Vermont Vehicle Power of Attorney

Q: Which form is the Vermont vehicle power of attorney?

Form VN-101, titled Vehicle Power of Attorney, published by the Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles at the Agency of Transportation. The copy posted on the DMV site carries the footer VN-101 06/2023 MTC. It is a two part document: a signing page with vehicle, agent and owner blocks followed by witness and notary blocks, and then an instruction page addressed separately to the agent, the vehicle owner and the witness.

Q: Does a Vermont vehicle power of attorney have to be notarized?

Yes, and a notary alone is not enough. VN-101 prints a full notary section with a seal area, the notary printed name and signature, a commission number, a commission expiry date, a notary phone number and a Customer ID Verified box. It also prints a separate witness section. The instruction beside the owner signature line reads: Sign in the presence of Notary and Witness. Signature must be of the applicant. The owner then affirms on the form that the power of attorney was signed before a witness and notary.

Q: Can I use my own power of attorney wording in Vermont instead of VN-101?

No. The Vermont DMV is asked this directly and its answer is: No. You must use the Vermont DMV Vehicle Power of Attorney form (VN-101). That is unusual. Several states will take an attorney-drafted equivalent, but Vermont will not, so a general durable power of attorney drafted for banking or property matters is not a substitute here, however carefully it was written.

Q: Who can serve as the witness on a Vermont VN-101?

Anyone except the notary and except the person you are appointing. The form states, citing 14 VSA 3505(c), that a person named as agent under the document may not serve as a witness or notary public with respect to the document, and the instruction page adds that the witness and the notary may not be the same person. The witness signs a printed declaration that the owner appeared of sound mind and free from duress, was aware of the nature of the document, and signed it freely and voluntarily, and gives an address and a phone number.

Q: Does the agent have to sign the Vermont VN-101 as well?

Yes. There is an Agent Signature line in the agent block, along with the agent licence number and state of issue, mailing address, phone number and email address. The timing is flexible: the agent does not have to sign at the same time as the principal, but the agent must sign before using the power of attorney for the first time. The instruction page also tells the agent that Vermont law imposes a fiduciary duty, which means acting in good faith, only for the owner benefit, avoiding conflicts of interest, and stopping the moment the authority is revoked.

Q: Will the Vermont DMV accept a scan or a photocopy of VN-101?

No. The form carries the instruction at the top of the page: All signatures must be original and in ink; no photocopies or scanned forms. Plan the logistics around that. If the owner is out of state, the signed original has to be posted rather than emailed, and it has to be signed in front of a witness and a notary wherever the owner happens to be, not signed first and witnessed later.

Q: How do I revoke a Vermont vehicle power of attorney?

The instruction page tells the owner that this power of attorney may be revoked at any time, in writing, by telling the agent, or by tearing it up or crossing it out, or any other act that shows you want it revoked, and it adds that you should tell your agent you are revoking it. The duty on the agent side matches: the agent must stop acting immediately if the principal revokes the power of attorney or if something else happens which terminates it.

Q: Where does a completed Vermont VN-101 go?

It is not filed on its own. The original goes to the Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles with the paperwork the agent signs, which in a transfer is the title and registration application. Because the form has to be an original in ink, keep the sequence in order: fill in every field, sign before the witness and the notary, have the agent sign, then send or carry the original in with the transaction rather than keeping it back.

Vermont requires its own DMV form VN-101, Vehicle Power of Attorney. The owner signs in front of a witness and a notary, and the agent may serve as neither. Attorney review available.

Find out where you stand in Vermont

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Introduction

The Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles answers the question of whether you can bring your own wording with one word, and the word is no. The form it wants is VN-101, Vehicle Power of Attorney, and the agency says plainly that you must use it. VN-101 is the one page a Vermont vehicle owner signs to put a named agent in their place for the paperwork on a single vehicle. The appointment line on the form reaches Vehicle Purchase, Vehicle Sale, Application for Title and/or Registration, and Transfer of Ownership. What makes the Vermont form unusual is how it has to be executed. The owner signs before a witness and before a notary, and the form says so twice, once in the affirmation the owner makes under penalty of perjury and again in the instruction printed beside the signature line. The witness and the notary cannot be the same person, and the person you name as your agent cannot be either one, which VN-101 ties to 14 VSA 3505(c). The form also carries a working signature line for the agent, who need not sign at the same sitting but must sign before using the authority the first time. Two instructions on the face of the form catch people out. Every field must be completed or the form will not be accepted, and all signatures must be original and in ink, with no photocopies and no scanned forms. The declaration the owner makes is made under penalties of 23 VSA Section 202, Section 203, Section 2082 and Section 2083. DocDraft prepares your Vermont VN-101 entries from your facts, with attorney review available as an option before you take it to a notary.

