How is a DNACPR form different from an Advance Decision?

A DNACPR form is a clinical decision about CPR. An Advance Decision can refuse a wider range of medical treatments, including CPR if properly drafted.

When should I use an Advance Decision?

You may need an Advance Decision if you want to refuse specific future medical treatments if you lose mental capacity.

When should I use an Advance Statement?

You may need an Advance Statement if you want doctors, carers and family to understand your personal wishes, beliefs and care preferences.

When should I use a Health and Welfare LPA?

You may need a Health and Welfare LPA if you want a trusted person to make healthcare and care decisions for you if you lose capacity.

Is a Will the same as a future care planning document?

No. A Will deals with your property and estate after death. Future care planning documents deal with medical care and decision-making during your lifetime.

Do future care planning documents need to be witnessed?

It depends on the document. For example, an Advance Decision refusing life-sustaining treatment must be written, signed and witnessed.

How often should I review future care planning documents?

You should review future care planning documents after major health, relationship or legal changes, or whenever your wishes change.

Who should I give my future care planning documents to?

You should share copies with your GP, hospital, care provider, attorneys, close family and anyone involved in your care.

Can I change an Advance Decision or other future care planning document?

Yes. An Advance Decision can usually be changed or withdrawn while you have mental capacity. Other documents may have their own update rules.

Why compare future care planning documents in the UK?

This comparison helps you understand how Advance Decisions, Advance Statements, LPAs, DNACPR forms and related documents differ before choosing the right option.

EN-GB>Wills>Advance Decision>UK Future Care Planning Documents Compared

Comparison Of Future Care Planning Documents In The United Kingdom

Created: 9 Jun 2026

This guide helps you compare future care planning documents used in the United Kingdom, so you can understand their purpose and choose the right option. It is especially useful alongside our AI Generated British Advance Decision resources.

