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Trading permissions are required in order to provide customers with all the proper regulatory disclosures and provide customers with the ability to trade. They may be elected at the time of application or upgraded at anytime through Account Management. Upgraded permissions are subject to regulatory review, and any upgrade request received by 11:00 ET on a business day will be reviewed by the next business day under normal circ*mstances.
Trading permissions are broken down by asset class and country and differ for margin and cash accounts. The following table depicts available trading permissions as well as cash and margin account capabilities.
Note:
- Subscribing to a trading permission is independent of subscribing to market data.
- Margin accounts have the ability to trade in all available countries. Cash accounts may only trade in those countries offering products denominated in the base currency of the cash account.
- Because of SEC restrictions, US legal resident customers are not allowed to trade non-US stock and cash index options.
- IRA accounts can have cash or margin trading permissions, but are never allowed to borrow cash (have a debit balance) as US IRS regulation.
| Margin | Cash | Available Countries |
| Stocks | Borrowing to support equities trading, shorting of equities, currency conversions, and stock trading in multiple currencies. Margin requirements are computed on a real-time basis, with immediate position liquidation if the minimum maintenance margin requirement is not met. Purchase and sale proceeds are immediately recognized. US securities regulations require at least 25,000 USD in equity to day trade. US IRA accounts are never allowed to borrow cash (have a debit balance). | Must have enough cash in the account to cover the cost of the stock plus commissions. No shorting of stock and trading is only allowed for products denominated in the base currency of the account. Cash from the sale of stocks becomes available 3 business days after the trade date. When authorizing market, relative and VWAP orders, a 5% cash cushion is required to compensate for market movements. | |
| Bonds | Borrowing to support bond trading, and shorting of bonds. Margin requirements are computed on a real-time basis, with immediate position liquidation if the minimum maintenance margin is not met. Purchase and sale proceeds are immediately recognized. | Must have enough cash in the account to cover the cost of the bonds plus commissions. No shorting of bonds is allowed. Cash from the sale of bonds becomes available 3 business days after the trade date. | |
| Stock & Cash Index Options | Buying and selling options on margin, which is determined on a real-time basis with immediate position liquidation if the minimum maintenance margin requirement is not met. For buying options, you must deposit the entire premium plus commissions. For selling options, and other strategy-based combinations, the margin requirements and commissions must be covered. Option market value may never be used for the purpose of borrowing funds. You must have stocks margin trading permissions in order to have options margin trading permissions. US Securities regulations require at least 25,000 USD in equity to day trade. Cash from the purchase and sale of options is immediately recognized. US IRA accounts are never allowed to borrow cash (have a debit balance). | Full payment must be made for all call and put purchases. Covered call writing is allowed, but the underlying stock must be available and is then restricted. Naked put writing is also allowed, but the funds must be available and then are restricted. You must have stock cash trading permissions in order to have options cash trading permissions. Cash from the sale of options becomes available 1 business day after the trade date. | - Australia
- Belgium
- Canada
- France
- Germany
- Hong Kong
- Italy
- Japan
- South Korea
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- The Netherlands
- United Kingdom
- United States
|
| Futures | Purchase and sale of broad based equity index, fixed income and commodity futures contracts on margin. Margin is determined on a real-time basis with immediate position liquidation if the minimum margin requirement is not met. Only cash may be used to meet variation margin requirements. Special 50 % of variation margin benefits are made available during the day on some futures exchanges. | Same as margin. | - Australia
- Belgium
- Canada
- France
- Germany
- Hong Kong
- Italy
- Japan
- Singapore
- South Korea
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- The Netherlands
- United Kingdom
- United States
|
| Futures Options | Purchase and sale of broad based equity index, fixed income and commodity futures contracts on margin. Margin is determined on a real-time basis with immediate position liquidation if the minimum margin requirement is not met. Only cash may be used to meet variation margin requirements. Special 50 % of variation margin benefits are made available during the day on some futures exchanges. Non-US futures options are available to US legal resident customers. You must have futures trading permissions in order to have options on futures trading permissions. | Same as margin. | - Australia
- Germany
- Singapore
- Spain
- United Kingdom
- United States
|
| Single Stock Futures | Purchase and sale of stocks, exchange traded funds and narrow based index futures contracts on margin. Margin is determined on a real-time basis with immediate position liquidation if the minimum margin requirement is not met. In the US, SSFs may be cross margined with stocks and options (IRA accounts can only cross margin SSFs, not stocks and options). | Same as margin. | - Hong Kong
- United Kingdom
- United States
|
| Forex | Purchase and sale of currencies. Borrowing in one currency to purchase another currency is allowed, but margin haircuts will be applied on a real-time basis. Margin accounts automatically get Forex trading permissions in order to effect trading of products denominated in multiple currencies. US IRA accounts are never allowed to borrow currencies. | Forex trading permissions are not allowed in a cash account. | - Australian Dollar
- British Pound
- Canadian Dollar
- Euro
- Hong Kong Dollar
- Japanese Yen
- Swiss Franc
- United States
Dollar |
| Warrants | Same as Stocks | Same as margin. | |
FAQs
You must have stocks margin trading permissions in order to have options margin trading permissions. US Securities regulations require at least 25,000 USD in equity to day trade. Cash from the purchase and sale of options is immediately recognized.
