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Giving gifts on behalf of a person with dementia when you’re their attorney

There are specific rules about the kinds of gifts you can give, and what’s counted as a ‘gift’ can be surprising.

Helen Quinn
31 January 2022
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Question:

‘I hold financial Lasting power of attorney (LPA) for my aunt, who has dementia. I’d like to offer an empty property of hers rent-free to a cousin – is that allowed?’ 

Answer:

If someone’s appointed you as an attorney under a financial Lasting power of attorney (LPA), there are strict rules about making gifts on their behalf. 

Letting a relative stay somewhere without paying rent might not be something you think of as a ‘gift’, but it is one for the purposes of being an attorney. 

If the person is in Northern Ireland, they’d have an Enduring power of attorney rather than an LPA, but the rules about gifts are similar.

What counts as a gift? 

If you’re someone’s attorney and making decisions about their money, many things count as a gift – not only giving another person money or buying them something. 

Gifts can include donations to charity, paying another person’s school or university fees, or giving them an interest-free loan. 

Selling someone’s possessions at less than market value or, as in your question, letting their property out for free or at a cheap rate also count as gifts. 

When can I make a gift? 

You shouldn’t make any gifts on the person’s behalf if they have the mental capacity to make a decision about this themselves. 

If the person doesn’t have capacity to decide about making a gift, you may be able to do it if you think it would be in their best interests. You should still try to involve them as much as you can. 

What gifts are allowed? 

Unless the person added specific restrictions to their LPA, you can make gifts to their relatives or friends on their behalf on a ‘customary occasion’. This includes birthdays, weddings or civil partnership ceremonies, anniversaries or religious festivals. 

You could also make donations to charities that the person would give to themselves. However, the value of any gift must be reasonable, bearing in mind the person’s overall finances and their own needs. 

What about other gifts? 

If you want to give another kind of gift – for example, letting a cousin stay rent-free in the person’s property – then you’d need to get special approval. 

In Wales or England this would be from the Court of Protection, while in Northern Ireland it would be from the Office of Care and Protection. You’d need to show that what you propose is in the person’s best interests. 

Further advice

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15 comments

Kerrie
says
03 July 2023 at 12:43 pm
Hi, so my mother in law was diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia last March and is starting to deteriorate quite rapidly. We have done the necessary poa etc, but unsure what else need to do/support etc. we were not aware of the gifting allowance is there anything else need to be doing? Many thanks
Donna Nicholson
says
05 June 2023 at 1:47 pm
Hi my mum has been in a care home with diagnosed dementia since December 2021. I have become aware of the £3000 per annum gifting allowance, (my brother & I have EPA). Is this amount per tax year ? As in 2021, 2022, 2023 ? Can it be back dated or is it the current tax year ? It’s a little confusing & I’d appreciate some clarification. Thank you Donna & Lee
Anonymous
says
05 June 2023 at 2:08 pm

Hello Donna,

Thanks for your question. 

To provide some guidance on this, we'll need more information. Please call our support line on 0333 150 3456 to speak with one of our trained dementia advisors. They can listen and learn more about your situation, and may be able to provide further information or advice that's relevant to you, your brother and your mum (More information on opening times: https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/get-support/dementia-support-line)

We hope this helps, Donna.

Alzheimer's Society website team

Dan
says
27 May 2023 at 8:39 pm
My mother in law has been in a care with dementia for a year or so, in that time her son and daughter who have lasting power of attorney, have not been gifting themselves of her grandchildren for things like Birthday's and Christmas's but am sure they are entitled to do so... doesn't seem fair that she worked all her life for the NHS but now she needs care she has to spend all her kids inheritance? She definitely would have gifted them if she had been in mind to do so..
Kristie P
says
10 May 2023 at 4:10 am
My mother in law has FTD and has moved in with us full time. My husband’s name is on her bank account and has been for years before she got sick. We are turning our sons play room into her room and moving his playroom to the basement which needs new carpet if he’s going to be down there all the time. We were going to use her money to do this seeing as how its being done because she needs the room… now we’re worried that if she has to go into a nursing home 2 or 3 years down the road this will come back to bite us. Is there a reason to be concerned?
Alzheimer's Society
says
10 May 2023 at 3:45 pm

Hi Kristie, we're sorry to hear about your mother in law, it sounds like a really difficult situation for you all.

