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Extended Hours Trading Session Rules

Extended Hours Trading Session Rules

November 9, 2024

Extended Hours Trading Disclosures: Please take your time to review this important information. We want you to understand the special characteristics and risks of extended hours trading before you participate in any extended hours trading session. Extended hours trading means trading outside of the Regular Market Session. The “Regular Market Session” generally means the time between 9:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET).

Extended Hours Trading Sessions: Extended hours trading can be accessed generally with the following timing instructions (all times are ET):
· Extended A.M.: 7:00 a.m. to 9:25 a.m., Monday through Friday.
· Extended P.M.: 4:05 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.
· Regular + Extended (EXT): 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.
· Overnight (EXTO): 8:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. the following day, Sunday through Friday. Overnight trading is available only for select securities and exclusively on thinkorswim® trading platforms. For additional information about the securities available for overnight trading, please review the “24 Hour Trading” watchlist.

Order Types: Schwab accepts only limit orders in whole share increments for extended hours trading. Market orders and fractional share quantities will not be accepted.

Order Timing:
· Day order(s) are active for one day only, between the hours of 9:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. ET, before it expires if not filled or canceled. Orders placed after 4 p.m. ET, during the weekend, or on holidays will be active the next trading day.
· Good till canceled (GTC) orders are active between the hours of 9:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. ET, and active for up to 180 calendar days (unless filled or canceled). Orders placed after 4 p.m. ET, during the weekend, or on holidays will be active the next trading day.
· Day + extended hours (Day + ext) orders are active during all equity trading sessions, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET. It's only available for limit orders and is known as a seamless order. Orders placed after 8 p.m. ET, during the weekend, or on holidays will be active the next trading day.
· GTC + extended hours (GTC + ext) orders are active for all equity trading sessions, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET, and is active for up to 180 calendar days (unless filled or canceled). It's only available for limit orders and is known as a seamless order. Orders placed after 8 p.m. ET, during the weekend, or on holidays will be active the next trading day. · Extended-hours a.m. (AM or Ext AM) order(s) can be placed between 8:05 p.m. (previous trading day) – 9:25 a.m. ET. The trade, however, is active only during the Ext. AM session for that day. The A.M. extended hours session runs daily from 7:00 a.m. to 9:25 a.m. ET, Monday through Friday, excluding market holidays.
· Extended-hours p.m (PM or Ext. PM) Order(s) can be placed at Mon – Fri between 4:05 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. ET. The trade, however, is active only during the Ext. PM session for that day. The Ext. PM session runs daily from 4:05 p.m. to 8 p.m. ET, Monday through Friday, excluding market holidays.
· Overnight (EXTO) order(s) are active for all sessions for one trading day from 8 p.m. ET until 8 p.m. ET, Sunday through Friday. EXTO order timing is only available for select securities and exclusively on thinkorswim® trading platforms. · GTC Overnight (GTC + EXTO) orders are active for all sessions 8 p.m. ET Sunday through 8 p.m. ET the following Friday until filled or canceled.  
GTC + EXTO order timing is only available for select securities and exclusively on thinkorswim® trading platforms.
· Fill or kill order(s) are canceled if not filled immediately in its entirety. This order timing is not available on the thinkorswim® platforms.
· Immediate or cancel orders are canceled if not filled immediately (partially or entirely). This order timing is not available on the thinkorswim® platforms.

Risk of Lower Liquidity: Liquidity refers to the ability of market participants to buy and sell securities. Generally, the more orders that are available in a market, the greater the liquidity. Liquidity is important because with greater liquidity it is easier for investors to buy or sell securities, and as a result, investors are more likely to pay or receive a competitive price for securities purchased or sold. There may be lower liquidity in extended hours trading as compared to regular trading hours. As a result, your order may only be partially executed, or not at all. Risk of Higher Volatility: Volatility refers to the changes in price that securities undergo when trading. Generally, the higher the volatility of a security, the greater its price swings. There may be greater volatility in extended hours trading than in regular trading hours. As a result, your order may only be partially executed, or not at all, or you may receive an inferior price when engaging in extended hours trading than you would during regular trading hours.   

Risk of Wider Spreads: The spread refers to the difference in price between what you can buy a security for and what you can sell it for. Lower liquidity and higher volatility in extended hours trading may result in wider than normal spreads for a particular security. As a result, you may receive an inferior price when engaging in extended hours trading than you would during regular trading hours.

