Can I make decisions for my elderly mum or dad in Ireland?

Most families find this out at a bad moment: a hospital stay, a bank questioning a signature, a talk about a nursing home. Being their son or daughter gives you no automatic right to decide for them.

Checked against the Decision Support Service, Citizens Information and Sage Advocacy on 30 September 2026. This is legal information, not legal advice: for your own parent, talk to a solicitor.

In this guide

• Can the family decide?
• What capacity means
• The five arrangements
• Enduring power of attorney
• Advance healthcare directives
• What happened to wardship
• If capacity is in doubt
• Who can help
• Conversations to start now
• Questions families ask
• Sources

Can the family decide for a parent, for example about a nursing home?

No. The Decision Support Service (DSS) says there is no legal basis for a family member or next of kin to take on an automatic decision-making role, or to give or withhold consent for another adult. Sage Advocacy points out that "next of kin" is not a legal term: it means the person to contact in an emergency. Sage has found nursing home contracts signed by next of kin when the resident could have decided for themselves.

So moving into a nursing home is your parent's decision while they have the capacity to make it, even if the family thinks it unwise. If they lack capacity for it, someone needs legal authority: an attorney under a registered enduring power of attorney, or a court-appointed representative.

Fair Deal follows the same logic. A spouse, partner or adult child can apply for a parent who cannot apply themselves, but if your parent cannot consent to the optional Nursing Home Loan, only a court-appointed representative, a registered attorney or a ward's committee can apply for it. See Fair Deal against home care and our cost and funding guides.

What does "presumed to have capacity" mean?

Capacity here means one decision at one time: can your parent understand the nature and consequences of this decision, given the choices? They are presumed to have it and do not have to prove it. They lack it for a decision only if they cannot understand the relevant information, retain it long enough to choose, use or weigh it, or communicate the decision in any way.

Lacking capacity for one decision does not mean lacking it for others. Needing things explained, or remembering them only briefly, is not a lack of capacity, and every possible support must be given first. An unwise decision is not proof either. The test is about the decision, not a diagnosis; our dementia guides cover the practical side.

What arrangements can a parent put in place?

The Act sets out five: three for a parent who has, or may soon have, difficulty with certain decisions, and two for planning ahead. Medical treatment belongs in an advance healthcare directive, not an enduring power of attorney.

The five arrangements side by side

Arrangement	Who decides	How it is set up	When it suits
Decision-making assistance agreement	Your parent, with help getting and understanding information.	In writing, signed before a Garda, Commissioner for Oaths or practising lawyer, and notified to the DSS. €15.	They can decide with some help.
Co-decision-making agreement	Your parent and the co-decision-maker, jointly.	Two witnesses, two character references, a capacity statement from a doctor or healthcare professional. Registered with the DSS. €90.	They need someone they trust to decide with.
Decision-making representation order	A representative appointed by the Circuit Court, following your parent's will and preferences.	Court application with a report from a doctor or healthcare professional. €130 initial fee, plus legal costs.	They cannot decide even with help, and nothing is in place.
Enduring power of attorney	The attorney your parent chose, once the DSS accepts they have lost capacity.	Solicitor or barrister and doctor or healthcare professional statements, two witnesses, DSS registration within three months. €30, then €90 to bring it into force.	Planning ahead while capacity is clear.
Advance healthcare directive	Your parent, in advance. A designated healthcare representative can speak for it.	In writing, signed before two witnesses. Free.	Recording treatment wishes, including refusals.

Before going to court, applicants must check that no less intrusive option would work. The court usually appoints someone your parent knows and trusts. DSS fees can be waived on a low income; solicitor's and doctor's fees are extra.

Why set up an enduring power of attorney early?

An enduring power of attorney (EPA) lets your parent choose now who will act for them if they lose capacity, on money, property, personal welfare such as where they live, or all three. It hands nothing over today. An EPA made since 26 April 2023 takes effect only once it is registered with the DSS, your parent lacks capacity, and the DSS has been notified and accepted that.

• It can only be made with capacity. A doctor or healthcare professional, and a solicitor or barrister, must each confirm your parent understood the effect of creating it.
• It takes time. Applications face a five-week objection period, then a queue. On 30 September 2026 the DSS was still on its initial review of July's applications.
• Without one, the route is court. If your parent can no longer decide even with help, the family's option is a Circuit Court application.
• Few people have one. The DSS cites Safeguarding Ireland research that only 6% of adults do.

