How Much Does a Lasting Power of Attorney Cost? OPG Fees, Solicitor Charges and Ways to Save

Creating a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is essential financial and healthcare planning in the UK. The question most people ask first is straightforward: how much does a Lasting Power of Attorney cost in the UK? The answer depends on whether you tackle this yourself, use an estate planner, or hire a solicitor. This guide breaks down every cost, from the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) registration fee to professional charges, and explains what you get at each price point. Understanding the true cost of a Lasting Power of Attorney helps you make an informed choice about protecting your family and your assets.

What Is The Office of the Public Guardian Registration Fee: The Fixed Starting Point?

The Office of the Public Guardian charges a registration fee for each Lasting Power of Attorney you create. As of 2024, this fee is £92 per document. This is a fixed cost you cannot avoid if you want a registered, legally valid LPA.

Many people are surprised to learn that you need two separate Lasting Powers of Attorney documents: one for property and financial affairs, and one for health and welfare decisions. For a single person creating both documents, the OPG registration fee alone totals £184.

If you are part of a couple and both partners need Lasting Powers of Attorney for both types, the total OPG fees reach £368 (four documents at £92 each). This is a cost you cannot reduce through DIY attempts or negotiation, though exemptions and remissions do exist for people on low incomes or certain benefits.

What Is DIY LPA: The Cost of Doing It Yourself?

The cheapest route appears to be creating your own Lasting Power of Attorney. You can download the official forms from the Office of the Public Guardian website for free, complete them yourself, and submit them for registration. Your only cost is the £92 registration fee per document.

However, cost is not the same as value. The OPG processes approximately 3,000 Lasting Power of Attorney applications every working day. Their zero tolerance policy for errors means even small mistakes result in outright rejection. Common errors include missing signatures, incomplete certificate provider sections, illegible handwriting, or misunderstanding the legal requirements for witness signatures.

When the OPG rejects an application, you receive no refund of the £92 fee. You must then correct the errors and resubmit, paying another £92. Many people spend £180 or more in rejected fees before getting it right, plus weeks of delays while your family waits for a valid LPA.

The real cost of DIY goes beyond fees. If your application is rejected and you are unable to resubmit due to illness or other circumstances, your family may face an expensive deputyship order instead. A deputyship costs thousands in legal fees and requires annual reporting to the court, making the true cost of DIY mistakes potentially enormous.

What Is Professional Lasting Power of Attorney Cost?

Working with a professional eliminates rejection risk and ensures your Lasting Power of Attorney is legally correct from the first submission. At Elwyn & Mabel we offer the service to get your LPA application approved first time. This involves a free no-obligation consultation, and then to proceed it is £250 + VAT per LPA, plus the OPG fee. There are no hidden costs.

The professional fee includes the full end to end service: initial consultation, detailed drafting based on your circumstances, a signing meeting to ensure proper execution, coordination with your chosen certificate provider, coordination with your attorneys, final review before submission, and registration with the Office of the Public Guardian.

Breaking Down the Professional Fee: What Are You Paying For?

Understanding what the professional fee covers helps you compare true value rather than just headline costs.

Initial Consultation and Assessment

A proper consultation establishes your circumstances, your wishes, and any special considerations. This is not a sales pitch but a genuine exploration of your needs. We will discuss the types of Lasting Power of Attorney, explains the roles of attorney and certificate provider, and confirms you are making informed choices.

Many people benefit from understanding the difference between a health and welfare LPA and a property and financial LPA, and from knowing whether you need both. We clarify this with you in a consultation so that you do not pay for unnecessary documents.

Drafting and Customisation

The Lasting Power of Attorney forms are legally complex. While they are standardised, they include multiple sections that require careful completion to reflect your wishes and circumstances. Professional drafting ensures the document is accurate, legally sound, and precisely reflects what you want.

This includes making specific choices about replacement attorneys, restrictions, preferences, and instructions that your attorneys should follow when acting on your behalf.

