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Commissions, Fees & Charges
State Trustees is committed to providing you with clear and transparent information about our services and pricing.
(Effective 1 July 2023)
Will Preparation
All fees are based on an appointment time of 1 hour. Couples will be booked for two appointments (2 hours).
Any additional time required will be charged at $330 per hour (pro-rata).
| Appointment types¹ | Rates (Inc. GST) | |
|---|---|---|
| Onsite (Footscray or Dandenong), or Offsite (at your-location²), or Virtual (video)³ |
Singles (one-hour appointment) |
Couples⁴ (two-hour appointment) |
| OPTION 1: Choose one document: 1. Will, or 2. Enduring Power of Attorney (personal and/or financial)⁵, or 3. Medical Treatment Decision Maker Authority⁶ |
$330 | $600 |
| OPTION 2: Two documents (from OPTION 1) | $600 | $1,140 |
| OPTION 3: All three documents (from OPTION 1) | $860 | $1,650 |
| Document signing (30 mins – if outside of initial appointment) | $165 | $165 |
| 20% discount off your total bill: |
|---|
| If you nominate us as Primary Executor in your Will |
| OR |
| Activate your Financial Power of Attorney with State Trustees |
| OR |
| You’re a concession card holder⁷ |
Things to note
1. $330 is the minimum booking fee to secure an initial appointment. Refundable if cancelled at least 7 days in advance.
2. Offered in Victoria only. Offered for client’s special circumstances. Subject to availability.
3. Virtual appointments may incur additional administration costs for dispatching and registering documents. Limited availability on request.
4. Couples rates based on preparing mirror documents for both parties.
5. An enduring power for financial matters allows you to appoint an organisation (such as State Trustees) or person to look after your financial and property affairs, including any legal matters that relate to these.
An enduring power of attorney for personal matters allows you to appoint someone who can make personal decisions about your personal and lifestyle matters. This can’t be an organisation.
6. A medical treatment decision maker is when you choose someone who can make medical decisions about your health and medical treatment because of injury or illness, if you can no longer make decisions.
7. Concession eligibility includes holders of a valid and current: Commonwealth Seniors Health Card, Centrelink Health Care Card, Centrelink Pensioner Concession Card, Veterans’ Affairs Pensioner Concession Card, Veterans’ Affairs Gold Card for all conditions.
8. Additional services charged in addition to an appointment type.
| Additional services⁸ | Rates (Inc. GST) |
|---|---|
| Additional time | $330 per hour (charged in 15 min increments) |
| Urgent appointment surcharge (less than 7 -days notice) | $165 |
| Offsite travel surcharge² | $330 per appointment (plus $1 per km from our office) |
| Other services | Rates (Inc. GST) |
|---|---|
| Document registration or storage | Free |
| Document certification | $5 plus $1 per page certified. |
| NAATI certified interpreter services | Arranged by client at their expense. |
Things to note
1. $330 is the minimum booking fee to secure an initial appointment. Refundable if cancelled at least 7 days in advance.
2. Offered in Victoria only. Offered for client’s special circumstances. Subject to availability.
3. Virtual appointments may incur additional administration costs for dispatching and registering documents. Limited availability on request.
4. Couples rates based on preparing mirror documents for both parties.
5. An enduring power for financial matters allows you to appoint an organisation (such as State Trustees) or person to look after your financial and property affairs, including any legal matters that relate to these.
An enduring power of attorney for personal matters allows you to appoint someone who can make personal decisions about your personal and lifestyle matters. This can’t be an organisation.
6. A medical treatment decision maker is when you choose someone who can make medical decisions about your health and medical treatment because of injury or illness, if you can no longer make decisions.
7. Concession eligibility includes holders of a valid and current: Commonwealth Seniors Health Card, Centrelink Health Care Card, Centrelink Pensioner Concession Card, Veterans’ Affairs Pensioner Concession Card, Veterans’ Affairs Gold Card for all conditions.
