Skip to main content
New Hampshire Revocable Living Trust
Support GuideNew Hampshire21 min read

New Hampshire Revocable Living Trust

A New Hampshire revocable living trust under RSA 564-B: what the Trust Code requires, how to fund it, and the pour-over will rule that makes a gift lapse.

By Settled Editorial

A New Hampshire revocable living trust is a document you sign while you are alive that holds title to your property, with you in charge as trustee. Property you retitle into it passes to the beneficiaries you named without a filing in the Circuit Court, Probate Division. RSA 564-B, the New Hampshire Trust Code, sets the rules.

This guide covers creation, funding, and the pour-over will you sign alongside the trust, all read against the live statute. Three New Hampshire answers differ from what a form book written for another state will tell you, and each one is set out below with the section that says so.

What RSA 564-B Is, And What It Calls You

New Hampshire adopted the Uniform Trust Code and placed it at RSA 564-B. RSA 564-B:1-101 names the chapter the New Hampshire Trust Code, with the source line "2004, 130:1, eff. Oct. 1, 2004. 2015, 272:67, eff. Oct. 1, 2015."

Three roles run every trust, and you fill all three while you are alive.

Settlor. The person who creates the trust and puts property into it. That is you.

Trustee. The person who holds and manages the trust property. Most people name themselves first, so nothing about daily life changes.

Beneficiary. The person the trust benefits. You are the current beneficiary during your life, and the people you name take what is left afterward.

The word revocable does real work here. RSA 564-B:6-602(a) says that unless the terms of a trust expressly provide that the trust is irrevocable, the settlor may revoke or amend it. RSA 564-B:6-603(a) goes further: while the trust is revocable and you have capacity to revoke it, the rights of the beneficiaries are subject to your control and the trustee's duties are owed exclusively to you. Your children get no accounting and no say while you are alive.

Watch one detail if you ever hand the power to an agent. RSA 564-B:6-602(e) lets an agent under a power of attorney revoke, amend, or distribute from your trust only where both the trust terms and the power of attorney expressly authorize it, and only once the trustee receives notice.

Not sure which documents you need?

The free estate planning assessment builds a short document list for your situation.

Take the free estate planning assessment

The Five Things RSA 564-B:4-402 Requires

RSA 564-B:4-402(a) says a trust is created only if:

  1. The settlor has capacity to create a trust.
  2. The settlor indicates an intention to create the trust.
  3. The trust has a definite beneficiary, or is a charitable trust, a trust for the care of an animal under RSA 564-B:4-408, or a noncharitable purpose trust under RSA 564-B:4-409.
  4. The trustee has duties to perform.
  5. The same person is not the sole trustee, the sole current beneficiary and the sole remainder beneficiary.

Read that fifth item slowly, because New Hampshire wrote it as a three-part test. Many states bar the same person from being sole trustee and sole beneficiary, full stop. New Hampshire only trips you up when you hold all three of those positions at once, so serving as your own trustee and your own current beneficiary is fine as long as somebody else takes the remainder. Naming your children as remainder beneficiaries clears it.

Capacity is measured against a will. RSA 564-B:6-601 says the capacity to create, amend, revoke, or add property to a revocable trust is the same as the capacity to make a will, which points you at RSA 551:1 and the same standard behind New Hampshire will requirements.

RSA 564-B:4-401 lists four ways to create a trust. A living trust uses one of the first two: transferring property to a trustee, or declaring that you hold identifiable property as trustee.

Put it in writing. RSA 564-B:4-407 allows an oral trust, but its creation and terms can be established only by clear and convincing evidence, which is a fight nobody wants their family to have.

How The Trust Stays Out Of The Probate Division

Probate handles property a person owned at death. Once the deed and the account titles say the trust owns it, you do not own it, so there is nothing for the Circuit Court, Probate Division to administer. Assets still in your own name run through New Hampshire probate as usual.

The New Hampshire Trust Code makes the separation explicit. RSA 564-B:2-203(a) gives the probate division of the circuit court exclusive jurisdiction over the interpretation, modification, termination and administration of RSA 564-B trusts, so the court is available when someone invokes it. RSA 564-B:2-201(b) then says a trust is not subject to continuing judicial supervision unless the court orders it.

