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Legal form · Authority · 15 states published

Power of Attorney

A power of attorney lets one person, the principal, name another person, the agent, to act for them in money or legal matters.

As of October 26, 2026, an Arizona financial power of attorney is acknowledged by the principal and sworn to by the witness before a notary public, whose certificate goes under official seal.1

Section 709.2105 of the Florida Statutes requires a power of attorney to be signed by the principal and by two subscribing witnesses and to be acknowledged by the principal before a notary public.2

Since July 1, 2018, a Georgia power of attorney must also be attested, in the principal’s presence, by one competent witness who is not named as an agent in it.3

Updated How we check

Power of Attorney rules by state

Power of Attorney: rules by state
StateOfficial state formNotaryWitnessesChecked
Arizona—Required11 witness1
CaliforniaYes4——
Florida—Required22 witnesses2
GeorgiaYes3—1 witness3
IllinoisYes5Required51 witness5
Massachusetts———
MichiganYes6——
New Jersey———
New YorkYes7Required72 witnesses8
North CarolinaYes9——
OhioYes10——
Pennsylvania—Required112 witnesses11
TexasYes12Required13—
Virginia———
Washington———
See the power of attorney rules

$9.95 per document, filled in for your state. Government forms are free on each agency’s website. You pay for the preparation, never for the form.

When to use one

  • You will be away and someone needs to sign or handle accounts for you.
  • You want a trusted person ready to manage your finances if you cannot.
  • You need someone to handle one specific transaction, like a home closing.

Not the right document? Health care decisions usually take a separate document (a health care power of attorney or advance directive).

Who signs

Principal
The person giving the authority
Agent
The person who will act (also called attorney-in-fact)

Have at hand

  • Full legal names and addresses of principal and agent
  • Which powers the agent gets, and any limits
  • When it starts and whether it continues if the principal becomes incapacitated
  • A successor agent, if you want one

What our power of attorney covers

  1. 1Important notice to the principal
  2. 2Principal and agent
  3. 3Powers granted
  4. 4Special powers
  5. 5Gifts
  6. 6Benefits to my agent
  7. 7Limits and special instructions
  8. 8When it starts and how long it lasts
  9. 9Revoking this power of attorney
  10. 10Successor agent
  11. 11Expenses and pay
  12. 12Agent’s duties
  13. 13People who rely on this document
  14. 14Governing law
  15. 15Agent’s acceptance
  16. 16Signatures, witnesses and notary

SimplePaperwork is not a law firm and does not give legal advice. We explain public forms and official steps, and you decide what to sign and file.

Where this information comes from

State rules come from each state’s own statutes, agency pages and forms, with the date we read them.

  1. Arizona Revised Statutes Section 14-5501, Durable power of attorney; creation; validity azleg.gov · checked Oct 26, 2026 Open the official page (opens in a new tab) ↩
  2. Florida Statutes Section 709.2105 (2026), Qualifications of agent; execution of power of attorney flsenate.gov · checked Oct 26, 2026 Open the official page (opens in a new tab) ↩
  3. House Bill 897 (2018), revision of Georgia Code Chapter 10-6B, as passed by the Georgia General Assembly legis.ga.gov · checked Oct 26, 2026 Open the official page (opens in a new tab) ↩
  4. California Probate Code Section 4401 leginfo.legislature.ca.gov · checked Oct 26, 2026 Open the official page (opens in a new tab) ↩
  5. Illinois Statutory Short Form Power of Attorney for Property (Illinois Department on Aging, based on 755 ILCS 45/3-3) ilaging.illinois.gov · checked Oct 26, 2026 Open the official page (opens in a new tab) ↩
  6. Uniform Power of Attorney Act, Act 187 of 2023 (MCL 556.201 to 556.505) legislature.mi.gov · checked Oct 26, 2026 Open the official page (opens in a new tab) ↩
  7. New York General Obligations Law Section 5-1513, Statutory short form power of attorney nysenate.gov · checked Oct 26, 2026 Open the official page (opens in a new tab) ↩
  8. New York General Obligations Law Section 5-1501B, Creation of a valid power of attorney; when effective nysenate.gov · checked Oct 26, 2026 Open the official page (opens in a new tab) ↩
  9. North Carolina General Statutes Chapter 32C, North Carolina Uniform Power of Attorney Act ncleg.gov · checked Oct 26, 2026 Open the official page (opens in a new tab) ↩
  10. Ohio Revised Code Chapter 1337, Power of Attorney (Uniform Power of Attorney Act, sections 1337.21 to 1337.64) codes.ohio.gov · checked Oct 26, 2026 Open the official page (opens in a new tab) ↩
  11. Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, 20 Pa.C.S. § 5601, General provisions palegis.us · checked Oct 26, 2026 Open the official page (opens in a new tab) ↩
  12. Statutory Durable Power of Attorney (SDPOA) (Texas Health and Human Services) fhb.hhs.texas.gov · checked Oct 26, 2026 Open the official page (opens in a new tab) ↩
  13. Powers of Attorney › Durable Power of Attorney (Texas State Law Library) guides.sll.texas.gov · checked Oct 26, 2026 Open the official page (opens in a new tab) ↩