Guides › Switching Financial Advisors
Updated September 28, 2026. Quick answer: you open an account at the receiving firm and sign the transfer form there; the new firm pulls the account through ACATS. GenTrust, LLC’s Form ADV Part 2A states “An Agreement between GenTrust and a client will remain in effect until terminated by either party under its terms.” GenTrust, LLC names 7 possible custodians in its brochure, with no single default: Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC, J.P. Morgan, Pershing Advisor Solutions, Northern Trust, Interactive Brokers, Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., and Citibank N.A.. If you are custodied at Schwab, budget $50.00 per account, per Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.’s own current fee schedule. If you are custodied at Pershing, budget $150.00 per account, per Pershing Advisor Solutions’ own current fee schedule. If you are custodied at J.P. Morgan, budget $95.00 per account, per J.P. Morgan Wealth Management’s own current fee schedule. If you are custodied at Northern Trust, budget $75.00 per account, per Northern Trust Securities, Inc.’s own current fee schedule. If you are custodied at Interactive Brokers, budget $0.00 per account, per Interactive Brokers LLC’s own current fee schedule. Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC’s own published fee schedule has no comparable line item for a full transfer-out, an honest gap rather than a confirmed $0. No primary-source public fee schedule was located for Citibank N.A., an honest gap rather than a confirmed figure.
Leaving other advisory firms: How to Leave Cambridge Investment Research and How to Leave Capital Analysts.
More on this firm: GenTrust Review.
The published numbers
From GenTrust, LLC’s own Form ADV Part 2A Brochure (March 2026), Item 5, Fees and Compensation, “Fees for Management during Partial Periods of Service” (pages 12-13): “An Agreement between GenTrust and a client will remain in effect until terminated by either party under its terms. GenTrust’s fees are prorated until the date GenTrust receives notice of termination, and any remaining balance is charged or refunded to the client.” The same brochure names its custodians (Item 12, Brokerage Practices, “Benefits and Support Provided by Financial Institutions” (page 26)): “GenTrust renders investment management services to clients that maintain assets custodied at various Financial Institutions. Specifically, these Financial Institutions include Fidelity, JP Morgan, Pershing Advisor Solutions (“Pershing”), Northern Trust, (“Northern Trust”), Interactive Brokers (“IB”), and Charles Schwab & Co., Inc (“Schwab”), Citibank N.A. (“Citi”).” From Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.’s own Pricing Guide for Clients of Independent Investment Advisors: “Full transfer (out) of assets: $50 per account.” From Pershing Advisor Solutions’ own Schedule of Maximum Charges: “Account Termination $150.00 per account.” From J.P. Morgan Wealth Management’s own Full Service Fee and Commission Schedule: “Non-Retirement Account Transfer and Termination $95, Applies when all assets are transferred out of the account” From Northern Trust Securities, Inc.’s own Schedule of Fees, Traditional Brokerage Services: “Outgoing Account Transfer $75” From Interactive Brokers LLC’s own Other Fees: “While IBKR does not charge for incoming or outgoing ACATS transfers, customers should consult with their sending or receiving firm to determine if there will be applicable fees for the transfers.” Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC’s own Brokerage Commission and Fee Schedule contains no comparable line item for a full account transfer out; left as an honest gap rather than assumed to be $0. No primary-source public fee schedule was located for Citibank N.A.; left as an honest gap rather than assumed to be $0.