Compare the trust a will creates. RSA 564-B:2-201(b) singles out a trust created by a will subject to RSA 564:19 as the one that does stay under the court's eye, and RSA 564:19, I requires that trustee to file an annual account of administration in the probate court, with a judge able to excuse the filing for no more than three years at a time. RSA 564:19, II lets a will waive annual accounts, or the interested persons agree to waive them. So a trust written into a will lands in a court file by default and a living trust does not, which is one honest reason to sign one.

Trusts sit alongside the other tools in how to avoid probate in New Hampshire, and for one house a recorded transfer on death deed under RSA 563-D can do a narrower version of the same job for far less money.

Funding: The Step That Decides Everything

A trust holds only what you actually move into it. Everything you leave in your own name goes through probate no matter how good the trust document is.

Real estate

Sign a deed from yourself as an individual to yourself as trustee. RSA 477:3 is short and it is the whole formality: every deed shall be signed by the grantor, acknowledged before a justice, notary public or commissioner, and shall show the mailing address of the grantee. New Hampshire asks for no witnesses on a deed. Then record it, because RSA 478:4 puts the register of deeds in charge of receiving, filing and recording deeds for the legal charges.

Budget the recording cost. RSA 478:17-g, I sets a statewide fee of $10 for the first recorded page plus $4 for each additional page, and RSA 478:17-g, II(a) adds a $25 surcharge on each deed for the land and community heritage investment program. The grantee pays that $25 on a deed.

Ask about the real estate transfer tax before you record. RSA 78-B:1, I(a) presumes every transfer of real estate taxable unless RSA 78-B:2 excepts it by name, and the rate is $.75 per $100 of price or consideration with a minimum tax of $20 where the consideration is $4,000 or less. The exception list at RSA 78-B:2 runs from paragraph I to paragraph XXV and never mentions a deed into your own revocable trust. It does exempt noncontractual transfers at paragraph IX, and it expressly exempts a transfer on death deed under RSA 563-D where no consideration is exchanged at paragraph XXV. Put the question to the Department of Revenue Administration or to the attorney drafting the deed and get the answer in writing before recording.

Moving the house into a trust does not cost you the homestead right. RSA 480:1, V lets the beneficiary of a qualifying trust claim the exemption where the trust owns the property and the rest of the chapter is satisfied. That exemption is $400,000 per person, with claims totaling no more than $550,000, under the amendment with the source line "2025, 282:1, eff. Jan. 1, 2026." Anything you read that still says $120,000 is out of date.

Bank and brokerage accounts

Ask each bank or brokerage to retitle the account in the name of the trust. You rarely have to hand over the trust document. RSA 564-B:10-1013 lets a trustee give a certification of trust instead, showing that the trust exists, the date it was signed, who the settlor and acting trustee are, the trustee's powers, whether the trust is revocable, the taxpayer identification number, and how title is taken. It need not contain the dispositive terms. Anyone who demands the full instrument anyway is liable for damages under RSA 564-B:10-1013(h) if a court finds the demand was not made in good faith.

New Hampshire adds a recording tool most states do not. RSA 564-B:10-1013(k) lets a trustee record a short signed certificate in the registry of deeds for the county where the land lies, executed with deed formalities, and that certificate is conclusive evidence to third parties that the trustee has full power to convey the real estate. A buyer or a title company reading the registry never has to see your trust.

What to leave alone

Do not retitle an IRA, a 401(k), a pension, or a life insurance policy into the trust. Those pass by the beneficiary form on file, and moving the account itself can trigger tax. Review the forms instead, and name a contingent beneficiary. Ask an advisor before you make the trust the beneficiary of a retirement account, because the payout rules turn on who inherits.

Vehicles usually need no trust in New Hampshire. RSA 261:17 deems a family-purpose vehicle owned by a married resident to have been held jointly with right of survivorship, so it passes to the surviving spouse without any beneficiary form.

For a closely held business, read the operating agreement or shareholder agreement before assigning the interest, since many require consent. Jewelry, art and collections move with a written assignment of personal property to the trust. Online accounts follow RSA 554-A, which is covered in the New Hampshire digital assets guide.

The Pour-Over Will, And The RSA 563-A Trap

Sign a will alongside the trust. A pour-over will sends anything still in your own name at death to the trustee, so it follows the same instructions instead of a separate set.

