if a main attorney dies or loses capacity.
2. Complete the LPA forms
The GOV.UK Make an LPA service walks you through the entire process online: make-lasting-power-of-attorney.service.gov.uk. You will need to complete a separate set of forms for each type of LPA. Most people in straightforward circumstances can do this without a solicitor.
3. Have the certificate provider section completed
This is one of the most important and least understood parts of the process. The certificate provider is not simply a witness. They are a named individual who certifies that you understand the LPA, that you are signing it freely, and that you have the mental capacity to do so. See the callout below for who can and cannot fill this role.
4. Sign the document correctly
All parties, including the donor (you), the certificate provider, and each attorney, must sign in the correct order. The forms make this clear, but follow the sequence carefully.
5. Register with the Office of the Public Guardian
Send the completed forms to the OPG to register. The registration fee is £82 per LPA (verify at GOV.UK). Registration currently takes around 20 weeks (verify at GOV.UK, as this fluctuates). You will receive the registered document by post.
6. Store it safely
Your attorneys will need the original registered document when they act on your behalf. Copies are not accepted. Store it somewhere secure and make sure your attorneys know where it is.
The certificate provider: this is not just a witness
The certificate provider plays a specific legal role. They are certifying that you, the donor, understand what you are signing, that you are not being pressured by anyone, and that you have mental capacity at the time of signing. This is a meaningful responsibility.
A family member cannot be your certificate provider. Someone who will benefit from your estate cannot be your certificate provider. A paid care worker who lives in your home cannot be your certificate provider.
The certificate provider must either have known you personally for at least two years, or be a professional such as a solicitor, doctor, or registered financial adviser. Choose someone who will take the role seriously, not simply someone convenient.
Attorneys: who to choose and what powers they have
Your attorneys have a legal duty to act in your best interests. Not what they think would make you happy. Not what you might have wanted years ago. Your current wishes, feelings, and beliefs, so far as they can be determined. This is the Mental Capacity Act standard, and it applies to every decision they make on your behalf.
You can appoint multiple attorneys to act in two different ways:
Jointly: All attorneys must agree on every decision. This provides a check and balance, but if one attorney dies or loses capacity, the LPA may no longer be operable unless a replacement attorney has been named.
Jointly and severally: Each attorney can act independently without needing the others to agree. This is more practical for day-to-day decisions, but requires greater trust in each attorney individually.
Many people appoint two or three attorneys to act jointly and severally, with a replacement attorney named in case one is unable to continue. Think through the practical implications of your choice before committing.
An unregistered LPA is legally worthless
This is the most commonly misunderstood aspect of the LPA process. Completing the forms is not enough. Signing the forms is not enough. The LPA must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian before it has any legal effect.
A bank, a hospital, a GP surgery, or a care home will not accept an unregistered LPA. If you need to act on someone's behalf and the LPA is not yet registered, you cannot. Registration currently takes around 20 weeks (verify at GOV.UK). Start the process well before you think you will need it.
What happens without an LPA: the Court of Protection
If you lose mental capacity without an LPA in place, a family member or friend who wants to act on your behalf must apply to the Court of Protection to become a deputy. This is a more formal, more expensive, and significantly slower process than an LPA.
A deputyship application involves solicitor fees, court application fees, a capacity assessment, and a process that typically takes over a year from start to finish. Once appointed, the deputy must report annually to the Office of the Public Guardian, which involves ongoing supervision fees. The deputy's authority may be more restricted than an LPA would have been.
The fees involved are significant. Court application fees and ongoing supervision costs together often run to several hundred pounds annually (verify current fees at GOV.UK Court of Protection). Add solicitor fees for the application itself, and the total cost is substantially higher than registering two LPAs now.
An LPA gives you control over who makes decisions and on what terms. A deputyship gives the court that control instead.
When to use a solicitor
For most people in straightforward circumstances, the GOV.UK Make an LPA service is sufficient. You do not need a solicitor to create a valid LPA.
Consider involving a solicitor if:
- You own a business and want to ensure the LPA covers (or excludes) business decisions appropriately
- You want to impose specific conditions or restrictions on what your attorneys can and cannot do
- There is conflict within the family about who should be appointed
- The donor has complex care arrangements or significant financial affairs
- There is any uncertainty about whether the donor has mental capacity at the time of signing
A solicitor can also act as the certificate provider if you do not have an appropriate person in your personal life.
Parce explains how LPAs work. For an LPA specific to your situation, particularly one involving complexity or family disagreement, take professional advice.