Key Things to Know

1
Form VN-101, titled Vehicle Power of Attorney, is the single page on which a Vermont owner names an agent to sign the documents for one described vehicle, and the Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles accepts no substitute wording for that job.
2
The owner must sign in the presence of a witness and a notary. Both blocks are printed on VN-101, and the owner affirms on the form that the signing happened before both.
3
The witness and the notary may not be the same person, and the person named as agent may not serve as either, which the form attributes to 14 VSA 3505(c).
4
All signatures must be original and in ink. VN-101 states that no photocopies and no scanned forms are accepted, so the original has to travel with the transaction.
5
Every field must be completed or the form will not be accepted. A blank body type or a missing phone number is enough to send the form back.
6
The appointment reaches Vehicle Purchase, Vehicle Sale, Application for Title and/or Registration, and Transfer of Ownership for the vehicle described, which is identified by make, model, model year, body type, color, serial number, plate number and plate state.
7
VN-101 has an Agent Signature line. The agent does not have to sign at the same time as the owner, but must sign before using the power of attorney for the first time, and the form sets out the fiduciary duties Vermont law puts on that agent.

Key decisions before you file

Before you file a Vehicle Power of Attorney in Vermont, 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 guide

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VERMONT VEHICLE POWER OF ATTORNEY (DMV FORM VN-101)

Use this worksheet to collect every entry form VN-101 asks for, then copy the entries onto the VN-101 itself and sign that form in ink in front of a witness and a notary. All fields must be completed, or the Vermont DMV will not accept the form, and no photocopy or scan is accepted.

VEHICLE INFORMATION Make: [MAKE] Model: [MODEL] Model year: [YEAR] Body type: [BODY TYPE] Color: [COLOR] Serial number (VIN): [VIN] License plate number: [PLATE NUMBER] License plate state: [STATE]

AGENT, THE PERSON BEING APPOINTED TO ACT FOR THE OWNER Name of agent: [FULL LEGAL NAME] License number: [NUMBER] License state of issue: [STATE] Mailing address: [STREET], [CITY], [STATE] [ZIP] Agent signature: _______________________ Phone: [PHONE] Email: [EMAIL]

APPOINTMENT, AS PRINTED ON THE FORM The following person hereby appoints the above-named as my attorney-in-fact to sign any documents for the vehicle described above, including but not limited to Vehicle Purchase, Vehicle Sale, Application for Title and/or Registration, and Transfer of Ownership.

VEHICLE OWNER Printed name of owner or company agent: [NAME] License number: [NUMBER] License state of issue: [STATE] Company name, if applicable: [COMPANY] Mailing address: [STREET], [CITY], [STATE] [ZIP] Phone: [PHONE] Email: [EMAIL]

OWNER AFFIRMATION I hereby affirm, under penalty of perjury, that the information on this form is true to the best of my knowledge. I further attest that I signed this Power of Attorney appointing my agent before a witness and notary. Signature of owner or company agent: _______________________ Date: [DATE] Sign in the presence of the notary and the witness. The signature must be the applicant own signature.

WITNESS Witness signature: _______________________ Printed name: [NAME] Date: [DATE] Witness address: [ADDRESS] Witness phone: [PHONE]

NOTARY Printed name of notary: [NAME] Notary signature: _______________________ Commission number: [NUMBER] Commission expires: [DATE] Notary phone: [PHONE] Customer ID verified: Yes / No Notary seal: [SEAL]

CHECKLIST BEFORE YOU HAND IT IN

Every field is filled in. A blank field is a rejection.
Signatures are original and in ink. Photocopies and scanned forms are not accepted.
The person named as agent is not the witness and is not the notary.
The witness and the notary are two different people.
The agent has signed the agent signature line, which must happen before the agent uses the authority the first time.