8. Additional services charged in addition to an appointment type.
Enduring Power of Attorney Administration
Capital commission
Calculated on the gross value of the asset
| Up to $500,000 | 3.3% |
| Greater than $500,000 and up to $1,000,000 | $16,500 plus 1.5% of the amount over $500,000 |
| Greater than $1,000,000 and up to $3,000,000 | $24,000 plus 0.55% of the amount over $1,000,000 |
| Greater than $3,000,000 | $35,000 plus 0.44% of the amount over $3,000,000 |
Income commission
Calculated on the gross income received by the estate
| On pension and allowances received from Centrelink and/or Department of Veterans Affairs | 3.3% |
| On all other income | 6.6% |
Depending on the nature of the client’s affairs, State Trustees also provides other services for which fees are applicable. These may include:
- Legal services
- Conveyancing, e.g. where sale or purchase of real estate is involved.
- Litigation and legal advice services, e.g. where disputes around assets and liabilities need to be resolved.
- Financial planning services, e.g. where a financial plan is prepared.
- Taxation services, e.g. preparation and lodgement of income tax returns.
- Investment services, e.g. Common Funds.
The above fees are included on this page for your reference.
Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) Administration
Commissions, Fees and Charges – Financial Administration
Administration for people with a disability and missing persons
Appointed Administration (including Limited Orders)
Subject to VCAT’s order (except that no order is needed where the administration ends at the death of the represented person), State Trustees may charge a capital commission of 2.2% on the gross value of unrealised assets where it has not otherwise received reasonable payment for its work in the course of administration. Gross value for unrealised assets is the asset’s value immediately prior to the end of the administration, without deduction of any liabilities
Capital commission
Calculated on the gross value of the asset realised in the course of administration
| Up to $500,000 | 3.3% |
| Greater than $500,000 and up to $1,000,000 | $16,500 plus 1.5% of the amount over $500,000 |
| Greater than $1,000,000 and up to $3,000,000 | $24,000 plus 0.55% of the amount over $1,000,000 |
| Greater than $3,000,000 | $35,000 plus 0.44% of the amount over $3,000,000 |
Income commission
Calculated on the gross income received by the client
| On pension and allowances received from Centrelink and/or Department of Veterans Affairs | 3.3% |
| On all other income | 6.6% |
| Under exceptional circumstances an hourly rate may be charged instead of commissions | $216 |
| Temporary Order Administration VCAT may appoint State Trustees to administer a person’s financial and legal affairs under a Temporary Order. |
$216 per hour |
| Administration for Missing Persons VCAT may appoint State Trustees to administer a missing person’s financial and legal affairs. |
$216 per hour |
Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) Examinations – Guardianship List
Examinations of Accounts by Administrator. Paid from the represented person’s funds. Minimum charge is one hour
| Where client assets are valued between $0 and $25,000: | $0 |
| Where client assets are valued between $25,001 and $69,000: | $86.70 per hour |
| Where client assets are valued between $69,001 or more: | $213.70 per hour |
Other Services
Disbursements: State Trustees is generally entitled to reimbursement from the client/estate for disbursements it incurs
in providing its services. Disbursement charges include the cost of GST where applicable.
Advances: Interest charged is no greater than the interest rate fixed under Section 2 of the Penalty
Interest Rates Act 1983, less 2.5%
Reduction or Waiver: State Trustees may reduce or waive its fees, commissions and charges at its discretion.
Hourly Fee: Except where stated otherwise, all hourly fees are taken on a pro-rata basis. For any of its administrative services, other than those provided under court or tribunal appointments, State Trustees has the discretion to negotiate an hourly fee or alternative commission, in lieu of the commission to which it is otherwise entitled.
Some of State Trustees’ fees, commissions and charges are governed by Victorian legislation, including the State Trustees (State Owned Company) Act 1994 (Act), the Trustee Companies Act 1984 (in the form preserved by s 20A of the Act), Guardianship and Administration Act 1986 and the Guardianship and Administration Act 2019.
