Alaska Power of Attorney Requirements (2026)

Updated September 3, 2026. Quick answer: Principal’s signature (or, if physically unable, another individual signs the principal’s name in the principal’s conscious presence) AND acknowledgment before a notary public or other individual authorized to take acknowledgments. No witnesses required. (AS 13.26.600) NOT the default: must be affirmatively stated. AS 13.26.620(a)(2): a POA terminates on the principal’s incapacity “if the power of attorney is not durable.” AS 13.26.675(a) requires words such as “This power of attorney shall not be affected by the subsequent incapacity of the principal” for it to survive incapacity. Alaska never adopted the modern UPOAA default-durability rule..

What decides whether the document is valid

Principal’s signature (or, if physically unable, another individual signs the principal’s name in the principal’s conscious presence) AND acknowledgment before a notary public or other individual authorized to take acknowledgments. No witnesses required. (AS 13.26.600) Get this wrong and the document is not merely weak: it may be void, and you will find out at the moment somebody needs to use it.

The statutory form

Yes: AS 13.26.645 sets out a statutory “General Power of Attorney” form (checkbox categories of authority), with related provisions on completion, default rules, and durability of the statutory form.

Durability: the point most people get wrong

NOT the default: must be affirmatively stated. AS 13.26.620(a)(2): a POA terminates on the principal’s incapacity “if the power of attorney is not durable.” AS 13.26.675(a) requires words such as “This power of attorney shall not be affected by the subsequent incapacity of the principal” for it to survive incapacity. Alaska never adopted the modern UPOAA default-durability rule. This is one of the most consequential drafting points in this state.

Why a springing power often fails when it is needed, and why durable is usually the better default.

If a bank refuses it

Alaska addresses this: Yes: AS 13.26.615. A person presented with an acknowledged POA must accept it, or request certification/translation/opinion of counsel, within 5 business days; if such a request is made, must accept within 3 business days of receiving the requested item. Wrongful refusal is subject to a court order compelling acceptance and liability for attorney’s fees and costs.

What the acceptance-and-refusal statutes require where they exist, the permitted grounds for refusal, and the attorney-fee remedy.

What the form does not solve

• Social Security will not accept it. No power of attorney works there: a representative-payee application is the only route.
• It has to be signed while capacity is intact. The day that closes, the alternative is a court.
• Name a successor agent. A document whose only named agent has died or declined does nothing: how to choose when there is no obvious person.

All 51 jurisdictions compared.

Also for Alaska: Alaska Advance Directive Requirements.

General information drawn from state statute, not legal advice. Powers of attorney are governed by STATE law and differ materially between states. Execution requirements decide whether a document is VALID, so verify them against your own state’s current statute before signing anything. We are not a law firm and this is not legal advice.