Scotland and Northern Ireland have different systems
The lasting power of attorney described on this page applies to England and Wales. Scotland has a different framework: the Continuing Power of Attorney (covering financial matters) and the Welfare Power of Attorney (covering personal welfare), both granted under the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000. Northern Ireland has its own legislation. If you are domiciled in Scotland, visit mygov.scot for the relevant guidance.
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Common questions about lasting power of attorney
Do I need an LPA if I'm married?▾
Yes. Marriage does not give your spouse automatic legal authority over your finances or medical decisions if you lose mental capacity. Without an LPA, your spouse cannot access a sole bank account in your name, make care decisions on your behalf, or deal with property that is solely yours. The only legal route without an LPA is a Court of Protection deputyship, which is slow, expensive, and not guaranteed. An LPA solves this problem at a fraction of the cost and effort.
How much does it cost to set up an LPA?▾
There is no charge to complete the LPA forms. The registration fee is £82 per LPA, payable to the Office of the Public Guardian (verify the current fee at GOV.UK — it is subject to change). Two LPAs, one for property and finances and one for health and welfare, cost £164 in total to register. People on low incomes may be eligible for a fee remission — verify eligibility at GOV.UK. If you use a solicitor to draft or review the LPA, there will be additional professional fees.
How long does LPA registration take?▾
Registration with the Office of the Public Guardian currently takes around 20 weeks from receipt of the completed forms (verify at GOV.UK, as this fluctuates). This is why it is important to set up an LPA well before you think you might need it. An LPA started when you are already ill or have already lost capacity may be too late — it may not be possible to complete it at all if capacity is already lost, and registration time means it cannot be used quickly even if completed.
Can I be my own certificate provider?▾
No. The certificate provider must be someone independent, not the donor. You cannot certify your own LPA. The certificate provider must either have known you personally for at least two years, or be a professional such as a solicitor, GP, or registered financial adviser. A family member, a beneficiary of your estate, or a paid care worker living in your home cannot act as certificate provider.
Can I have more than one attorney?▾
Yes. You can appoint as many attorneys as you wish. Most people appoint one or two, sometimes three, and name one or more replacement attorneys in case a main attorney dies or is unable to continue. When appointing multiple attorneys, you must decide whether they act jointly (must all agree on every decision) or jointly and severally (can each act independently). Think through the practical implications of each approach before deciding.
What is the difference between joint and joint and several attorneys?▾
Joint attorneys must all agree on every decision. This provides a safeguard but means that if one attorney dies or loses capacity, the LPA may cease to work unless a replacement attorney is named. Joint and several attorneys can each act independently without needing the others to agree. This is more practical for routine decisions but requires a higher level of trust in each individual attorney. You can also specify that certain decisions require joint agreement while others can be made independently — the GOV.UK service explains how to do this.
Can an LPA be cancelled?▾
Yes. As long as you have mental capacity, you can revoke an LPA at any time. You must notify the Office of the Public Guardian and all attorneys. Revocation forms are available on GOV.UK. An attorney can also be replaced or removed while you have capacity. If you lose capacity, you cannot revoke the LPA yourself — the Court of Protection would need to be involved if there were serious concerns about an attorney's conduct.
What happens to my LPA if my attorney dies?▾
If an attorney dies or can no longer act, what happens depends on how the LPA was set up. If you named a replacement attorney, they step in. If you appointed multiple attorneys to act jointly and severally, the remaining attorneys can continue. If you appointed attorneys to act jointly only, and one cannot continue, the LPA may no longer be valid unless a replacement is named. This is one reason why naming replacement attorneys is generally a sensible precaution.
Can I make an LPA if I already have reduced capacity?▾
You must have mental capacity at the time you sign the LPA. If capacity is already significantly reduced, a solicitor and a medical professional such as a GP may need to assess whether you are able to make this decision. If there is any doubt, act quickly, because once capacity is lost the LPA route is no longer available. The Court of Protection deputyship is the only remaining option, which is slower and more expensive.
Is a lasting power of attorney the same as an enduring power of attorney?▾
No. Enduring powers of attorney (EPAs) were replaced by lasting powers of attorney in England and Wales in October 2007. EPAs made before that date are still valid and can still be registered if they have not been already. But it is no longer possible to create a new EPA. If you have an old EPA, check whether it has been registered with the OPG, because it is not valid until registered. If you are setting up new arrangements, an LPA is the only current option.
Related guides
- →Writing a WillDone alongside an LPA by many people — deals with what happens to your estate after death.
- →Legal hubPlain-language legal guides for everyday UK life admin.
- →Inheritance TaxEstate planning starts here — nil rate band, spousal exemption, and the seven-year rule.
- →Attendance AllowanceFinancial support for people over State Pension age who need care — often set up alongside an LPA.