Does Arkansas Power of Attorney Need to Be Notarized? Witness Requirements Explained

The short answer: your financial POA needs a notary but no witnesses. Your healthcare directive needs either a notary or two specific witnesses. Get the requirements confused, and your document is invalid exactly when your family needs it most.

Financial Power of Attorney: Notary Only

Under the Arkansas Uniform Power of Attorney Act (Ark. Code Ann. § 28-68-105), a financial power of attorney requires the principal's signature to be acknowledged before a notary public. This acknowledgment creates a statutory presumption that the signature is genuine.

Witnesses are not required for a financial POA under Arkansas law. This is one of the cleaner requirements in estate planning — one signature, one notary, done.

However, "not technically required" and "practically essential" are different things. While the statute doesn't make notarization an absolute condition of validity in every scenario, an unnotarized financial POA will be rejected by:

• Every bank and financial institution
• Every county circuit clerk (if used for real estate)
• Every title company and insurance provider

For all practical purposes: notarize your financial POA. Always.

Notary Costs in Arkansas

Arkansas does not set a maximum fee for traditional in-person notarizations. Under Ark. Code Ann. § 21-14-112, a notary may charge a "reasonable fee" agreed upon in advance. Typical costs:

• Bank or shipping center notary: $5–$25 per document
• Mobile notary (comes to you): $25–$50 base fee plus $0.50–$1.00 per mile for rural travel
• Remote Online Notarization (RON): capped at $25 per notarization under Act 1047 of 2021

Remote notarization is conducted via secure audio-video platforms (such as BlueNotary or DocVerify). The session must be recorded and retained for at least five years.

Healthcare Power of Attorney: Notary OR Two Witnesses

Healthcare directives follow different rules under the Healthcare Decisions Act (Ark. Code Ann. § 20-6-103). A healthcare power of attorney must be either:

Option A: Acknowledged before a notary public, OR

Option B: Signed in the presence of two competent adult witnesses

Most estate planners recommend notarization for healthcare documents too — it's simpler and avoids the witness disqualification rules. But if a notary isn't available (common in hospital or hospice settings), the witness option provides a valid alternative.

Witness Disqualification Rules (Healthcare Documents)

If you choose the witness route for a healthcare directive, Arkansas imposes strict rules about who can serve:

Cannot be a witness:

• The person named as healthcare agent
• The attending physician
• Any employee of the healthcare facility where the principal is a patient
• Anyone entitled to inherit any portion of the principal's estate

At least one witness must be completely disinterested:

• Not related to the principal by blood, marriage, or adoption
• Not entitled to any part of the estate
• No financial interest in the principal's death

In practice, this means you can't use two family members as your witnesses. At least one must be an outside party — a neighbor, coworker, or family friend with no inheritance stake.

Special Case: Burial and Cremation Authority

If your healthcare directive grants the agent authority to direct burial, cremation, or final disposition of remains, notarization becomes functionally mandatory. Funeral directors routinely refuse to act on witnessed-only documents for disposition authority, even though the statute technically permits them.

Special Case: Physical Inability to Sign

If the principal is physically unable to sign (due to paralysis, severe arthritis, or other physical limitations), Arkansas provides an alternative execution path:

• A third party may sign the principal's name
• This must be done in the principal's conscious presence
• The signature must be at the principal's direct verbal instruction
• The signing must be witnessed by two disinterested witnesses AND acknowledged before a notary

This higher standard — both witnesses and notary — applies specifically when someone else physically writes the principal's name.

What About Real Estate Recordings?

Any power of attorney used to convey or affect real property must be notarized and recorded with the county circuit clerk. The recording creates a public chain of title. Under Ark. Code Ann. § 18-12-501, an unnotarized POA cannot be recorded, making it useless for property transactions regardless of its other validity.

The Arkansas Power of Attorney Kit includes a signing ceremony checklist that walks you through each requirement — notary, witnesses, identification, and recording — so nothing is missed during execution.

See more Arkansas guides →