The difference between the two types of LPA
Guidance from Estate Advisory Group
Written and legally reviewed by Ramani Gill TEP, Solicitor and private client practitioner·Last reviewed 13 August 2026
There are two separate Lasting Powers of Attorney in England and Wales. They are different documents, registered separately, and one does not cover the other.
Side by side
| Property & financial affairs | Health & welfare | |
|---|---|---|
| Official form | LP1F | LP1H |
| Covers | Bank accounts, bills, pensions, benefits, property, investments | Care, treatment, where you live, daily routine |
| Can be used while you still have capacity? | Yes, if you allow it | No — only when you cannot decide |
| Life-sustaining treatment | Not applicable | You choose whether attorneys can decide |
| OPG registration fee | £92 | £92 |
Both documents follow the same broad shape — a donor, one or more attorneys, a certificate provider and a registration step with the Office of the Public Guardian — but the powers themselves are completely separate. Registering one has no effect on the other, and an attorney appointed under one has no authority under the other unless you also name them there.
The point most people miss
A financial LPA gives your attorney no say at all over medical treatment or a move into a care home. A health and welfare LPA gives them no access to the money that pays for it. Families who made only one usually discover the gap at the worst possible moment.
Health and welfare only starts when capacity goes
By law a health and welfare LPA can only be used once you are unable to make the decision yourself. A financial LPA can be used earlier if you tick that option — useful if you would like help while you are still perfectly capable.
A worked example
Margaret, 74, made a property and financial affairs LPA a decade ago naming her son Peter, but never made a health and welfare LPA. After a stroke leaves her unable to communicate, Peter can carry on paying her bills and managing her savings, because his authority for money was already in place. But when the hospital needs a decision about a move into a care home, and later about resuscitation, Peter has no legal standing at all. The hospital and the local authority make those decisions instead, guided by what they judge to be in Margaret's best interests, with Peter consulted only as a relative rather than as her legal decision-maker. Had Margaret also made an LP1H naming Peter, he would have had the final say on both.
How the choice plays out day to day
- A financial attorney deals with banks, pension providers, HMRC and, if you allow it, selling your home — see selling a house under an LPA.
- A health and welfare attorney is contacted by doctors, care homes and social workers, and decides on your behalf only once you cannot decide yourself — see when an LPA takes effect.
- Only a health and welfare LPA can give an attorney the power to consent to or refuse life-sustaining treatment, and only if you tick that specific box — see the life-sustaining treatment option.
- Neither document lets an attorney write or change your will; that is a separate legal act entirely — see LPA vs will.
Which should you make?
- Both is the normal answer, and the reason we price two at £79 rather than £98.
- Financial only if someone else already holds a health and welfare LPA, or your care decisions are genuinely settled.
- Health and welfare only is rare, but sensible if your finances are already managed under a trust or deputyship.
Read the detail on each: property and financial affairs and health and welfare. If you are still weighing up whether to make an LPA at all against the cost, see is an LPA worth it.
Common questions
Do I have to use the same attorneys for both LPAs?
No. Many people appoint a financially confident child for money and a nearby child for care decisions. You can also appoint the same people for both.
Do I pay the £92 registration fee twice?
Yes. The Office of the Public Guardian charges £92 per document, so two LPAs cost £184 in registration fees. Fee reductions and exemptions may apply.
Can I make the health and welfare LPA now but the financial one later?
Yes, they are entirely separate applications and can be made at different times, though completing both together while you have full capacity is usually simpler and cheaper.
If I only make a financial LPA, who decides on my care?
Without a registered health and welfare LPA, care and treatment decisions fall to the professionals involved — doctors, social workers and care providers — who must act in your best interests, consulting family where possible but under no obligation to follow their wishes.
Read next
Where this fits
This page is part of LPA basics. The pages below take it further.
- Make an LPA online
The whole journey end to end: questions, documents, signing and registration.
- Solicitor, GOV.UK or online?
An honest comparison, including when you genuinely should pay a solicitor.
Review and sources
Reviewed by Ramani Gill TEP, Solicitor and private client practitioner. Last reviewed 13 August 2026. We recheck fees, forms and Office of the Public Guardian guidance whenever they change — see our editorial policy.
Official sources
Ready to make your LPA?
Choose one LPA or both, then start online for £49 per LPA.
The Office of the Public Guardian charges a separate £92 to register each LPA.
This is general information about how Lasting Powers of Attorney work in England and Wales. It is not legal advice about your situation. What we do and do not do.
Published by Estate Advisory Group