Your Guide to an Enduring Power of Attorney (EPOA) Signing in British Columbia

As part of your advance personal and estate planning in BC, you should consider getting an Enduring Power of Attorney (POA). An Enduring Power of Attorney gives legal authority to another person to oversee or represent you in financial and legal matters, even if you become mentally capable in the future.

In the article, we’re going to briefly review four types of POA available in BC and more detail about the Enduring Power of Attorney signing.

Types of Powers of Attorney

A Power of Attorney is a document that allows another person to manage your financial or legal affairs when you cannot. In comparison, a Representation Agreement only deals with managing your healthcare, not financial and legal matters.

In POAs, there are two or three named parties:

The Attorney (or an Agent): the person being asked to execute the Donor’s financial and legal matters.
An Alternate: This is an optional assignment. You can choose to assign an alternate attorney if, for any reason, your first choice of Attorney cannot perform their assigned duties.

In BC, there are four types of POAs you can create, depending on your needs:

General: Active immediately but ends on incapacity, revocation, or death.
Limited: Similar to general, but applies to a specific purpose or period.
Enduring: Active immediately and continues past incapacity or until revocation or death (this is the POA type we’re focusing on in this article)
Springing: Not Active until incapacity or another trigger, but ends when Donor regains capacity or death.

Choosing Your Attorney (Representative)

Whomever you choose to represent you in tasks outlined in your Power of Attorney document should be someone you trust implicitly. Due to the detailed record-keeping that will be required of them, it should be someone who is also organized.

It will most likely be a family member or trusted friend who you know will execute your wishes as instructed and not clean out your bank account and run to Switzerland. They must also pass an Enduring Power of Attorney Capacity Test.

A banking or financial institution can be your Attorney in specific cases. However, their powers will be limited to activities regarding your accounts at their institution. The institution must also comply with the BC Power of Attorney Act.

You can not assign an attorney who is already compensated to provide healthcare or personal support to you or who is an employee of a facility where you live and who provides your health or personal services.

What is An EPOA capacity Test?

The person you choose to be your representative in an EPOA must also meet specific other criteria. Whomever you appoint must also be mentally capable of understanding all of the following:

The Adults' property and approximate value
Obligations the Adult owes to their dependents
Understanding anything being asked of them in regards to the Adult's financial matters, except the making of a will.
That unless they manage the Adult's property and business as asked, they understand that the Adult’s value may decline.
The Adult may revoke the POA at any time for any reason.

Attorney Signing

In British Columbia, your designated Attorney must sign the EPOA before they can begin exercising the rights outlined in the document. Without this signature, they are not legally allowed or required to exercise their authority.

Revoking your Enduring Power of Attorney

As long as you are mentally capable, you can revoke or change your EPOA anytime. To do so, you must legally, in writing, revoke the old EPOA and write a new one to replace it. The act of having an updated EPOA does not automatically cancel older versions.

Alternatives to Powers of Attorney

There are other legal documents you can use in place of a Power of Attorney or that assign similar powers:

A Representation Agreement: This works similarly to POAs but is limited to healthcare decisions.
Joint Bank Accounts: For banking, you can put another person as a joint account holder who can act independently of you in financial matters. This should be used with caution as nothing prevents them from stealing your money or making changes you haven’t authorized.
Section 7 Representation Agreement: If an older adult cannot meet capacity tests for an EPOA, this is a sufficient alternative for routine financial management (including simple estates with no credit cards, mortgages, loans…etc.)
Trust Agreements: A trust agreement is between two people for the benefit of a third party. Depending on the type of trust agreement, this can be revocable or irrevocable, discretionary or non-discretionary, inter-vivos (a trust awarded while alive), and may survive death if specified.

Ready to sign an Enduring Power of Attorney?

Your notary can help create your Power of Attorney documents, including EPOA. If you’re unsure what type you need, book a consultation with my office today, and we’ll help you understand each one and which is applicable to meet your needs.

As a notary in BC, my team and I can help you with efficient, accessible, and affordable notarial services. Don’t hesitate to call us today about your real estate transfers, mortgages, wills, powers of attorney, and representation agreements.

Not sure where to start? Let’s talk to see where we can best support your legal notarial needs.