Scotland splits power of attorney into two. One deals with your money and property. The other deals with your care and health. Most people need both, but they work differently.
The two powers
| Continuing power of attorney | Welfare power of attorney | |
|---|---|---|
| Covers | Property and finances | Personal and health care decisions |
| Starts | When registered, or later if the document says so | Only when you lose capacity |
| Who can act | An individual or a firm | An individual |
| Typical powers | Run bank accounts, pay bills, claim benefits and pensions, buy or sell property | Decide where you live, access your personal information, consent to or refuse medical treatment |
A continuing power can start while you still have capacity, which helps if you want someone to manage your bills during a long illness or stay abroad. If you'd rather it waited, the document has to say so.
What a welfare attorney can't do
A welfare attorney can consent to or refuse treatment, but only within the limits of the Adults with Incapacity Act. They can't place you in hospital for treatment of a mental disorder against your will. They also can't consent for you to certain treatments that regulations list. Where the attorney and your doctor disagree, there is a route to a second opinion.
Who you can appoint
You are free to choose anyone you trust. A welfare attorney must be an individual. A continuing attorney can be an individual or a body such as a firm of solicitors or accountants, and you can appoint both a professional and a family member.
A person who is bankrupt cannot act as a continuing attorney until they are discharged. If you become bankrupt, your continuing power stops until your discharge, but a welfare power is unaffected.
Joint and substitute attorneys
You can appoint separate attorneys for money and welfare, joint attorneys, and substitutes who step in if an attorney dies or resigns. Joint attorneys have to act together, and both must be involved in every decision. If you want either of them to be able to act alone, the document must say that they act "jointly and severally".
You can't give an attorney the power to choose their own substitute or successor. If you want a back-up, name them in the document.
What the document needs
It must be in writing, signed by you, and say clearly whether it is continuing, welfare or both. A welfare power must include a statement about how your incapacity is to be decided. A continuing power needs the same where it only starts on incapacity.
It must also carry a certificate from a solicitor, an advocate or a doctor, who has interviewed you immediately before you sign. They confirm that you understand what you are granting and that nobody is pressuring you. The person you are appointing can't be the one who signs it.
Registration
Your attorney can't act until the Office of the Public Guardian has registered the document. The attorney signs a form to say they are willing to act. You don't have to ask them first, but you should. Talk through what you expect, where your papers are kept, how you want to be cared for and what matters to you. Write it down and give them a copy.
The registration fee is £99 from April 2026. Our guide to the cost of a power of attorney covers that and the legal fee.
Moving and the other direction
A document made in England follows different rules. If you have an English one and live in Scotland, read our guide on using an English power of attorney in Scotland.
Richard arranges both powers through our specialist legal partners, usually at your kitchen table. If you haven't got either, read what happens to a family in that position in our guide to guardianship orders, then see our Power of Attorney page.