Filling the NZ enduring power of attorney form

Two forms, not one

New Zealand has two enduring powers of attorney under the Protection of Personal and Property Rights Act 1988: one in relation to property, one in relation to personal care and welfare. They are separate prescribed forms with different rules. A property EPA may name more than one attorney, acting jointly or severally, and may take effect immediately or only on mental incapacity. A personal care and welfare EPA names one attorney at a time, may name a successor, and only ever takes effect on mental incapacity. Most clients want both, and most of the errors below come from treating them as one document.

Where a hand-filled EPA most often goes wrong

These are the things we see when a firm sends us a form that was filled from a phone call, an email thread and a template from a previous client.

The effect date box on the property EPA is left unmarked. The donor must choose immediate effect or effect on incapacity. A blank is not a choice.
Two attorneys on the welfare form. The personal care and welfare EPA takes one attorney. A second name belongs in the successor attorney section, or on the property form.
Jointly or severally not stated where the property EPA names more than one attorney.
People to be consulted or informed left blank when the donor meant none, or filled in with a name but no address or relationship.
Names that do not match across the two forms, or a middle name on one and not the other.
The significant matters and property definitions assumed rather than asked, so the attorney's authority is narrower or wider than the donor intended.
A superseded version of the form. The prescribed forms have been amended; an old template from the precedents folder does not become current by being familiar.
The witness certificate incomplete or the donor's witness not independent of the attorney. Clearhour prepares the form; this part is yours, and the record it produces makes it a fast check.

How the questionnaire prevents it

The right question for each form

Your client answers one plain questionnaire at home. It asks the property questions for the property EPA and the welfare questions for the welfare EPA, including the effect date, joint or several, and who to consult or inform. A choice cannot be skipped silently; a blank the client leaves is flagged for you.

Filled exactly as issued

The prescribed form is the only approved form, so Clearhour never restyles it. Answers land on the current form, in the right boxes, and the page shows you the form version and the date we last verified it against the regulations.

A record of every entry

Each run produces a record listing every entry made and the page it sits on, checked against the full field map. You review, you advise, you witness and sign off. The system never does.

Couples

Most EPA work comes in pairs. One questionnaire collects both donors, and Clearhour produces the four documents: a property EPA and a personal care and welfare EPA for each person. Shared successors are handled; where the two donors want different successors, each gets their own EPA rather than a compromise on one form.

Common questions

Which forms are the current NZ EPA forms?

The prescribed forms under the Protection of Personal and Property Rights Act 1988 and its EPA forms regulations, one for an enduring power of attorney in relation to property and one in relation to personal care and welfare. Clearhour fills the current prescribed form exactly as issued and shows you the form version and the date we last verified it.

Can a personal care and welfare EPA have two attorneys?

No. A personal care and welfare EPA appoints one attorney at a time, with a successor attorney allowed. A property EPA may appoint more than one attorney, acting jointly or severally. The questionnaire asks the right question for each form so this cannot be muddled.

When does each EPA come into effect?

A property EPA can be set to take effect straight away or only if the donor becomes mentally incapable; the donor must choose. A personal care and welfare EPA only ever takes effect on mental incapacity. The questionnaire will not let the property choice be skipped.

Who witnesses the donor signing?

The donor signs in front of an authorised witness, which in practice means a lawyer, a registered legal executive or an authorised officer of a trustee corporation or Citizens Advice Bureau, who is independent of the attorney and certifies that the effects and implications were explained. Clearhour prepares the form; the witnessing and the certificate are yours.

Does Clearhour give legal advice or sign anything?

No. Clearhour prepares the form from the client answers and gives you a record of every entry. The lawyer reviews, advises and signs off. The system never does.

New Zealand EPAs on Clearhour

The ready-made questionnaire, the forms it fills, and what a firm gets back.

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Where we work

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