Thank you for your question. To provide comment or guidance we'd need more information. We'd suggest calling our support line on 0333 150 3456 and speaking to one of our trained dementia advisors. They will listen and learn more about your situation, and may be able to provide further information or guidance that's relevant to you and your mother in law (More information on opening times: https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/dementia-connect-support-line)

We hope this helps, Kristie.

Alzheimer's Society web team

Sarah
says
19 April 2023 at 3:19 pm
My father has been diagnosed with alzheimer's so it is mid stages. He has a joint account with my mum. Could she gift me money he half of the money now or would that be seen as trying to hid the money in case my father needs care later in his diagnosed?
Alzheimer's Society
says
20 April 2023 at 5:21 pm

Hi Sarah, we're really sorry to hear about your father's diagnosis. We'll need more information to help you with your question about gifts. We'd recommend that you call our Dementia Connect support line on 0333 150 3456. You can talk to an adviser on this number, who will listen to your situation and provide advice. More details of the support line (including opening hours) are available here: https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/get-support/national-dementia-helpline

We hope this helps.

Alzheimer's Society web team

Andy Birkett
says
25 March 2023 at 6:57 pm
Hello I was wondering if you had any advice about my father and my stepmother gifting me and my sister money? I have POA in place for my Dad (alongside my sister and stepmother) and now his wife has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's too and she wants me to act on her behalf too. They also want to gift myself and my sister £3000 annually going forward. They have a history of generous presents, giving me £5000 several times over the last few years and my Dad has bought my sister a field and a bungalow in the past. They have close to £200k in the bank and own three properties so are in a more than comfortable position financially and their outgoings are significantly less than their income atm. Do you think there would be any issue gifting us £3k each year as they'd rather we had it than it just sit in their account or would it be seen as deprivation of assets? My sister and I are also the only beneficiaries of their wills. Thanks in advance, Andy
Jacky
says
27 January 2023 at 11:20 am
Hi my mum has the start of dementia. She would like to gift £3000 to her grandchildren per year, the threashold for inheritance tax. If she goes into care in the next couple of years would this be looked at as getting rid of an asset? We stay in Scotland.
Alzheimer's Society
says
31 January 2023 at 11:02 am

Hi Jacky, we're sorry to hear about your mum's diagnosis. Thank you for your comment and question.

The relevant Local Authority may consider whether the gifts are a 'deliberate deprivation' of capital. Unfortunately, at Alzheimer’s Society we do not cover Scotland and there are differences in how this is decided, so we are unable to offer any further information in this area. However, you may find it helpful to contact Alzheimer's Scotland for more information instead.

We hope this helps a little.

Alzheimer's Society blog team

Angela Arnall
says
22 January 2023 at 7:40 pm
I have POA for my sister who has dementia, am I able to give her son and his family money for birthdays and Christmas gifts?
Anonymous
says
23 January 2023 at 4:13 pm

Hi Angela,

Thanks for your comment.

Unfortunately, we cannot give a definitive answer to your question as it depends on your individual circumstances.

But the first thing you will need to check is whether there are any restrictions placed on you as your sister's attorney. This is because when the LPA was made, your sister could have stated, for example, that she doesn't want any gifts to be made on her behalf.

If there are no restrictions, then you as the attorney should be following the Office of the Public Guardian guidance: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/giving-gifts-a-guide-for-deputies-and-attorneys

For further information, we'd suggest you look at the government guidance above, or contact the Office of the Public Guardian support line on 0300 456 0300. They should be able to provide specific guidance on your situation.

We hope this helps for now.

Alzheimer's Society knowledge team

Chris Johnston
says
10 November 2022 at 11:46 am
Hi, my mum needs to stay in a care home for an additional period. She has had 4 weeks free but need a further 5 weeks. Social services are able to pay £804 and my mum needs to top up the rest. Social services say mum can’t pay it and it has to be paid by a friend or family member. Am I correct in assuming mum can still pay for the costs via a third party who is in effect a guarantor? Thanks
Alzheimer's Society
says
11 November 2022 at 9:07 am

Hi Chris, 

We'll need additional information to help you with this question. Please call our Dementia Connect support line on 0333 150 3456. You can talk to an adviser on this number, who will listen to your situation provide advice. More details of the support line (including opening hours) are available here: https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/get-support/national-dementia-helpline

We hope this is helpful,

Alzheimer's Society blog team