The full scale of charges is lodged with the Treasurer of Victoria and with the Director of Consumer Affairs Victoria, and published in the Victorian Government Gazette.
Deceased Estate Administration
Capital commission
The amount of capital commission applied to the estate, is the lesser or:
(a) the aggregate of the Asset-based and Estate Service components; and
(b) 5.5% of the gross value of the estate.
| Asset-based component Applied to the gross value of assets |
Principal Place of Residence 1.65% All other Assets 3.85% |
| Estate Service component | $11,000 |
Income commission: 6.6% Charged on gross income received by the estate.
Informal deceased estate administration, where formal Court authorisation is not required and no capital commission is taken: $216 per hour
Administration fee charged for the transfer of jointly owned assets to survivor/s: $880
Assisting with a survivorship application: $216 per hour
Administration of Intestate Estates
Services provided in respect of an estate that has vested in State Trustees Limited pursuant to section 19 of the Administration and Probate Act 1958 (Vic.), including, but not limited to, holding, managing and distributing any monies.
| Senior Lawyer | $563 per hour |
| Lawyer | $455 per hour |
| Junior Lawyer | $358 per hour |
| Para-Legal/Law Clerk | $271 per hour |
| Legal Secretary/Administrative Support | $228 per hour |
Trusts
Trust administration |
|
| Capital commission Charged on the gross value of any assets of the trust |
5.5% |
| Income commission Charged on the trust’s gross income received |
6.6% |
Note: The same rates apply to agencies, court-appointed administrations, statutory administrations and other administrations
Charitable Trusts |
|
| State Trustees Australia Foundation A public charitable trust largely funded by individuals via bequests or by donation. |
Administration fee Up to 1.056% per annum |
| Private Charitable Trusts Established through a will or trust deed |
Administration fee Up to 1.056% per annum |
| Commercial trusts State Trustees acts as custodial trustee for a number of public companies and government bodies. As Custodian, State Trustees holds the funds or other assets of the trust and manages them according to the provisions of the trust deed. |
Custodian trustee / administration fee Charged in accordance with the amounts set out in the trust deed (or other governing document) as agreed with the client |
| Trust documentation: Fees for legal services, including preparation of trust documentation, are charged according to the hourly legal services rates. |
Depending on the nature of the client’s affairs, State Trustees also provides other services for which fees are applicable. These may include:
- Legal services
- Conveyancing, e.g. where sale or purchase of real estate is involved.
- Litigation and legal advice services, e.g. where disputes around assets and liabilities need to be resolved.
- Financial planning services, e.g. where a financial plan is prepared.
- Taxation services, e.g. preparation and lodgement of income tax returns.
- Investment services, e.g. Common Funds.
The above fees are included on this page for your reference.
Legal Services
| Senior Lawyer | $563 per hour |
| Lawyer | $455 per hour |
| Junior Lawyer | $358 per hour |
| Para-Legal/Law Clerk | $271 per hour |
| Legal Secretary/Administrative Support | $228 per hour |
| Outcome-dependent fee where insufficient funds (for litigious matters): | Additional fee not exceeding 25% of the total amount of the legal fees otherwise payable |
Where, in relation to a claim brought by State Trustees on behalf of and for the benefit of an estate (including the estate of a represented person):
(1) legal services are reasonably required; and
(2) the estate has insufficient funds to pay for those legal services;
State Trustees may opt to provide those legal services on the basis that:
(a) subject to (c), if the bringing of the claim does not result in a successful outcome for the estate, State Trustees will not charge for the provision of those legal services; and
(b) if the bringing of the claim results in a successful outcome for the estate, the fees that State Trustees will charge for the provision of those legal services will consist of:
- the fees otherwise payable for those legal services (determined on the basis set out in respect of ‘Legal fees’ above); and
- an additional fee not exceeding 25% of the total amount of the fees payable under (i) above.