What are trading permissions? ›
Trading permissions specify the products you can trade and where you can trade them. You modify existing trade permissions or subscribe to new permissions on the Trading Experience & Permissions screen.
How to get trading permissions on ibkr? ›
Under Account Settings, locate the Trading section and select Trading Permissions. The Trading Permissions page will allow the investor to request trading permissions for any products and markets they would like to trade.
How do I enable market data in ibkr? ›
Click Settings > Trading Platform > Market Data Subscriptions.
Is it hard to get approved for options trading? ›
Tips for Getting Approved
Many brokers take a day or two in order to upgrade your account. They are also required to provide special disclosures including the Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options. Initially, most investors should be approved for level one strategies, enabling them to create covered calls.
How to get approved for options on Fidelity? ›
Anyone can trade options in their brokerage account, if approved. At Fidelity, this requires completing an options application that asks questions about your financial situation and investing experience, and reading and signing an options agreement.
What is a trade permission? ›
It grants permission by way of a document/certificate to carry on any business or trade in the place where it is located.
How to get approved for options trading on ibkr? ›
To request these trading permissions, please take the steps outlined below.
- Click the User menu (head and shoulders icon in the top right corner) > Settings > Trading > Trading Permissions.
- The Trading Permissions panel displays your current trading permissions. ...
- Select the level of Option trading you wish to trade.
There are certain more complex investment strategies that aren't available to you when you have a cash account. Futures trading requires the use of margin, so you typically can't trade futures in a cash account. Options trading is available, but it's more difficult to write options contracts.
How do you get approved for Interactive Brokers? ›
What You Need - Application
- US Social Security Number or ID number if not a US citizen (Driver's License, Alien Identification Card, Passport or National Identity Card).
- Your employer name, address and phone number.
- Bank or third-party broker account numbers for funding purposes, plus routing number for check deposits.
Cash accounts can upgrade to a Margin account. To upgrade to a Portfolio Margin account, you must be approved to trade options and your account must have at least USD 110,000 (or USD equivalent) in Net Liquidation Value. To change your trading permissions as part of this process, select Yes.
How to get approved to trade futures on Interactive Brokers? ›
If you do not have Futures trading permissions, simply log in to Client Portal and request Futures trading permissions from the Settings > Account Settings > Trading Experiences & Permissions menu item.
Why does IBKR charge for market data? ›
In relation to the fees quoted for Market Data, IBKR retains 5% - 10% of these fees to cover administrative and other costs related to the provision of these data services. The remainder of the fee is paid to the vendor.
Is Interactive Brokers a good broker? ›
The company has historically catered to institutional and high-volume traders, and IBKR continues to meet the needs of these customers, earning our top choice for best broker for advanced traders, international trading, algorithmic trading, and risk management, cash management, among other categories.
How delayed is IBKR market data? ›
10-15 minute delayed streaming data is available for many types of instruments without market data subscriptions. By default, the API is in the real time market data mode, so the function IBApi::EClient::reqMktData will request real time data.
What are the requirements for option trading? ›
You'll need to provide your:
- Investment objectives. This usually includes income, growth, capital preservation or speculation.
- Trading experience. ...
- Personal financial information. ...
- The types of options you want to trade.
The customer discloses their personal information (name, DOB, SSN, address, etc.), plus some options-related suitability-related items, including: Investment objective. Employment status. Estimated annual income.
How to be eligible for options trading Interactive Brokers? ›
Customers must meet the following eligibility requirements to open a Portfolio Margin account: An existing account must have at least USD 110,000 (or USD equivalent) in Net Liquidation Value to be eligible to upgrade to a Portfolio Margin account (in addition to being approved for uncovered option trading).
Can anyone be an options trader? ›
To become an Options Trader, you typically need at least a bachelor's degree in a finance-related field, such as business administration or economics. Necessary qualifications for this job vary by employer.