WHERE IT GOES The original VN-101 travels to the Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles with the title or registration paperwork the agent signs. Note the date you signed, because you may revoke the authority at any time in writing, by telling your agent, or by destroying the document.

Note: this worksheet mirrors Vermont DMV form VN-101 and the instructions printed on it, including 14 VSA 3505(c) and the penalties at 23 VSA Section 202, Section 203, Section 2082 and Section 2083. Vermont sets the form, requires a witness and a notary, and bars the agent from serving as either. For the generic template and other states, see the Vehicle Power of Attorney hub.

Once your Vehicle Power of Attorney is ready, you can check whether it needs to be notarized in Vermont in about a minute, and notarize it online through DocDraft if it does.

Vermont Requirements for Vehicle Power of Attorney

DMV Form VN-101, Vehicle Power of Attorney
Vermont uses form VN-101, titled Vehicle Power of Attorney, published by the Department of Motor Vehicles at the Agency of Transportation. The posted copy carries the footer VN-101 06/2023 MTC. It appoints an attorney in fact to sign any documents for the one vehicle described on it.
Signed Before a Witness and a Notary
VN-101 prints both a witness block and a notary block, and the instruction beside the owner signature line reads: Sign in the presence of Notary and Witness. Signature must be of the applicant. The owner also affirms on the form that the power of attorney was signed before a witness and notary.
The Agent Cannot Witness or Notarize
Citing 14 VSA 3505(c), VN-101 states that a person named as agent under the document may not serve as a witness or notary public with respect to the document. The instruction page adds that the witness and the notary may not be the same person, so three people are involved in the signing.
Original Ink Only, No Photocopies or Scans
The form carries the instruction that all signatures must be original and in ink, with no photocopies or scanned forms. An out of state owner therefore has to post the signed original rather than email it, and the signing still has to happen in front of a witness and a notary wherever the owner is.
Every Field Must Be Completed
VN-101 states that all fields must be completed, or the form will not be accepted. The vehicle block asks for make, model, model year, body type, color, serial number, license plate number and license plate state, and both the agent and the owner blocks ask for a license number and state of issue, a mailing address, a phone number and an email address.
The Agent Signs Too, Before First Use
There is an Agent Signature line on the form. The agent does not have to sign at the same time as the principal, but the agent must sign before using the power of attorney for the first time. The instruction page also sets out the fiduciary duties Vermont law puts on the agent, including acting in good faith and only for the benefit of the principal.
A Privately Drafted Form Is Not Accepted
Asked whether an owner can use their own form, the Vermont DMV answers: No. You must use the Vermont DMV Vehicle Power of Attorney form (VN-101). A general durable power of attorney written for banking or property matters is not a substitute for VN-101 in a Vermont vehicle transaction.
Scope of the Authority and How to Revoke It
The appointment line reaches Vehicle Purchase, Vehicle Sale, Application for Title and/or Registration, and Transfer of Ownership for the vehicle described. The instruction page states that the owner may revoke at any time, in writing, by telling the agent, or by tearing up or crossing out the document, and that the agent must stop acting immediately on revocation.

Does your Vehicle Power of Attorney need to be notarized in Vermont?

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.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which form is the Vermont vehicle power of attorney?

Does a Vermont vehicle power of attorney have to be notarized?

Can I use my own power of attorney wording in Vermont instead of VN-101?

Who can serve as the witness on a Vermont VN-101?

Does the agent have to sign the Vermont VN-101 as well?

Will the Vermont DMV accept a scan or a photocopy of VN-101?

How do I revoke a Vermont vehicle power of attorney?

Where does a completed Vermont VN-101 go?

Find out where you stand in Vermont

Introduction

Key Things to Know

Key decisions before you file

Customize your Vehicle Power of Attorney Template with DocDraft

Vermont Requirements for Vehicle Power of Attorney

DMV Form VN-101, Vehicle Power of Attorney

Signed Before a Witness and a Notary

The Agent Cannot Witness or Notarize

Original Ink Only, No Photocopies or Scans

Every Field Must Be Completed

The Agent Signs Too, Before First Use

A Privately Drafted Form Is Not Accepted

Scope of the Authority and How to Revoke It

Does your Vehicle Power of Attorney need to be notarized in Vermont?

Frequently Asked Questions