How do I register a Power of Attorney or a Court of Protection Order?
You can register a Power of Attorney or Court of Protection Order with us in the following ways:
- register online
- visit us in a branch
This can take up to 10 working days.
CARE: If you would like HSBC to consider the application of the Power of Attorney to a business account associated with the Donor, please inform us at the time of application.
Your request will be sent to our specialist Commercial Banking team for review, and this is reviewed separately to the application of the Power of Attorney on any personal bank accounts.
Please note: for a Power of Attorney to be considered on a Business account, the Power must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian first.
Get everything ready
We’ll need to see all pages of the Power of Attorney or Court of Protection Order, whether you’re submitting your document online or in branch.
This can be either the original, or a copy certified by a solicitor, a Notary Public, or by the donor if they have the mental capacity to do so. If you submit a copy of the document it must be signed and dated on every page, including any blank pages.
If you have an LPA access code from the Office of the Public Guardian, you can register this online or take the code into a branch.
To complete the registration, you’ll also need:
- the personal and contact details of any attorney wishing to be registered
- the donor’s details
- your identification
Register your Power of Attorney or Court of Protection Order online
To register your Power of Attorney or Court of Protection Order, you’ll need to complete an online form.
Lasting Power of Attorney
If you’re registering a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA), you can get an LPA access code from the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG). If you registered the LPA on or after 17 July 2020, the letter you received from the OPG included an activation key. This tells you how to get your LPA access code which we can use to register the LPA.
If you registered the LPA between 1 January 2016 and 16 July 2020, you can request a new or replacement activation key online. Once you have this, you’ll be able to get a new LPA access code which we can use to register the LPA.
To get your LPA access code, visit the GOV.UK website and follow the instructions.
Your LPA access code should be 13 characters long and begin with a V. It will be valid for 30 days, and if your code expires, you’ll need to request a new one from the OPG.
You can use our online service if:
- you’re registering an LPA with the OPG in England and Wales, on or after 1 January 2016
- the donor is an existing HSBC customer
- the LPA doesn’t contain any instructions or preferences. If it does, we’ll need to see a paper copy
All other Powers of Attorney, Lasting Power of Attorney (paper), and Court of Protection Order
You don’t need an LPA access code to register an Enduring Power of Attorney, General (Ordinary) Power of Attorney, Scottish Power of Attorney, or a Court of Protection Order.
You don’t need an LPA access code if you registered your LPA with the OPG before 1 January 2016, but you may need to provide us with a paper copy of the LPA if there are any instructions or preferences.
When you complete our online form, you’ll be able to let us know that you have a paper copy. Once we’ve received your form (this usually takes a few days), we’ll send you a link to upload your paper copy through our document upload service. Make sure you provide us with your up-to-date email address and regularly check your inbox.
In a branch
Take one of the following into your local branch, and we'll complete the registration process:
- secure digital access code – we can only accept this if the Power of Attorney has no ‘special instructions’, preferences or restrictions. If it does, we’ll need to see a full Power of Attorney document
- full Power of Attorney document - either the original or a copy which has been certified on every page
- court of protection order
Registering the secure digital access code:
- your code should be 13 characters long and begin with a 'V'
- it's valid for 30 days
- if your code has expired, you’ll need to request a new one from the Office of the Public Guardian
You’ll also need to take a form of identification and address verification for each attorney. You can find a list of acceptable documentation on our ID check page.
LPA access code
We’ll be in touch if we need any further information from you. We’ll always try to contact you by phone for convenience.
Once we’ve reviewed and accepted all the documents and information you’ve provided, we’ll register the Power of Attorney or Court of Protection Order. We’ll also make sure you have a debit card sent out and that you’re registered for phone banking where the power or order allows us to do so. If you need to set up digital banking, you can either give us a call or visit us in branch once everything is registered.
We may need proof of identification and address if you’ve applied online. If we do, we’ll be in touch to let you know how to do this.
If you’re already with HSBC UK and registered for digital banking, please log on and make sure your contact details are up-to-date. If you’re not registered, you can register for digital banking by following the instructions on our website.
You can also update your contact details using phone banking, or by visiting your nearest branch. Use our branch finder to find your nearest branch.
Once everything is done, we’ll send a text message to the donor (where the donor has mental capacity) or the main attorney/deputy (where the donor doesn’t have mental capacity) if we’ve been provided with a mobile phone number. We’ll also follow up with a confirmation letter.
How we'll use your information
We’ll use your personal information and that of the donor to register the Power of Attorney (or Court of Protection order). If we need to use this data for any other related purposes, this will be in line with legal and/or regulatory requirements. To find out more about how we use your information and your rights please read our Privacy Notice. If you provide information for another person (eg an attorney), you’ll need to direct them to this notice.