Risk of Changing Prices: The prices of securities traded in extended hours trading may not reflect the prices either at the end of regular trading hours, or upon the opening the next morning. As a result, you may receive an inferior price when engaging in extended hours trading than you would during regular trading hours.

Risk of Unlinked Markets: Depending on the extended hours trading system or the time of day, the prices displayed on a particular extended hours trading system may not reflect the prices in other, if any, concurrently operating extended hours trading systems dealing in the same securities. Accordingly, you may receive an inferior price in one extended hours trading system than you would in another extended hours trading system.

Risk of News Announcements: Normally, issuers make news announcements that may affect the price of their securities after regular trading hours. Similarly, important financial information is frequently announced outside of regular trading hours. In extended hours trading, these announcements may occur during trading, and if combined with lower liquidity and higher volatility, may cause an exaggerated and unsustainable effect on the price of a security. While Schwab provides customers access to certain news and information through its website, these news sources may not include all currently available information relating to all securities and issuers.

Risk of Lack of Calculation or Dissemination of Underlying Index Value or Intraday Indicative Value (IIV): For certain derivative securities products, an updated underlying index value or IIV may not be calculated or publicly disseminated during extended trading hours. Since the underlying index value and IIV are not calculated or widely disseminated during the pre-market, after-hours, and overnight sessions, an investor who is unable to calculate implied values for certain derivative securities products in those sessions may be at a disadvantage to market professionals.

Special Considerations for the Overnight Session:

Single Trading Venue: During the overnight session from 8:00 p.m. until 4:00 a.m., there is one available market trading system to which orders are routed.

ETF Availability: Not all ETFs available at Schwab are available for the overnight trading session. Some of the eligible ETFs make payments to Schwab for ETF-related opportunities and services, though payment to Schwab is not a consideration for the overnight session eligibility. Please review Schwab’s Financial and Other Relationships with ETFs for more information on the compensation that Schwab receives. All ETFs are subject to management fees and expenses. Certain ETFs may employ complex strategies that may make them more susceptible to the risks of lower liquidity and higher volatility.

Trade Date and Corporate Actions: The trade date for securities executed during the regular market session and the pre-market and after-hours sessions is the date on which the order was executed. However, the trade date for securities executed during the overnight session is the date of the morning when the overnight session ends. The trade date is important, for example, in determining the applicability of corporate actions such as dividends. For example, if you purchase a security on the day prior to the ex-dividend date during the regular or after-hours session, you will be entitled to the dividend, but if you purchase the security in the overnight session, you will not be entitled to the dividend. Open orders may be cancelled due to pending corporate actions. Trade Date and Day Trade Counting: Customers and, in particular, those wishing to avoid being designated as a Pattern Day Trader (PDT) or that hold an existing PDT account with equity below $25k, should be aware of how the timing of executed orders affects “Day Trades Left” as displayed in thinkorswim®. The opening of the overnight session at 8 p.m. ET also marks the start of a new trading day. For example, an opening trade that executes in any session after 8 p.m. ET on Sunday and is closed prior to 8 p.m. ET the following Monday will be counted as a Day Trade. If the same opening trade is closed any time after 8 p.m. ET the following Monday, it will not be counted as a Day Trade.
Appropriateness of Extended Hours Trading: Schwab does not warrant or recommend that extended hours trading is appropriate for you. As noted above, extended hours trading involves special risks and may not be appropriate for all investors. Investment decisions you make involving extended hours trading are your responsibility.

Potential Changes to Extended Hours Trading: Schwab reserves the right to change the parameters of any of its extended hours trading sessions, including curtailing access at any time. You will need to keep up to date on these changes and review how they might affect your investment decisions.

Electronic Services Agreement and Use Agreement: Your use of the extended hours trading session is governed by your existing account agreements with Schwab, including the Electronic Services Agreement. The information, news, research, quotations, and other content available to you during the extended hours trading session is also subject to the Use Agreement. As a Schwab customer, you have previously consented to these agreements, which are available for your review under the Agreements link that appears on one or more pages in the Customer Center.

Multiple Account Holders; Power of Attorney: If you are a joint or multiple account holder, or if you exercise power of attorney over this account, you should review this disclosure and the potential risks of extended hours trading with all account holders.

Additional Important Information: Before you place any orders, you should review the additional important information by viewing details on theExtended Hours Tradingpage of Schwab.com. Our extended hours trading rules are subject to change without prior notice. By participating in extended hours trading, you are deemed to understand and agree to the increased risks of trading during the extended hours sessions.