Pennsylvania Power of Attorney
A will speaks after you die. A power of attorney speaks while you are alive but cannot speak for yourself - and Pennsylvania is strict about how one must be executed.
Two documents, not one
Pennsylvania splits incapacity planning across two separate instruments governed by two separate chapters of the code:
- A financial power of attorney under 20 Pa.C.S. Chapter 56 - money, property, taxes, benefits.
- A healthcare power of attorney and living will under 20 Pa.C.S. Chapter 54 - medical treatment and end-of-life decisions.
They have different witnessing rules, and one does not substitute for the other. An agent under your financial POA has no authority to make a medical decision.
If you lose capacity with no valid POA, your family must petition the Orphans' Court for a guardian. That means a hearing, a court-appointed evaluator, legal fees, annual reporting to the court, and a stranger's judgment about who should act. It routinely costs thousands and takes months - during which nobody can pay your mortgage or speak to your doctor.
Financial POA: the rules
Pennsylvania overhauled its POA statute in Act 95 of 2014, largely in force from 2015. A financial power of attorney executed today must have all of the following:
- Your signature (or mark, or a signature made at your direction).
- Acknowledgment before a notary public or other officer authorised to take acknowledgments.
- Two witnesses, each 18 or older.
- The statutory notice, in capital letters, at the very beginning of the document - and signed by you.
- An agent acknowledgment, signed by the agent, accepting their fiduciary duties before exercising any authority.
The agent named in the document cannot witness it. Neither can the notary, nor anyone who signed the document on your behalf at your direction. The notary also cannot be the agent. These exclusions are the single most common reason a Pennsylvania POA is later challenged - and they are easy to trip over when a spouse-agent is the only other adult in the room.
Durable, and when it starts
A POA is durable if it continues after you lose capacity - which is the entire point. Pennsylvania treats a POA as durable unless the document says otherwise, but a well-drafted document states it explicitly.
A springing POA takes effect only on incapacity, usually certified by one or two physicians. It sounds prudent, and in practice it introduces friction: the agent must first obtain the certification, and banks may scrutinise it. Many Pennsylvania practitioners prefer an immediately effective POA held by a trusted agent, with the original document kept secure until needed.
Powers that must be spelled out
Certain authorities are not implied by a general grant. If the document does not expressly say so, your agent cannot do them at all. These include the power to:
- Make a gift
- Create, amend, revoke, or terminate a trust
- Create or change rights of survivorship
- Create or change a beneficiary designation
- Delegate authority granted under the power of attorney
- Waive the right to be a beneficiary of a joint and survivor annuity, including a survivor benefit under a retirement plan
- Disclaim property, including a power of appointment
These matter enormously for later-life planning. An agent who cannot make gifts cannot carry out a Medicaid spend-down strategy or continue an established annual gifting programme. An agent who cannot change a beneficiary designation cannot fix a form that still names your late spouse.
Healthcare POA and living will
Chapter 54 governs two related documents, often combined into one advance healthcare directive:
- A healthcare power of attorney names a healthcare agent to make medical decisions when you cannot.
- A living will states your own wishes about life-sustaining treatment if you are in an end-stage medical condition or permanently unconscious.
Execution is lighter than for a financial POA: sign and date the document, with two witnesses aged 18 or older. Notarization is not required in Pennsylvania - though having it notarised as well is worth doing, since some other states expect it and you may fall ill away from home.
Someone who signs on your behalf at your direction may not be a witness. Choose witnesses who are not your healthcare agent and, as a matter of good practice, not your treating provider.
Side-by-side comparison
| Financial POA (Ch. 56) | Healthcare POA (Ch. 54) | |
|---|---|---|
| Covers | Banking, property, taxes, benefits, investments | Medical treatment, providers, end-of-life care |
| Witnesses | Two, aged 18+ | Two, aged 18+ |
| Notary | Required | Not required |
| Statutory notice signed by principal | Required | Not required |
| Agent acknowledgment | Required before acting | Not required |
| Ends at | Death, revocation, or court order | Death or revocation |
Choosing an agent
Your agent is a fiduciary. They must act in your interest, keep your property separate from theirs, and keep records. Choose for judgment and integrity rather than seniority - the eldest child is not automatically the right choice.
- Name successors. Agents predecease, move away, and fall ill themselves.
- Think hard before naming co-agents. If the document requires them to act jointly, every transaction needs both signatures - awkward when one is abroad. If they may act independently, they may act inconsistently.
- Different people for money and medicine is fine. The skills genuinely differ.
- Tell them. An agent who first learns of the role in a hospital corridor is not set up to succeed.
Why POAs get rejected
Banks and brokerages scrutinise powers of attorney closely, and a rejection at the counter is what families actually experience. The recurring causes:
- The agent acknowledgment was never signed. Extremely common in forms downloaded online.
- The statutory notice is missing or unsigned.
- The agent or notary served as a witness.
- The document is old. Nothing expires it, but institutions grow uneasy with a POA signed twenty years ago. Re-executing every few years is cheap insurance.
- An out-of-state form was used. Pennsylvania's notice and acknowledgment requirements are unusual, and generic multi-state forms frequently omit them.
- Only copies exist. Some institutions want to see the original.
Pennsylvania law does provide protections for third parties who accept an apparently valid POA in good faith, and limits on unreasonable refusal - but knowing the law is on your side is cold comfort when the branch will not release funds this week. Getting execution right the first time is the real remedy.
Common questions
Can I revoke a power of attorney?
Yes, at any time while you have capacity. Do it in writing, notify the agent, and notify every institution holding a copy. Destroying your own copy does not revoke it.
Does my agent have to keep records?
Yes. An agent must keep records of receipts, disbursements, and transactions, and may be required to account for them.
Will a Pennsylvania POA work in another state?
Usually, as most states recognise a POA validly executed where it was signed. If you spend significant time elsewhere, consider executing a document in that state too.
Do I still need a will?
Yes. They cover different periods. A POA governs your affairs while you are alive; it dies with you. See how to make a will in Pennsylvania.
Get the execution right
Airlooms builds Pennsylvania powers of attorney with the statutory notice, the agent acknowledgment, and clear signing instructions - the pieces most forms leave out.