How to apply for confirmation of the continuing power of attorney
Attorney:
Only apply confirmation of the continuing power of attorney when your granter is no longer able to manage the matters that the continuing power of attorney concerns.
A continuing power of attorney may concern:
- financial matters
- matters pertaining the person, such as care and housing.
Issues to consider:
Do not send the continuing power of attorney document to the Digital and Population Data Services Agency for storage or registration. The attorney should only apply for the confirmation of the continuing power of attorney from the Digital and Population Data Services Agency when it must be validated for use.
The continuing power of attorney might only be confirmed decades after it has been made. Sometimes the continuing power of attorney does not need to be confirmed at all.
Do the following
Only apply for the confirmation of the continuing power of attorney when the granter is no longer able to manage the matters that the continuing power of attorney concerns.
1. Obtain a medical certificate stating that your granter is no longer capable of managing the affairs covered by the power of attorney. Be prepared to show the continuing power of attorney to the physician. In this way, the physician will ascertain which matters they should comment on and that you, as the attorney, are entitled to receive a medical certificate on the granter.
2. Complete the application for the confirmation of the continuing power of attorney.
3. Mail the following documents to the address Digital and Population Data Services Agency / Guardianship Services, PO Box 1004, FI-00531 Helsinki or bring them to one of our service points:
- the application for the confirmation of the continuing power of attorney (in Finnish)
- a medical report
- the original continuing power of attorney on paper (a copy of the power of attorney or a scan of the power of attorney sent by email is not sufficient). We will return the original continuing power of attorney to you.
You can also attach the granter's statement (in Finnish) to your application if the granter understands the significance of the matter, as well as the granter's spouse's statement (in Finnish). It is not mandatory to submit them but it will speed up the processing of the matter. If the statements are not attached, we request them from the granter and his or her spouse if necessary in connection with the processing of the matter.
4. As a rule, we process applications in the order of arrival and request further clarifications when necessary. Finally, we will assess whether the continuing power of attorney can be confirmed.
5. We will issue a decision on the matter. You will receive our decision by email, Suomi.fi Message or mail. We will also send the decision to the granter, if he or she can understand the significance of the matter.
Once you have received the decision on the confirmation, you can begin performing the tasks which the continuing power of attorney includes. For more information on how to carry out your duties, for example how to submit the property inventory, see Carrying out the tasks of the attorney.
Secondary attorney:
You can apply for the confirmation of the continuing power of attorney when
- the original attorney does not accept the mandate
- the original attorney resigns from the mandate
- the original attorney has become permanently unable to exercise the mandate
- the original attorney has passed away.
Apply for confirmation using the application form (in Finnish). Attach the original continuing power of attorney document to the application. Also include a medical statement on the granter’s capability of managing the affairs covered by the power of attorney, if the continuing power of attorney has not been confirmed for the original attorney.
Replacement attorney:
You can apply for the confirmation of the continuing power of attorney in the following situations:
- The continuing power of attorney has been confirmed for the original or secondary attorney. However, the attorney is disqualified from managing a certain matter. In this case, you can apply for confirmation of a continuing power of attorney to manage this matter if you are not disqualified. Read more on disqualification on our web page.
- The continuing power of attorney has been confirmed for the original or secondary attorney. However, the attorney is temporarily unable to exercise his or her mandate, for example because of an illness.
Please note that the attorney's disqualification or other obstacle must already be known when you are applying for confirmation of the power of attorney. In other words, you cannot apply for the confirmation in advance.
Apply for confirmation using the application form (in Finnish). Attach the original power of attorney document to the application.
This is how you get the document:
You will receive a decision from us once your application has been processed.
The decision will be sent to Suomi.fi Messages. In this way, you can get notified of the decision as soon as possible. If you do not have access to the service, you will receive the decision by letter. When submitting your application, you can also choose to receive the documents by encrypted e-mail.
We will also send the decision to the assignor, if they can understand the significance.
We will return the original continuing power of attorney to you by letter.
Check that all your details have been entered correctly.
Processing time for confirming a continuing power of attorney
The average processing time is 2–3 months. In specific cases, there are currently delays in processing of these matter.
