Guides · State guides · Missouri
Power of Attorney in Missouri: Durable Wording, the Notary, and How to Get One
A Missouri power of attorney is durable only if it says so in the words the statute requires and is acknowledged before a notary. Here is what the Durable Power of Attorney Law of Missouri requires.
By naveen · Updated · How we research our guides
What to know
- A Missouri power of attorney survives your parent's incapacity only if it's titled a durable power of attorney, includes a durability statement, and is signed, dated and acknowledged like a real estate deed (RSMo 404.705).
- That acknowledgment is taken by a notary or another listed officer; the sections we read don't require witnesses.
- Missouri's law doesn't include a fill-in statutory form, and gifts, trusts and beneficiary changes need express authority.
- Filing for divorce ends a spouse's authority as agent unless the document says otherwise.
- Retirement Checklist turns your parent's situation into a short, ordered plan, so the power of attorney sits in the right place among everything else.
A Missouri power of attorney lets your parent name an agent to act for them, and it keeps working through incapacity only if it's titled durable, includes a durability statement, and is signed, dated and notarized. Under RSMo 404.705, an agent's authority continues through your parent's incapacity only if the document is titled a durable power of attorney, contains a durability statement, and "is subscribed by the principal, and dated and acknowledged in the manner prescribed by law for conveyances of real estate." For a parent planning ahead, all three steps matter.
What is a durable power of attorney in Missouri?
It's a written power of attorney in which the agent's authority doesn't end if your parent becomes disabled or incapacitated, under the Durable Power of Attorney Law of Missouri, RSMo 404.700 to 404.735. Your parent is the principal, and the person they name is the attorney in fact, "an individual or corporation appointed to act as agent of a principal in a written power of attorney."
A power of attorney that isn't durable stops working when it's most needed: the agent's authority "is suspended during any period that the principal is disabled or incapacitated" (RSMo 404.714). For why timing matters, see our guide to power of attorney for an elderly parent.
What does Missouri require for a durable power of attorney?
Missouri requires four things together: the durable title, a durability statement, your parent's signature and date, and an acknowledgment like the one for a real estate deed (RSMo 404.705).
| Requirement | What RSMo 404.705 says |
|---|---|
| Title | Denominated a "Durable Power of Attorney" |
| Durability statement | A provision stating in substance that the agent's authority "SHALL NOT TERMINATE IF I BECOME DISABLED OR INCAPACITATED," or the statute's alternate wording |
| Signature and date | Signed by your parent and dated |
| Acknowledgment | Acknowledged the way a real estate deed is; in Missouri, a notary public is one of the officers who can take it (RSMo 442.150) |
The sections we read don't require witnesses. The statute's full durability sentence reads "THIS IS A DURABLE POWER OF ATTORNEY AND THE AUTHORITY OF MY ATTORNEY IN FACT SHALL NOT TERMINATE IF I BECOME DISABLED OR INCAPACITATED OR IN THE EVENT OF LATER UNCERTAINTY AS TO WHETHER I AM DEAD OR ALIVE."
Is there an official Missouri power of attorney form?
Missouri's Durable Power of Attorney Law doesn't include a fill-in statutory form. It prescribes the durability title and statement, and leaves the rest to the document your parent signs. Your parent can grant general powers "with respect to all lawful subjects and purposes or with respect to one or more express subjects or purposes" (RSMo 404.710).
Some powers count only "if the actions are expressly enumerated and authorized in the power of attorney," including creating or changing trusts, making gifts, changing survivorship interests, and the power "To designate or change the designation of beneficiaries to receive any property, benefit or contract right on the principal's death." Health care authority can be added the same way. No power of attorney can let the agent make or revoke your parent's will or living will.
Who can be the agent?
Any person who isn't disqualified from serving as your parent's guardian or conservator under RSMo 475.055 (RSMo 404.707). That excludes, among others, anyone under 18, an incapacitated person, and an owner, operator or employee of a facility licensed by the state Department of Mental Health or Department of Social Services where your parent lives, unless related to your parent within the fourth degree.
Your parent can name more than one agent and say whether they act together or separately, and can name successors who take over if an agent dies, resigns or can't serve.
When does it take effect, and when does it end?
It takes effect and ends on the terms your parent sets, and the law adds endings such as death, revocation and a divorce filing. Your parent can say the authority "shall not be exercised until, or shall terminate on, the happening of a future event, condition or contingency, as determined in a manner prescribed in the instrument" (RSMo 404.714). If your parent wants it to start only on incapacity, the document should say how that's decided.
Under RSMo 404.717, it ends on the date or terms in the document, when your parent tells the agent orally or in writing that it's revoked, when a written revocation is recorded with the recorder of deeds, or on your parent's death. Divorce matters: authority ends "On the filing of any action for divorce or dissolution of the marriage of the principal and the principal's attorney in fact," unless the document provides otherwise. That's the filing, not the final decree.
If a court later appoints a guardian or conservator, the agent "shall follow the instructions of the court or of the legal representative" (RSMo 404.714).
What does the agent have to do?
Under RSMo 404.714, an agent who acts "has a fiduciary obligation to exercise the powers conferred in the best interests of the principal, and to avoid self-dealing and conflicts of interest, as in the case of a trustee." Unless authorized otherwise, the agent must take care to keep your parent's estate plan, including beneficiary designations, joint accounts, trusts and will, in place without modification.
