Land Use Victoria EPA Registration: How to Register Power of Attorney for Property Sales

Registration Isn't Required — Until You Need to Sell

Victoria doesn't maintain a central registry for enduring powers of attorney, and there's no general requirement to register your EPA after signing it. This is one of the things that distinguishes Victoria from states like New South Wales, where certain instruments must be lodged with the Supreme Court.

But that changes the moment an attorney needs to transact in real property — buying, selling, transferring, or mortgaging land on the principal's behalf. Before any property transaction can be executed through PEXA (the electronic settlement platform used across Australia), the EPA must be formally registered with Land Use Victoria (LUV).

This registration requirement catches families who've had a valid EPA sitting in a drawer for years, only to discover it needs additional processing when they urgently need to sell a parent's home to fund aged care.

What LUV Registration Involves

The registration process lodges the EPA against the principal's land title, creating a formal record that the attorney has authority to deal with the property. Here's what's required:

1. The EPA must be the original or a certified copy. LUV requires the original signed document or a copy certified by a legal practitioner. A photocopy or scan won't be accepted.

2. The attorney must complete a Verification of Identity (VOI). Under the Australian Registrars' National Electronic Conveyancing Council (ARNECC) rules, the attorney's identity must be independently verified before they can transact in property. This means presenting Category 1 and Category 2 identity documents (passport, driver's licence, birth certificate) to a qualified person — typically a solicitor or licensed conveyancer.

3. A practitioner must confirm no conflict of interest. The conveyancer or solicitor handling the transaction needs to be satisfied that the sale isn't a conflict transaction under Section 64/67 of the Powers of Attorney Act 2014. If the attorney is selling the property to themselves, a relative, or a business associate, the EPA must explicitly authorise that transaction, or VCAT must approve it.

4. Pay the registration fee. The fee for recording the EPA with LUV is approximately $204 per donor (verify the current amount, as fees are updated annually on 1 July).

5. Lodge through PEXA. The registration is typically handled by the conveyancer or solicitor managing the property sale, lodged electronically through the PEXA portal alongside the other settlement documents.

Timeline Matters

LUV registration isn't instant. Allow time for:

• Engaging a conveyancer or solicitor (if you don't already have one)
• Completing the VOI process
• Electronic lodgement and processing by LUV

If a property sale is already underway — perhaps an aged care provider is holding a bed pending payment of the refundable accommodation deposit — the registration timeline can create real pressure. The settlement date won't wait for LUV to process the EPA registration.

The practical advice: if there's any reasonable possibility that the attorney will need to sell the principal's property in the future (and for ageing parents, there usually is), start the registration process early. You don't need an active sale to register — you can lodge the EPA with LUV pre-emptively so it's ready when needed.

PEXA Client Authorisation Under an EPA

Once the EPA is registered with LUV, the attorney can sign the PEXA Client Authorisation (the digital authorisation that replaces the old paper-based settlement process). But PEXA adds its own verification layer:

• The attorney signs the PEXA Client Authorisation in their own name, noting that they're acting under the registered EPA
• The conveyancer retains a copy of the registered EPA and the VOI on file
• PEXA cross-references the registration with LUV's records

If the EPA isn't registered before settlement, PEXA will reject the transaction. There's no manual override or expedited pathway — the registration must be in place.

When Registration Isn't Needed

Not every use of an EPA requires LUV registration. If the attorney is only managing bank accounts, paying bills, handling investments, or making personal care decisions, there's no property component and no registration is necessary.

Registration is specifically required for:

• Selling the principal's real property
• Purchasing property on the principal's behalf
• Transferring land titles
• Granting or discharging a mortgage over the principal's property

For families navigating the entire EPA process — from execution through institutional notification and property transactions — our Victoria Power of Attorney Kit covers the LUV registration process, ARNECC VOI requirements, and conflict transaction safeguards step by step.

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