Virginia Advanced Directives Form

Use a Virginia Advanced Directives template to make your document workflow more streamlined.

What the Virginia directive does

The Virginia Advanced Directives Form records a person’s healthcare instructions and may identify an agent to communicate those wishes when the person cannot do so. It is used to document preferences about medical treatment and related decisions, rather than to transfer property or create a will. A completed form should be reviewed for accurate personal information, healthcare instructions, agent details, signatures, and any required witnessing or notarization under current Virginia law. Electronic signing may be supported under ESIGN and Virginia’s electronic-transactions framework, but those laws do not override exclusions for wills, court orders, family-law decrees, or other records excluded by statute.

Individuals and agents

Individuals use the Virginia Advanced Directives Form to record treatment preferences and designate a healthcare agent. Review the completed document with the intended agent and healthcare providers, then provide accessible copies according to current Virginia requirements.

Healthcare organizations

Healthcare organizations use the form in patient-admission, care-planning, and records workflows. Authorized staff can send the document for signature, preserve the completion certificate, and limit access to personnel with a documented need.

How to complete the Virginia directive

Use signNow to prepare the Virginia form, assign its required fields, collect signatures, and preserve evidence of completion.

Upload the form:
Upload the Virginia directive PDF to signNow.
Check the fields:
Review detected fields and add signature, date, initials, and acknowledgment fields.
Assign signers:
Assign each field to the individual or healthcare agent who must complete it.
Send for signing:
Send the directive through signNow and require the selected authentication method.
Store the record:
Download the completed directive and retain its audit trail securely.

Platform requirements for signing

Complete the Virginia Advanced Directives Form in Chrome, Firefox, Safari, or Edge over TLS-secured connections. signNow supports Windows and macOS browsers, plus iOS and Android mobile apps for reviewing and signing the directive.

Browsers Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge
Desktop systems Windows 10+, macOS 12+
Mobile access iOS and Android mobile apps

Healthcare organizations should use managed Windows, macOS, iOS, or Android devices with current browser security updates. Administrators can connect signNow through API access, SSO provisioning, and integrations such as Microsoft 365, Google Drive, Box, or Egnyte; configure certificates and long-term record storage according to organizational policy.

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Use the signNow web app when preparing the Virginia directive on Windows or macOS and assigning fields to multiple participants.
Use the signNow mobile app when a person needs to review or sign the Virginia directive on an iOS or Android device.
Use kiosk mode when an authorized staff member supervises signing on a managed device and the workflow requires an in-person handoff.
Use a shareable signing link when the intended signer should open the Virginia directive without receiving a separate email invitation.

Authenticate signer:

SignNow records the signer’s authentication event for the directive.

Capture timestamp:

Each signing action receives a recorded date and time.

Record document hash:

The completed document is associated with integrity evidence.

Seal completion:

The completion record helps show whether the file changed afterward.

Log activity:

The audit trail records signer actions and workflow events.

Export evidence:

Authorized users can retrieve and export the audit trail.

Authentication for directive signers

Signer authentication:

Email link or SMS code

Additional verification:

Two-factor authentication available

Digital certificates:

PKI and X.509 support

Verification record:

Identity evidence retained

Signature timing:

Timestamped signature events

Attribution evidence:

Audit trail links signer actions

Privacy and disclosure pitfalls

Sharing a completed directive through unsecured email can expose diagnoses, treatment preferences, contact details, and named healthcare agents.
A signer may not receive clear electronic-record disclosures or understand how to withdraw consent before signing the directive.
Broad team permissions can let unrelated staff view advance-care instructions, scanned identification, or healthcare-agent contact information.
Missing signer authentication details can make it harder to connect the Virginia directive with the person who approved it.

Know the document boundaries

Wills and codicils

Excluded from ESIGN exceptions

Court orders

Follow Virginia court procedures

Family law decrees

Electronic equivalence exception

Real-estate deeds

Virginia recording rules apply

Record-keeping practices for Virginia directives

Preserve the directive, signer evidence, and access history together while applying the retention rule that matches the record’s healthcare context.

Archive the signed directive securely

Keep the signed directive and completion certificate in a restricted repository. Export the audit trail after completion, preserve the original file, and record who received access. For covered-entity documentation, apply the six-year period in 45 CFR §164.530(j).

Apply the HIPAA six-year rule

Retain the directive, related authorization, and disclosure evidence together when they document protected health information handling. HIPAA requires six years from creation or the last effective date under 45 CFR §164.530(j); Virginia requirements may require longer retention.

Preserve an exportable audit trail

Export signNow’s audit trail with the completed Virginia directive, including signer actions, timestamps, and authentication evidence. Store the export in a read-only location and test retrieval so the record can be produced without altering the signed document.

Review access after completion

Limit access to the individual, designated healthcare agent, authorized clinicians, and approved records personnel. Review permissions after completion, document each disclosure, and avoid retaining unnecessary copies in inboxes, downloads folders, or personal cloud storage.

Retention schedule for directive records

Use the healthcare record context to select the applicable retention period; state requirements may extend the federal minimum.

Six years: signed directive record

HIPAA 45 CFR §164.530(j) applies when the directive documents covered-entity privacy policies or procedures.

Six years: healthcare authorization

HIPAA 45 CFR §164.530(j) covers retained authorization evidence maintained by a covered entity.

Six years: disclosure documentation

HIPAA 45 CFR §164.530(j) applies to disclosure documentation retained with protected health information.

Six years: completion certificate

HIPAA 45 CFR §164.530(j) supports retaining the completion certificate as related compliance documentation.

Six years: audit documentation

HIPAA 45 CFR §164.530(j) applies to audit documentation maintained for the covered-entity workflow.

Connect directive records to work systems

Route completed Virginia directives into healthcare, records, and administrative workflows through named signNow integrations and cloud-storage connections.

Virginia directive troubleshooting

Resolve field, authentication, privacy, and retention questions before treating the signed directive as ready for healthcare use.

Upload the Virginia directive as a readable PDF, then review signNow’s detected fields. Add or correct signature, date, initials, and acknowledgment fields manually before sending. Field detection does not determine whether Virginia law requires witnesses or notarization, so confirm those requirements separately.

Business includes legally binding eSignatures, templates, mobile apps, and audit trails at $8/user/month with annual billing. Business Premium adds bulk send at $15/user/month. The plan’s feature set does not replace Virginia execution requirements for this healthcare directive.

For healthcare workflows involving protected health information, signNow states that HIPAA compliance requires a business associate agreement. Use the applicable BAA and restrict access to authorized personnel; HIPAA retention documentation is governed by 45 CFR §164.530(j).

ESIGN and UETA generally recognize electronic signatures when intent, consent, attribution, and record retention requirements are satisfied. They do not eliminate statutory exclusions or change Virginia requirements for witnesses, notarization, healthcare decisions, or document delivery.

Enable stronger signer authentication, such as two-factor authentication or an SMS code, when the directive contains sensitive healthcare information. Preserve the signNow audit trail with the completed record so signer identity and signing events remain reviewable.

Export the completed directive and its audit trail from signNow, store both in a restricted repository, and preserve a readable copy. Review the record before relying on it, because signNow does not determine whether the form reflects current Virginia law or the signer’s wishes.

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