Annual Trust Accounting Requirements in New Hampshire

At a glance

Requirements one by one

The recipient list changes with trust status and the trigger

RSA § 564-B:8-813(a) requires a report comparable to the irrevocable-trust report when a revocable trust remains revocable but its settlor no longer has the capacity described in RSA § 564-B:6-601. That report goes to distributees or permissible distributees of income or principal.

For an irrevocable trust, subsection (d) sends annual and termination reports automatically to distributees and permissible distributees unless the trust terms provide otherwise. Other qualified beneficiaries and people with equivalent rights receive the report by requesting it. The list also includes an incapacitated settlor or the settlor's guardian or power-of-attorney agent. RSA § 564-B:1-103(12) defines a qualified beneficiary through current, next-line, and trust-termination distribution interests.

Annual, termination, and vacancy reports are separate events

The irrevocable-trust report is due at least annually and at trust termination. A vacancy creates a different duty: if no cotrustee remains, the former trustee must send a report to qualified beneficiaries age 21 or older and people with equivalent rights. A personal representative or guardian may report for a deceased or incapacitated trustee.

The statute also gives qualified beneficiaries age 21 or older, and people with equivalent rights, a broader reasonable-information right. Unless unreasonable, the trustee must respond promptly to their administration-related information requests and furnish the trust instrument when requested.

The statutory contents are concise

RSA § 564-B:8-813(d) requires trust property, liabilities, receipts and disbursements, the source and amount of trustee compensation, a list of trust assets, and—when feasible—the assets' respective market values. It does not prescribe carrying values, principal-and-income allocations, realized-gain schedules, agent compensation, a reconciliation, or a final distribution plan.

Delivery focuses on likely receipt

RSA § 564-B:1-109 permits first-class mail, personal delivery, commercial delivery, courier service, delivery to the last-known residence or business, and a properly directed electronic message. The selected method must be reasonably suitable and likely to result in receipt. A document need not be sent to someone whose identity or location is unknown and not reasonably ascertainable, and notice to a minor or incapacitated person must go through someone who can represent and bind that person.

Trust terms, waiver, and confidentiality are different controls

RSA § 564-B:1-105 generally lets trust terms prevail over the Trust Code, and the mandatory-rule list does not preserve § 564-B:8-813. Subsection (d) separately says the automatic reports to distributees and permissible distributees yield to contrary trust terms. Statutory limitation periods remain mandatory.

A beneficiary may waive reports or other information and later withdraw the waiver for future reports and information. If the trustee is bound by written asset-confidentiality restrictions, subsection (j) permits a written agreement to the same restrictions before an eligible beneficiary receives information about the asset.

A report shortens the claim period only when it does more

RSA § 564-B:10-1005 starts a one-year breach-of-trust period only when the report adequately discloses the potential claim and informs the recipient of the time allowed to commence a proceeding. Adequate disclosure means enough information that the beneficiary or representative knows of the claim or should have inquired into it.

If the one-year route does not apply, the three-year period runs from the first of trustee removal, resignation, or death; termination of the beneficiary's interest; trust termination; or a report that adequately discloses the claim. Tolling requires a written agreement of trustees and qualified beneficiaries or a court order.

RSA § 564-B:1-111 permits all interested persons to approve a report or accounting and resolve trustee liability through a qualifying nonjudicial settlement agreement; court approval may be requested. RSA § 564-B:10-1009 separately protects a trustee after informed consent, release, or ratification, but not when trustee misconduct induced it or the beneficiary lacked knowledge of rights or material facts.

Courts have broad remedies, not an automatic report penalty

Under RSA § 564-B:10-1001, breach remedies include compelled performance or an account, redress, a special fiduciary, suspension or removal, reduced or denied compensation, tracing, and other appropriate relief. RSA § 564-B:10-1004 lets a court award costs and reasonable attorney fees as justice and equity require. The reporting section does not create a separate fixed fine or automatic discharge.

What trips people up

• The October 1, 2004 cutoff reaches the report duty itself. RSA § 564-B:8-813(f) limits subsections (b), (c), and (d) to specified post-cutoff trusteeships and trusts, despite RSA § 564-B:11-1104's broader general application rule.
• Not every qualified beneficiary automatically gets each annual report. The automatic class is distributees and permissible distributees; other qualified beneficiaries must request the report.
• A vacancy is not merely another annual date. It shifts responsibility to the former trustee when no cotrustee remains and uses an age-21 recipient rule.
• Market values carry a feasibility qualifier. The statute does not require an impossible valuation merely because the annual report is due.

Common questions

Must a New Hampshire trustee file every annual report with a court?

No routine filing appears in the beneficiary-report provision. The report is sent to the statutory recipients. A court may order an account, and interested persons may ask a court to approve a qualifying settlement agreement.

Does the report need a signature, notarization, or proof of service?

The cited report and delivery provisions prescribe none of those formalities. The delivery method must instead be reasonably suitable and likely to result in receipt.

Does an annual report automatically release the trustee?

No. The one-year limitation requires adequate claim disclosure and a time-to-sue notice. Settlement, consent, release, and ratification have separate requirements.

Statutes and sources

• RSA §§ 564-B:1-103, :1-105, :1-109, :1-111, :6-601, :8-813, and :11-1104 — recipient definition, trust-term control, delivery, settlement, capacity, report duties and contents, waiver, confidentiality, cutoff, and general application. New Hampshire General Court (accessed 2026-08-10).
• RSA §§ 564-B:10-1001, :10-1004, :10-1005, and :10-1009 — remedies, fees, report-linked limitations, and consent/release rules. New Hampshire General Court (accessed 2026-08-10).