Understand Military Power of Attorney: A Family Primer

The information contained on this website is designed to educate and inform service members and their families on their personal legal affairs. Nothing contained on the website is a substitute for the competent legal advice of a licensed attorney. Service members and their families seeking legal advice should consult the staff of the nearest installation Legal Assistance Office. 

At some point in their military career, your service member may ask if you can help them with certain personal business that can be hard to manage if they have limited communications or access to technology. This may include a wide variety of transactions including paying bills, handling banking or insurance, or selling property.

To hand off these responsibilities they need to create and sign a power of attorney that designates you or someone they trust as their representative. A POA is a legally binding planning tool that gives one person the authority to act on another’s behalf for legal or financial issues for a specified time. Conversations with your service member can help you better meet his or her needs.

The military maintains legal services offices to prepare POAs for service members and may bring the legal services to the individual units before deployments or other operations. These services are free to your service member.

General, limited and specific POA

POAs may be general or written to address a specific transaction(s). Your service member will have to think through and determine the types of transactions they may need you, other family members or trusted people to complete. If they are unsure about their needs, an appointment with the legal services office can help them determine the right POA for their situation. This conversation or prompt can determine the types of POAs they need.

If you are someone’s POA, here’s what to know:

• A general POA gives you the legal right to take any action on behalf of your service member or grantor. This can include managing bank accounts; selling, exchanging, buying or investing in any assets or property; purchasing and maintaining insurance; and entering into any binding contracts. While this can be easier, it also has drawbacks as some institutions may not accept a general POA or at least not beyond the most basic kinds of transactions.
• A special POA or limited POA is specific to a certain transaction or business relationship. This may include POAs for specific bank accounts, vehicles or actions such as the sale of a particular property. A special POA should include detailed information. The downside to using special POAs is that you must have one for every business relationship you need to cover.

If you are asked to be a POA, you will need to know detailed information such as the bank account name and number, vehicle identification numbers or insurance policy companies and numbers, whether or not this information is added to a POA.

Regular, durable and springing POAs

Another important aspect of a POA is when it takes effect and when it terminates. Here are common terms to know about POAs: 

• Regular: Most regular POAs take effect when signed. A regular POA lasts until it expires, until the grantor revokes it, until the grantor becomes incapacitated or until either party dies.
• Durable: A durable POA also usually takes effect when signed and continues until expiration, revocation or until either party dies. However, a durable POA contains special language that continues the representative’s powers in the case of incapacitation of the grantor.
• Springing: A springing POA does not become valid until a certain event occurs – a common use is for the POA to become valid upon incapacitation of the grantor if he/she is unable to make their own decisions. A springing POA may or may not have an expiration date. 

Terminating powers of attorney

A power of attorney is limited to a specific period or around a certain event, such as during the length of a deployment. The POA automatically expires when that period or event has concluded. Your service member can revoke it at any time as long as they’re mentally competent.

Benefits of a power of attorney

A power of attorney can help ensure you can address whatever needs to be done on your service member’s behalf while they’re away:

• Access family finances. Many financial institutions have their own power of attorney form they want customers to use. Your service member should check with their bank to see if that is the case before meeting with a legal assistance attorney. The legal assistance attorney can help your service member go over the bank’s power of attorney form before they fill it out.
• Pay taxes and receive tax refunds. Service members must file federal and state income tax returns even if they deploy unless they get an extension. The IRS generally requires both spouses’ signatures to file income tax returns and access refunds. To file a joint income tax return during a deployment without a power of attorney, the service member will need to complete IRS Form 2848, “Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representation.”
• Receive emergency financial assistance. Each service branch offers emergency financial assistance through their respective relief organizations.
• Receive government housing. If your family is on the waiting list for government housing, your service member should notify the installation housing office and provide it a copy of the power of attorney before the deployment. That may allow you to accept and move into government housing.
• Enroll newborn children in DEERS. TRICARE Prime covers newborn babies for 120 days. To continue coverage after that, you must have either a general or a special power of attorney to enroll the baby through the installation ID card center. 

Using the Right POA forms

In many cases, a company or organization may require that you use their specific form, that you pre-file the POA with them, or they may have other requirements. Your service member should check with their bank, insurance company or other institutions they expect you will do business with to find out their preferred format and policy for submitting the documents.

Serving as someone’s POA is an important responsibility. Make sure that you understand what they are asking you to do.

Your military member can contact a Military OneSource consultant or access the military’s free legal locator if they have other questions about when and how they can use POAs to take care of their personal business when they are unavailable.

The information contained on this website is designed to educate and inform service members and their families on their personal legal affairs. Nothing contained on the website is a substitute for the competent legal advice of a licensed attorney. Service members and their families seeking legal advice should consult the staff of the nearest installation Legal Assistance Office.