Power of attorney in Estonia: forms, notary and using it from abroad

By Ero Liivik, lawyer (jurist) at Erovik Law Office · Updated 2 November 2026

If you cannot come to Estonia to sell a flat, deal with an inheritance, sign company documents or attend a court case, you can authorise someone to act for you with a power of attorney (volikiri). The key rule for a power of attorney to be accepted in Estonia is that it must be in the same form as the transaction, so a property sale needs a notarised one. You can often arrange this without travelling.

Key points

• You decide what the agent may do, but acts the law requires you to do personally, such as making a will, cannot be delegated (§ 115(2) of the General Part of the Civil Code Act (TsÜS)).
• The power of attorney must be in the form required for the transaction (TsÜS § 118(3)): real estate deals, mortgages, most share transfers and renouncing an inheritance need a notarial one.
• Otherwise, a digitally signed power of attorney usually meets the written form (TsÜS § 80).
• From abroad, you can use remote authentication by video with an Estonian notary, or certain foreign officials with an apostille or legalisation (§§ 13(7) and 57 of the Notarisation Act (TõS)).
• You can revoke it at any time, but get the document back or have it declared invalid (TsÜS §§ 126, 127).

What a power of attorney is

A transaction made by your representative (esindaja) in your name and within their authority binds you (TsÜS § 115(1)). You decide the scope, and the text is read as the person it was given to, or the person relying on it, should understand it (TsÜS § 120(2)). A specific power of attorney for one named deal, such as selling a particular apartment at a stated minimum price, is safer than a general one.

Several agents with the same powers are presumed to be able to act alone, so say so if they must act jointly (TsÜS § 122(1)). An agent may delegate if the document allows it, or if you could not reasonably expect them to act personally (TsÜS § 119(1)).

Some acts must be done personally, not through an agent: a will, a succession contract (for the person leaving the estate) and a marital property contract (§§ 19(2) and 95(3) of the Law of Succession Act (PärS); § 60 of the Family Law Act (PKS)). See our guide on making a will in Estonia.

Which form? The form follows the transaction

Most transactions need no particular form (TsÜS § 77(1)). But if the law requires a form and breaching it makes the transaction void, the power of attorney must be in the same form (TsÜS § 118(3)). Otherwise the agent has no valid authority, and the transaction is void unless you later approve it, again in that form (TsÜS §§ 83(1), 129(1), (6)).

What the agent will do	Form of the power of attorney
Buy, sell or give away real estate, including an apartment	Notarially authenticated (Law of Property Act (AÕS) §§ 119(1), 120(1); Apartment Ownership and Apartment Associations Act (KrtS) § 1(3))
Grant a mortgage	Notarially authenticated (AÕS § 326)
Transfer a share in an OÜ	Notarially authenticated, unless the articles of association waive this, which is possible only if the share capital is at least 10,000 euros and fully paid in (Commercial Code (ÄS) § 149(4), (6))
Renounce an inheritance	Notarially authenticated (PärS § 118(3))

Notarial authentication (notariaalne tõestamine) means the notary draws up a deed, reads it out or has it translated, explains it, and you approve and sign it in the notary’s presence (TõS §§ 13(1), 17, 18). Notarial certification (notariaalne kinnitamine) only confirms your signature (TsÜS § 81(1); TõS § 39(1)). Authentication replaces certification, not the other way round (TsÜS § 81(2)).

Giving a power of attorney from abroad

An Estonian notary cannot act outside Estonia; such an act is void (TõS § 2(2)). Your options:

• Remote authentication (kaugtõestamine). An Estonian notary authenticates the document by video and the participants sign digitally (TõS §§ 1(3¹), 13(7)). According to the Chamber of Notaries, this works for powers of attorney and participants may be abroad. You need a computer with a camera and microphone (not a mobile phone) and a working ID card or other digital ID, such as an e-resident’s digital ID, with its PIN codes. The notary decides case by case whether it is suitable (remote authentication). The result is a single digital original, and a paper copy of it can be used in place of the original (TõS §§ 46(2¹), 48).
• A foreign notary or official. A power of attorney certified or authenticated by a foreign official on a list set by ministerial regulation is equal to one authenticated by an Estonian notary, if it has an apostille or legalisation where required (TõS § 57(1)). Otherwise, a foreign authentication with an apostille is not enough where Estonian law requires notarial authentication, unless an international agreement provides otherwise (TõS § 56(4)).
• An Estonian embassy. Estonian consular officers can certify signatures in some matters set by law (for example § 26(1) of the Vital Statistics Registration Act (PKTS)). Ask the embassy in advance whether it can help.

