In short
A power of attorney is the document by which you authorize someone to act for you. The 2020 Civil Code sets two limits that surprise many people: a power drafted in general terms covers only acts of administration, and to settle, transfer, mortgage or encumber assets you need a power expressly authorizing it — indeed, the Code says there is no general power of disposition. Clauses conferring authority are interpreted restrictively. The other limit is time: voluntary representation ends with the principal’s death or supervening incapacity, so an ordinary power stops working exactly when the family needs it most. That is what the mandate with durable power is for: it is executed in a public instrument and expressly states that it continues in effect after incapacity sets in, whether or not judicially declared. It carries strong protections: the agent may not transfer or encumber the principal’s primary residence, nor its equipment or furniture, without prior judicial authorization.
What is it?
It is the tool for someone to act in your name: to collect, sign, manage, and — if the power says so expressly — sell or mortgage. The Code distinguishes the general power, covering a whole category of the principal’s affairs, from the special one, covering one or several specific matters. And it clarifies the rule people confuse: general refers to the scope of matters, not the reach of the authority; that is why there is no general power of disposition. Underneath the power lies a contract: the mandate, by which the agent undertakes to perform one or more juridical acts in the principal’s interest. A general mandate covers only acts of ordinary administration, unless other powers are expressly stated, and it is presumed onerous — that is, the agent is presumed to charge, unless agreed otherwise.
Who can do it?
Any person with capacity may grant a power and any person may receive one. If you name several agents without saying they must act jointly, any of them may act individually; if you require them to act jointly, their liability is solidary. The agent may name a substitute unless you have prohibited it, in which case they answer for the substitute if they were at fault in choosing — unless you yourself designated the person. You keep a direct action against the substitute. For the durable power, the extra requirement is form: it must appear in a public instrument, that is, before a notary.
Requirements
- For the agent to settle, transfer, mortgage or encumber assets: a power expressly authorizing it. A power in general terms covers only acts of administration.Verified against the official source
- For a durable power: executing it in a public instrument and having it expressly state that it continues in effect after the principal’s incapacity sets in, whether or not judicially declared.Verified against the official source
- If the durable power allows selling real property: the instrument must describe the assets the agent may transfer and specify which constitutes the principal’s primary residence.Verified against the official source
Documents you need
Cost
Step by step
Step 1: Define what it is for, specifically
Authority is interpreted restrictively, so vagueness works against you — and against whoever will have to use it. If the agent will sell a car, mortgage a house or settle a claim, the power must say so expressly: a power drafted in general terms covers only acts of administration. And do not ask for "a general power for everything": the Code says there is no general power of disposition.
Step 2: Decide whether it must survive incapacity
This is the question separating a useful power from one that switches itself off. Voluntary representation ends with the principal’s death or supervening incapacity — except for the durable power. If the purpose is for a child to keep handling a parent’s affairs through dementia, the document must be a mandate with durable power, executed in a public instrument and with the express clause that it continues in effect after incapacity sets in, whether or not judicially declared.
Step 3: If there is real property: describe and protect the home
When the durable power allows the agent to transfer real property, the instrument must contain the description of the assets they may transfer and specify which is the principal’s primary residence. And that is where the most important protection enters: the agent may not transfer or encumber that primary residence, nor its equipment or furniture, except with prior judicial authorization. Also, unless the power says otherwise, the agent is not authorized over real property the principal acquires after the power was granted.
Step 4: Choose carefully whom, and how many
If you name more than one without requiring joint action, any of them may act alone — convenient, but also risky. If you require joint action, they are solidarily liable. You may prohibit substitution; if you do not, the agent may name a substitute and answers for them if they chose badly, unless you designated the person. And if you want a power you cannot freely revoke, the Code allows it only if it has a special object, is time-limited and rests on a common legitimate interest — and even then it may be revoked for just cause.
Step 5: To revoke it: be explicit and give notice
Voluntary representation ends with revocation of the power, and the principal may compel the agent to return the document evidencing it. There is also tacit revocation: naming a new agent for the same matter, or intervening directly yourself, revokes the earlier power if they are incompatible. But mind the practical detail: revocation is effective against the former agent from the moment they are notified. Notify it, and also tell the banks and entities where the power was being used.
Where to do it
With any notary in Puerto Rico. The durable power requires a public instrument, so the notarial route is not optional there. The judicial authorizations the durable power requires to touch the primary residence are requested from the court.
How long it takes
What to do if something goes wrong
If the bank or the Registry rejects a power "because it does not say so", they are probably right: authority is interpreted restrictively and without express authorization there is no transferring, mortgaging or encumbering. If your relative has already lost capacity and the existing power is ordinary, that power has ended: the route then is not a new power — someone without capacity cannot grant one — but guardianship, which has its own guide. If the agent wants to sell the house where the principal lives, the default answer is no without prior judicial authorization, however broad the power looks. And if the durable power was granted years ago, check whether it covers today’s assets: absent contrary agreement, it does not reach real property acquired later.
Common mistakes
- Asking for "a general power for everything" believing it allows selling: a general power covers only acts of administration, and the Code says there is no general power of disposition.
- Relying on an ordinary power for when the principal loses capacity: voluntary representation ends with supervening incapacity, except for the durable power.
- Granting a durable power without the express survival clause, or without a public instrument: the law requires both.
- Assuming the agent can sell the primary residence: prior judicial authorization is required, and also for that residence’s equipment and furniture.
- Forgetting that the durable power does not cover real property acquired after it was granted, unless it says otherwise.
- Revoking without notice: revocation is effective against the former agent from the moment they are notified.
Frequently asked questions
My mother is ill. Can I make a power to manage her affairs?
She grants the power, not you, and she must have capacity at the moment of granting it. If she still does, the usual instrument is a mandate with durable power before a notary, with the express clause that it survives incapacity. If she has already lost it, a power is no longer the route: see the guardianship guide.
Does a power let me sell someone else’s house?
Only if the power expressly authorizes transferring, and in a durable power the instrument must describe the authorized assets. Moreover, the principal’s primary residence is protected: you may not transfer or encumber it, nor its equipment or furniture, without prior judicial authorization.
Does the agent get paid?
The Code presumes the mandate is onerous. If your intention is for it to be free — common among relatives — say so in the document to avoid arguments later.
What happens to the power when the person dies?
It ends: the principal’s death terminates voluntary representation, and that includes the durable power, which is designed for incapacity, not for after death. From then on what governs is the estate: the will or the declaration of heirs.
Official sources
These are the government pages this guide is based on.
- Poder Judicial de Puerto Rico
Poder Judicial
bvirtualogp.pr.gov
Last verified
August 16, 2026
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