Frequently Asked Questions

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Submitting Trades/Orders

When can I trade?
You may trade after we have received your complete application, assigned you an account number and posted funds to your account. Once the application paperwork has been processed and approved by a principal of the firm, your "pending" account will be numbered and available for funding right away. You will receive notice that the account is ready by e-mail. If you include an account transfer form along with your application, it will be processed at the same time.
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What are your standard commission rates?
For options: $1.50 per option contract with a minimum of $14.95. In other words, if you trade between 1 and 5 contracts you will pay $14.95; 10 will cost $15.00, or $1.50 per contract. If you trade 20 contracts you will be charged $30.00, and so on.
For stocks: $14.95 up to and including 1,000 shares, and $0.015 per share thereafter.
Please note that all pricing is as stated, for both option and non-option securities. There are no hidden fees: no monthly minimum fees, no inactivity charges, no volume requirements, and no service charges for postage and handling. More information... All prices are in US Dollars.
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How fast are your executions?
99% of all orders we accept are instantaneously directed to an exchange for electronic execution. This is generally much faster than calling orders into a broker, and our own internal testing indicates that a market order takes less than ten seconds to execute. We strive to have the fastest and most efficient order execution on the Web.
Please note that online trading has inherent risks due to system response and access times that vary due to market conditions, system performance and other factors. An investor should understand these and additional risks before trading. For more information, please review our User Agreement/Terms and Conditions.
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What is XpressRouter?
Our XpressRouter® technology is yet another way we are working to provide real value to our customers. We route every eligible trade through our XpressRouter, which seeks out the best possible price for the order. This means that, when possible, the XpressRouter will identify opportunities to either buy at a price that is lower than the current NBBO (National Best Bid and Offer) or sell at a price higher than the NBBO. This value added service is called Price Improvement and is not offered at many other brokerage firms.
Additionally, our XpressRouter technology works through multiple channels (both exchanges and market makers) to increase the likelihood where possible that limit offers that are between the current bid and offer are more likely to be accepted. As traders know, increasing liquidity by improving your access to the market is incredibly valuable, helping you to potentially sell higher and buy lower – improving the cost basis of your trades. Savings are calculated two ways, based on order filled through the use of our XpressRouter: (1) market or marketable limit orders filled better than the NBBO quoted price and (2) limit orders placed between the NBBO bid and ask and filled within 4 seconds. In many cases the savings from Price Improvement and the effective use of limit orders more than offsets the total cost of your commissions, giving you an edge and providing you with true value.
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What is the NBBO Guarantee?
Our NBBO Guarantee means that we guarantee the National Best Bid or Offer (NBBO) on market or marketable limit orders. optionsXpress Australia orders are checked continuously to assure that your order receives the NBBO.
We demand NBBO from the market for our customers, and will reimburse your commission if we fail to get it. If you have any doubt about whether NBBO applies to a particular trade that you have placed, please contact our trading department immediately at 1300 781 132.
Please note: NBBO does not apply to discretionary orders such as stop orders and market order spreads entered as one order or during fast or locked markets.
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Do you provide e-mail alert messages?
Yes, we have a variety of e-mail and screen alerts that notify you when trades are filled or other price criteria are met.
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Can I get broker-assisted trading or telephone trading through optionsXpress Australia?
Yes, we have a fully-licensed staff of brokers available by telephone or online chat to assist you in placing trades. optionsXpress Australia does not charge a broker-assisted trading fee. optionsXpress Australia does not provide any trading advice.
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Do you accept limit, stop, and stop-limit orders?
Yes, as long as the exchange where the trade is to be executed will accept such orders. optionsXpress Australia does not charge additional fees to execute limit orders. It should be noted that such orders may not be executed due to market movement (or lack of thereof).
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What is the difference between stop and stop-limit orders?
A stop order is a contingency order to buy or sell a security when the market reaches a particular level. When the price reaches the level specified in a stop order, that order becomes a market order and is executed at the best possible price.
A stop-limit order is similar to a stop order. Once the designated level is reached, this type of order will become a limit order, which must be executed at a specific price.
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Can I order spreads and straddles online?
Yes, spreads and straddles can be entered on a single trade screen at a net debit or credit. They can be entered as one order, although you will be charged separately for each leg. You may also "leg" into a spread and allow our system to automatically provide you with any benefit of the reduced spread margin requirement.
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What does "Time" on the Contingent Option Order form mean?
When checked, the "Time" box will allow for the contingent order to be in effect ONLY between certain times at your discretion.
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What is a Contingent Trailing Stop?
This order is a trailing stop that will not begin to trail the quote until a specified price criteria is met.
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Do you accept Stops on Spreads?
Yes, we do accept these orders. They are considered contingent orders and are held on our servers until the stop criteria has been met.
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What are Xspread Direct Quotes?
These spread quotes are retrieved directly from exchange liquidity providers and represent quotes with a potential for discount beyond a combination of single leg quotes on spreads. They are non-binding indications of interest.
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What is an NBBO Spread Quote?
An NBBO Spread Quote reflects the best quotes printed from participating exchanges on each leg of the spread or other combination combined. For a long leg, the NBBO single leg "ask" quote will be used, while short leg quotes will use the NBBO "bid" quote to combine for a synthetic NBBO combination trade quote.
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Can I order naked puts or calls?
Yes, depending on your trading suitability. Suitability is determined by an optionsXpress Australia principal who reviews your trading experience and financial profile. Before approving customers for trading a particular strategy, we consider a customer's experience in those strategies and their financial capacity to assume the risks associated with those positions. Naked put and call strategies are considered high-risk and usually require demonstrable experience and a substantial asset base, especially in the case of naked call strategies.
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What is pattern day-trading?
Pattern day-trading includes both stock and option transactions and may be characterized by:
  • Transacting four or more stock or option day-trades (buying then selling, or selling short then buying, the same security on the same day) within a five-day period.
  • Regularly recycling funds within the same day. For example, an investor sells a security (stock or option) for a premium of $400 and proceeds to purchase another security (stock or option) for $400 when no other capital is available and prior to funds being cleared.
  • In line with FINRA regulations, pattern day-traders must maintain at least $25,000 in account value in order to continue day-trading practices. In the event that a pattern day-trader does not maintain $25,000 in account value, cash-on-hand for same-day stock and option transactions will be required.
    • If an account is designated a pattern day-trading account and does not maintain the minimum required equity, a call will be issued which must be met within 5 business days.
    • If the call is not met on time, the account will be restricted to cash transactions only for a period of 90 days, or until the account equity is brought above the minimum requirement.
If your account meets or exceeds the minimum equity amount, it may be eligible for day-trading margin (four times account buying power). This buying power may only be used intra-day and may not be held past market close. Orders exceeding day-trading buying power will be rejected. For more information, please read our Day-Trading Disclosure.
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Do you participate in after-hours trading, and if so are the costs the same?
The morning session runs from 8:00 AM to 9:30 AM ET and the afternoon session runs from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM ET. You will pay the same low transaction costs as you would during normal trading hours.
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Multi-leg option strategies are subject to multiple commissions. Profits may be eroded by the commission expended to open and close the positions and other risks apply.

Advanced orders involve additional risks.