Definitive guide
Options expiration help: what happens and what to check
At expiration, an option either has intrinsic value, expires without value, or creates an exercise/assignment process depending on the contract, moneyness, position side, and broker instructions.
The clean decision tree
- Long call: in-the-money calls may create a right to buy shares at the strike; exercising requires capital.
- Long put: in-the-money puts may create a right to sell shares at the strike; shares or settlement treatment must be understood.
- Short call: assignment can require delivering shares or creating short-stock exposure depending on account treatment.
- Short put: assignment can require buying shares at the strike.
- Spread: each leg can have a different outcome. Do not assume the spread stays balanced through expiration processing.
What this page cannot know
It cannot know your broker's cutoff, margin treatment, tax result, whether your firm will accept instructions, or how after-hours movement will affect decisions. Confirm those details directly with current broker documentation.
Interactive expiration planner
Check moneyness, intrinsic value, and exercise risk
Enter a stock price, call strike, put strike, premium, and contract count. The planner shows simplified expiration math and the questions to verify with your broker.
This is educational contract math only. It does not predict exercise, assignment, margin, taxes, fills, after-hours movement, broker cutoffs, or whether your firm will submit contrary instructions.
Primary reading: OIC options basics and Expiration Friday · OIC exercising options · OIC options exercise FAQ · FINRA options overview and expiration risk · OCC Options Disclosure Document