Document Name	Purpose	Legal Effect	Typical Use Cases
Refusing medical treatment, End of life planning
Advance Decision to Refuse Treatment	Refuses specified medical treatment if the person later lacks capacity.	Legally binding if valid and applicable	Refusing ventilation, CPR, artificial nutrition or other treatments in defined future circumstances.
Refusing medical treatment
Mental Capacity Act 2005 Advance Decision	Sets the legal framework for refusing treatment in advance in England and Wales.	Legally binding if valid and applicable	Assessing whether an Advance Decision must be followed by clinicians.
Refusing medical treatment, End of life planning
Advance Decision Refusing Life-Sustaining Treatment	Refuses treatment needed to keep the person alive in specified circumstances.	Legally binding if valid and applicable	Refusing CPR, ventilation or clinically assisted nutrition and hydration near end of life.
Expressing care preferences, End of life planning
Advance Statement	Records wishes, values and preferences for future care and treatment.	Usually not legally binding	Stating preferred place of care, routines, beliefs, food, visitors and comfort wishes.
Appointing decision makers, Expressing care preferences, End of life planning
Health and Welfare Lasting Power of Attorney	Appoints attorneys to make health and welfare decisions if capacity is lost.	Legally binding appointment	Choosing trusted people to decide medical treatment, care home, daily care or life-sustaining treatment authority.
Appointing decision makers, Financial or property matters
Property and Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney	Appoints attorneys to manage money, property, bills and financial affairs.	Legally binding appointment	Managing bank accounts, paying care fees, selling property or handling pensions.
Appointing decision makers
Mental Capacity Act 2005 Lasting Power of Attorney	Creates the legal basis for appointing attorneys in England and Wales.	Legally binding appointment	Checking whether an attorney has valid legal authority to act.
Appointing decision makers, Financial or property matters
Enduring Power of Attorney	Older appointment for property and financial decisions, made before October 2007.	Legally binding appointment	Using or registering an old financial power of attorney when capacity is being lost.
Appointing decision makers, Financial or property matters, Expressing care preferences
Court of Protection Deputyship	Court appointment to make decisions for someone who lacks mental capacity.	Legally binding appointment	Managing finances or welfare decisions where no attorney has authority.
Expressing care preferences, Appointing decision makers
Mental Capacity Act Best Interests Checklist	Guides decisions for adults who lack capacity in England and Wales.	Depends on circumstances	Weighing wishes, beliefs, relatives views and clinical options after capacity is lost.
Expressing care preferences, End of life planning
ReSPECT Form	Records emergency care and treatment recommendations after shared decision making.	Depends on circumstances	Emergency planning for frailty, serious illness, palliative care or risk of sudden deterioration.
Refusing medical treatment, End of life planning
DNACPR Form	Records a clinical decision not to attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation.	Depends on circumstances	Avoiding CPR where it would not work, would cause harm or is not wanted.
Expressing care preferences
Personalised Care and Support Plan	Sets out assessed care needs, support arrangements and agreed outcomes.	Depends on circumstances	Coordinating home care, equipment, personal care, care home support or reviews.
Expressing care preferences, End of life planning
Anticipatory Care Plan	Plans ahead for changes in health, support needs and future treatment choices.	Usually not legally binding	Planning for long-term conditions, frailty, emergencies, hospital admission or preferred care settings.
Emergency Health Care Plan	Summarises urgent care actions, contacts and treatment preferences for emergencies.	Depends on circumstances	Helping paramedics, out-of-hours doctors or hospitals respond to urgent deterioration.
Advance Care Plan	Captures future care priorities, treatment wishes and important personal information.	Depends on circumstances	Planning future care after diagnosis, frailty, dementia, serious illness or palliative care referral.
Preferred Priorities for Care	Records preferences and priorities for future and end of life care.	Usually not legally binding	Recording where someone wants to be cared for and what matters most near death.
Expressing care preferences
Statement of Wishes and Feelings	Records personal wishes, feelings, beliefs and values for future decisions.	Usually not legally binding	Helping attorneys, deputies or clinicians decide best interests after capacity is lost.
Expressing care preferences, End of life planning
Treatment Escalation Plan	Records ceilings of treatment and escalation decisions for acute deterioration.	Depends on circumstances	Deciding whether ICU, ventilation, surgery, antibiotics or ward-based care are appropriate.
Do Not Hospitalise Preference	Records a preference to avoid hospital admission where appropriate care is available elsewhere.	Usually not legally binding	Care home, dementia, frailty or palliative care where comfort care at home is preferred.
End of life planning
NHS Organ Donor Register Decision	Records a decision to donate or not donate organs and tissue after death.	Depends on circumstances	Making donation choices clear to family and clinicians after death.
Human Tissue Act 2004 Consent For Donation	Provides the consent framework for organ, tissue and body donation.	Depends on circumstances	Understanding consent rules for donation, post-mortem use and human tissue storage.
Financial or property matters, End of life planning
Will	Directs distribution of property and appoints executors after death.	Legally binding if valid and applicable	Leaving assets, appointing executors, naming guardians and making gifts after death.
Wills Act 1837 Will Formalities	Sets formal signing and witnessing requirements for valid Wills.	Legally binding if valid and applicable	Checking whether a Will has been properly signed and witnessed.
Expressing care preferences, Financial or property matters, End of life planning
Letter of Wishes	Gives non-binding guidance about estate, funeral, guardianship or personal wishes.	Usually not legally binding	Explaining personal wishes to executors, trustees, guardians or family members.
End of life planning, Expressing care preferences
Funeral Wishes	Records preferences for burial, cremation, ceremony, music or memorial arrangements.	Usually not legally binding	Helping relatives and executors arrange a funeral consistent with personal wishes.
Financial or property matters, End of life planning
Pre-Paid Funeral Plan	Pays in advance for specified funeral services under a regulated plan.	Depends on circumstances	Reducing funeral cost uncertainty and telling family which funeral provider to contact.
Pension Expression of Wish Form	Nominates preferred recipients of pension death benefits.	Usually not legally binding	Guiding pension trustees or providers about lump sum or dependant benefit recipients.
Life Insurance Beneficiary Nomination	Identifies who should receive policy proceeds or trust benefits after death.	Depends on circumstances	Directing insurance proceeds to family, partners, trustees or dependants after death.
Assets and Accounts Inventory	Lists assets, debts, accounts, policies and digital services for future administration.	Usually not legally binding	Helping attorneys, executors or family locate accounts, debts, insurance and key contacts.
Digital Assets Instructions	Records online accounts, device access wishes and instructions for digital property.	Depends on circumstances	Managing social media, cloud files, cryptoassets, subscriptions and online banking after incapacity or death.
Expressing care preferences
Emergency Contacts and Key Information Sheet	Provides contacts, diagnoses, medicines, allergies and practical information for emergencies.	Usually not legally binding	Helping carers, paramedics, hospitals or relatives respond quickly in a crisis.
Independent Mental Capacity Advocate Referral	Provides statutory advocacy for certain serious decisions where no suitable consultee exists.	Depends on circumstances	Serious medical treatment or accommodation decisions for an unbefriended person lacking capacity.
Expressing care preferences, Refusing medical treatment
Mental Health Advance Choice Document	Records mental health treatment preferences, crisis wishes and people to contact.	Depends on circumstances	Planning for psychiatric crisis, medication preferences, hospital admission and trusted contacts.
Refusing medical treatment
Mental Health Act 1983 Treatment Rules	Regulates treatment for mental disorder, including when refusal may be overridden.	Depends on circumstances	Assessing whether a treatment refusal applies during detention or compulsory mental health treatment.
Refusing medical treatment, End of life planning
Scottish Advance Directive	Records refusal of specified medical treatment for future incapacity in Scotland.	Depends on circumstances	Refusing future treatment in Scotland and telling clinicians what treatment is unwanted.
Appointing decision makers, Expressing care preferences
Scottish Welfare Power of Attorney	Appoints someone to make welfare decisions if the granter lacks capacity.	Legally binding appointment	Planning who can decide care, treatment and welfare matters in Scotland.
Appointing decision makers, Financial or property matters
Scottish Continuing Power of Attorney	Appoints someone to manage money and property in Scotland.	Legally binding appointment	Managing bank accounts, property, benefits and bills under Scottish law.
Adults with Incapacity Scotland Act 2000 Power of Attorney	Provides the statutory basis for continuing and welfare powers of attorney in Scotland.	Legally binding appointment	Checking Scottish attorney powers and registration requirements.
Appointing decision makers, Financial or property matters, Expressing care preferences
Scottish Guardianship Order	Court appointment to make welfare, financial or property decisions for an adult with incapacity.	Legally binding appointment	Long-term decision-making in Scotland where no suitable attorney has authority.
Refusing medical treatment, End of life planning
Northern Ireland Advance Decision	Records refusal of specified treatment for future loss of capacity in Northern Ireland.	Depends on circumstances	Refusing future treatment and supporting advance care planning in Northern Ireland.
Appointing decision makers, Financial or property matters
Northern Ireland Enduring Power of Attorney	Appoints attorneys to manage financial affairs in Northern Ireland.	Legally binding appointment	Authorising someone to handle money and property if capacity is lost in Northern Ireland.
Northern Ireland Controllership Order	Court authorisation to manage financial affairs for a person lacking capacity.	Legally binding appointment	Managing finances in Northern Ireland where no enduring power of attorney is available.