Signing Meeting and Execution

The Lasting Power of Attorney must be signed and witnessed correctly. At the signing meeting we will ensure that all signatures are in place, the document is properly executed, and that there are no technical errors that could undermine its validity later.

This is where many DIY attempts fail. Signing an LPA in front of anyone who happens to be around is not sufficient. Specific rules govern who can and cannot be a witness, and who cannot be a certificate provider.

Certificate Provider Coordination

Every Lasting Power of Attorney requires an independent person to certify that you understand the document and are not being pressured. This certificate provider must be someone who has known you for at least two years, or someone qualified by profession such as a doctor, solicitor, or registered social worker.

At Elwyn & Mabel, we will ensure your Certificate Provider has the necessary information, and ensures this crucial step is completed properly. Many DIY applications fail because the Certificate Provider statement is missing or incorrectly completed.

Attorney Coordination

The people you choose as your attorneys (the individuals who will act on your behalf) need clear information about their role, their responsibilities, and what they are being asked to do. We will explain this to them and ensure they are willing and able to accept the role.

This coordination prevents confusion later and reduces the risk of an attorney refusing to act when needed because they did not fully understand the role.

OPG Registration

We will then submit your completed Lasting Power of Attorney to the Office of the Public Guardian and manage the registration process. If any questions arise during processing, we will coordinate with the OPG on your behalf, eliminating delays caused by missing information.

What Is the Cost of Getting It Wrong: Hidden Expenses?

Focusing only on immediate fees ignores the true cost of a poorly executed or missing Lasting Power of Attorney.

Rejection and Resubmission

A rejected application costs £92 plus weeks of delay. If you are unwell, this delay can create serious problems. If the rejection happens multiple times, costs escalate quickly. A single resubmission of both documents costs £184 total, and some people have to resubmit three or four times.

Deputyship: The Expensive Alternative

If you do not have a valid Lasting Power of Attorney when you lose mental capacity, your family has no legal authority to make decisions on your behalf. The only formal route is to apply for a deputyship order from the Court of Protection.

A deputyship order is expensive. Legal fees for the application alone typically range from £2,000 to £5,000 or more. Once appointed, a deputy must file annual accounts with the Court of Protection and comply with complex reporting requirements, incurring additional annual costs.

A Lasting Power of Attorney, created well in advance with professional guidance, avoids these costs entirely. The prevention cost is a fraction of the emergency cost.

Local Authority and Care Costs

If you lose capacity and have no one with legal authority to manage your finances, your local authority may become involved in financial decisions or care planning. This creates additional bureaucratic layers and delays. In some cases, local authorities restrict spending on care or support until financial authority is clarified.

Having a properly executed Lasting Power of Attorney in place avoids these complications.

Contentious Family Situations

Without a clear, legally valid Lasting Power of Attorney, family members may dispute who should have authority. These disputes are resolved through the Court of Protection and can cost £13,000 or more in legal fees.

A clear, professional Lasting Power of Attorney prevents these disputes before they start.

How Do Fee Exemptions and Remissions: Help If You Are on Low Income Work Together?

The Office of the Public Guardian offers exemptions and remissions for people on certain benefits or with low income. If you are receiving income based benefits such as income support, income related employment and support allowance, or pension credit, you may be eligible to pay a reduced registration fee or no fee at all.

Similarly, if your income falls below the threshold set by the Office of the Public Guardian, you may qualify for a remission of part or all of the registration fee. We understand these exemptions and can advise whether you qualify.

What Is Value Beyond Cost: Why Cheapest Is Not Always Best Value?

The lowest cost option often creates the highest true cost when measured against time, stress, and risk.

A £92 DIY attempt that gets rejected and requires resubmission becomes a £184 exercise, plus weeks of uncertainty. Multiple rejections push costs toward £276 or £368. Add the stress of uncertainty, the time spent correcting errors, and the risk that you will not achieve a valid LPA before capacity declines, and the cheap option becomes expensive.

