How to Set Up EPAs and an Advance Directive in NZ Without Doing It All Through a Lawyer

Here's the honest answer: you cannot set up a legally valid EPA in New Zealand entirely without professional involvement, but you can do the vast majority of the work yourself and reduce the lawyer's role to a single certification appointment — turning a $1,500+ planning session into a $200–$400 document-signing meeting.

The advance directive is a different story. There is no statutory form and no witnessing requirement — you can create a legally binding advance directive entirely on your own, provided it meets certain criteria. The confusion between advance directives and advance care plans (they are different documents with different legal standing) is the single most common mistake in New Zealand end-of-life planning.

The Three Documents and Their Professional Requirements

The advance care plan (different from an advance directive) is a non-binding document that records your wishes for future healthcare. It is not legally enforceable, but it is respected across New Zealand's health system. Hospice NZ and Advance Care Planning NZ provide free templates. The advance directive is the legally binding one — it specifically refuses consent to certain treatments and is enforceable under the Code.

Step 1: Make All the Decisions Before the Appointment

The reason lawyer-managed EPA setup costs $800–$2,000 is that most people arrive at the appointment without having made the key decisions. The solicitor then spends billable time walking you through choices that are yours to make, not theirs.

Before you book any appointment, decide:

For Your Property EPA

• Who is your attorney? This is the person who will manage your finances, property, and legal affairs if you lose capacity. They must be 20 or older and not bankrupt.
• Do you want a successor attorney? If your primary attorney dies or becomes unable to act, who takes over?
• What restrictions or conditions do you want? You can limit the EPA to specific assets, require the attorney to consult family members before selling property, or set a spending threshold above which they need approval from a named person.
• When should it activate? A property EPA can operate immediately (useful for travel or if you want your attorney to manage affairs while you're physically capable but prefer delegation) or only upon mental incapacity. Most people choose incapacity-only, but the "immediate" option exists and is sometimes the right answer for elderly people who are still mentally sharp but physically unable to visit banks.

For Your Personal Care and Welfare EPA

• Who is your welfare attorney? This person makes healthcare and living-arrangement decisions for you if you lose capacity. It can be the same person as your property attorney or someone different.
• What decisions are you most concerned about? Residential care placement, specific medical treatments you want or don't want, end-of-life care preferences, cultural or religious requirements for care.
• Does your welfare attorney know your views? Unlike property management (which is largely mechanical), welfare decisions are deeply personal. Your attorney needs to understand your values, not just have legal authority.

For Your Advance Directive

• Which treatments do you want to refuse? An advance directive under Right 7(5) specifically refuses consent to treatments. Be precise: "I refuse cardiopulmonary resuscitation if I have been diagnosed with a terminal illness and cardiac arrest occurs" is enforceable; "I don't want to be kept alive on machines" is ambiguous.
• Are there conditions or exceptions? You might refuse resuscitation in a terminal illness but accept it after a car accident. Specify the clinical scenarios.
• Have you discussed these preferences with your GP? Your advance directive carries more weight when your medical records show that you discussed these decisions with your doctor while you had full capacity.

Step 2: Prepare the EPA Forms

The PPPR Act 1988 prescribes the form that EPAs must follow. You can find the forms through the Ministry of Justice or community law centres. Fill them out completely before the appointment — every field, every condition, every restriction.

What the certifying professional actually does at the appointment is limited and specific:

1. Confirms you understand the nature and effect of the EPA
2. Confirms you are not acting under undue influence or pressure from anyone
3. Certifies your mental capacity to grant the EPA
4. Witnesses your signature

That's it. They are not drafting the document; they are certifying that you understand what you've already drafted. If you arrive with completed forms and clear answers to their capacity-assessment questions, the appointment should take 20–30 minutes.

