How to Get Power of Attorney for a Grandchild in Virginia

You Don't Need a Court or a Lawyer

A grandparent raising a grandchild in Virginia can get a legally valid power of attorney without filing anything in court. Virginia Code § 20-166 authorizes a parent or legal custodian to delegate caregiving authority to another adult, and the statutory form is spelled out in § 20-167 — it's a fill-in-the-blanks template written into the law itself.

The process takes an afternoon if the signer cooperates. Virginia allows a notary to charge up to $10 for a paper-based notarial act or up to $25 for an electronic notarial act; some banks provide notary service free.

Step-by-Step: Executing the § 20-167 POA

1. Get the form. The statutory template is in Virginia Code § 20-167. You can find the full text on the Virginia Legislative Information System (law.lis.virginia.gov). Print two copies.

2. Fill in the details. The form requires:

• Each child's full legal name and date of birth
• The parent's or legal custodian's full name and address
• Your full name, address, and phone number as the attorney-in-fact
• Whether the delegation is broad (all caregiving authority) or limited to specific areas
• Start date and end date (maximum 180 days; maximum deployment length + 30 days for active-duty military)
• The mandatory certification that the POA is not being executed to circumvent school enrollment or athletic eligibility rules

3. Determine who must sign. If the parents share joint legal custody, both must sign. If one parent holds sole custody by court order, that parent signs alone (attach the order). This is the most common stumbling block — a POA with only one joint-custodial parent's signature is legally invalid.

4. Sign before a notary. Each required parent or legal custodian signs before a notary, who acknowledges the signature. Then you sign the acceptance section and have it notarized. If both parents need to sign but live in different places, each can sign before their own notary — the signatures don't need to happen simultaneously.

5. Make copies. Keep the original. Give a copy to the school registrar, the child's pediatrician, the dentist, and anyone else who'll need to see it.

Where to Find a Notary

• Bank branches — most banks notarize for free for account holders
• UPS Store locations — notary services are commonly available; Virginia allows up to $10 for each paper-based notarial act
• Public libraries — some Virginia library systems offer free notarization
• Remote Online Notarization (RON) — Virginia law permits remote notarization under Va. Code § 47.1-13, useful when the parent is out of state or deployed
• Correctional facilities — Virginia prisons and regional jails provide institutional notary services through the facility's social services office

The "One Parent Missing" Problem

This is where most grandparents hit a wall. The POA requires execution by the parent or legal custodian with authority — and if a required signer is unreachable, uncooperative, or their whereabouts are genuinely unknown, the document can't be legally executed.

What you can't do: sign on behalf of the missing parent, get the notary to waive the signature requirement, or use a POA signed only by the available parent when both hold joint custody.

What you can do:

• Try institutional channels first — if the parent is incarcerated, the facility's notary can facilitate the signing. If they're in a treatment facility, the facility may have a notary or allow a mobile notary visit.
• Use the school affidavit pathway — the § 22.1-3 kinship care affidavit may be accepted for school enrollment without the POA, especially when DSS can verify the arrangement.
• Invoke McKinney-Vento protections — if the child's placement involves housing instability, the school must enroll immediately regardless of paperwork.
• File for custody in JDR court — when informal tools can't cover the gap, this is the formal path. Filing fees can be waived with Form DC-606.

After You Have the POA

The POA is a working document, not a keepsake. Put it to use immediately:

• Present it at school enrollment along with the kinship care affidavit
• Give a copy to the pediatrician's office during the first visit
• Carry a copy when taking the child to urgent care or the ER
• Keep it accessible for pharmacy visits, field trip permissions, and after-school registrations

Mark the end date stated on the POA on your calendar; an ordinary delegation cannot last more than 180 days, and the active-duty military exception allows the duty term plus 30 days. Renewal means executing a completely new form — same process, same required signatures, same notary. Start the process at least 30 days before expiration.

The Virginia School and Medical Consent Guide includes the full § 20-167 form with field-by-field instructions, the missing-parent decision tree, and all the companion documents you'll need.

See more Virginia guides →