Coming to Elwyn & Mabel to help you with your Lasting Power of Attorney eliminates these risks. Your Lasting Power of Attorney is correct first time. It is submitted promptly. It is registered within the timescales outlined by the OPG, not beyond. Your family has the authority they need, when they need it.

In estate planning, as in most things, the cheapest option is not the best value option. The best value option is the one that works reliably, costs a fair price, and removes worry.

Time is often an invisible cost. A DIY application may take months from start to registration, especially if rejection occurs. Even without urgent circumstances, time spent on DIY application is time you could spend on other priorities.

What Is Common Questions About LPA Costs?

Are there additional costs after the Lasting Power of Attorney is registered?

Once registered, your Lasting Power of Attorney is valid indefinitely. There are no ongoing fees to keep it active. However, if you want to revoke or update your Lasting Power of Attorney later, you may incur new professional fees.

Do I need a solicitor specifically, or can any professional help with Lasting Power of Attorney?

You do not need a solicitor. Estate planners, chartered legal executives, and other qualified professionals can draft and register a Lasting Power of Attorney. Get in touch with us today to book your free no-obligation consultation.

What if I cannot afford the professional fee?

Enquire about fee remissions if you are on low income. We can offer payment plans to help you pay for your Lasting Power of Attorney. We don’t want to let cost prevent you from creating a Lasting Power of Attorney, as the cost of not having one is much higher.

How can I get started?

Download the free Lasting Power of Attorney checklist, which outlines everything you need to do to get your Lasting Power of Attorney in place.

Please note: Lasting Powers of Attorney apply in England and Wales only. Different rules apply in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a solicitor to make a Lasting Power of Attorney?

No, you can create an LPA yourself using the GOV.UK online service or paper forms. However, a solicitor or professional estate planner can help ensure the document is completed correctly and tailored to your circumstances, reducing the risk of rejection by the Office of the Public Guardian.

How long does it take to register an LPA?

Registration typically takes between 8 and 12 weeks from the date the Office of the Public Guardian receives your application. During busy periods it can take longer. Your LPA has no legal effect until it is registered.

Can I make an LPA if I have been diagnosed with dementia?

You can make an LPA as long as you still have the mental capacity to understand what it is, what powers it gives, and who you are appointing. A diagnosis of dementia does not automatically mean you lack capacity. A certificate provider must confirm your capacity when you sign the document.

What happens if I lose mental capacity without an LPA?

If you lose capacity without an LPA in place, your family would need to apply to the Court of Protection for a deputyship order. This is significantly more expensive, takes longer, and gives the court ongoing oversight of decisions made on your behalf.

TL;DR: How Much Does a Lasting Power of Attorney Cost?

The OPG registration fee for a Lasting Power of Attorney is £92 per document, and total costs vary significantly depending on whether you use a DIY approach, an estate planner, or a solicitor.

• The Office of the Public Guardian charges a fixed registration fee of £92 per Lasting Power of Attorney document, regardless of which route you choose to create it.
• DIY applications appear cheapest but carry a high rejection rate, meaning resubmission costs and delays can make them more expensive in practice.
• At Elwyn & Mabel we offer a free no-obligation consultation to discuss your options
• At Elwyn & Mabel an LPA application costs £250 + VAT
• The Office of the Public Guardian does have fee exemptions and remissions available for people on certain means-tested benefits or low incomes.

More From Elwyn & Mabel

Creating a Lasting Power of Attorney is one of the most important steps in planning for the future. Download the free Lasting Power of Attorney Checklist for a step by step guide to getting your LPA in place, explained in plain language.

For personalised guidance on creating a Lasting Power of Attorney or any aspect of estate planning, book a free consultation with Elwyn & Mabel. The team will answer questions, review individual circumstances, and help put the right plan in place.