You’ve sat down, discussed your wishes, and the certificate provider and your attorneys have all signed the Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) forms, but what happens next? You have technically done the most important part, and it should be a relief knowing that the forms are signed in case you were to lose mental capacity in the future. However, the LPA is not legally active from the moment you sign it, so these are the next steps to consider once it is signed.
1. Registration with the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG)
Before an LPA can be used, it must be officially registered with the OPG, which will check that it has all been signed and dated correctly.
Currently, the waiting period for the registration process is between 3 and 4 months. This is why we recommend registering them as soon as they are signed, because if you decide to wait and then need them in an emergency, you could be stuck in that 3-4-month waiting period.
You have to pay an application fee to the OPG, which is currently set at £92 per application form. You may qualify for a fee reduction or exemption based on your income and savings; you can see if you qualify by reviewing the LPA120 form.
2. The Notification Period
Once the OPG has received your application, they will start processing it and notify the relevant parties mentioned in your LPA form. There is a statutory waiting period of 4 weeks during which you or anyone else can raise concerns about the making of your LPA, or if you change your mind, you can cancel the application before it is registered, but you are unlikely to receive the fee you paid back.
3. Registration
If no issues are raised, the OPG will register the LPA, return it with its validated physical stamp, and include the official reference number and date of registration.
Once registered, you and your attorneys will receive letters from the OPG notifying you of this, and the letter will include an activation key for you to make an online account with the gov.uk service, which will allow you to request access codes and provide these codes to companies for them to see an online version of the LPA instead of the registered paper version. You do not need to set up an online account, as companies will always accept the paper version. However, with many companies not having a high street presence, it can be easier and quicker to provide them with an online access code so it doesn’t get lost in the post.
4. Storage
Make sure you keep your LPA in a safe and accessible place, so it is available if you ever need it. A lot of our clients choose to leave the original LPA forms in our securities, as there is only ever one original, so if it is lost or damaged, you will have to request an official copy from the OPG at a cost of £35 per copy. As a solicitor’s firm, we do provide certified copies of the original LPAs if we have seen them, and we do recommend this as it is safer than providing the original, and most companies accept certified copies of LPAs.
If you do not yet have an LPA in place and would like to discuss this, please contact our offices to book an appointment with a member of our Private Client team.