How to name beneficiaries and fund a trust at Schwab

The Designated Beneficiary Plan requires an Individual, Joint Tenants with Rights of Survivorship, or Community Property with Rights of Survivorship registration, and a separate agreement for each account.¹

The Designated Beneficiary Plan is not available to accounts whose primary residence is outside the United States.¹

Trust accounts are ineligible for the Transfer on Death feature.²

A trust can be named on the Designated Beneficiary Plan Agreement and the IRA beneficiary form.^{1, 3}

An estate can be named on the Designated Beneficiary Plan Agreement and the IRA beneficiary form.^{1, 3}

An organization can be named on the Designated Beneficiary Plan Agreement and the IRA beneficiary form.^{1, 3}

In a community property state, an IRA owner who does not name the spouse as sole primary beneficiary represents that the spouse has consented.³

For investment accounts. Available to download.¹

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For payable-on-death accounts. Available to download.⁴

For IRAs. Available to download.³

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For employer retirement plans. Sent by the institution on request.³

Subject to applicable law, the Designated Beneficiary Plan generally takes precedence over a will or trust.¹

A beneficiary who does not survive the account holder by 120 hours is treated as having died first.¹

Per stirpes and per capita options apply to individual beneficiaries only.^{1, 3}

Converting an account with a Designated Beneficiary Plan to a trust account revokes the Plan.²

The Designated Beneficiary Plan is not available in Louisiana.¹

The online application is for revocable living trusts whose grantors, current trustees and beneficiaries are the same individuals. All other trust types use the paper Schwab One Trust Account Application.^{2, 5}

Completed by all trustees. Available to download.²

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Available to download.⁶

An existing Schwab or Schwab One account is moved into the trust with the conversion option on the same application, which keeps the account number. A new account is required if the taxpayer identification number changes.²

Trustee signatures are notarized in Section 17 if the trust is governed by the laws of California, Delaware, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, South Dakota, Tennessee or Vermont, or was established in a U.S. territory.²

Notarization is not required for a revocable trust whose grantors, current trustees and current beneficiaries are the same individuals.²

For an account a Cerity Partners advisor retitles, Schwab re-registers the account in the trust's name and confirms the new registration on the next statement.⁷

For an EP Wealth advisory account, Schwab opens the trust-titled account and moves the positions in kind on its trust account application or account-transfer paperwork.⁸