Plan ahead with someone you trust
An enduring power of attorney (EPA) lets you choose someone you trust to make certain decisions if you lose the capacity to make them in the future. Planning ahead gives you time to consider your choices and say what matters to you.
Claire Tuohy advises on making and reviewing EPAs at HOMS Assist. She can help you decide what your arrangement should cover and guide you through the legal work and registration.
How we can help with your EPA
We prepare EPA arrangements, provide the required legal practitioner statement and assist with registration. New Irish EPAs are registered with the Decision Support Service (DSS). MyDSS is its online application portal.
Making a new EPA starts with your choices: who to appoint, the decisions to include and any limits on their authority. Claire advises you on those choices before we prepare the arrangement.
If you already have a document or application, or you’re acting for someone else, we can help with:
- MyDSS application already started: a review of where you are and help with the work still needed.
- Older EPA: advice on the rules that apply, reviewing the document and registration assistance.
- Acting as an attorney: advice on your responsibilities and the authority the EPA gives you.
At the outset, we’ll discuss your circumstances, agree the work and explain the fees.
EPA advice with Claire Tuohy
Claire is a Partner specialising in wills, trusts, probate and cross-border estates. She is also a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners, known as STEP. She advises on how your EPA reflects your wishes and fits with your wider plans.
What is an enduring power of attorney
An enduring power of attorney is a legal arrangement that lets you appoint one or more people to make certain decisions for you if you lose the capacity to make them in the future.
You are the donor, the person making the EPA. Your attorney is the person you appoint to act for you; they don’t have to be a solicitor.
Making an EPA doesn’t give your attorney immediate control over your affairs. Registration and bringing the EPA into effect are separate stages.
Who can make an EPA
You must be at least 18 and have the capacity to make the EPA. Capacity means being able to make a particular decision at a particular time, with support where needed. A diagnosis or difficulty with one decision doesn’t automatically mean you cannot make an EPA. If you’re unsure, seek advice early.
Deciding what your attorney can do
An EPA can cover your property and financial affairs, your personal welfare, or both. Depending on the authority you give, it may include decisions about:
- Managing bank accounts, paying bills and meeting financial obligations.
- Looking after property or dealing with business interests.
- Living arrangements and personal welfare.
You can give broad authority within the permitted areas or limit it to specific decisions. We help you consider any conditions and choose someone suitable and willing. If you appoint more than one attorney, how they act together needs to be clear.
An EPA and a living will are different arrangements
An EPA can cover certain welfare and healthcare-related decisions, but it cannot authorise your attorney to consent to or refuse medical treatment for you.
An advance healthcare directive, sometimes called a living will, records treatment wishes for a time when you cannot make those decisions. It is a separate arrangement. Ask us how the two documents fit within your plans.
Read more about Advance Healthcare Directives
Making and registering your EPA
These are the main areas of our work with you. The DSS has its own detailed application requirements.
Discuss your plans and choose your attorney
You decide who to appoint and the authority to give, with Claire’s advice. We prepare the arrangement to reflect those choices. Bring any existing planning documents so we can check how they fit together.
Complete the legal documents
Claire conducts the required legal interview. The legal practitioner statement confirms that you understand the effect of the EPA and that the practitioner has no reason to believe you’ve been pressured or improperly influenced into making it.
You and your attorneys complete the required signed and witnessed declarations. A medical practitioner or an eligible healthcare professional completes the separate capacity statement. We guide you on the requirements and their order.
Give notice and apply for registration
We agree the registration assistance you need and who will complete each part. You and your attorneys have steps to complete in MyDSS, including your attorneys accepting their roles. Certain people must also receive notice.
The application must be submitted to the DSS within three months of signing the donor and attorney declarations. The DSS then reviews whether the requirements have been met.
See the DSS steps for making an EPA
When an EPA comes into effect
Registering a new EPA does not activate it. If you later lose the capacity to make one or more of the decisions it covers, your attorney must apply to the DSS to bring it into effect. This is called notification and requires supporting documents.
The DSS must accept the notification before the EPA comes into effect. Your attorney must act within their authority, respect your wishes and support you to take part in decisions as much as possible.
If you already have an EPA
EPAs made before 26 April 2023 follow the earlier legal framework and a different registration process. They are not automatically invalid because the law changed.
Bring the document to Claire and tell us whether it has been registered and what help you need. We’ll check which rules apply.
Questions about enduring powers of attorney
Can you help if I have already started my MyDSS application
Yes. We can review your arrangement, the supporting documents and the stage you’ve reached. Claire will identify the work still needed and agree the assistance and fees with you.
Can my family automatically act under an EPA
No. Being your spouse or child does not, by itself, appoint someone as your attorney. An EPA records who you choose and the authority you give them.
Can I make an EPA for a parent
You cannot make an EPA on their behalf. Your parent must have the capacity to make the arrangement themselves. If they’re already struggling with decisions, contact us to discuss their circumstances and the legal options that may apply.
Can my attorney make or change my will
No. An EPA cannot authorise your attorney to make or change your will. A will deals with your estate after death; an EPA concerns decisions during your lifetime.
Can I cancel my EPA
For a registered EPA under the current system, cancellation is possible if it has not come into effect and you have capacity to cancel it. A formal process applies. Tell us which document you have so we can advise on the requirements.
How much does an EPA cost
The scope may differ between preparing a new EPA and reviewing an application already started. We’ll explain our fees and expected additional costs before you proceed. DSS fees and separate capacity-assessment costs may also apply.
How this fits with your wider plans
An EPA can sit alongside your will and estate arrangements. Claire can help you consider how it fits with plans for property, trusts or family succession.
Explore private wealth and estate planning
Talk to us about planning ahead
Contact Claire’s team with the advice you’re looking for. We’ll discuss where you are now and agree the next step.
For the first discussion, think about the decisions you want covered and who you might appoint. If you have an EPA or application documents already, have them available. You don’t need to have decided everything before contacting us.
Call 1800 207 207.
We have offices in Dublin, Limerick and Cork.
HOMS Assist. The specialist team on your side.