| What | Figure |
|---|---|
| GenTrust’s own exit charge | $0.00 extra: pro-rated refund of any prepaid fee (Form ADV) |
| Full transfer-out at Schwab | $50.00 per account (Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.’s own Pricing Guide for Clients of Independent Investment Advisors) |
| Full transfer-out at Pershing | $150.00 per account (“Account Termination”) (Pershing Advisor Solutions’ own Schedule of Maximum Charges) |
| Full transfer-out at J.P. Morgan | $95.00 (“Non-Retirement Account Transfer and Termination”) (J.P. Morgan Wealth Management’s own Full Service Fee and Commission Schedule) |
| Full transfer-out at Northern Trust | $75.00 (“Outgoing Account Transfer”) (Northern Trust Securities, Inc.’s own Schedule of Fees, Traditional Brokerage Services) |
| ACATS transfer at Interactive Brokers | $0.00 (“ACATS Deposit or Withdrawal: None”) (Interactive Brokers LLC’s own Other Fees) |
| Full transfer-out at Fidelity | Honest gap: no comparable line item found |
| Full transfer-out at Citibank N.A. | Honest gap: no comparable line item found |
| ACATS validation and completion window | 1 day to validate, 3 days to complete under FINRA Rule 11870 (measured in business days) |
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Source: WiserAdvisor’s service descriptionThe sequence
1. Pull a current statement for every account, showing the exact registration, account numbers and complete holdings list. 2. Check the holdings for anything that will not move. Ask the receiving firm directly: “Can you hold every position on this statement?” Anything they cannot hold has to be sold, and in a taxable account that is a realised gain in the year you switch: the categories that commonly do not transfer. 3. Open the receiving account and sign the transfer form there. Under FINRA Rule 11870 the delivering firm then has one business day to validate and three business days after validation to complete. 4. Send a dated termination letter for the record: the generator writes it, and confirm in writing that billing has stopped.
Two things to get right
Cost basis. Under IRC §6045A the delivering broker must furnish a transfer statement carrying basis for covered securities within 15 days of the transfer. Keep your final statements anyway, and check the first statement at the new firm for positions showing a missing or zero basis. Retirement accounts move as a direct transfer, trustee to trustee, not as a distribution to you. Why that distinction matters. Whether a transfer fee is worth paying at all is a question of what you are moving to: our benchmark of published adviser fee schedules puts the weighted median annual cost near $2,000 to $2,500 on $250,000: the benchmark. The general mechanics: switching financial advisors.
Want to know what GenTrust charges before you decide whether to leave? See the dollar breakdown from GenTrust’s own fee disclosure.
Sources
- GenTrust, LLC, “Form ADV Part 2A Brochure” (March 2026): https://files.adviserinfo.sec.gov/IAPD/Content/Common/crd_iapd_Brochure.aspx?BRCHR_VRSN_ID=1027520
- SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure, GenTrust, LLC firm summary (CRD 158369): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/158369
- Charles Schwab, “Pricing Guide for Clients of Independent Investment Advisors” (July 2026): https://disclosures.schwab.com/SchwabDashboard/61256/REG23060SI.pdf
- Pershing Advisor Solutions LLC, “Schedule of Maximum Charges”: https://www.pershing.com/content/dam/pershing/documents/pdfs/disclosures/pas-schedule-of-maximum-charges.pdf
- J.P. Morgan Wealth Management, “Full Service Fee and Commission Schedule”: https://www.chase.com/content/dam/chase-ux/documents/personal/investments/fullservice_fee_commish_schedule.pdf
- Northern Trust Securities, Inc., “Schedule of Fees, Traditional Brokerage Services”: https://www.northerntrust.com/content/dam/northerntrust/pws/nt/documents/wealth-management/schedule-of-fees-traditional-brokerage-services.pdf
- Interactive Brokers LLC, “Other Fees”: https://www.interactivebrokers.com/en/pricing/other-fees.php
- Fidelity, “Brokerage Commission and Fee Schedule”: https://www.fidelity.com/bin-public/060_www_fidelity_com/documents/Brokerage_Commissions_Fee_Schedule.pdf
Methodology. This page was built September 28, 2026, drawing on GenTrust’s own Form ADV/wrap-fee brochure/fee schedule plus each named custodian’s own published fee schedule, with sources linked inline; any figure we could not independently confirm this session on a firm-owned or custodian-owned document is named as an honest gap above rather than presented as verified. Nothing here is personalized financial, tax, legal, or investment advice. See our Editorial Policy, Corrections, Affiliate Disclosure, and Disclaimer.
Before you decide to leave GenTrust, check whether it owes you a fiduciary duty in the first place.
What does it take to open an account? See GenTrust’s minimum investment, straight from its own Form ADV Part 2A brochure.
Leaving a different firm? See the exit guides for all 189 firms, with the four steps every exit shares.