How Do I Open a Trust Account at Schwab?

Opening or retitling

In a branch

Available

Online

Available

By mail

Available

Co-trustees

All must sign or appear

Existing account

Can be retitled to the trust

Documents to bring

• Completed Schwab One Trust Account Application (APP10600), all sections; every trustee initials and signs
• Copy of the title page or first page and all signature pages of the trust, or a Certification of Trust
• If the original trustees have changed: the trust page(s) naming or validating the successor trustee
• Trust tax ID number (a Form W-9 if none is provided); a revocable living trust may use the grantor's SSN
• Each trustee's name, address, date of birth, Social Security/tax ID number and passport, driver's license or other ID
• Notarized trustee signatures if the trust is governed by one of 13 named states (not if grantor = trustee = beneficiary)

Steps at Schwab

1. 1
   Gather your Social Security number and driver's license number, statement information for funds to transfer, and each trustee's contact information, birth date and Social Security number.
2. 2
   If the revocable living trust's grantors, current trustees and beneficiaries are the same individuals and all trustees are U.S. residents, open it online at schwab.com/open-an-account/trust.
3. 3
   For any other trust, or to add a Schwab Bank Investor Checking Trust Account at opening, download the Schwab One Trust Account Application (APP10600) or call 800-742-6262 for assistance.
4. 4
   Complete the paper application in full:

   • Section 1: open a new account, open it with a linked Investor Checking Trust account, or convert an existing Schwab or Schwab One account.
   • Section 2: the trust's full legal name, tax ID number (a Form W-9 if none is provided), date, governing state, and any amendment or restatement.
   • Section 3: each trustee's identifying information; photocopy the Co-Trustee section for more than two trustees.
   • Sections 14 and 16 (and 18 for an Investor Checking Trust account): every trustee initials the Trustee Certification and signs.
   • Section 17: notarize trustee signatures if CA, DE, ID, IA, KS, MI, MN, MS, NE, NV, SD, TN or VT law governs the trust or it was set up in a U.S. territory.
5. 5
   Attach a copy of the title page or first page and all signature pages of the trust, or all pages of a Certification of Trust; if the original trustees have changed, add the trust page(s) naming the successor trustee.
6. 6
   Return pages 1-20 with the trust documentation by secure-message upload, fax to 1-888-526-7252, at a Schwab branch, or by mail to P.O. Box 982600, El Paso, TX 79998-2600 or P.O. Box 2339, Omaha, NE 68103.
7. 7
   Schwab sends the account number once the application is approved; checks and debit cards arrive after funding.

What it costs

Opening deposit

$0 (Schwab One Trust Account)

Monthly fee

$0 (Schwab One Trust Account)

Fee waived at

Not applicable; the monthly fee is $0

Other waivers

Other fees may apply under the Charles Schwab Pricing Guide for Individual Investors

Schedule that applies

Schwab One Trust Account pricing; a linked Schwab Bank checking or savings trust account is priced by the Schwab Bank Deposit Account Pricing Guide (January 2026)

For trust accounts

Schwab names and prices the Schwab One Trust account directly. It needs a $100 balance for checks or a debit card unless it is linked to a Schwab Bank Investor Checking account.

Once it is open

Online banking

Available

Checks

Available

Debit card

Issued

What to know at Schwab

The Schwab One Trust Account is a brokerage account with Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., and a Schwab Bank Investor Checking Trust Account is offered only linked to it. The online application covers only revocable living trusts where all grantors, current trustees and beneficiaries are the same individuals. Trust accounts are ineligible for the Transfer on Death feature, and an existing TOD is revoked on conversion.

Not in Schwab's published guidance

• Whether it can be opened by phone
• Whether it has its own certification of trust form
• Whether a branch appointment is needed
• Whether you must already bank there

After the grantor dies: the successor trustee at Schwab

1. 1
   If the trust's tax ID or Social Security number stays the same, complete the Trustee Change Form to add the successor trustee(s) and remove the deceased trustee.
2. 2
   Attach the documents Schwab lists for a domestic trust:

   • The trust page(s) that name or otherwise validate the successor trustee.
   • For a trustee removed due to death: a death certificate (the form's Section 4 field asks for a certified copy).
   • Each new trustee's Social Security/tax ID number, date of birth, home/legal address and valid identification.
3. 3
   All new, continuing and resigning trustees sign the form, with Section 5 signatures notarized.
4. 4
   Return the form by secure-message upload, fax to 1-888-526-7252, at any Schwab branch, or by mail to P.O. Box 982600, El Paso, TX 79998-2600 or P.O. Box 2339, Omaha, NE 68103.
5. 5
   If the trust's tax ID or Social Security number is changing, submit a new Schwab One Trust Account Application and move the assets with the Check and Journal Request Form or a Letter of Authorization.

Schwab uses the Trustee Change Form (APP32257) to add or remove trustees, including a trustee removed by death, and the change carries over to a linked Investor Checking Trust account. The account continues only while the trust's tax ID or Social Security number is unchanged; a change requires closing the account and opening a new one. Schwab Estate Services is at 877-566-2284.