Serving as Trustee and wondering what you may charge?
Start the free role checkHow New York approaches the number
- The instrument first. The Trust may address compensation, and a will that provides a specific compensation for its trustee leaves no other allowance for the trustee's services (SCPA 2309(10)). Read the instrument's compensation clause before anything else.
- The statutory commissions. On the settlement of the account, 1% of all principal paid out; each year, $10.50 per $1,000 on the first $400,000 of principal, $4.50 on the next $600,000 and $3.00 above — charged one-third to income and two-thirds to principal unless the instrument explicitly provides otherwise (SCPA 2309).
- Other services count separately. A Trustee who is a New York attorney and renders legal services in the administration may be allowed just and reasonable compensation for them, and a Trustee who collects rents and manages real property may retain 6% of the gross rents (SCPA 2309(1), (7)). Family Trustees commonly waive commissions — a choice, not a requirement.
- Don't confuse it with the attorney's fee. The Trustee's own commissions are governed by SCPA 2309; the attorney the Trustee hires is paid the fee they agree — New York sets no presumptive attorney fee for trust administration.
The governing provisions
Power to distribute principal or allocate income; restriction on exercise
EPTL 10-10.1 ↗Clear, simple explanation; the verbatim statute text is not yet attested in our library. See the official statute via the link above.
Commissions of trustees, of donees of powers during minority and of donees of powers in trust under wills of persons dying, or lifetime trusts established, after August 31, 1956
SCPA 2309 ↗Clear, simple explanation; the verbatim statute text is not yet attested in our library. See the official statute via the link above.
Why paying yourself needs care
- Paying yourself is a self-interested act by a fiduciary — the duty of undivided loyalty, which New York's courts enforce, is in the room. Document the basis, the rate, the period and the work before the money moves.
- If you are also a beneficiary, the line between compensation and distribution matters: EPTL 10-10.1 limits self-dealing discretion, and compensation that looks like a disguised distribution invites challenge.
- Beneficiaries will see it: commissions retained appear in the annual statements (SCPA 2309). A number that surprises them there is how disputes start.
- TrusteeClear treats paying yourself as a gated action — the record is assembled before the payment, and a firm-supervised matter routes it to the attorney first.
General information about New York law, not legal advice.
Frequently asked questions
- How is a New York trustee paid?
- By statutory commissions unless the instrument provides otherwise: 1% of the principal paid out, and annual commissions of $10.50 per $1,000 on the first $400,000 of principal, $4.50 on the next $600,000 and $3.00 above, charged one-third to income and two-thirds to principal unless the instrument explicitly provides otherwise (SCPA 2309). A will that sets a specific compensation leaves no other allowance (SCPA 2309(10)).
- Can a New York trustee pay themselves annual commissions?
- Yes, but only by furnishing the annual statements: the principal assets on hand as of a date no more than 30 days before the end of the trust year, and all receipts of income and principal, including the commissions retained and how they were computed, to the income beneficiaries and others interested who demand them (SCPA 2309(4)).
- Can a beneficiary challenge a New York trustee's commissions?
- Yes. On the settlement of the trustee's account any person interested may dispute the amount of any commission claimed or retained, and a trustee claiming a value different from an asset's presumptive value bears the burden of proving it (SCPA 2309(2)); the court may also compel an account (SCPA 2205).
General information about New York law, not legal advice.