New Jersey Vehicle Power of Attorney
The New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission numbers power of attorney forms only for dealers and insurers. A private owner supplies the document, and the MVC requires it to be notarized and to carry a set list of details. Attorney review available.
Find out where you stand in New Jersey
What do you need the other person to be able to do with the vehicle?
DocDraft provides document preparation, not legal advice.
Introduction
DLR-NSPOA and DLR-SPOA are the only two power of attorney forms the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission prints, and both of them are dealer forms. DLR-NSPOA is titled Power of Attorney for Licensed New Jersey Motor Vehicle Dealers, for electronic signature only. DLR-SPOA is the Dealer Secure Power of Attorney and Odometer Disclosure, and it may be used only when the title is physically held by a lienholder or has been lost. The third, INS-NSPOA, is an Insurer Power of Attorney. If you are a private owner, none of these is your form, and the MVC does not number one for you. What the MVC does instead is tell you what your own document has to say. For a non-dealer change of ownership where someone else will present and sign the title or the application, you must bring a General, Durable or Limited Power of Attorney, it must be notarized, and it must carry the attorney in fact name and address, the principal name, address and signature, and a specification of what powers are being granted. A Limited power of attorney has to name the vehicle by year, make and VIN and state the type of transaction authorized. A power of attorney issued by a business has to be on official letterhead. The Universal Title Application, form OS/SS-UTA, adds that original documents are required when a power of attorney is used, and that a copy of photo identification is needed for the party granting it and for the party being granted it. If every document has already been signed by the owner and the representative is only handing the package in, the MVC will take a General Letter of Authorization, form LOA-1, in place of a power of attorney. DocDraft builds your New Jersey vehicle power of attorney from your facts, with attorney review available before you sign.
Key Things to Know
- 1
A New Jersey vehicle power of attorney is the notarized authority an owner signs so that another named person can present and sign title or registration paperwork at the MVC for one vehicle, and because the MVC numbers no form for a private owner, you supply the document itself.
- 2
The MVC requires it to be notarized. That is stated in the Transferring Vehicle Ownership instructions rather than printed as a block on a state form, because there is no state form for a private owner to download.
- 3
Five things have to appear on it: the attorney in fact name and address, the principal name, address and signature, and a specification of what powers are being granted.
- 4
A Limited power of attorney must reference the specific vehicle by year, make and VIN, and must state the type of transaction being authorized. A power of attorney issued by a business must be on official letterhead.
- 5
Original documents are required when a power of attorney is used, according to the Universal Title Application instructions, and a copy of photo identification is needed for the individual or entity granting it and the individual or entity being granted it.
- 6
A representative who is only processing work for the owner or lienholder may not sign any documentation. If signatures are required, that representative has to obtain an original, signed and notarized power of attorney first.
- 7
Where the owner has already signed everything and the representative will not be signing, a General Letter of Authorization, form LOA-1, is accepted in place of a power of attorney.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Vehicle Power of Attorney in New Jersey, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Vehicle Power of Attorney guide walks through them.
Open the Vehicle Power of Attorney guideCustomize your Vehicle Power of Attorney Template with DocDraft
Once your Vehicle Power of Attorney is ready, you can check whether it needs to be notarized in New Jersey in about a minute, and notarize it online through DocDraft if it does.
New Jersey Requirements for Vehicle Power of Attorney
No MVC Form Number for a Private Owner
The MVC forms index lists three numbered power of attorney forms and all three are business forms: DLR-NSPOA for licensed dealers, DLR-SPOA the Dealer Secure Power of Attorney and Odometer Disclosure, and INS-NSPOA the Insurer Power of Attorney. A private owner supplies a General, Durable or Limited power of attorney that meets the contents the MVC lists.
Notarization Required by the MVC
The MVC states that the power of attorney must be notarized where you are presenting and signing title or application paperwork for a non-dealer change of ownership on behalf of someone else. Because there is no state form for a private owner, the requirement appears in the MVC instructions rather than as a printed notary block.
Required Contents the MVC Lists
The document must carry the appointee or attorney in fact name and address, the principal name, address and signature, and a specification of what powers are being granted. Those are the MVC's own listed items for a non-dealer change of ownership transaction.
Limited Power of Attorney Names the Vehicle
A Limited power of attorney requires reference to the specific vehicle by year, make and VIN, and must state the type of transaction being authorized. A power of attorney issued by a business must be on official letterhead.
Originals and Photo Identification on Both Sides
The Universal Title Application instructions require original documents when a power of attorney is used. A copy of photo identification is required for the individual or entity granting the power and for the individual or entity being granted it, and an entity on either side also needs a notarized letter of signature authority on company letterhead.
A Representative Without One May Not Sign
Representatives processing work on behalf of the current owner or lienholder may not sign any documentation. If signatures are required, the representative must obtain an original, signed and notarized power of attorney before anything can be signed for the owner.
Letter of Authorization LOA-1 as the Alternative
Where all required paperwork has already been signed by the person being represented, the MVC accepts a General Letter of Authorization, form LOA-1, in place of a power of attorney. It covers presenting documents, not signing them.
Dealer Secure Form DLR-SPOA and Odometer Disclosure
DLR-SPOA may only be used when the title is physically held by a lienholder or the title has been lost, and the form directs that it be submitted to the NJMVC by the person exercising the powers of attorney. DLR-NSPOA is for electronic signature only and is used with a separate odometer disclosure statement, form OS/SS-2.
Does your Vehicle Power of Attorney need to be notarized in New Jersey?
Whether a Vehicle Power of Attorney needs to be notarized depends on your state. Upload yours, pick your state, and get the current rule with the official source behind it, free and with no account. If yours does need a notary, online notarization is part of your DocDraft plan.
Check my Vehicle Power of Attorney