Wisconsin's statutory power of attorney for finances and property (Wis. Stat. 244.61) is an initial-to-grant form: your agent holds exactly the subjects you hand-initial. Wisconsin's list has a feature many state forms lack — a separate subject for digital property — and lacks one many have, a standalone safe-deposit line. Those differences are why you cannot borrow another state's form.
The fourteen subjects
You initial the subjects you want your agent to handle. An 'All Preceding Subjects' line grants every one at once.
- Real property; tangible personal property; digital property.
- Stocks and bonds; commodities and options.
- Banks and other financial institutions — safe-deposit access rides here, not on its own line.
- Operation of entity or business; insurance and annuities.
- Estates, trusts, and other beneficial interests; claims and litigation.
- Personal and family maintenance; benefits from governmental programs or civil or military service.
- Retirement plans; taxes.
Digital property is its own subject here
Wisconsin's form lists digital property as a general-authority subject, so granting it is a single initial rather than a special-authority decision. That is not true everywhere: Nevada's statutory form has no digital line at all, and Michigan's puts electronic-communications access in the separate specific-authority block.
If your agent may need to reach accounts, records, or files held online, this is the line that does it.
The specific-authority block
A second block lists powers Wisconsin keeps off the general grant: creating or changing trusts, making gifts (limited by Wis. Stat. 244.42), changing rights of survivorship, changing beneficiary designations, delegating your agent's authority, waiving a joint and survivor annuity right, and exercising delegable fiduciary powers.
Each can reduce your property or change who receives it at your death. Each takes its own initials, and each deserves advice before you provide them.
Signing
The principal's signature is acknowledged before a notary public. The form does not require witnesses.
Initial the subjects yourself before you go — nobody else can do it for you, and a blank line grants nothing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Wisconsin's POA cover digital accounts?
It can. Wisconsin's statutory form has a digital property subject in the general-authority list, so initialing that line grants it.
Is there a safe-deposit box line?
Not a separate one. Safe-deposit access comes through the banks-and-other-financial-institutions subject.
Does this cover medical decisions?
No. Wisconsin uses a separate Power of Attorney for Health Care under Wis. Stat. ch. 155, with different execution rules.
What if I leave a subject blank?
Your agent does not get it. Wisconsin's form grants by initialing, so blanks withhold rather than grant.