Enduring powers of attorney - Planning for when you can’t make decisions yourself

If something happened to you tomorrow and you couldn’t make decisions, who would pay your bills, handle your banking, or speak with your doctors?

That’s where enduring powers of attorney (EPAs) come in. They’re your legal back-up plan, so the right people can step in and help when you can’t.

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Why you need enduring powers of attorney

  • Under New Zealand law, an enduring power of attorney (EPA) lets you legally appoint someone you trust to make decisions for you if you become mentally incapable.

    Unlike an ordinary power of attorney (which stops working if you lose mental capacity), an EPA keeps going – it is designed to work when you’re no longer able to decide or communicate for yourself.

    There are two types of EPA:

    • Property EPA – for your money, home, investments and other assets

    • Personal care and welfare EPA – for decisions about your health, care, and daily living.

    Think of EPAs as a safety net:

    • You choose who will help you

    • You decide what they can and can’t do

    • You plan ahead before anything goes wrong.

    Without EPAs in place, your family and advisers usually need to apply to the Family Court so someone can be appointed to act for you. That process can be slow, stressful, and expensive – and you don’t get to choose who is appointed.

  • If you’d like to read more before you decide, you can download the following “Enduring Power of Attorney” pamphlets:

    They’re a good starting point if you’re talking about EPAs with whānau or helping older family members plan ahead.

  • At Ross Holmes Virtual Lawyers Limited, we:

    • Explain how EPAs work in plain English

    • Help you decide who to appoint and how to structure your EPAs

    • Make sure your Property and Personal Care & Welfare EPAs work together with your will and any trust or asset planning

    • Build in sensible protections – consultation, oversight, and clear conditions.

    Under New Zealand law, it is mandatory for a lawyer or qualified legal executive to give you advice and witness your signature for your EPA to be legally effective. We do this in a way that is thorough, but friendly and easy to understand.

    If you’re ready to plan ahead, we would be pleased to help you put EPAs in place so that you – and the people you care about – are protected if life takes an unexpected turn.

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The types of EPA’s

  • A Property EPA lets you appoint one or more people you trust to make decisions about your:

    • Bank accounts and investments

    • Bills and everyday spending

    • Home and other property

    • Business interests and other assets.

    You can choose whether your Property EPA:

    • Takes effect straight away, while you are still mentally capable (useful if you want help with day-to-day finances), or

    • Only takes effect if you are later found to be mentally incapable.

    You can also:

    • Set conditions and limits on what your attorney can do

    • Require them to consult certain people (for example, other family members or your accountant)

    • Ask for reporting and monitoring, such as regular statements going to a trusted person.

    A well-drafted Property EPA helps make sure your money and assets are managed sensibly if you can’t manage them yourself.

  • A Personal Care and Welfare EPA lets you appoint someone you trust to make decisions about your:

    • Where you live (for example, staying at home vs moving into care)

    • Day-to-day care and support

    • Medical treatment and support services (working alongside your doctors)

    • General well-being.

    Important points:

    • You can only have one personal care and welfare attorney acting at a time (you can name backups).

    • This EPA only takes effect if you are found to be mentally incapable.

    • Your attorney can be authorised to act generally or only for specific matters, and you can place conditions and restrictions on their powers.

    There are some decisions your personal care and welfare attorney cannot make for you, such as:

    • Agreeing to a marriage or civil union on your behalf

    • Consenting to your child being adopted

    • Refusing consent to standard medical treatment that is needed to save your life or prevent serious harm

    • Consenting to electro-convulsive treatment (ECT)

    • Consenting to certain brain surgery

    • Consenting to treatment that is mainly designed to change your behaviour.

    These limits are there to protect you and make sure only appropriate decisions can be made on your behalf.

  • (Before you meet with your legal adviser)

    It helps to do a little thinking in advance. Here are some things to consider:

    • Who do you want as your attorneys?

      • Think about who is sensible, trustworthy, and good with money (for property) or care decisions (for welfare).

      • Think about what you do and don’t want them to be able to do.

    • Who will support your attorneys?

      • Consider naming whānau, friends, an accountant, or a solicitor who must be consulted or can advise your attorney.

    • List what you own and what you owe

      • Main assets: house, vehicles, savings, investments, KiwiSaver, business interests.

      • Any money owed to you or debts you have.

    • Decide when your Property EPA should start

      • Straight away?

      • After a certain date or event?

      • Only once you are determined to be mentally incapable?

    • Think about how your attorneys will be monitored

      • You might appoint someone to check financial records, receive bank statements, or be told about certain big decisions.

    • Choose backup attorneys

      • Decide if you want to name people who can step in if your first-choice attorney can’t carry on.

    Bringing these notes to your appointment makes the EPA process faster, easier, and more tailored to you.

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EPA FAQ’s

  • Q: Can I appoint more than one attorney?
    A: Yes. For Property EPAs, you can appoint more than one attorney and decide whether they act together (jointly) or separately. For Personal Care and Welfare EPAs, the law only allows one attorney to act at a time, but you can name one or more successor attorneys.

  • A:

    • A Property EPA can start immediately, or only if you become mentally incapable – you choose.

    • A Personal Care and Welfare EPA only starts if you become mentally incapable.

  • A: Yes. You can change your EPAs at any time, as long as you are still mentally capable. This might include changing attorneys, updating conditions, or changing when they come into effect.

  • A: Yes. You can revoke an EPA at any time while you are mentally capable. There are formal steps you must follow – including signing a written revocation and making sure your attorneys and key organisations know it has been cancelled.

  • A: Yes. For an EPA to be valid, the law requires that a lawyer or qualified legal executive (who is independent of your attorneys) give you advice and witness your signature on the EPA forms.

  • A: If you become mentally incapable and don’t have EPAs, your family or others may need to apply to the Family Court so someone can be appointed to make decisions for you. That process takes time, costs money, and you don’t have control over who is appointed or what powers they have. Having EPAs in place now avoids that uncertainty.

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Disclaimer: This page provides general information only and is not legal advice. You should always seek professional legal advice about your own situation before making any decisions about enduring powers of attorney, or your wider estate plan.