Guides · State guides · Oklahoma
Advance Directive in Oklahoma: The Living Will, Health Care Proxy and Power of Attorney
Oklahoma's advance directive combines a living will and a health care proxy, and it needs two adult witnesses who won't inherit from your parent. Here is how it works under current law, and what changes on July 1, 2027.
By naveen · Updated · How we research our guides
What to know
- Oklahoma's Advance Directive for Health Care can include a living will, a health care proxy, or both; it must be signed by your parent and witnessed by two adults who are not legatees, devisees or heirs at law, and the section we read requires no notary (63 O.S. § 3101.4).
- A separate health care power of attorney can be notarized or witnessed, but it can't authorize withholding or withdrawing life-sustaining treatment, nutrition or hydration; under current law only the advance directive can.
- Without either document, Oklahoma law sets an order of people who can decide, starting with a guardian, then the spouse, adult children, parents and adult siblings (§ 3102.4).
- A new law replaces these acts on July 1, 2027; a directive made earlier stays valid if it met the law when it was made.
- Retirement Checklist puts these documents in order alongside everything else your family needs to settle.
An Oklahoma advance directive is a writing that "may include a living will, the appointment of a health care proxy, or both such living will and appointment of a proxy" (63 O.S. § 3101.3). Under § 3101.4, your parent must be of sound mind and 18 or older, and the document "shall be signed by the declarant and witnessed by two individuals who are eighteen (18) years of age or older who are not legatees, devisees, or heirs at law."
What is an advance directive in Oklahoma?
It's the document created by the Oklahoma Advance Directive Act, 63 O.S. §§ 3101.1 to 3101.16. The statute prints a form titled "Advance Directive for Health Care" in four parts: a living will, the appointment of a health care proxy, anatomical gifts, and general provisions. It opens: "If I am incapable of making an informed decision regarding my health care, I direct my health care providers to follow my instructions below."
The health care proxy must be 18 or older. Under the form, the proxy can make whatever medical treatment decisions your parent could make, except that decisions about life-sustaining treatment and artificially administered nutrition and hydration follow only what your parent indicated in the living will part. It's separate from a financial power of attorney, which doesn't cover health care; see our Oklahoma power of attorney guide.
What does the Oklahoma living will cover?
The living will part covers three situations, each certified by the attending physician and another physician:
| Condition | What the statute says |
|---|---|
| Terminal condition | Incurable and irreversible, and will "result in death within six (6) months" |
| Persistently unconscious | "thought and awareness of self and environment are absent" |
| End-stage condition | "severe and permanent deterioration indicated by incompetency and complete physical dependency" |
For each, your parent initials one of three choices: no life-sustaining treatment but artificially administered nutrition and hydration if they can't eat or drink; no life-sustaining treatment including nutrition and hydration; or life-sustaining treatment with nutrition and hydration. There's also space for more specific instructions.
Nutrition and hydration get extra protection. A directive signed in Oklahoma that isn't in the statutory form doesn't authorize withholding or withdrawing them unless it says so in your parent's own words or in a separate, separately initialed or signed section. Whatever is withheld, your parent "shall be provided with medication or other medical treatment to alleviate pain and will be provided with oral consumption of food and water" (§ 3101.8).
How do you sign an Oklahoma advance directive?
Your parent signs it in front of two witnesses who are 18 or older and aren't legatees, devisees or heirs at law, and § 3101.4 requires no notary.
| Document | Statute | Signing rule |
|---|---|---|
| Advance Directive for Health Care (living will and proxy) | 63 O.S. § 3101.4 | Your parent signs; two adult witnesses who aren't legatees, devisees or heirs at law |
| Health care power of attorney | 63 O.S. § 3111.3 | Your parent signs before a notary, or two adult witnesses who aren't legatees, devisees or heirs at law |
The statutory advance directive form has lines for two witnesses, who confirm "This advance directive was signed in my presence," and no notary block. In its general provisions, your parent acknowledges "that my witnesses must be eighteen (18) years of age or older and shall not be related to me and shall not inherit from me." Because the statute excludes heirs and the form excludes relatives, check each witness against both before signing. For the general picture, see power of attorney vs. advance directive.
