There may come times when you need to appoint someone to manage your financial affairs on your behalf.
To help you in this process, here are some simple guidelines.
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Power of Attorney
What is a Power of Attorney?
It’s a legal document that gives a trusted person the legal authority to act for you and make financial or legal decisions.
In case of an accident, sudden illness, planned or unexpected absence, or when you just can’t cope, you may need to appoint someone to act on your behalf.
Before appointing someone to manage your finances on your behalf, we recommend for you to seek independent advice.
Three ways someone can act on your behalf
General Power of Attorney
This lets someone temporarily manage your affairs in your absence, like if you’re travelling overseas and need someone to access your bank accounts on your behalf.
Enduring Power of Attorney
An Enduring Power of Attorney lets someone manage your affairs on a long term basis, even if you lose the capacity to make decisions.
Financial management order (also known as an administration order)
Not as common as a Power of Attorney, and is generally appointed by a tribunal if a person is unable to make their own decisions.
How to appoint a Power of Attorney
Send us your documents
To appoint a Power of Attorney, we need the below from you:
- A certified copy of the Power of Attorney document, certified in the last six months – see our document certification guide (PDF)
- The completed Power of Attorney Details form (PDF).
Documents should be posted to:
Community Assistance Team
GPO Box E237
Perth WA 6841
Once we review the request, we will contact you to verify it and advise if any additional documents are required. You may be required to visit a participating Australia Post outlet to complete additional identification.
If you’d like to speak to us about lodging your Power of Attorney or Administration Order with Bankwest, call 1800 433 932.
Frequently asked questions
Info at your fingertips
No – they’ll need their own debit card and login details for online banking.
For security reasons, please don’t share your card or bank details with anyone – even if they’re managing your account.
A person acting under a Power of Attorney can have:
- Their own debit card (linked to your account)
- Access to online banking (separate login details to you)
- A verbal password to bank over the phone.
They’ll need to fill out the 'Attorney 2’ details in Section 2 of the Power of Attorney Details form (PDF). Depending on the level of authority you’ve given them, there might be documents for them to fill out. We’ll help you through the process.
If you no longer need someone to act on your behalf, or you’ve changed the person who’s managing your finances, please call 1800 433 932, and we can help.
Contact your State or Territory Public Trustee’s office, Public Advocate or visit their websites for further information.
Support when you need it most
We’ve created a step-by-step guide to help explain the process.
If your situation has changed and you need support, here are all the ways we could help.
A guide to help people avoid scams, fraud, and elder financial abuse.
Need more help?
Speak to someone about a Power of Attorney or Administration Order.