What is a power of attorney? What do I need it for? When do I need to have a power of attorney notarised? In this blog post we explain what powers of attorney are, what they are used for and when they need to be notarised.
What is a power of attorney?
Powers of attorney are also often referred to as Power of Attorney (PoA). With a power of attorney, I can authorise someone to conclude contracts on my behalf. This is particularly useful if I do not have time to be present when a contract is concluded. I can issue a power of attorney for almost any business. For example, I can authorise someone to set up a limited liability company in my name. Or to sign the purchase contract for a property. There are only a few exceptions where a power of attorney cannot be used. These are so-called highly personal legal transactions. This is, for example, the conclusion of a marriage. (§1008 ABGB)
Notarial certification of a power of attorney
In principle, a power of attorney can be issued in any form. This also means verbally. In some cases, a written power of attorney is required. An even more secure form of power of attorney is the notarised certification of the signature. As a rule, a notarised power of attorney is always required if it is granted in order to sign contracts with notaries. For example, if I need a power of attorney to found a limited liability company, this must be notarised.
However, a notarised power of attorney may also be required in other cases. Typical cases include
- Property transactions,
- Transactions in the area of corporate law; in particular the formation of companies, the conclusion of shareholder agreements, the implementation of capital increases, the transfer of shares,
- Partly for collecting documents such as certificates from universities.
This list is expressly not exhaustive. In practice, a number of other cases are conceivable.
Online Notarisation of Powers of Attorney
The certification of powers of attorney can be carried out on notarity completely digitally. No matter where you are in the world. Here you will find more information on how you can have powers of attorney notarised digitally. A power of attorney notarised online via notarity can generally be used worldwide. The language of the power of attorney does not matter. If you need an apostille on the power of attorney, please let us know. We will obtain an apostille on the online notarised power of attorney within a short time - usually within a few minutes of the appointment.
Citizens from over 100 countries can be onboarded for the online notarisation of powers of attorney. All identity documents are accepted that here are listed, even if the countries do not participate in Prado.
You can conveniently make an appointment online today for the online notarisation of a power of attorney on notarity.
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