Which Future Care Planning Document Is Legally Binding In The UK?

An Advance Decision to Refuse Treatment can be legally binding in England and Wales if it meets the Mental Capacity Act 2005 requirements and applies to the treatment and circumstances in question. A Health and Welfare Lasting Power of Attorney is also a legally binding appointment, allowing attorneys to make health and care decisions if the donor lacks capacity, subject to any limits in the LPA.

How Do Advance Decisions Differ From Advance Statements?

An Advance Decision is used to refuse specified medical treatment and may bind clinicians if valid and applicable. An Advance Statement records wishes, values and preferences about care, but is usually not legally binding; decision makers must consider it when deciding best interests.

When Should Someone Use An LPA Instead Of An Advance Decision?

Use an LPA where trusted people should make future decisions, especially where circumstances may be complex or unpredictable. Use an Advance Decision where the key aim is to refuse specific treatments in defined circumstances. They can coexist, but the timing and wording matter because a later Health and Welfare LPA may override an earlier Advance Decision if it gives the attorney authority over the same treatment.

Which Documents Matter Most For End Of Life Care Planning?

Advance Decision: strongest tool for refusing specific life-sustaining or other treatment.
Advance Statement: useful for values, comfort, place of care and personal preferences.
ReSPECT or DNACPR: clinical forms that guide emergency and resuscitation decisions, but their status and process differ from an Advance Decision.
Will and funeral wishes: useful after death, but they do not appoint medical decision makers or refuse treatment while alive.

What Should UK Users Check Before Relying On A Document?

Users should check whether the document is meant to be legally binding, whether it covers health, welfare, finances or post-death matters, and whether it applies across the relevant UK nation. England and Wales use the Mental Capacity Act 2005 framework for Advance Decisions and LPAs, while Scotland and Northern Ireland have different legal regimes and terminology.