How much a trustee gets paid in a bankruptcy case depends on which chapter was filed and whether there is any property to sell. A Chapter 7 trustee handling an asset case earns a tiered commission that starts at 25% of the first $5,000 distributed and drops to 3% on anything above $1 million. In a no-asset Chapter 7, the trustee receives a flat $60, sometimes topped up by another $60 when funding is available. A Chapter 13 standing trustee keeps a percentage of every plan payment, usually somewhere between 3% and 10% depending on the district.
Chapter 7 Trustees When There Are Assets to Sell
If the trustee sells non-exempt property and distributes the proceeds, federal law caps the commission at these rates:
- 25% on the first $5,000
- 10% on amounts from $5,001 to $50,000
- 5% on amounts from $50,001 to $1,000,000
- 3% on anything above $1,000,000
These are ceilings, not guarantees. The bankruptcy court can award less if it decides a lower figure reflects the work actually done.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 U.S. Code 326 – Limitation on Compensation of Trustee
Say a trustee distributes $60,000 to creditors. The maximum fee is 25% of the first $5,000 ($1,250), plus 10% of the next $45,000 ($4,500), plus 5% of the remaining $10,000 ($500). That comes to $6,250, or about 10.4% of the total. The percentage shrinks as the dollar amount grows, so in a case involving millions the effective rate drops considerably.
Chapter 7 Trustees When There Are No Assets
Most Chapter 7 filings are no-asset cases. Everything the debtor owns is exempt, so there is nothing to sell. The trustee still reviews the petition, examines property disclosures, and runs the creditors’ meeting. For that work, federal law provides a flat $60, drawn from the court filing fee.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 U.S. Code 330 – Compensation of Officers
That $60 figure has not changed since 1994. The Bankruptcy Administration Improvement Act, enacted in January 2021, authorized an additional payment of up to $60 per eligible no-asset case, funded by excess collections in the U.S. Trustee System Fund. The program covers cases filed or converted to Chapter 7 through the end of fiscal year 2026, but the money is not guaranteed year to year. Trustees received the full extra $60 per case for FY 2021 and FY 2024, and received nothing for FY 2022 and FY 2023 because excess funds were not available.3United States Courts. Bankruptcy Administration Improvement Act Chapter 7 Trustee Payments
So a Chapter 7 trustee handling a no-asset case earns somewhere between $60 and $120 for the entire matter. If the debtor qualifies for a fee waiver that eliminates the filing fee, the trustee’s base $60 may not be funded at all.
Chapter 13 Trustee Fees
Chapter 13 is structured differently. Nobody is liquidating property. A standing trustee manages a three-to-five-year repayment plan, collecting the monthly payment and passing it on to creditors. The trustee’s fee is a percentage of those payments, taken off the top.
Two federal rules set the ceiling. The Bankruptcy Code caps the trustee’s personal compensation at 5% of all payments made under the plan.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 U.S. Code 326 – Limitation on Compensation of Trustee A separate statute lets the trustee’s office collect a percentage fee of up to 10% to cover operational costs like staff salaries and office expenses.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 U.S. Code 586 – Duties; Supervision by Attorney General The actual rate varies by district. Some districts charge as little as 3%; others sit near the statutory ceiling.
The difference matters for budgeting. If a district charges 7% and the monthly plan payment is $1,000, the trustee’s office keeps $70 each month and creditors receive $930. Over a five-year plan, that is $4,200 in trustee fees on $60,000 in total payments. The bankruptcy attorney or the trustee’s office can confirm the exact percentage in a given district before the plan is confirmed.
Chapter 11 and Subchapter V Trustees
In a standard Chapter 11 reorganization, trustee pay follows the same tiered structure as Chapter 7: 25% on the first $5,000, sliding to 3% above $1 million, based on total disbursements.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 U.S. Code 326 – Limitation on Compensation of Trustee Most Chapter 11 cases involve a debtor-in-possession instead of a separate trustee, but when a trustee is appointed, these caps govern.
Subchapter V, designed for small businesses, works differently. Congress excluded Subchapter V trustees from both the percentage-based commission and the 5% plan-payment cap that applies in Chapter 13. Subchapter V trustees bill hourly, and the court decides whether the rate and hours are reasonable given the complexity of the case and customary rates in the area.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 U.S. Code 330 – Compensation of Officers Those fees are paid as administrative expenses of the estate, usually through the debtor’s plan of reorganization.
Where the Money Comes From
The trustee’s pay is not a bill sent to the debtor. In a Chapter 7 asset case, the commission comes out of the proceeds from selling non-exempt property, before creditors are paid.5United States Courts. Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Basics In a no-asset Chapter 7, the flat fee comes from the filing fee already paid when the case was opened. In Chapter 13, the trustee’s percentage is skimmed from each monthly plan payment before the remainder reaches creditors. In every version, the trustee’s compensation reduces what creditors ultimately collect rather than adding a separate charge to the debtor.
Court Approval Sets the Ceiling
No trustee automatically pockets the maximum. Every fee runs through court review. The trustee files an application describing the work performed and how the fee was calculated, and the court decides whether the amount is reasonable given the time involved, the complexity of the case, and what similarly skilled professionals charge outside bankruptcy.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 U.S. Code 330 – Compensation of Officers The U.S. Trustee, creditors, and other interested parties can object, and the judge can approve the full request, cut it, or deny it. Courts will not pay for duplicated work or services that did not benefit the estate.