Step 3: Create Your Advance Directive

This is the document you can create entirely yourself. There is no prescribed form, no witnessing requirement, and no certification needed. It is legally binding under the Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers' Rights provided:

• You had capacity when you created it
• You were informed about your condition and the consequences of your decisions
• Your refusals are specific enough to apply to identifiable clinical scenarios
• You created it freely, without coercion

Practical steps:

1. Write the directive clearly — identify yourself, state the date, describe the specific treatments you refuse and the clinical circumstances in which those refusals apply
2. Have a conversation with your GP and ask them to note in your medical records that you discussed these decisions while competent
3. Give copies to your welfare EPA attorney, your GP, and your family — an advance directive that nobody can find when it matters is functionally useless
4. Review it annually — medical circumstances change. An advance directive written before a diagnosis may not reflect your current preferences after one

The Advance Directive vs Advance Care Plan Confusion

This distinction trips up more New Zealanders than almost any other aspect of end-of-life planning:

You should have both. The advance directive handles the specific treatment refusals that must be legally enforceable. The advance care plan captures the broader values and preferences that guide your welfare attorney's decisions on matters the directive doesn't cover.

Cost Comparison: Full-Service vs Self-Prepared

The planning guide + certification-only appointment route saves $800–$2,000 compared to full-service preparation, and you end up understanding your own plan far better than if someone drafted it for you.

Who This Is For

• Adults who want to establish EPAs and advance directives but don't want to pay full planning-session rates for decisions they can make themselves
• Caregivers helping aging parents set up EPAs before capacity is lost — when the window is narrow, pre-completing all the decision-making before the appointment saves critical time
• People who have already completed a will (through a digital service like EveryWill or Footprint, or through a solicitor) and now need to establish the other instruments
• Anyone who has tried to use government portal guidance and found it explains the law without providing a practical procedure to follow

Who This Is NOT For

• People who want a professional to manage the entire process from start to finish — that service exists and is perfectly legitimate, just more expensive
• Anyone who suspects capacity may be an issue right now — if there's any question about whether the person granting the EPA currently has capacity, get legal advice immediately. The certification appointment is not a place to discover capacity problems
• Families in active conflict about who should be named as attorney — if appointing an attorney is contentious, a family mediator or solicitor may need to be involved before forms are completed

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use a legal executive instead of a lawyer to certify my EPA?

Yes. The PPPR Act 1988 allows EPAs to be witnessed and certified by a lawyer, a legal executive (member of the New Zealand Institute of Legal Executives), or a trustee corporation officer. Legal executives often charge lower hourly rates than solicitors, and the certification function is identical.

Does my advance directive override my welfare EPA attorney?

Yes, in the specific areas it covers. If your advance directive refuses a particular treatment, your welfare attorney cannot consent to that treatment on your behalf. The directive operates as a hard boundary. For matters the directive doesn't cover, your welfare attorney makes decisions based on your known values and preferences — which is why the advance care plan (non-binding but informative) is a useful companion document.

What happens if I lose capacity before setting up an EPA?

If you lose mental capacity without a valid EPA in place, someone — typically a family member — must apply to the Family Court for a personal order under the PPPR Act 1988. This is a formal court process that involves medical assessments and potentially contested hearings, and it can be substantially more expensive and stressful than establishing EPAs while you have capacity.

Do I need to register my EPA anywhere?

No. There is no EPA registry in New Zealand. Store the original in a secure location (not a bank safe deposit box, as these become difficult to access after the donor's death or incapacity), and give certified copies to your attorney, your lawyer, and your GP. Tell your family where the originals are kept.

How often should I review my EPAs and advance directive?

Review annually, and update whenever a significant life event occurs: marriage (which automatically revokes an existing Will unless it was made in contemplation of that marriage), divorce, death of your named attorney, a new medical diagnosis that changes your treatment preferences, or a significant change in your asset structure.

The New Zealand End-of-Life Planning Guide walks you through every decision for both EPAs and the advance directive, with worksheets to complete before your certification appointment. It also covers the coordination between your advance directive and your welfare EPA — the part most people get wrong.

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