New Hampshire authorizes this at RSA 563-A:1, the Uniform Testamentary Additions to Trusts Act, source line "1996, 200:1, eff. Jan. 1, 1997." Paragraph I(b) lets a will devise property to the trustee of a trust identified in the will whose terms sit in a written instrument other than the will, and says the gift is not invalid because the trust is amendable or revocable, or because the trust was amended after the will was signed or after the testator died. Paragraph II adds that the property does not become a testamentary trust; it joins the trust it was sent to, amendments included.

Here is the part that catches people. RSA 563-A:1, III says that unless the will provides otherwise, a revocation or termination of the trust before the testator's death causes the devise or bequest to lapse. Revoke a New Hampshire trust and leave the old pour-over will in the drawer, and the gift to the trustee fails. That property drops into the residue of the will, or if the will cannot absorb it, into New Hampshire intestate succession. Rewrite both documents on the same day or not at all.

A pour-over will is still a will, so it has to clear RSA 551:2: in writing, signed by you or by someone at your express direction in your presence, and signed by two or more credible witnesses who attest to your signature at your request and in your presence. No seal is required. RSA 551:2, III(a) allows remote witnessing by simultaneous sight and sound where a New Hampshire attorney who drafted the will, a supervised New Hampshire attorney, or a supervised paralegal serves as the notarial officer, and III(b) says nothing in that paragraph allows an electronic will.

Keep the pour-over pile small. Anything it catches still goes through probate.

Living Trust Versus Will In New Hampshire

QuestionRevocable living trustWill alone
Avoids probateYes, for funded assetsNo
Public court recordNoYes, once filed
Works if you lose capacityYes, successor trustee steps inNo
Court oversightNone unless the court orders it, RSA 564-B:2-201(b)Circuit Court, Probate Division
Annual account filed with the courtNoYes for a trust created by the will, RSA 564:19, I
Cost to signHigherLower
UpkeepRetitle every new assetNone until death
Effective whenSigned and fundedAt death, after probate

What A Revocable Trust Does Not Do

It does not stop your creditors. RSA 564-B:5-505(a) subjects the property of a revocable trust to claims of the settlor's creditors during the settlor's life, spendthrift provision or not. Subsection (b) reaches that property after death for creditor claims, costs of administering the estate, and funeral expenses, to the extent the probate estate cannot cover them. Life insurance proceeds under RSA 408:6 are outside that reach, and so is any claim already barred under RSA 564-B:5-508. Estate-side deadlines are in the New Hampshire creditor claims guide.

It is not asset protection. New Hampshire's Qualified Dispositions in Trust Act, RSA 564-D, was repealed in its entirety by 2017, 257:59, III, effective September 16, 2017. Those self-settled trust rules now sit inside the Trust Code at RSA 564-B:5-505A, with RSA 564-B:5-505B carrying transfers made under the old chapter forward. Either way that machinery runs on irrevocable trusts with spendthrift provisions. A trust you can revoke protects nothing from your own creditors.

It saves no New Hampshire death tax, because there is none. RSA 86, the legacy and succession tax, was repealed for deaths on or after January 1, 2003. RSA 87 is still printed in the statutes, but RSA 87:9 voided the chapter once the federal credit for state death taxes lapsed, so it has produced no tax for deaths on or after January 1, 2005. Federal estate tax is a separate question, and a revocable trust does not move assets out of your federal taxable estate.

What Your Successor Trustee Does

The trust becomes irrevocable when you die, and the successor trustee takes over. RSA 564-B:7-704(c) fills a vacancy in this order: the person named in the trust, then a person all the qualified beneficiaries agree on, then a person the court appoints. Naming a backup keeps that decision out of court.

Two 60-day clocks start. Under RSA 564-B:8-813(c), a trustee of an irrevocable trust must notify the qualified beneficiaries aged 21 or older of the acceptance and of the trustee's name, address and telephone number within 60 days of the later of accepting the trusteeship or the death of the last surviving settlor, and must notify them of the trust's existence and their right to request the instrument and a report within 60 days of learning that a formerly revocable trust has become irrevocable and funded. RSA 564-B:8-813(d) then requires a report at least annually and at termination, listing trust property, liabilities, receipts, disbursements and the source and amount of the trustee's compensation.