(c) if State Trustees’ appointment by VCAT to administer a person’s legal and financial affairs ends or is discharged prior to an outcome being reached, the fees set out in (i) above will become payable, but not the additional fee in (ii), unless a new arrangement is made to continue the claim.
| Photocopying for the legal services of document preparation, legal advice and litigation: | $0.50 per page |
| Probate fees | Charged in accordance with current Supreme Court (Administration and Probate) Rules 2014 (Rules).
For work it performs in obtaining a grant of representation, or the resealing in Victoria of a grant obtained in another jurisdiction, State Trustees will not charge a fee under the Rules in respect of:
|
If this work is outsourced to an external law firm, the fees charged by the law firm apply and are paid by the client.
Conveyancing Fees
| Sale of residential real estate | $1,185* per sale |
| Purchase of residential real estate | $1,185* per purchase |
| Sale of commercial real estate | $1,333* per sale |
| Purchase of commercial real estate | $1,333* per purchase |
| Sale of retirement village property | $1,474* per sale |
| Purchase of retirement village property | $1,474* per purchase |
*Fee includes one transfer of land and one discharge of mortgage (but does not include the sundries fee below.
| Transfer of Land – Where the property concerned needs to be transferred to the beneficiaries or a third party. | $455 |
| Caveat or withdrawal of caveat over property – Caveats are registered on certificates of title to protect an interest in the property, e.g. as a life tenant in accordance with the terms of the will. A caveat prevents the registered owner from dealing with the property without first obtaining the caveator’s consent. | $184 |
| Arranging the discharge of the mortgage with the Lender – A discharge of mortgage is obtained from the lender when the loan is discharged. | $272 |
| Application by Personal Representative or Survivorship Application – When State Trustees is the executor in order for the property to be sold or subsequently transferred to a beneficiary. In the case of a property owned by joint tenants a survivorship application may be required. | $321 |
| Supporting Statutory Declaration – Statutory declarations may be required to support a property transaction, e.g. the owner’s name differs on the certificate of the title and on the Will and therefore a statutory declaration is required to clarify the client’s true and correct name. | $119 |
| Lost Title Application – Obtaining a replacement certificate of title where the original has been lost, stolen or misplaced. This fee includes the provision for three statutory declarations ordinarily required for these applications. | $1,263 |
| Notice of Rescission – State Trustees may be required to formally issue a notice of rescission where the sale or purchase of real estate is cancelled during the period of the contract of sale. | $446 |
| Sundries – State Trustees charges a once-off flat fee for all sundries – e.g. photocopying, faxing, binding of contracts, postage, etc | $33 per matter (flat fee) |
| Production of Certificate of Title or other documentation for a third party – Where State Trustees is required to provide a certificate of title and/or miscellaneous document to a third party to facilitate a property transaction. (This fee is paid by the party requesting the documents.) | $202 per document |
| Release deposit for sale of real estate | $90 |
| Preparation of pension exemptions form | $90 |
| Preparation of principal place of residence form | $90 |
| Off-site settlement fee – Where the location selected for a settlement is in the Melbourne CBD (not at State Trustees Head Office) | Mortgaged title: Nil Unmortgaged title: $126.50 |
| Any other conveyancing services not listed above | $223 per hour or as otherwise agreed |
Taxation Services
The time stated is the threshold for the given category of standard return, or standard review. Any additional time required will be charged at $363 per hour (pro-rata).
Tax Returns |
|
| Individual tax return (including for the beneficiary of a trust) | $385 per standard return (1.1hours) |
| Deceased estate or trust tax return (other than for a life interest trust) | $495 per standard return (1.3 hours) |
| Life interest trust tax return | $611 per standard return (2 hours) |
| Date of death tax return | $726 per standard return (2 hours) |
| Deceased estate or trust final tax return | $907.50 per standard return (3 hours) |
Tax reviews |
|
| Final tax review for a deceased estate or trust | $726 per standard review (2 hours) |
Automated tax review for a deceased estate, trust, power of attorney, and represented person / client with assets valued at:
|
Free |
| Tax review (other than those stated above) | $286 per review |
General tax and accounting services |
|
| IAS return | $217.80 per instalment activity statement |
| Franking credits refund | $69 per application |
| BAS return | $616 per business activity statement |
*The taxation preliminary advice service fee for these clients/estates includes a lost superannuation search and a request for the provision, followed by a review, of all available information held by the Australian Taxation Office.
