How to Revoke a Power of Attorney in Australia: Forms, Notice and Who to Tell

You revoke a power of attorney by putting the cancellation in writing while you still have the capacity to make that decision, then telling your attorney and everyone who has been dealing with them. Some States have an official revocation form and witnessing rules, and if the power was registered for land, the revocation should be registered too. Until people are told, an attorney may keep acting for you.

Claim Done drafts a Notice of Revocation of Power of Attorney from your answers for a flat A$29. It tells your attorney their authority has ended, lists who else you are notifying, and gives you a signature and date block. You download it straight away and send it yourself.

Who can revoke a power of attorney, and when

The person who made the power of attorney (often called the principal) can revoke it while they have capacity. The NSW Ageing and Disability Commission’s fact sheet on revoking a power of attorney says you can revoke it at any time as long as you have the capacity to do so. It also says that when revoking, you must understand the nature, significance and consequences of the decision, and that professionals such as doctors can help assess whether you have that capacity.

The same fact sheet explains the difference between the two common kinds:

• A general power of attorney ends once you have lost capacity.
• An enduring power of attorney continues after you lose capacity.
• If you lack capacity, you cannot revoke an enduring power of attorney or make a new one.

The NSW Government’s power of attorney page says you can update or cancel your power of attorney at any time, providing you have the ability to make decisions for yourself.

The rules in NSW, Victoria and Queensland

The process is not the same everywhere. This table covers the three States whose official pages we read. If you live elsewhere, check with your State or Territory’s public trustee, public guardian or public advocate before you sign anything.

Sources: the Victorian Office of the Public Advocate, and the Queensland Government pages on ending an enduring power of attorney and a general power of attorney.

In Victoria, the Office of the Public Advocate also says neither witness can be one of your attorneys, a relative of yours or of an attorney, your care worker or accommodation provider, or a person signing at your direction. In Victoria and Queensland, the official pages describe revoking with the State’s revocation form. A written notice is still useful there as the letter that tells your attorney and others the power has ended.

What a revocation must say

In NSW, the Ageing and Disability Commission says a document revoking a power of attorney must state:

1. your name
2. the date your power of attorney was appointed (if it was not registered)
3. the registered number of the power of attorney (if it was registered)
4. the date of the revocation
5. words that show cancellation, such as “I hereby revoke”.

Telling the attorney, the bank and anyone who relied on it

Revoking on paper is only half the job. The NSW Government page says to inform in writing, preferably by registered post, your attorney that you are bringing their appointment to an end, your bank, and any other groups or businesses that may hold a copy of your power of attorney or that your attorney may have been dealing with. It warns that if you don’t do this, your attorney might continue to make decisions on your behalf.

Make a list before you start: banks, aged-care or health providers, your accountant, Centrelink, and any business the attorney has dealt with.

Keep a copy of the signed revocation, a copy of each letter you send, and proof of posting or delivery. The fact sheet also says that once the power is revoked, it is best to destroy the original power of attorney documents and any copies.

If the power of attorney was registered for land

In Queensland, a power of attorney must be registered with the Titles Registry before the attorney can deal with land for you. If yours was registered in any State, cancelling it by letter is not the end of it.

• NSW: the NSW Government page says that if your power of attorney is registered and you later revoke it, you should register the revocation.
• Queensland: lodge another Form 16 with the Queensland Titles Registry, with a single-sided copy of your Form 5 or Form 6.
• Other States: ask the land titles office in your State what it needs.

The structure of a revocation notice

A clear notice of revocation usually follows this order:

1. Heading and date: “Notice of Revocation of Power of Attorney” and the date you sign.
2. To and from: the attorney’s full name, and your full name as the person who made the power.
3. The power being cancelled: general or enduring, and the date it was made (or the registered number if it was registered).
4. The revocation: plain words that you revoke it, and the date it takes effect.
5. What the attorney should do: stop acting under the power and return or destroy their copies.
6. Others being told: the bank, providers and anyone else you are sending a copy to.
7. Signature block: your signature and date, with room for any witness your State requires.

If the person no longer has capacity

If the person who made an enduring power of attorney has lost capacity, they cannot revoke it themselves. A change can then be sought from the State tribunal.

• NSW: the Ageing and Disability Commission says that if family or others feel the attorney is misusing the person’s assets or not acting in their best interests, an application can be made to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) to review the enduring power. NCAT says it can vary or revoke an enduring power of attorney and appoint a substitute attorney.
• Victoria: the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) says it can suspend, cancel or vary the appointment of an enduring power of attorney and decide if an appointment is valid.
• Queensland: the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal (QCAT) says its orders about enduring documents can include removing an attorney, changing the terms of the document, or revoking it.

A notice of revocation is for the person who made the power and can still make the decision.

Mistakes to avoid

• Assuming a new power of attorney cancels the old one. In NSW, the Ageing and Disability Commission says making a new power of attorney does not automatically revoke a previous one. In Victoria, the Office of the Public Advocate says a later enduring power ends the earlier one unless you specify otherwise.
• Telling the attorney but not the bank. The NSW Government page says to tell your bank and anyone who holds a copy, in writing.
• Skipping the State form or witnesses. In Queensland, and for an enduring power in Victoria, use the official revocation form and follow its signing rules.

If you have decided to cancel, put it in writing and get it to the right people. Start your Notice of Revocation of Power of Attorney for A$29, check your State’s signing rules, and send a copy to your attorney and everyone who has been dealing with them.