No. A power of attorney cannot withdraw money after death. The authority ends the instant the principal dies, so any withdrawal an agent makes after that point is unauthorized, regardless of whether the document was labeled durable or general. Control of the deceased’s finances shifts to a court-appointed executor or administrator, and an agent who takes money anyway can face both civil claims and criminal charges.
Why the Authority Ends at Death
A power of attorney is a relationship between two living people. The principal grants authority, the agent exercises it, and when the principal dies there is no longer anyone to authorize anything. Under the Uniform Power of Attorney Act, adopted in more than 30 states, a POA terminates when the principal dies, when the agent dies, or when the principal revokes it.1Administration for Community Living. Power of Attorney Revocations 101 Tip Sheet No court order is required. Death itself ends the authority.
People often confuse “durable” with “survives death.” They are not the same. A durable POA keeps working if the principal becomes incapacitated and can no longer make decisions on their own. A non-durable POA stops working the moment the principal loses capacity. The durability feature bridges the gap between full mental capacity and death. Neither type survives the death itself.
The Act also imposes duties on agents while they serve. An agent must act in the principal’s best interest, keep reasonable records of transactions, and avoid conflicts of interest.2Michigan Legislature. Uniform Power of Attorney Act, Act 187 of 2023 These duties matter for a practical reason: an agent whose recordkeeping was sloppy during the principal’s life will have a much harder time defending any transaction that happened close to the date of death.
What If the Agent Didn’t Know the Principal Had Died
This is where most families’ real anxiety sits. The principal dies on a Tuesday, and on Wednesday morning the agent pays a utility bill, still unaware. Is the agent in legal trouble?
Usually not. The UPOAA protects agents who act in good faith without actual knowledge that the principal has died. Transactions made in those circumstances are binding on the estate and treated as valid.3National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws. Uniform Power of Attorney Act The same protection extends to banks and other institutions that accept a POA in good faith without knowledge of the death.
The key phrase is “actual knowledge.” Once the agent learns the principal has died, the protection disappears. Any transaction after that moment is unauthorized, no matter how urgent or well-intentioned. And the window is narrow. “I didn’t check my messages” or “nobody called me” is unlikely to hold up if the evidence shows the agent had reason to know. Agents in close contact with the family or the medical team usually learn quickly, so in practice the protected window is often only a few hours.
What Happens to the Accounts Instead
p>Once a bank is notified of the account holder’s death, it generally freezes the accounts. The freeze prevents unauthorized transactions until someone with legal authority produces the right documentation. Notification usually comes through a death certificate presented by a family member, the funeral home, or the executor.
After the freeze, only someone appointed by the probate court can access the funds. If there is a will, that person is the executor named in it. If there is no will, the court appoints an administrator, typically a surviving spouse or close family member. The court issues letters testamentary for executors or letters of administration for administrators, and banks will not release funds without that paperwork.4Internal Revenue Service. Responsibilities of an Estate Administrator
Even legitimate estate expenses, like funeral costs and final bills, run through this process. They are paid by the executor or administrator out of estate funds, not by the former POA agent.
Accounts a POA Never Controlled Anyway
Some accounts pass outside of probate and outside the POA entirely. If the agent is also a joint owner or a named beneficiary, they may keep access after death, but that access comes from their separate status, not from the power of attorney.
Joint accounts with rights of survivorship pass directly to the surviving owner when one owner dies. The survivor keeps full access, and the bank needs only a death certificate to update the records.5Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. What Happens if I Have a Joint Bank Account With Someone Who Died A less common arrangement called tenants in common works differently, with the deceased owner’s share passing through their estate.
Payable-on-death accounts (sometimes called transfer-on-death or Totten trust accounts) work similarly. The owner names a beneficiary during their lifetime, and after death the beneficiary collects the funds by presenting a death certificate and ID. The beneficiary has no access while the owner is alive.
Neither arrangement has anything to do with a power of attorney. If the former agent happens to also be a joint owner or POD beneficiary, they can act in that capacity. What they cannot do is sign anything as “attorney-in-fact” or invoke the POA to move money.
Penalties for Withdrawing Money After Death
An agent who knowingly withdraws money after the principal’s death faces exposure on two fronts, and courts treat these cases seriously.
On the civil side, the estate or its beneficiaries can sue to recover every dollar taken. Under the UPOAA, an agent who violates the Act is liable for the amount needed to restore the estate to the value it would have had if the violation never occurred, plus attorney fees spent pursuing the claim.2Michigan Legislature. Uniform Power of Attorney Act, Act 187 of 2023 Courts can also award punitive damages if the agent acted willfully or with malicious intent, which pushes the total well beyond the amount taken.
Criminal charges are a real possibility. Prosecutors can pursue theft, embezzlement, or fraud, and severity depends on the amount involved and the state where the offense occurred. In many states, taking funds above a certain dollar threshold elevates the charge from a misdemeanor to a felony, which carries potential prison time. Smaller amounts can still produce a criminal record and fines.
The “I was going to use it for the funeral” defense comes up constantly and almost never works. Subjective intent doesn’t restore authority the agent no longer has. Funeral costs and other final expenses are legitimate estate obligations, but they must be paid by the executor or administrator through probate.
What the Former Agent Should Do
Once you learn the principal has died, your role as agent is over. There is no grace period, no wind-down authority, and no exception for pending transactions.
- Stop all transactions immediately. Don’t pay bills, transfer funds, write checks, or use the principal’s debit card, even for expenses that look urgent. Those belong to the estate representative.
- Notify the financial institutions where you acted. Tell each bank and brokerage that the principal has died so they can freeze the accounts and wait for proper estate documentation.
- Preserve your records. Gather every receipt, bank statement, and transaction record from your time as agent. The estate representative or a court may ask you to account for what you did, and thorough records are your best protection against any claim of mismanagement.
- Hand off to the executor or administrator. Once the court appoints someone, give them all financial records, account information, and original documents. Cooperation speeds up probate and shows good faith.
One situation trips people up. If you are both the former POA agent and the person named as executor in the will, your POA authority still ends at death. You cannot begin acting as executor until the probate court formally appoints you and issues letters testamentary. The gap between the death and your appointment is a period in which no one has authority over the accounts, which is exactly why banks freeze them.