Specialised taxation and accounting services |
|
| Capital gains reconstruction | $363 per hour (minimum one hour, and pro-rata thereafter at half-hour intervals) |
| Taxation preliminary advice service | |
|
$275 per advice |
|
$217.80 per advice |
| Tax advice hourly fee | $363 per hour |
| Account by administrator preparation | $726 per document |
Other taxation services |
|
| Automated imputation credit refund application For deceased estates, trusts, powers of attorney, and represented persons’ affairs administered by State Trustees. | $69 per application |
| Taxation services not otherwise stated | $363 per hour |
Financial Planning Services
Financial planning hourly rate |
|
| Financial planner | $362 per hour |
| Paraplanner, planning assistant | $253 per hour |
| For the purposes of the review fee calculations below, ‘investment assets’ includes any superannuation account(s) held by the client Financial planning automated review | |
| Automated standard plan annual review (for clients with assets valued between $30,000 and $100,000 inclusive) | $111 per review |
| Review for clients with assets valued between $30,000 and $150,000 inclusive: | |
| 1. where all investment assets are solely invested in one or more of State Trustees’ common funds: | $268 per review |
| 2. where one or more investment assets are invested outside State Trustees’ common funds | $584 per review |
| Financial planning reviews – In State Trustees Common Funds Review for clients where all investment assets (For the purposes of the review fee calculations below, ‘investment assets’ includes any superannuation account(s) held by the client) are solely invested in one or more of State Trustees’ common funds, and the total value of the investment assets is: |
|
| 1. greater than $100,000 and up to $250,000: | 0.5777% of the value of the investment assets, per review |
| 2. greater than $250,000 and up to $2,000,000: | $1,444, plus 0.0315% of the amount by which the value of the investment assets exceeds $250,000, per review |
| 3. greater than $2,000,000: | $1,995 per review |
| Review for clients where one or more investment assets are invested other than in State Trustees’ common funds, and the total value of the investment assets is: | |
| 1. greater than $100,000 and up to $250,000: | 0.666% of the value of the investment assets, per review |
| 2. greater than $250,000 and up to $2,000,000: | $1,665, plus 0.126% of the amount by which the value of the investment assets exceeds $250,000, per review |
| 3. greater than $2,000,000: | $3,870 per review |
Genealogy Services
| Genealogy Researcher | $265 per hour |
Common Funds
State Trustees may invest money in its hands in one or more of State Trustees’ Common Funds when acting as executor, trustee, attorney, administrator etc.
| Management Fee on funds held in a Common Fund | 0.88% per annum |
| Other direct fund expenses, e.g. audit and legal fees, are paid from the fund. |
Other Services
Advances: Interest charged is no greater than the interest rate fixed under Section 2 of the Penalty Interest Rates Act 1983, less 2.5%
Hourly fee: For any of its administrative services, other than those provided under court or tribunal appointments, State Trustees has the discretion to negotiate an hourly fee or alternative commission, in lieu of the commission to which it is otherwise entitled.
The rates and types of commissions, fees and charges are subject to change from time to time. Some of State Trustees’ fees, commissions and charges are governed by Victorian legislation, including the State Trustees (State Owned Company) Act 1994 (Act) and the Trustee Companies Act 1984 (in the form preserved by s 20A of the Act). For information about the commissions, fees and charges that may apply in relation to the administration under an order of VCAT of the financial and legal affairs of represented persons, please refer to State Trustees’ Commissions, Fees and Charges (VCAT appointments).
The full scale of charges is lodged with the Treasurer of Victoria and with the Director of Consumer Affairs Victoria, and published in the Victorian Government Gazette.
Fees and charges are subject to change from time to time and without notice.