A trustee is entitled to compensation that is reasonable under the circumstances where the trust does not set a figure, under RSA 564-B:7-708. New Hampshire publishes no percentage schedule.

There is a contest window. RSA 564-B:4-406(b) sets the deadline at the earlier of two dates: three years after the settlor's death for a trust that was revocable at death, or 180 days after the trustee sends that person a copy of the instrument and a notice of the deadline. Sending that notice is optional, and it is how a trustee cuts three years down to 180 days. The full sequence is in the New Hampshire trust administration guide.

When A Trust Earns Its Cost Here, And When It Does Not

A trust is worth the money when you own real estate in more than one state, when you want privacy, when you want somebody able to manage money the day you cannot, or when a beneficiary should receive money over time rather than in one check.

The argument gets thin in three situations.

One house and nothing else. A transfer on death deed under RSA 563-D moves a New Hampshire house for the price of recording. Read the 60-day recording rule first, since RSA 563-D:9 makes the deed void unless it reaches the registry within 60 days of signing and before the owner dies.

Accounts that already name people. Retirement plans, life insurance and payable-on-death accounts skip probate on their own.

A trust you will not fund. An unfunded trust hands your family a false sense of safety and a probate anyway. If you will not sign the deed and call the bank, do not sign the trust.

New Hampshire has no small estate affidavit, so "our estate is small enough" is not a plan here. What the state offers instead is waiver of administration under RSA 553:32 and summary administration under RSA 553:33, both keyed to who inherits and who assents rather than to a dollar figure. The New Hampshire small estate guide walks through both. For the rest of the document set, see New Hampshire estate planning basics, and pair the trust with a durable power of attorney and a health care directive so nothing outside the trust strands your family in a guardianship petition.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does New Hampshire make you register a living trust?

No. The New Hampshire Trust Code has no section that requires you to register or record a revocable trust while you are alive, and RSA 564-B:2-201(b) says a trust is not subject to continuing judicial supervision unless the court orders it. A trust created by a will is the opposite: RSA 564:19 makes that trustee file an annual account of administration in the probate court.

Can I be the only trustee and the only beneficiary of my New Hampshire trust?

Not all three at once. RSA 564-B:4-402(a)(5) says a trust is created only if the same person is not the sole trustee, the sole current beneficiary and the sole remainder beneficiary. Naming a remainder beneficiary, which nearly every living trust does, clears that test while you still serve as your own trustee and your own current beneficiary.

Does a New Hampshire living trust cut an estate tax?

There is no New Hampshire estate or inheritance tax to cut. RSA 86, the legacy and succession tax, was repealed for deaths on or after January 1, 2003, and RSA 87 self-voided under RSA 87:9 when the federal credit for state death taxes lapsed, so it has produced no tax for deaths on or after January 1, 2005. A revocable trust also leaves the assets in your federal taxable estate.

What happens to my pour-over will if I revoke the trust?

The gift lapses. RSA 563-A:1, III says that unless the will provides otherwise, a revocation or termination of the trust before the testator's death causes the devise or bequest to lapse. Tearing up a New Hampshire trust without rewriting the will can push that property into the residue of the will or into intestate succession.

Can creditors reach a New Hampshire revocable trust?

Yes. RSA 564-B:5-505(a) opens the property of a revocable trust to the settlor's creditors during the settlor's life, spendthrift clause or not. After death, RSA 564-B:5-505(b) reaches that property for creditor claims, costs of administration and funeral expenses when the probate estate cannot cover them. RSA 564-B:5-508 lets a trustee close that exposure with a one-year notice.

Related Guides

This page is general information about New Hampshire estates. Check anything that affects your own situation with the Circuit Court, Probate Division for your county, the registry of deeds where your land sits, or a licensed New Hampshire attorney.

Sources:

It is not legal advice.

Prefer to talk it through? Connect with an estate-planning attorney

Settled Estate is not a law firm and does not give legal advice.

Information current as of August 3, 2026

Settled Estate is not a law firm, and this content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Probate laws and procedures in New Hampshire can change. Consult with a qualified attorney for advice specific to your situation. Full disclaimer.

All New Hampshire guides← Back to all articles