Submit all the necessary documents at once to speed up the process. Read our website thoroughly to ensure you have the necessary attachments.
If you want to speed up the processing of your application, send the request in writing with a justification through secure mail. Select [email protected] as the address.
This is how you get the document:
You will receive a decision from us once your application has been processed.
The decision will be sent to Suomi.fi Messages. In this way, you can get notified of the decision as soon as possible. If you do not have access to the service, you will receive the decision by letter. When submitting your application, you can also choose to receive the documents by encrypted e-mail.
We will also send the decision to the assignor, if they can understand the significance.
We will return the original continuing power of attorney to you by letter.
Check that all your details have been entered correctly.
Confirmation of power of attorney
A continuing power of attorney cannot be sent to the Digital and Population Data Services Agency for storage or advance review. The attorney applies for the confirmation of a continuing power of attorney and submits the original power of attorney with the application (in Finnish) when the granter is no longer able to manage their affairs.
More on confirming an authorisation.
You can submit an application for the validation of the power of attorney once the granter is no longer able to manage their own affairs.
You can use this application form (in Finnish). Include the original power of attorney document and a medical certificate, which concerns the granter’s ability to manage their own affairs, as its attachments.
You can apply for the confirmation of the continuing power of attorney when
- the original attorney does not accept the mandate
- the original attorney resigns from the mandate
- the original attorney has become permanently unable to exercise the mandate
- the original attorney has passed away.
Apply for confirmation using the application form (in Finnish). Attach the original continuing power of attorney document to the application. Also include a medical statement on the granter’s capability of managing the affairs covered by the power of attorney, if the continuing power of attorney has not been confirmed for the original attorney.
You can apply for the confirmation of the continuing power of attorney in the following situations:
- The continuing power of attorney has been confirmed for the original or secondary attorney. However, the attorney is disqualified from managing a certain matter. In this case, you can apply for confirmation of a continuing power of attorney to manage this matter if you are not disqualified. Read more on disqualification on our web page.
- The continuing power of attorney has been confirmed for the original or secondary attorney. However, the attorney is temporarily unable to exercise his or her mandate, for example because of an illness.
Please note that the attorney's disqualification or other obstacle must already be known when you are applying for confirmation of the power of attorney. In other words, you cannot apply for the confirmation in advance.
Apply for confirmation using the application form (in Finnish). Attach the original power of attorney document to the application.
The attorney is disqualified when they or a person close to them is an opposing party in a matter. In other words, the attorney cannot sell the granter's residence to someone that is close to them.
The attorney is disqualified from representing the granter if the opposing party in the matter is
- the attorney personally, or their spouse
- a child or grandchild of the granter or their spouse, or a spouse of said child or grandchild
- a parent or grandparent of the granter or their spouse, or a spouse of said parent or grandparent
- a child of the attorney’s parent or sibling
- another person the attorney represents.
If you have been appointed as a replacement attorney in the power of attorney and you are impartial (for example, you are not a member of the family), you can apply for the confirmation of the continuing power of attorney for the matter in which the attorney is disqualified.
Other temporary impediment to the attorney
You can also apply for the authorisation to be validated if the attorney is temporarily prevented from carrying out their duties due to an illness, for example.
The attorney has the right to obtain a medical certificate on the granter. The physician is therefore obliged to issue a medical certificate to the attorney who has been granted the authorisation to confirm the power of attorney. Be prepared to show the power of attorney to the physician so that they can ensure that you, as the attorney, have the right to obtain a medical certificate on the granter.
If the medical certificate is not attached to the application, we will request it from the attorney separately. This will extend the processing time of the matter.
In other words, we will not ask the doctor for a medical certificate; it is the duty of the attorney to request it. It is determined on a case-by-case basis whether a new the medical certificate is needed.
Within a period of three months of an authorisation being confirmed, the attorney must submit to us a property inventory on the granter’s assets and debts that have been assigned to the attorney in the power of attorney. If the granter subsequently receives new property, the inventory on acquired property must be submitted with a month of receiving the property.
If the granter becomes a member of an estate, the attorney must submit the estate inventory deed to the guardianship authority within a month of the estate inventory being settled.