Free WV Power of Attorney Form for General Financial Use
A West Virginia general financial power of attorney is a written document in which you, the principal, appoint an agent (also called an attorney-in-fact) to handle your financial affairs. Use this free WV power of attorney form to name your agent, choose the powers you grant, and print it for signing. West Virginia law requires the signature to be acknowledged before a notary public.[1]
Last Updated: October 2026. This guide is reviewed and updated regularly to reflect current West Virginia law. If you notice an error or outdated information, please contact us.
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What Is a West Virginia General Financial Power of Attorney?
A general financial power of attorney lets you appoint an agent to act for you in any lawful way on the subjects you initial. Those subjects are financial, such as real property, banking, taxes and claims. The agent is also called your attorney-in-fact.
The notice on page 1 of the form explains the scope. The powers are broad and sweeping, and they do not include every power available under the law. The document does not authorize anyone to make medical or other health-care decisions for you. For health-care wishes, see the West Virginia living will form.
General Versus Limited Powers
A general power of attorney covers a range of financial subjects. A limited power of attorney covers only the tasks you list, such as selling one vehicle. Choose the narrower form if your agent needs help with one matter only.
West Virginia General Power of Attorney Laws
West Virginia's Uniform Power of Attorney Act is found in Chapter 39B of the West Virginia Code. It sets the rules for signing the document and for when it takes effect. Three rules matter before you start:
Signature. The principal signs it, or another individual signs the principal's name in the principal's conscious presence and at the principal's direction.[1]
Notary. The principal must acknowledge it before a notary public or another individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments.
Effective date. It is effective when executed, unless the principal provides that it becomes effective at a future date or on a future event or contingency.[2]
Section 39B-1-105 states the signing and notary rules in one sentence:
A power of attorney must be signed by the principal or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual directed by the principal to sign the principal's name on the power of attorney and must be acknowledged by the principal before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments.
The PDF on this page follows that rule. It has a notary acknowledgment on page 5 and no witness block.
West Virginia General Power of Attorney Form Details
How to Fill Out the West Virginia General Power of Attorney Form
To fill out this free WV power of attorney form, start on page 1 with the principal and the agent. Then choose the powers, set the dates and name a successor. The form has five pages, and the steps below follow its order. Download the PDF or build the form online with the buttons above.
The screenshots under each step show the FormsPal West Virginia general power of attorney template filled with sample entries in blue, so you can see where each answer goes. The names, addresses, dates and amounts are examples only.
Notice and appointment paragraph (page 1). Read the notice at the top. It says the powers are broad and sweeping, that the document does not authorize anyone to make medical or other health-care decisions for you, and that you may revoke it later. Then write your name and address, and the name and address of the agent (attorney-in-fact) you appoint.Step 1: sample entries, not a real document.
Initial the powers (A) to (K) (page 2). Each power has a line in front of it. To grant a power, write your initials on its line. To withhold a power, leave the line blank. You may cross out a withheld power, but you need not.Step 2: sample entries, not a real document.
Initial the powers (L) to (N) (page 2). Initial (L) Retirement plan transactions and (M) Tax matters if you grant them. Initial (N) only to grant all powers listed above, and then you need not initial any other line. Special Instructions 1 and 2 below the list are preprinted, so read them before you continue.Step 3: sample entries, not a real document.
Effective Date (page 3). Special Instruction 3 above it is preprinted. It lets your agent access, control, archive, transfer and delete your digital assets. Under Effective Date, initial one line only. One line starts the power immediately and the other starts it on a date, which you write in with the year. Unless the document provides a future date or event, it takes effect when executed.[2]Step 4: sample entries, not a real document.
Termination Date: written revocation (page 3). Under Termination Date, initial one option in total. Initial the first line if the power of attorney should end when you have signed a written revocation. The law backs this up, since the agent's authority terminates when the principal revokes it.[3]Step 5: sample entries, not a real document.
Termination Date: a date or incapacity (page 3). Or initial the line that ends the power on a date you write in with the year. The third line ends it when you are determined to be incapacitated, as the form defines the word below it. That definition covers a court adjudication that you are incompetent, a court-appointed conservator or guardian for your estate, or a written opinion from two unrelated physicians.Step 6: sample entries, not a real document.
Successor Attorney-in-Fact (page 4). Write the agent's name again, then the name and address of the alternate agent who steps in if the first agent is unable or unwilling to serve. Name one, since the power of attorney terminates if the agent dies, becomes incapacitated or resigns, or the principal revokes the agent's authority, and no other agent is named to act.[3]Step 7: sample entries, not a real document.
Date and sign the form (page 4). Fill in the day, month and year after Signed this, then sign on the signature line and print your name beneath it. A preprinted line above it revokes all prior general powers of attorney you have executed. State law says a new power of attorney revokes an earlier one only if it says so.[3]Step 8: sample entries, not a real document.
Acknowledgment before the notary (page 5). Page 5 holds the acknowledgment, which opens with State of West Virginia and a County line. The county, the date, the officer's name and title, and your name go on the lines under it. The printed text says the officer verifies only the identity of the person who signed, not the truthfulness, accuracy or validity of the document.Step 9: sample entries, not a real document.
Officer signature and seal (page 5). Page 5 ends with a Signature line and a (seal) mark. Both are for the notary or other officer who completes this page. Check that it is filled in before you leave.Step 10: sample entries, not a real document.
For reference, the form lists these subjects on page 2. Your agent can act only on the subjects you initial, plus the Special Instructions.