What is a health care power of attorney in Oklahoma?
It's a second document, under the Oklahoma Health Care Agent Act, 63 O.S. §§ 3111.1 to 3111.13, in effect since April 29, 2022. Your parent names an agent who can make "any health care decision the principal could have made while having capacity other than the withholding or withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment, nutrition, or hydration, which may only be authorized in compliance with the Oklahoma Advance Directive Act." It can authorize the agent to sign a do-not-resuscitate consent.
Under § 3111.3, it "shall be signed by the principal in the presence of a notary public or witnessed by two (2) individuals who are at least eighteen (18) years of age and who are not legatees, devisees, or heirs at law of the principal." The statute's optional form offers both a notary block and witness lines, though its introduction still says "It is required that two other individuals sign as witnesses."
Unless related to your parent by blood, marriage or adoption, the agent can't be "an owner, operator, or employee of a residential long-term health care institution" where your parent is receiving care. A decree of divorce, annulment or legal separation revokes the designation of a spouse as agent unless the decree or document says otherwise.
When does an Oklahoma advance directive take effect?
An advance directive "becomes operative when:" "It is communicated to the attending physician; and" your parent can no longer make decisions about life-sustaining treatment (§ 3101.5). The proxy's authority over life-sustaining treatment applies once the attending physician and another physician who have examined your parent determine they can't make an informed decision. If your parent signed more than one, "the last advance directive so executed" controls.
A health care power of attorney works on a different trigger. Unless the document says otherwise, the agent's authority "becomes effective only upon a determination that the principal lacks capacity," made by the attending physician. The statutory form lets your parent mark a box to make it effective immediately.
Where do you get an Oklahoma advance directive form?
The form is printed in 63 O.S. § 3101.4, and the directive "may be in substantially the following form." Oklahoma Human Services' Legal Help for Seniors page links an Advance Directive for Health Care form and a health care power of attorney form, and says people 60 or older "may qualify for free legal help through the Older Americans Act."
Give copies to your parent's doctor and proxy. A physician or provider who receives the original or a photocopy "shall make it a part of the declarant's medical record."
What happens if your parent has no advance directive?
Oklahoma law gives the decision to a priority list of people, starting with a guardian and then family members. Under § 3102.4, when your parent is persistently unconscious, incompetent or otherwise unable to communicate, a person who is reasonably available and willing, in this order, can make health care decisions:
- a guardian of the person with authority over medical decisions;
- a health care proxy or alternate your parent designated;
- an agent under the Oklahoma Health Care Agent Act;
- the spouse;
- adult children;
- parents;
- adult siblings;
- other adult relatives, in order of kinship;
- close friends in regular contact who know your parent's personal values.
If people within a class disagree, "a majority within the class may make a health care decision for the patient." Before deciding, the person must give the provider a signed statement certifying they have no convictions or findings of abuse, neglect or exploitation, and § 3102.5 disqualifies anyone who does. If the family can't resolve a dispute, see conservatorship and guardianship.
How do you revoke an Oklahoma advance directive?
Your parent can revoke either document at any time, in any manner that communicates the intent.
- Advance directive. It "may be revoked in whole or in part at any time and in any manner by the declarant, without regard to the declarant's mental or physical condition," effective once communicated to the attending physician or another provider (§ 3101.6).
- Health care power of attorney. Your parent can revoke the agent's designation "by a signed writing or by personally informing the health care provider at any time and in any manner that communicates an intent to revoke" (§ 3111.4).
What about POLST?
