> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.thaler.finance/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Fees

> The three fees Thaler charges, when they are collected, and how the net return reconciles with the headline APY shown on the strategy cards.

## Fee schedule

A Thaler vault has three fees over its lifetime. All are transparent and settle on chain.

| Fee                | Rate                             | When collected                | Paid from           |
| ------------------ | -------------------------------- | ----------------------------- | ------------------- |
| Vault creation fee | Small fixed SOL amount           | At creation                   | User wallet balance |
| Service fee        | 11 % of realised yield           | At each claim and at close    | Harvested yield     |
| Closure penalty    | 3 % decaying to 0 % over 96 days | Only on closure before day 96 | Vault balance       |

## Detail on each fee

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Vault creation fee" defaultOpen>
    A small fixed fee paid at creation. It is denominated in SOL and is set so that creating a
    vault does not require any additional configuration. The current value is shown on the
    Create Vault screen before the user confirms the transaction.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Service fee">
    A flat 11 % of the realised yield, collected at claim time and at close time. The protocol
    never takes a share of the deposit. If the vault produces no yield, the service fee is
    zero.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Closure penalty">
    A fee that starts at 3 % of the deposit on day 0 and decays linearly to 0 % by day 96. If
    the user closes after day 96 there is no penalty. The schedule is enforced by the
    immutable policy and cannot be waived by the protocol.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Fees the protocol does not charge

| Item                                        | Status                                           |
| ------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------ |
| Deposit fee                                 | None. The full deposit enters the vault.         |
| Management fee                              | None. The 11 % service fee is performance-based. |
| Withdrawal fee outside the penalty schedule | None. Closing after day 96 is free.              |

## Network fees

Transactions emitted by the worker on the vault's behalf pay Solana network fees. These are paid out of the vault's balance, not by the user, and are typically a few cents per transaction. They are not a Thaler fee; they are a Solana network cost.

## Net APY versus gross APY

The headline APY shown for each tier on the Strategies and Create Vault screens is the **net** APY. The service fee is already deducted from the gross strategy return:

```
net_apy = gross_apy × (1 − 0.11)
```

The user does not need to subtract anything to compare across tiers. The yield floor advertised next to each tier is also a net number; the protocol guarantees the floor will be paid after the service fee is taken.

## Worked example: full-year hold, no early close

A 2 SOL deposit on the Balanced tier (median net APY 11.75 %, yield floor 7.3 %):

| Case            | Realised net APY | Payout at year-end |
| --------------- | ---------------- | ------------------ |
| Worst supported | 7.30 % (floor)   | 2.146 SOL          |
| Median          | 11.75 %          | 2.235 SOL          |
| Best            | 14.80 %          | 2.296 SOL          |

The vault's payout band sits between 2.146 SOL and 2.296 SOL, with the median around 2.235 SOL.

## Worked example: closing on day 30

The same Balanced vault, closed on day 30. Median realised gross yield to date is approximately 1.04 %.

| Item                                      | Value         |
| ----------------------------------------- | ------------- |
| Deposit                                   | 2.000 SOL     |
| Realised gross yield (day 30)             | 0.0207 SOL    |
| Service fee (11 % of yield)               | 0.0023 SOL    |
| Realised net yield                        | 0.0184 SOL    |
| Closure penalty (day 30: 2.063 % × 2 SOL) | 0.0413 SOL    |
| **Payout**                                | **1.977 SOL** |

The closure penalty is the dominant cost in this example. Holding to day 96 would have avoided it entirely.

## Next read

<Columns cols={2}>
  <Card title="Yield floor" icon="shield-check" href="/security/yield-floor">
    The minimum return commitment after the service fee is taken.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Principal protection" icon="vault" href="/security/principal-protection">
    What backs the principal on a normal close, and what protection does not cover.
  </Card>
</Columns>