The agent also "shall keep the principal's property and accounts separate and distinct from all other property and accounts" (RSMo 404.712) and must stay in regular contact with your parent and follow their instructions where possible. Your parent can ask the court to order the agent to account, and if your parent is incapacitated, an adult family member can (RSMo 404.727). Our guide to protecting a parent from scams covers the warning signs any agent should know.
Do banks have to accept a Missouri power of attorney?
The sections we read, RSMo 404.700 to 404.737, don't require a bank to accept one and set no deadline or penalty for refusing. They protect a bank that relies on it in good faith: under RSMo 404.719, a third person "may rely and act on any power of attorney executed by the principal" without investigating things like your parent's capacity when they signed.
A bank may ask the agent for signature specimens and other reasonable information, and may require indemnity against forgery. No bond is required if the power of attorney is durable, your parent or the agent has lived in Missouri for at least two years, and the agent signs an indemnity agreement "reasonably satisfactory in form to such third person."
Does a Missouri power of attorney need to be recorded?
Only for real estate. Under RSMo 404.705, a durable power of attorney "does not have to be recorded to be valid," except as required for real estate. Under RSMo 442.360, a power to convey real estate must be acknowledged, certified and recorded like a deed, in the recorder's office of the county where the property is.
How do you get a power of attorney for an elderly parent in Missouri?
Your parent makes it, by signing, dating and acknowledging a durable power of attorney before a notary while able to. The steps:
- Talk with your parent about who they'd want acting for them, and who should succeed them.
- Choose a document, drafted by an attorney or from a reliable source, that carries the durable title and statement.
- Go through the powers with your parent, including any gifts, trusts or beneficiary changes that need express authority.
- Your parent signs and dates it and acknowledges it before a notary.
- Give the agent a copy and keep the original somewhere safe.
Timing matters because your parent has to be able to sign. If that moment has passed, the family may need a court process instead, described in our Missouri guardianship guide. Because Missouri's law prints no statutory form and requires specific wording, it helps to know what an elder law attorney does.
How do you revoke a power of attorney in Missouri?
Your parent can revoke it by telling the agent, orally or in writing, or by recording a written notice of termination with the recorder of deeds in their county (RSMo 404.717). A bank is bound by the revocation once it has "actual knowledge" of it, so a written, dated revocation sent to the agent and every bank holding a copy leaves a clear record.
If the power of attorney was recorded for real estate, the revocation must be recorded in the same office: under RSMo 442.370, it isn't revoked "until the instrument containing such revocation shall be deposited for record in the same office in which the instrument containing the power is recorded."
How much does a power of attorney cost in Missouri?
Missouri law caps the notary's fee for the acknowledgment at five dollars per signature, and a notary may charge less or waive it (RSMo 486.685). The Missouri Secretary of State lists the same cap: "For an acknowledgment, five dollars per signature." A travel fee is allowed only if agreed in advance.
Frequently asked questions
Does a power of attorney need to be notarized in Missouri?
For it to be durable, yes. RSMo 404.705 requires a durable power of attorney to be signed, dated and acknowledged in the manner used for real estate deeds, and a notary is one of the officers who can take that acknowledgment. Without it, the agent's authority is suspended while your parent is incapacitated.
Does a Missouri power of attorney need witnesses?
The sections we read, RSMo 404.700 to 404.737, don't require witnesses for a power of attorney. The execution steps are your parent's signature, the date and a notary acknowledgment, plus the durable title and statement. Missouri's separate living will is different: it needs two adult witnesses unless your parent writes it entirely by hand.
Where can I get a Missouri power of attorney form?
Missouri's Durable Power of Attorney Law doesn't print a statutory form. Whatever document your parent uses must be titled a durable power of attorney, include the durability statement in RSMo 404.705, and be signed, dated and notarized. An attorney can draft one for your parent's situation.
Can a Missouri power of attorney make medical decisions?
Only if it expressly says so. Under RSMo 404.710, a power of attorney can grant authority over health care "to the extent authorized by sections 404.800 to 404.865," the Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care Act. Our guide to Missouri's medical power of attorney explains those rules.
Is a power of attorney from another state valid in Missouri?
Yes, if it was durable where it was signed. Under RSMo 404.730, a durable power of attorney made under another state's similar law "is governed by the law of the designated state and, if durable where executed, is durable and may be carried out and enforced in this state." If your parent splits time between states, an attorney can confirm what covers both.
Getting started
A power of attorney is time-sensitive, because it needs your parent's signature while they can still give it, and in Missouri it needs the durable wording and a notary to keep working through incapacity. The plan this site builds asks four questions, including which state your parents live in, and puts the handful of steps that matter most for your family in order. It's free and takes about 90 seconds.
Related guides
Sources
- RSMo chapter 404, Durable Power of Attorney Law of Missouri: definitions (404.703), durability and execution (404.705), who may serve (404.707), powers (404.710), duties (404.712, 404.714), termination (404.717), third persons (404.719, 404.721) and out-of-state powers (404.730); published by the Missouri Revisor of Statutes.
- RSMo 475.055, Qualifications of guardians or conservators: who is disqualified from serving as agent.
- RSMo chapter 442, Titles and conveyance of real estate: acknowledgments (442.150) and recording and revoking a power of attorney for real estate (442.360, 442.370, 442.380).
- RSMo 486.685, Notary fees: the maximum notary fees.
- Missouri Secretary of State, Notary FAQ: the maximum notary fees.
More on what this tool does and doesn't do, or browse everything we've written.