(A) Real property transactions.
(B) Tangible personal property transactions.
(C) Stock and bond transactions.
(D) Commodity and option transactions.
(E) Banking and other financial institution transactions.
(F) Business operating transactions.
(G) Insurance and annuity transactions.
(H) Estate, trust, and other beneficiary transactions.
(I) Claims and litigation.
(J) Personal and family maintenance.
(K) Benefits from social security, medicare, medicaid, or other governmental programs, or civil or military service.
(L) Retirement plan transactions.
(M) Tax matters.
(N) All of the powers listed above.
Initial only the powers your agent needs. Initial (N) if you want to grant everything, but remember that the notice on page 1 calls these powers broad and sweeping. For example, if your agent only needs to pay bills from one account, initial (E) Banking and other financial institution transactions and leave the other lines blank.
Common Mistakes on the West Virginia General Power of Attorney
Most problems come from a few points on the form and in the signing. Check this list before you sign and again before you hand copies to your agent or to a bank.
Initialing powers you do not mean to grant. Your agent may act on every subject you initial, and line (N) grants all of them.
Initialing more than one line under Effective Date or Termination Date. The form says to initial one.
Signing without a notary acknowledgment. The principal must acknowledge the document before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments.[1]
Leaving out a successor. The power of attorney terminates if the agent dies, becomes incapacitated or resigns and no other agent is named to act.[3]
Forgetting to tell people about a revocation. Termination is not effective as to a person who acts in good faith under the document without actual knowledge of it.[3]
How to Sign and Use the West Virginia General Power of Attorney
To put a West Virginia general power of attorney in place, print the completed form and sign it. The principal's signature must be acknowledged before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments.[1] Then share copies with the people who will rely on it.
Sign with the notary. Sign on page 4, and let the notary complete the acknowledgment on page 5.
Give your agent a copy. The form has no agent signature line, so there is nothing for the agent to sign. Unless the document provides otherwise, a person accepts appointment as an agent by exercising authority or performing duties as an agent, or by any other assertion or conduct indicating acceptance.[4]
Share copies with the banks, offices or people who will ask for proof of the agent's authority. Page 4 of the form says any third party who receives a copy may act under it.
Keep the original safe. Store it where you and your agent can find it.
A power of attorney also ends when the principal dies. To plan for what comes after, see the West Virginia will template.
When a West Virginia General Power of Attorney Ends
A power of attorney can end because you end it, or because an event in the law ends it. This section covers both, and the limit that West Virginia law puts on ending it. The rules come from section 39B-1-110 of the West Virginia Code.
Ending It Yourself
An agent's authority terminates when the principal revokes it. Signing a new power of attorney does not revoke an earlier one by itself. It does so only if the new document provides that the previous power of attorney is revoked, or that all other powers of attorney are revoked.[3]
If you revoke the document, tell your agent and every person who relies on it. The notice rule below explains why that matters.
Events That End It Automatically
Under the same section, the power of attorney ends without any action from you in these cases:
The principal revokes the agent's authority, or the agent dies, becomes incapacitated or resigns, and the document does not provide for another agent.
Time alone does not end it. Unless the power of attorney otherwise provides, the agent's authority is exercisable until it terminates, even after a lapse of time since the document was signed.[3]
Acts Done in Good Faith Before Notice
Ending a power of attorney does not undo what others do in good faith. Termination is not effective as to an agent or other person who acts in good faith under the power of attorney without actual knowledge of the termination.[3]
An act done that way binds the principal and the principal's successors in interest, unless the act is otherwise invalid or unenforceable.[3] Page 4 of the form says the same about third parties, since a revocation is not effective as to them until they have actual knowledge of it.
Incapacity works the same way for a power of attorney that is not durable. The principal's incapacity does not revoke or terminate it as to an agent or other person who, without actual knowledge of the incapacity, acts in good faith under it.[3]
Frequently Asked Questions
These answers cover signing, timing and ending a West Virginia power of attorney. Each one comes from the West Virginia Code sections named in the Sources section at the end of this page.
Does a power of attorney need to be notarized in West Virginia?
Yes. It must be acknowledged by the principal before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments.[1]
When does a West Virginia power of attorney take effect?
It is effective when executed. The exception is a power of attorney that provides it becomes effective at a future date or on a future event or contingency.[2]
Can someone else sign for the principal?
Yes, in one case. Another individual may sign the principal's name, but only in the principal's conscious presence and at the principal's direction.[1]
How is a power of attorney revoked in West Virginia?
There are two points to know:
The principal can revoke the agent's authority, and that terminates it.[3]
A later power of attorney revokes an earlier one only if it provides that the previous power of attorney is revoked or that all other powers of attorney are revoked.[3]
What happens if the agent acts after the principal has revoked or died?
An act done in good faith, without actual knowledge of the termination, binds the principal and the principal's successors in interest, unless it is otherwise invalid or unenforceable.[3]
How does a person become the agent?
Unless the power of attorney provides otherwise, a person accepts appointment by exercising authority or performing duties as an agent, or by any other assertion or conduct indicating acceptance.[4]
General information, not legal or tax advice.
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Sources
Unless noted otherwise, the sources below are from the W. Va. Code.
Mara has been practicing estate planning and trust law in California since 2003, taking pride in helping clients of all backgrounds and asset profiles form a complete and customized estate plan. Her specialties are: estate planning, wills and trusts, trust and probate administration.
