Stock Margin Requirements

Stocks Margin Overview

US Stocks Margin Requirements


For residents of Canada trading stocks:

  • Rules-based margin

The complete margin requirement details are listed in the sections below.



Long Positions 2

Margin Requirement
Marginable:
Only TSE, NYSE/Arca, NASDAQ, and qualified stocks* that are a constituent of eligible indices are marginable. Margin
Cash or RSP/TFSA		 50% * Stock Value
100% * Stock Value
Eligible for Reduced Margin:
Canadian stocks: IIROC’s List of Securities Eligible for Reduced Margin Margin
Cash or RSP/TFSA		 30% * Stock Value
100% * Stock Value
US stocks: Option Clearing Corp-listed option underlying stocks Margin
Cash or RSP/TFSA		 30% * Stock Value
100% * Stock Value
Non-Marginable:
Stock price below 2 CAD Margin
Cash or RSP/TFSA		 100% * Stock Value
100% * Stock Value
Stocks with Market Capitalization below 250 million USD Margin
Cash or RSP/TFSA		 100% * Stock Value
100% * Stock Value
Stocks traded on Venture exchange. Margin
Cash or RSP/TFSA		 100% * Stock Value
100% * Stock Value
Other:
Long and short positions same underlying stock with one leg cleared in the US and the other leg cleared in Canada3. Margin
Cash or RSP/TFSA		 5% * Long Stock Value
N/A

Short Positions Traded on Approved Exchanges 1,2

Margin
Initial Margin 50% * Stock Value

Minimum Margin >= USD 2.50 * Number of Shares
Maintenance Margin Same as Initial

Short Positions Eligible for Reduced Margin on Approved Exchanges 1

Margin
Initial Margin 30% * Stock Value

Minimum Margin >= USD 2.50 * Number of Shares
Maintenance Margin Same as Initial

All Other Short Positions including Stocks < CAD 2 and TSX Venture Exchange

Margin
Initial Margin 100% * Stock Value

Minimum Margin >= USD 2.50 * Number of Shares
Maintenance Margin Same as Initial

Additional Information
  • Accounts with equity below 2000 USD cannot use any margin.
  • IBKR may reduce the marginability of certain securities. For more information, please refer to www.interactivebrokers.com.
  • A minimum margin requirement of 2000 USD applies to an account with short positions.
  • Portfolio Margin is not currently available to IBKR Canada customers.
  • IBKR reserves the right to change its policies without notice.

Notes:

*Stocks that are eligible for 50% margin would be stocks that are a constituent of the AEX (Netherlands), BEL 20 (Belgium), CAC40 (France), DAX 30 (Frankfurt), IBEX 35 (Spain), FTSE MIB (Italy), SMI (Switzerland), HANG SENG (Hong Kong), FTSE 100 (England), TOPIX 150 (Japan), and NIKKEI 225 (Japan).

Disclosures:

  1. Approved exchanges for Canadian residents are: TSX, NYSE, NASDAQ, AMEX, ARCA, LSE, TSE.JPN. Only TSX applies to Non-Canadian residents. To see which securities the IDA has determined are eligible for reduced margin, view this List of Securities Eligible for Reduced Margin.

Extreme Margin Model

Systems that derive risk-based margin requirements deliver adequate assessments of the risk for complex derivative portfolios under small/moderate move scenarios. Such systems are less comprehensive when considering large moves in the price of the underlying stock or future. IBKR has enhanced the basic exchange margin models with algorithms that consider the portfolio impact of larger moves up 30% (or even higher for extremely volatile stocks). This 'Extreme Margin Model' may increase the margin requirement for portfolios with net short options positions, and is particularly sensitive to short positions in far out-of-the-money options.


Special Margin Stocks

We may reduce the collateral value of securities (reduces marginability) for a variety of reasons, including:

  • small market capitalization or small issue size
  • low liquidity in the collective primary/secondary exchanges
  • involvement in tenders and other corporate action

Changes in marginability are generally considered for a specific security. However, in cases of concerns about the viability or liquidity of a company, marginability reductions will apply to all securities issued by, or related to, the affected company, including bonds, derivatives, depository receipts, etc.

See the section on Decreased Marginability Calculations on the Margin Calculations page for information about large position and position concentration algorithms that may affect the margin rate applied to a given security within an account and may vary between accounts.



Additional US Margin Requirements

For Residents of Canada:

Use the following links to view other margin requirements:

Options

Futures & FOPs

SSF - Single Stock Futures

Fixed Income


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Further Reading


To learn more about trading on margin, go to our Education Center:

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Disclosures
  1. Approved exchanges for Canadian residents are: TSX, NYSE, NASDAQ, AMEX, ARCA, LSE, TSE.JPN. Only TSX applies to Non-Canadian residents. To see which securities the IDA has determined are eligible for reduced margin, view this List of Securities Eligible for Reduced Margin.
  2. For Leveraged ETFs, Minimum(50% * Leverage Factor, 100%)
  3. Long CAD stock and short USD stock or long USD stock and short CAD stock.
  • All margin accounts must have a minimum of USD 2,000 to trade.
  • Margin requirements quoted in US or CA dollars may be satisfied with the equivalent amount in another currency.
  • We have additional algorithms which increase the nominal margin for positions that represent a >1% holding of an individual company's shares outstanding, with full margin required for concentrations of >= 5% of a company's shares outstanding. Investors should be prepared to meet the increased margin, where holdings are above 1% threshold.
  • Interactive Brokers Australia currently offers margin lending to all clients EXCEPT Self- managed Superannuation Fund account holders ("SMSF"). Click here for more information. For clients of Interactive Brokers Australia who are classified as retail, margin loans will be capped at AUD $50,000 (subject to change in IBKR Australia’s sole discretion). Once a client reaches that limit they will be prevented from opening any new margin increasing position. However, how much a client can borrow depends on a number of factors, including: the value of the money or assets contributed by the client as security; which financial products the client chooses to invest in, as we lend different amounts for different products under our risk-based model; and the maintenance margin requirement for the client’s portfolio. Once a client reaches their borrowing limit they will be prevented from opening any new margin increasing position. Closing or margin-reducing trades will be allowed. Refer to this link for information regarding margin accounts offered by IBKR Australia.
  • IBKR house margin requirements may be greater than rule-based margin.