A POLST, Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment, is a medical order under 63 O.S. §§ 3105.1 to 3105.5, not an advance directive. The Attorney General sets its standard format, and the form says "Any section not completed indicates full treatment for that section" and must be reviewed at least annually. A POLST-type form signed in another state has no validity in Oklahoma after 10 days following your parent's admission to an Oklahoma medical care facility; a new Oklahoma POLST replaces it.
What changes on July 1, 2027?
On July 1, 2027, the Uniform Health Care Decisions Act of 2026 (HB 1687) replaces Oklahoma's current advance directive and health care agent laws. The Governor approved it on May 11, 2026, and its last section reads, "This act shall become effective July 1, 2027." It repeals the Oklahoma Advance Directive Act, the default-decision-maker sections and the Oklahoma Health Care Agent Act, and sets new rules, including a power of attorney for health care signed by one qualified adult witness.
Your parent's existing directive doesn't lapse. Subject to one exception in the new act, a directive created before July 1, 2027 "shall be valid if it complies with this act or complied at the time of creation with the laws of the state in which it was created." Until then, the rules above apply.
Frequently asked questions
Does an advance directive need to be notarized in Oklahoma?
Not under § 3101.4, the section we read. An Oklahoma advance directive needs your parent's signature and two adult witnesses who aren't legatees, devisees or heirs at law, and the statutory form has no notary block. A separate health care power of attorney can be signed before a notary instead of two witnesses.
Who can witness a living will in Oklahoma?
Any adult 18 or older who isn't one of your parent's legatees, devisees or heirs at law. The statutory form adds that witnesses "shall not be related to me and shall not inherit from me." Following the form means choosing witnesses outside the family. A family member can still be named the health care proxy.
Where can I get an Oklahoma living will form?
The Advance Directive for Health Care form, with a living will part and a proxy part, is printed in 63 O.S. § 3101.4. Oklahoma Human Services links a copy on its Legal Help for Seniors page. The extra own-words rule for nutrition and hydration applies only to directives that aren't in the statutory form.
Who makes medical decisions in Oklahoma if there's no advance directive?
Under § 3102.4, the order runs from a guardian, a designated proxy and a health care agent, to the spouse, adult children, parents, adult siblings, other adult relatives by kinship, then close friends who know your parent's values. A majority within a class can decide, and each decision-maker signs a certification first.
Is an advance directive from another state valid in Oklahoma?
Yes, within limits. Under § 3101.14, one executed in another state under that state's law or Oklahoma's is valid to the extent it doesn't exceed what Oklahoma allows. For withholding artificial nutrition and hydration it must say so specifically, and either your parent wasn't an Oklahoma resident when signing or it meets Oklahoma's own-words rule.
Can my parent change their mind after signing?
Yes. An advance directive can be revoked in whole or in part at any time and in any manner, regardless of your parent's condition, once it's communicated to the doctor or another provider. Signing a new statutory form also revokes prior directives. A health care power of attorney can be revoked in writing or by telling the provider.
Getting started
An advance directive only helps if it's signed while your parent can sign it, with two witnesses who won't inherit, and if a copy reaches the doctor. The plan this site builds asks four questions, including which state your parents live in, and puts the steps that matter most for your family in order. It's free and takes about 90 seconds.
Related guides
Sources
- Oklahoma Statutes Title 63: the Oklahoma Advance Directive Act (§§ 3101.1 to 3101.16, including the form in § 3101.4), default decision-makers (§§ 3102.4, 3102.5), POLST (§§ 3105.1 to 3105.5) and the Oklahoma Health Care Agent Act (§§ 3111.1 to 3111.13); published by the Oklahoma Legislature.
- Oklahoma Legislature, Enrolled House Bill 1687 (2026): the Uniform Health Care Decisions Act of 2026, effective July 1, 2027, and its bill history.
- Oklahoma Human Services, Legal Help for Seniors: advance directive and health care power of attorney forms.
- Oklahoma State Board of Osteopathic Examiners, POLST form: the current POLST form.
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