If Something Happens, Is There Someone You'd Trust to Manage Your Life? If No, Here's How to Plan Ahead.
This article is based on insights shared by Low Seow Ling, Managing Director at Emre Legal LLC and a registered Professional Deputy and Donee with Singapore's Office of the Public Guardian, in her webinar "Professional Deputy & Donee – Getting A Professional to Make Decisions For You Should You Lose Mental Capacity."
You have probably thought about it, even if only for a moment. If something happened to you, an illness, an accident, the slow arrival of old age, and you could no longer manage your own money and care, who would step in?
For most people the answer is simple: family.
But when you look honestly at the people around you, there may be no one you would trust with something this important. Or no one you would want to burden with it.
This problem is more common than it sounds. You might be single, or a single parent, or already caring for someone who depends on you. You might have relatives who are too far away, too unwell, or too entangled in their own difficulties to take this on.
The worry is real, but there are ways to decide in advance who manages your affairs if you cannot. Knowing those options is the first step toward putting the worry to rest.
What if there is no one in your family you would trust to step in?
Singapore's Professional Deputies and Donees (PDD) scheme lets you appoint a trained and vetted professional to make decisions about your welfare and finances if you lose the ability to do so yourself. According to Seow Ling, this is precisely the situation the scheme was built for.
She notes that people often arrive at this option for very practical reasons. The common ones include:
Being single, with no one of a similar age or closeness who could realistically take this on
Being a single parent worried about who would manage things for young children, or wanting to limit an ex-spouse's involvement
Supporting an ageing parent or a sibling with special needs, and fearing that support would stop if you could no longer manage it
Having family present, but lacking anyone with the financial knowledge, or the freedom from conflict, to do the job well
If any of these sound familiar, the next question is what actually happens if you do nothing.
What happens if you lose the ability to decide and have made no plan?
If you lose mental capacity without a plan in place, the people who want to help you cannot simply take over. Seow Ling explains that they would generally need to apply to court to be appointed your Deputy, a process that can be slow and costly and that happens only after the crisis has already hit. Planning ahead lets you avoid that by choosing your decision-maker yourself in advance.
The tool for doing this is a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA), which you sign while you are still well. The person you appoint under it is called a Donee. The key difference is timing: a Donee is chosen by you, before anything happens, while a Deputy is appointed by the court afterwards, often by whoever is willing to step forward. One puts you in control. The other leaves it to circumstance.
Choosing your own person is only part of it. The next concern most people raise is whether their actual wishes will be followed.
How do you make sure your wishes are actually followed?
How much control you keep depends on how your LPA is set up. Seow Ling explains that the standard LPA (LPA Form 1) gives your appointed person broad, general powers, while a customised version (LPA Form 2) lets you write in specific, binding instructions. If there are things you need followed exactly, those generally belong in the customised form.
She offers a telling example. Suppose you support a parent but want monthly payments capped, perhaps because of a gambling concern. Without a binding instruction written down, that parent could later insist they always received far more, and your appointed person would have little documented basis to refuse.
Seow Ling also points to a safeguard many people have never heard of: you can record the people you do not want allowed near you or involved in your affairs, so that estranged relatives who reappear once you can no longer speak for yourself can be kept at a distance. Putting these wishes in writing, in advance, is what gives them weight.
Naturally, the next thing people want to know is what all of this costs.
How much does it cost to appoint a professional, and what affects the price?
There is no standard fee, and it varies from provider to provider. Seow Ling shares that in her own practice the cost is driven by the complexity of your affairs and instructions, not by how much you are worth. A straightforward arrangement costs far less to manage than a tangle of scattered accounts.
In practical terms, that means the simpler your finances, the lower the eventual cost. Consolidating accounts, keeping a clear picture of your assets, and working with a steady set of advisers can all reduce the work involved if your plan is ever activated. It is one of the few areas where a little tidying up now pays off directly later.
If you are starting to recognise your own situation in any of this, it is worth checking how closely it fits.
A yes to even one of those questions is worth taking seriously, because it usually means the default path, leaving it to circumstance, is not one you would choose. In her free webinar, Seow Ling walks through how the Professional Deputy and Donee scheme actually works, the difference between appointing an individual and a licensed trust company, and how to structure your plan so your wishes hold up. It is a practical next step if this article has shown you a gap worth closing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the difference between a Professional Deputy and a Professional Donee in Singapore?
A: A Professional Donee is appointed by you in advance through a Lasting Power of Attorney, while you still have mental capacity. A Professional Deputy is appointed by the court after a person has already lost capacity without an LPA in place. In most cases, planning ahead with a Donee gives you more say over who is chosen and how they act.
Q: Can I appoint someone who is not a family member to make decisions for me?
A: Yes. Singapore's Professional Deputy and Donee scheme allows you to appoint a trained, registered professional rather than a relative or friend. This is generally an option for people who have no suitable family member, or who would prefer not to place the responsibility on the people close to them.
Q: What happens if I lose mental capacity without a Lasting Power of Attorney in Singapore?
A: If you lose mental capacity without a Lasting Power of Attorney, no one can automatically take over your affairs. Someone who wants to help would generally need to apply to court to be appointed your Deputy, which can be a slower and more costly process than planning ahead. Setting up an LPA while you are well lets you choose your own decision-maker instead.
Q: How much does a Professional Deputy or Professional Donee cost in Singapore?
A: There is no standard fee, and costs vary depending on the provider and your circumstances. In many cases the cost reflects the complexity of your affairs and instructions rather than the value of your assets, so simpler arrangements tend to cost less to manage. It is worth asking any provider directly how they calculate their fees.
Q: Can I choose to keep certain people away from me if I lose mental capacity?
A: Depending on how your Lasting Power of Attorney is set up, you can generally record people you do not want involved in your care or able to access you. Putting this in writing in advance gives your appointed person a clear, documented basis to act on your wishes. This is often relevant where there are estranged relatives or a history of conflict.
Q: Is there an affordable way to set up a Professional Donee in Singapore?
A: Yes. Because cost is often driven by the complexity of your instructions rather than your asset value, keeping things simple helps, and some packages use the standard Lasting Power of Attorney Form 1 with a guided Letter of Wishes to keep setup more affordable than a fully customised form. Immortalize offers one such Professional Donee package, built with Emre Legal LLC. See how the package works here.
This article is based on insights shared in a webinar and is intended for general informational purposes only. It does not constitute legal, financial, or estate planning advice. Laws and regulations vary by jurisdiction and individual circumstances differ. Please consult a qualified legal professional for advice specific to your situation.
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