Wyoming follows the reasonable-compensation standard for trusteesWyo. Stat. Ann. § 4-10-708Verified Sep 18, 2026View source. A court decides what is reasonable case by case, on the trust's size, its complexity and the trustee's actual work. A family-member trustee often waives the fee. A professional trustee (a bank, a trust company, an attorney) typically charges 0.5% to 1.5% of trust assets a year, and a corporate fiduciary applies an annual minimum. The Wyoming trustee compensation calculator breaks it down by trust situation.

Trust administration in Wyoming is typically faster than probate because a trust needs no court supervision. The trustee can shorten the creditor-claim window to 4 monthsWyo. Stat. § 4-10-507(a) — creditor barred at the earlier of (i) 2 years after settlor death, (ii) 120 days after first publication of trustee notice (once/week for 2 weeks per § 4-10-204 venue), or (iii) 120 days after certified-mail notice to known creditors; § 4-10-507(b) makes the bar absolute. Notice is elective (permissive "may"); default 2-year bar applies if trustee does nothing.Verified Oct 17, 2026View source by publishing Wyoming's optional notice; otherwise the general 24 monthsWyo. Stat. § 4-10-507(a) — creditor barred at the earlier of (i) 2 years after settlor death, (ii) 120 days after first publication of trustee notice (once/week for 2 weeks per § 4-10-204 venue), or (iii) 120 days after certified-mail notice to known creditors; § 4-10-507(b) makes the bar absolute. Notice is elective (permissive "may"); default 2-year bar applies if trustee does nothing.Verified Oct 17, 2026View source period governs before final distributions are safe. A simple trust often wraps up in six to nine months; a trust holding a business interest, real property in more than one state, or one that files an estate tax return takes longer. The Wyoming trust settlement plan carries the full process.

Estate planning attorneys in Wyoming average $277Clio Compare Lawyer Rates, Wyoming: Wills and Estates rate (2025 data)Verified Oct 15, 2026View source an hour for wills and estates work. A flat-fee package runs $831Estimate: 3 hours at $277, Clio's Wyoming Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $1,662Estimate: 6 hours at $277, Clio's Wyoming Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source for a simple individual will and $3,070Estimate: 10 hours at $307, Clio's Wyoming Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $4,605Estimate: 15 hours at $307, Clio's Wyoming Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source for a basic revocable trust. An online service prices the same documents in the tens to low hundreds of dollars; the Wyoming will cost calculator sets the two side by side.

In Wyoming, estates valued at $400,000Wyo. Stat. § 2-1-201Verified Sep 9, 2026View source or less use the Affidavit for Distribution of Personal PropertyWyo. Stat. § 2-1-201Verified Sep 9, 2026View source, 30 daysWyo. Stat. § 2-1-201Verified Sep 9, 2026View source after death, a court filing short of full probate. That route is a form rather than a court case, and most families handle it without an attorney. Above the line, formal probate generally benefits from counsel for the procedural work, even when nothing is contested. The Wyoming probate calculator estimates the cost by estate value.

In Wyoming, the situations where counsel is typically worth the cost are: a blended family with children from a prior relationship; a business, rental property or significant investment assets; a dependent with special needs, who needs a special-needs trust to keep benefits; substantial property in more than one state. Where none of these apply, an online or self-help document is often enough.

Forms for Planning and Settling an Estate in Wyoming

Free Wyoming forms for planning an estate or settling one: a will, trust, powers of attorney, TOD deed, and the probate forms an executor files.

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Revocable Living Trust

Create a revocable living trust to avoid probate, protect privacy, and control asset distribution.

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Pour-Over Will

In Wyoming, a pour-over will is signed before 2Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-112Verified Oct 19, 2026View source witnesses and moves anything left outside the trust into it through probate.

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Tools for Planning and Settling an Estate in Wyoming

Free calculators and checklists for planning or settling an estate in Wyoming: will and trust costs, probate, executor pay, and inheritance taxes.

How Do I Settle a Trust?

Settling a trust in Wyoming happens outside court: the trustee acts under the state's Uniform Trust CodeWyo. Stat. § 4-10-101 et seq.Verified Oct 17, 2026View source, notifies the beneficiaries within 60 daysW.S. §§ 4-10-813, 4-10-1005Verified Sep 15, 2026View source, then pays the debts and distributes under the trust's terms.

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What's Fair Trustee Compensation?

In Wyoming, trustee compensation follows "reasonable compensation" (UTC § 708 or equivalent)Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 4-10-708Verified Sep 18, 2026View source unless the trust instrument sets a different amount.

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How Do I Settle an Estate?

Settling an estate in Wyoming: the personal representative files the estate inventory within 120 daysW.S. §§ 2-7-403, 2-7-404, 2-7-410Verified Sep 15, 2026View source of appointment; creditors have 3 monthsW.S. §§ 2-7-201, 2-7-205, 2-7-701, 2-7-702, 2-7-703, 2-7-704Verified Oct 19, 2026View source to present claims; a simple estate closes in 4 months to 6 months.

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Do I Have to File Tax Returns for Someone Who Died?

Wyoming has no state income tax, so only the federal final Form 1040 is due for the decedentWyo. Stat. § 39-12-101; Wyo. Const. art. 15, § 18Verified Sep 20, 2026View source; a federal estate tax return (Form 706) is required only for estates above $15,000,00026 USC 2001(c), 2010; P.L. 119-21 §70106Verified Sep 15, 2026View source.

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How Does Step-Up in Basis Work?

Inherited assets in Wyoming take a basis reset to fair market value on the date of death26 USC § 1014Verified Sep 15, 2026View source, and the gain on a later sale faces no state capital gains taxWyo. Stat. § 39-12-101 (Title 39, ch. 12 — Income Tax; Preemption by state) — "The state of Wyoming does hereby preempt for itself the field of imposing and levying income taxes, earning taxes, or any other form of tax based on wages or other income and no county, city, town or other political subdivision shall have the right to impose, levy or collect such taxes."Verified Sep 15, 2026View source.

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