How to Revoke Power of Attorney in Victoria

When You Can Revoke

You can revoke an enduring power of attorney (EPA) in Victoria at any time — as long as you still have decision-making capacity. This is a non-negotiable requirement under the Powers of Attorney Act 2014 (Vic). If you've already lost capacity, you cannot revoke the EPA yourself, and the only path to changing or removing the attorney is through a VCAT application.

Common reasons people revoke an EPA:

• The relationship with the appointed attorney has broken down (divorce, family conflict)
• Circumstances have changed and a different person would be more appropriate
• You want to update the terms (change conditions, switch from joint to several, or add limitations)
• You've discovered the attorney isn't managing your affairs responsibly

Revocation replaces the existing EPA entirely. If you want to change the terms rather than simply cancel, you revoke the old EPA and create a new one with the updated arrangements.

The Formal Revocation Process

Victoria requires a written revocation — you can't revoke an EPA verbally or simply by telling your attorney you've changed your mind. The process:

1. Complete the revocation form

The Office of the Public Advocate (OPA) provides an official Revocation of Enduring Power of Attorney form, updated under the Powers of Attorney Regulations 2025 (Vic). Use the current version to ensure compliance.

The form identifies you (the principal), the EPA being revoked, and the attorneys whose appointment is being terminated.

2. Sign in front of two witnesses

The same witnessing requirements apply as when you created the EPA:

• Two adult witnesses must be present
• At least one must be authorised to witness affidavits (lawyer, JP) or be a registered medical practitioner
• Neither witness can be the attorney being revoked, a relative of the principal or attorney, or a care/accommodation provider

This witnessing requirement catches people off guard. Simply signing a revocation letter and mailing it isn't enough — the document must be properly witnessed or it has no legal effect.

3. Notify every attorney named in the EPA

You must give written notice of the revocation to each attorney and alternative attorney. Until they receive notice, they may continue to act under the EPA in good faith, and their actions could still be legally valid.

4. Notify every institution holding a copy

Contact every bank, superannuation fund, aged care facility, medical practitioner, and government agency that holds a certified copy of the original EPA. Provide them with a certified copy of the revocation and ask them to update their records.

This notification step is critical because Victoria has no central EPA registry. Without it, your old attorney could theoretically walk into a bank with a certified copy of the still-registered EPA and conduct transactions — the bank has no way to know the EPA has been revoked unless you tell them.

Partial Revocation: Removing One Attorney

If you've appointed multiple attorneys, you can revoke the appointment of one without cancelling the entire EPA — but only in some cases. If your attorneys were appointed to act "jointly," removing one typically collapses the whole arrangement, because the remaining attorney can't act alone under a joint appointment.

For severally or jointly-and-severally appointments, you may be able to revoke one attorney's appointment while leaving the others in place. Check the specific terms of your EPA, because the rules depend on how the appointment was structured.

In practice, it's often cleaner to revoke the entire EPA and create a new one with the updated list of attorneys.

What Triggers Automatic Revocation

Some events revoke an EPA automatically under the 2014 Act, without you needing to do anything:

• Your death — all powers of attorney terminate instantly upon death. Your attorney has no authority after that point; estate administration passes to the executor named in your will.
• The attorney's death or loss of capacity — if you only appointed one attorney with no alternative, the EPA becomes inoperative. This is why naming alternative attorneys matters.
• VCAT order — VCAT can revoke an EPA if it finds the attorney is acting improperly or if the EPA is no longer in your best interests.
• Bankruptcy of the attorney (for financial powers) — an attorney who becomes bankrupt is automatically disqualified from managing your financial affairs.

Marriage and divorce do not automatically revoke an EPA in Victoria, unlike some other jurisdictions. If you divorce a spouse who is your appointed attorney, you need to formally revoke the EPA — it doesn't happen by operation of law.

Revoking a MTDM or ACD

The Medical Treatment Decision Maker (MTDM) appointment and Advance Care Directive (ACD) operate under the Medical Treatment Planning and Decisions Act 2016 (Vic), not the 2014 Act. They have their own revocation procedures.

You can revoke a MTDM appointment at any time while you have capacity, using a written revocation witnessed by two adults (one of whom must be a registered medical practitioner). An ACD can also be revoked, but the witnessing requirements mirror those for creating one.

If you're replacing your decision-making framework entirely — new attorney, new medical decision maker — revoke all existing documents and create fresh ones as a set.

The Victoria Power of Attorney Kit includes revocation templates and a notification tracker for systematically notifying every institution that holds copies of your current documents.

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