A Power of Attorney (POA) is a legal document created by an individual who wants to give someone else the right to act on his/her behalf in certain situations. The person creating the POA is the “donor” and the person being given the right to act on the donor’s behalf is the “donee.”

There are several different types of POAs each with their own features, which are explained below. POAs are used in a lot of different transactions. For example, a trustee can use a POA to put a donee in charge of his/her administrative duties. The POA can spell out the powers given to the donee, along with any limitations on this power. 

A Power of Attorney being executed overseas may not be legally valid in the jurisdiction where it is intended to be used even if the legal requirements in the country where it was created were followed. 

Table of Contents

Is a Lawyer Needed to Create a Power of Attorney?

General Power of Attorneys

Specific Power of Attorneys (Non-Durable Power of Attorneys)

HDB Power of Attorneys

Purchasing Build-to-Order (BTO) Flats

Buying and/or Selling HDB Flats

Obtaining an HDB Power of Attorney

Springing Power of Attorney

Is a Lawyer Needed to Create a Power of Attorney?

Because there are legal issues and procedures involved in creating a POA, people are advised to engage a lawyer to draft the document and for the signing. 

General Power of Attorneys

If the donor wants the donee to have the authority to act on his/her behalf in all situations, a General Power of Attorney would be used. However, the POA itself can restrict those powers in specific situations. 

General Power of Attorneys can confer a number of powers on the donee. These can include filing tax returns, collecting debts, accessing bank accounts and safe deposit boxes, contracting on behalf of their donor, buying and/or selling real estate, and etc.

General POAs typically remain valid unless the donor revokes it, the donor dies or becomes incapacitated, or when a specified event in the POA document occurs. 

Specific Power of Attorneys (Non-Durable Power of Attorneys)

Specific POAs confer on the donee the authority to act on specified matters. The donee is only allowed to act on behalf of his/her donor in those specific situations or matters. 

Specific POAs typically remain valid unless the donor revokes it, the donor dies or becomes incapacitated, or when a specified event in the POA document occurs. 

HDB Power of Attorneys

In Singapore, a frequently used POA is the HDB POA. This would be needed when a homebuyer is unable to come to the appointment to collect the keys to his/her new home. Even more commonly, an HDB POA is used when legal documents need to be signed and one party is unable to be there in person for the signing. 

These legal documents are as follows: 

• Deed of Assignment
• Lease Agreement
• Lease-in-Escrow
• Mortgage-in-Escrow
• Option to Purchase
• Sales Agreement

A lawyer must be hired to prepare the POA, which will stipulate the powers being conferred on the attorney (donee), such as the power to execute documents, to sell property, or repay funds to the CPF Board.  

HDB POAs are typically used when a party resides overseas and cannot be there to sign the documents in person in Singapore. In these cases, he/she would appoint an attorney to act on his/her behalf during the transaction. 

• Purchasing Build-to-Order (BTO) Flats

When you buy a BTO flat, there are several appointments that you must attend. These are Selecting the Flat, Signing the Sales Agreement, and Collecting the Keys.

If you cannot be at the appointment in person to sign the Sales Agreement, or to collect the keys due to travel or other reasons, you must authorise someone you trust to sign the agreement on your behalf and/or collect the keys for you.  

• Buying and/or Selling HDB Flats

Even when you’re not buying or selling a BTO flat, there are situations that require your attendance when buying and/or selling an HDB resale flat. You would need to execute an HDB Power of Attorney authorising someone else (in your absence) to sign these types of documents on your behalf: 

• Agreement for Lease
• Deed of Assignment
• Lease-in-Escrow
• Mortgage-in-Escrow
• Option to Purchase

Obtaining an HDB Power of Attorney

There is a standard procedure in place for those needing an HDB POA, which most lawyers can carry out.

Depending on your specific needs, you can ask your lawyer to prepare the correct type of HDB Power of Attorney among the following:  

• Purchase, Sub-letting, & General Management
• Sale, Sub-Letting, & General Management
• Sub-Letting & General Management

Your lawyer may ask you to provide the following information:

• Full name of the owner of the flat, as stated on their NRIC
• Full name of the attorney, as stated on their NRIC
• Complete address of the HDB flat the POA pertains to

Your lawyer will draft your HDB POA and be a witness to your signature. If you are abroad at the time, the HDB POA will have to be signed by you in the country you’re in (before a notary public). You will then have to use a courier service to deliver the document back to your lawyer in Singapore.

Upon receipt of your signed and notarized Power of Attorney document, your lawyer will take the next step of filing the POA with the Supreme Court. 

Once your POA is registered, you need to submit the appropriate document(s) to HDB, as follows:

• Original POA plus a photocopy
• Certified true copy of the POA from the High Court plus a photocopy
• 2 certified true copies of the POA by a Solicitor and Advocate
• A letter from your solicitor confirming that he/she used the standard POA format provided by the HDB
• Certified true copy by a Solicitor and Advocate together along with a computer printout with the seal from the High Court. This is required if the POA was registered via the Electronic Filing System. 

As you can see this is not a complicated process. Your HDB POA will be valid for up to 6 years from the date of commencement. 

Springing Power of Attorney

A Springing Power of Attorney is also known as a Conditional Power of Attorney, and it is drafted with specifications that it only be activated should a certain event occur. For example, the POA could specify that the donee only have this authority when the donor is out of the country. 

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