Once in force, the attorney reports to the DSS every year. An EPA made before 26 April 2023 under the Powers of Attorney Act 1996 is still valid, and is registered with the Office of Wards of Court when needed.

What is an advance healthcare directive?

It is your parent's written statement of the treatment they would want or refuse if they later cannot decide. It must be signed in front of two witnesses, it is free, and it can name a designated healthcare representative. A refusal can be legally binding if the situation matches the directive. A request is not binding but must be considered. Give the GP a copy.

What happened to wardship?

Until April 2023, an adult who could not manage their affairs could be made a ward of court under an 1871 law, losing the right to make even everyday decisions. No new adult applications have been possible since 26 April 2023. Existing wards are being reviewed and moved to a new arrangement where needed. The Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) (Amendment) Act 2026 allows extensions, but not beyond 25 October 2027.

What should we do if a parent's capacity is in doubt?

1. Support first. Explain things in a way and at a time that suits them.
2. Focus on the decision. Whoever needs it made, such as a doctor, solicitor or bank, will often assess capacity for it.
3. With a registered EPA, the attorney notifies the DSS, with statements from two doctors or healthcare professionals. Objections can be made within five weeks.
4. If help is enough, an assistance or co-decision-making agreement can be made through the DSS's MyDSS portal.
5. If help is not enough and nothing is in place, a spouse, civil partner, cohabitant or adult child can apply to the Circuit Court. Legal aid may be available.
6. In a medical emergency, with no supporter or directive, a healthcare professional may give necessary treatment without consent.

Who can help?

• Decision Support Service registers and supervises the arrangements and runs an EPA helpdesk. 01 211 9750.
• Sage Advocacy gives information, support and independent advocacy to older people and the people looking out for them. 01 536 7330.
• Citizens Information explains every arrangement. 0818 07 4000.
• A solicitor is needed for an EPA, and is wise for anything complex or for court.

Which conversations should we start now?

None of this needs a crisis. Raise it while your parent is well, on their terms; our guide to having the talk helps.

• Do you have an enduring power of attorney? When was it made, and where is it?
• Who would you trust with your money and with decisions about your home? Have you asked them?
• Would you see a solicitor about an EPA now?
• Are there treatments you would want or refuse? Would you write them down and give the GP a copy?
• Who should a hospital call, and who may it share medical information with?

As part of the same planning, a family can talk with their parent about home-safety options, so any changes at home are ones the parent chose.

Questions families ask

Can I make decisions for my mum or dad because I am their next of kin?

No. Next of kin is not a legal term and gives no power to decide or consent. Authority comes only from an arrangement your parent makes, such as an enduring power of attorney, or from a court order.

Can the family move a parent into a nursing home if they do not want to go?

Not on the family's say-so. While your parent has the capacity to decide where they live, the decision is theirs, even if the family thinks it unwise. Otherwise it needs a registered attorney or a court-appointed representative.

When does an enduring power of attorney take effect?

One made since 26 April 2023 takes effect only once it is registered with the Decision Support Service, your parent lacks capacity, and the Service has been notified and accepted that. Until then your parent makes their own decisions.

Is it too late to make an enduring power of attorney if my parent has dementia?

Not necessarily. Capacity is judged decision by decision, so a diagnosis does not settle it. A doctor or healthcare professional and a solicitor or barrister must confirm your parent understood the effect of creating it. See a solicitor soon.

How much do these arrangements cost?

Decision Support Service fees are €15 for an assistance agreement, €90 for a co-decision-making agreement, and €30 to register an enduring power of attorney plus €90 to bring it into force. Advance healthcare directives are free. A court application starts at €130. Solicitor and doctor fees are extra.

Can someone still be made a ward of court in Ireland?

No. New applications for adults ended on 26 April 2023, and every existing ward's review must finish by 25 October 2027 at the latest.

Sources

All checked on 30 September 2026. Decision Support Service: general FAQ, EPA FAQ, fees, EPA processing times, co-decision-making, representation orders, wards of court. Citizens Information: the 2015 Act, decision support arrangements, assistance agreements, co-decision-making, representation orders, enduring power of attorney, advance healthcare directives, wards of court, Fair Deal. Sage Advocacy: next of kin, guiding principles. General legal information, not legal advice.