Powers of attorney and UK affairs from abroad

You can live in Lisbon and still own a flat in Leeds, but you can't sign for it from a beach. A power of attorney lets someone in the UK act for you, and the right type depends on what you need and where.

The short version

A lasting power of attorney (LPA) lets people you choose make decisions for you in England and Wales. You don't need to live in the UK or be British to make one [1].
There are two types: property and financial affairs (form LP1F) and health and welfare (LP1H) [2]. Registration costs £92 each, or £46 for a repeat application [3].
Everyone signs the same original paper document. Copies and digital signatures don't count [1]. Allow 8 to 10 weeks, including a four-week waiting period [4].
Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own powers of attorney. An LPA only works in England and Wales [1].
Using a UK power abroad often needs a certified copy, an apostille from the FCDO Legalisation Office (£45 on paper, £35 as an e-Apostille), or a separate local power [5].

Which kind of power do you need?

Type	What it does	When it works
Ordinary (general) power of attorney	Lets someone handle money or property for you, often for a set task or period	Only while you still have mental capacity
LPA for property and financial affairs	Banks, bills, selling or letting property, dealing with HMRC	Once registered, with your permission, even while you have capacity [6]
LPA for health and care	Medical care, where you live, daily care	Only when you can't make the decision yourself [6]
Scottish continuing or welfare power	The Scottish equivalents of the two LPAs	Registered with the Office of the Public Guardian in Scotland
Northern Ireland enduring power	Financial matters only	Registered with the Office of Care and Protection when capacity is lost [7]

For many Brits abroad the property and financial affairs LPA is the workhorse. It covers what you need while you're away and fit as a fiddle: a sibling handling the letting agent, a friend sorting the council tax, your mum signing the sale of the old family car. And it carries on if you later lose capacity, which an ordinary power doesn't.

Making an LPA from abroad

You can start online through the GOV.UK "Make a lasting power of attorney" service, which saves your answers and helps at each step. At the end you still print the forms and sign them on paper [1]. The Powers of Attorney Act 2023 allows for a more digital process with identity checks, but at the time of writing, signing is still on paper.

Who signs, and in what order

The LPA has to be signed in a particular order on the same original document [1][4]:

You (the donor) sign first, with a witness aged 18 or over who isn't one of your attorneys.
The certificate provider signs to confirm you understand the LPA and aren't under pressure. They must be 18 or over and either have known you for at least two years or have relevant professional skills, such as a doctor or solicitor [4].
The attorneys sign, each with a witness. Attorneys can witness each other.

This is where living abroad gets fiddly. The paper has to travel between everyone, and the certificate provider needs to have known you well enough or have the right skills. One practical approach: sign your part abroad, post the original by tracked courier to the UK, and have the certificate provider and attorneys sign there. Never sign blank pages to save time, and make sure the order is right: an LPA signed in the wrong order is rejected and you pay again.

Registering it

You must register the LPA with the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) before anyone can use it [1]. Either you or your attorneys can apply. The fee for 2026 is £92 per LPA, so £184 for both types. A repeat application after a rejection is £46 [3]. Donors with a gross income below £12,000 a year can get 50% off, and some people on means-tested benefits pay nothing, using form LPA120 [3].

You can name up to five "people to notify", who are told when the LPA goes for registration and can object. There's a legal four-week wait for objections before OPG can register [4]. The whole process takes about 8 to 10 weeks if there are no mistakes [1][8].

Using the LPA in the UK

Once registered, your attorneys can use the GOV.UK "Use a lasting power of attorney" service to share access codes with banks and other organisations, so they don't have to post the original around the country. Not every organisation takes codes, so certified copies are still useful.

You can certify a copy yourself while you still have capacity, or a solicitor or notary can do it. Each page needs the line "I certify this is a true and complete copy of the corresponding page of the original lasting power of attorney", signed and dated. The last page also needs "I certify this is a true and complete copy of the lasting power of attorney" [9].

A tip from the pile of brown envelopes: tell the bank, HMRC, your mortgage lender and your letting agent about the LPA early, while everything's calm. Some UK banks restrict or close accounts of customers abroad, and an attorney with a UK address can make keeping one open easier, though the bank still needs to know where you live.

Scotland and Northern Ireland

An LPA made in England and Wales only works there. It may not be accepted for property or accounts in Scotland or Northern Ireland [1][4].

Scotland: You make a continuing power of attorney (money and property) and, if you want, a welfare power of attorney. A solicitor or doctor signs a certificate that you understand it. They're registered with the Office of the Public Guardian (Scotland), and the registration fee rose to £99 from 1 April 2026 [10].
Northern Ireland: nidirect describes enduring powers of attorney, not LPAs, so check with a Northern Ireland solicitor whether anything newer is available when you act. An enduring power of attorney covers financial matters only and is registered with the High Court's Office of Care and Protection when the attorney believes you can no longer manage your affairs [7]. There's no NI equivalent of the health and welfare LPA.

If you have property in more than one part of the UK, you may need more than one power.

Using a UK power of attorney abroad, and a local one at home

OPG's own guide is blunt: your LPA may not work in other countries, and if you want a power that works abroad, take legal advice [4]. In practice:

Some countries accept a UK LPA if it's translated and carries an apostille. The FCDO Legalisation Office can legalise a power of attorney once a UK notary or solicitor has certified it. The fee per document is £45 for the standard paper service or £35 for an e-Apostille, plus postage [5]. Check first that the other country accepts e-Apostilles.
Many countries, including several in Europe, have their own instrument for future incapacity, made before a local notary. If you live there, a local power often works better for local matters.
For one-off jobs, such as completing a UK house sale while you're abroad, a conveyancer may prefer a specific ordinary power of attorney for that sale.

Lots of Brits abroad end up with two powers: an LPA for UK matters and a local one for life where they live. Your lawyers in each country can make sure they don't contradict each other, much like a will in each country.

Steps before you go (or now, if you've already gone)

Choose attorneys you trust, ideally at least one in the UK.
Make the property and financial affairs LPA, and the health and welfare one if you want it.
Plan the signing order around where everyone lives, and use tracked post for the original.
Register with OPG straight away. Waiting until it's needed means a 10-week gap at the worst moment.
Get access codes and a few certified copies, and tell your bank and lender.
Ask a local lawyer whether you need a power for your new country too.

Swapping notes with people who've done this from Spain, Dubai or Sydney helps, and our community groups for Brits abroad are a good place for it.

Powers of attorney from abroad: letting someone you trust run things back home