GTC (Good Till Cancelled)
A GTC buy limit is accepted today and still unfilled tomorrow. It may remain active under the venue’s rules rather than expiring at the end of today’s session. A cancellation request is not final confirmation: check whether execution occurred before cancellation was acknowledged.
Validity rather than price
GTC controls duration. Limit, stop and stop-limit separately describe price or activation conditions. The contract, system and instrument can impose maximum lifetimes or cancellation events despite the label. Confirm what happens at session breaks, contract expiry and provider maintenance.
Order state after a break
Reconcile the order before recreating it on another terminal or after reconnecting. A request may already have filled or partly filled. The surviving remainder and associated exits depend on the order arrangement. Keeping an order valid does not guarantee that sufficient margin or acceptable prices remain available later.
Keeping the instruction relevant
Review whether the trade rationale, position budget and expiry policy still apply. A stale order can activate after conditions have changed. Document who monitors it and how cancellations are confirmed. GTC is not a promise that an order rests forever, survives every event or fills exactly at a displayed chart level.
FAQ
Does GTC mean guaranteed execution?
No. It concerns validity, not execution probability or price.
Does closing my platform cancel a GTC order?
Not automatically. A server-held order can remain; a locally implemented instruction can behave differently. Confirm with the provider.