According to the Chamber of Notaries, an apostille confirms the signature, the signatory’s authority and any seal, not the content. Apostilles are used between parties to the Hague Apostille Convention, and other countries may require legalisation instead. Before anyone signs abroad, ask the Estonian notary who will use the document whether the official, the wording and the apostille will be accepted.

How long it is valid

There is no general expiry date. A power of attorney ends, for example, when the transaction is done or becomes impossible, its term expires, you revoke it, the agent renounces it, you die or you are declared bankrupt (TsÜS § 125(2)). But it does not end with your death if the underlying mandate agreement continues, and such an agreement is presumed to continue (TsÜS § 125(3); § 632(1) of the Law of Obligations Act (VÕS)). A power of attorney for court proceedings also survives your death (§ 225(3) of the Code of Civil Procedure (TsMS)).

How to revoke a power of attorney in Estonia

• You may revoke it at any time, even if it has a fixed term, by telling the agent, the third party or the public. Even an irrevocable one can be revoked for good reason (TsÜS § 126).
• If you told a third party such as a bank about it, it stays valid towards them until you revoke it in the same way or tell them that it has ended (TsÜS § 127(1)).
• A power of attorney document counts as valid until it is returned to you or declared invalid, but not towards someone who knew or should have known that it had ended (TsÜS § 127(3), (4)). The agent must return it (TsÜS § 125(5)).
• If you cannot get it back, a notary can authenticate your declaration that it is invalid and publish a notice in the official publication Ametlikud Teadaanded. The power of attorney becomes invalid ten days after publication (TõS § 37¹).

Risks and how to limit them

• Overly broad wording. The agent can bind you to anything the text allows.
• Conflicts of interest. You can annul a transaction against your interests if the agent breached their duties to you and the other party knew or should have known this. A breach is presumed if the agent acted for both sides or made the deal with themselves. Act within six months of learning the facts and at most three years after the transaction (TsÜS § 131).
• Exceeding authority. A contract made without authority is void unless you approve it. If the other party asks for your approval and you do not give it within two weeks, you are deemed to have refused (TsÜS § 129(1), (3), (4)).
• Originals. A paper notarial power of attorney has two originals, one kept by the notary and one for you, and a copy does not replace the original (TõS §§ 46(2), 48). Send the original to your agent in good time.

Power of attorney for court proceedings

In Estonian civil proceedings, your representative may be, among others, an advocate, a person with at least a state-recognised master’s degree in law or an equivalent Estonian or foreign qualification, or a relative in the direct line (such as a parent or child), your spouse or your registered partner (TsMS § 218(1)). In claim proceedings before the Supreme Court, a party can act only through a sworn advocate (TsMS § 218(3)).

The power of attorney is filed with the court, which may require a notarised one (TsMS § 221(2)). It covers all procedural steps, including a settlement, abandoning the claim and appeals (TsMS § 222(1)). In a family case it must be given expressly for that case (TsMS § 222(3)). See our court disputes page.

Checklist: what to write in it

• Full names, personal identification codes or dates of birth, and addresses of you and the agent.
• The exact transaction: the property address and registered immovable number (registriosa number), or the company name and registry code.
• Price limits, payment method and the account for payment.
• Related steps, such as signing the real right agreement (asjaõigusleping) and land register applications.
• Whether the agent may delegate or deal with themselves, and whether several agents must act jointly.
• An end date, and the language agreed with the notary: a notarial deed is in Estonian or, at your request, another language the notary knows well enough (TõS § 5).

Frequently asked questions

Can I sign a power of attorney with my e-resident digital ID?

Yes, where no notarial form is needed (TsÜS § 80). Where a notarised one is required, you can sign it in a remote authentication with an Estonian notary, if the notary agrees.

Does a power of attorney need to be notarised in Estonia?

Yes, if the law requires a notarial form for the transaction itself (TsÜS § 118(3)). In a court case, the court may ask for a notarised one (TsMS § 221(2)).

Can a power of attorney from a foreign notary be used in Estonia?

Yes, if the official is on the minister’s list and the document has an apostille or legalisation where required (TõS § 57(1)). Check with the Estonian notary before signing. For estates, see inheriting property in Estonia.

How Erovik Law Office can help

We can review and amend your power of attorney so that it covers what is needed and no more, check property or inheritance documents before anyone signs, and represent you if a dispute arises. We are a law office, not a notary: the notary authenticates, we advise you, in Estonian or English. Read about using a notary in Estonia and buying property in Estonia, see our fees and contact us; we usually reply within one working day.

This guide reflects Estonian law in force on 1 November 2026. It is general information, not legal advice for your situation.