Upcoming F&O Expiry - October 2026: Index, Commodities & Stocks
Key takeaways:
- In October 2026, NSE index derivatives will have four weekly expiry dates, and BSE index derivatives will have five weekly expiry dates.
- The monthly expiry for NSE index and stock F&O is on October 27, 2026, the last Tuesday of the month.
- The BSE index and stock F&O monthly expiry date is on October 29, 2026, the last Thursday of the month.
- Friday, October 2, 2026 (Gandhi Jayanti) is a stock market holiday. It is not a Tuesday or Thursday, so it will not affect the NSE and BSE F&O expiry schedule.
- Due to the Dussehra holiday on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, the NSE weekly expiry for that week will be advanced to Monday, October 19, 2026.
- MCX commodity option contracts have varying expiry dates based on the commodity and contract type.
As the September 2026 expiry cycle nears its end, we can expect October to witness an important structural change for derivatives trading where the number of weekly expiries gets switched between NSE and BSE. Earlier, September had five weekly NSE expiry dates and four weekly BSE expiry dates, but in October this reverses: BSE traders get five weekly Thursday expiry dates, and NSE traders get four weekly Tuesday expiry dates.
However, due to the Dussehra holiday on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, the NSE weekly expiry for that week will be advanced to Monday, October 19, 2026. Here is your complete expiry guide for October 2026.
What is an F&O expiry date and why does it matter?
An expiry date is the last day on which a futures or options contract can be traded in that particular contract month. Once the contract expires, it is no longer in existence and is settled according to the exchange's rules for that type of contract.
Settlement is usually cash-based for index and stock derivatives. Some open positions may lead to physical delivery for some commodity contracts if they are not settled before the tender period begins, making it important for traders to know when contracts are nearing expiry dates. Before a contract expires, Traders have three options:
- Square off: Traders can close their position before the expiry day and book the resulting profit or loss.
- Roll over: Traders can close the current month's contract and simultaneously take an identical position in the next month's expiry if they want to continue the trade.
- Let it expire: Traders can hold the contract until expiry. The settlement process depends on the type of contract and the exchange rules.
Trading volumes tend to surge on or around expiry dates, as traders rush to close or roll their positions. This can cause rapid intraday price fluctuations in the underlying contracts, especially in contracts with open interest concentrated near at-the-money strikes.
Thus, by monitoring the expiry calendar ahead of time, traders can prepare for these dynamics instead of responding to them.
Holiday impact on the expiry schedule
October 2026 has two stock market holidays. Among these, Gandhi Jayanti on October 2, 2026 falls on a Friday; therefore, it does not affect any NSE Tuesday expiry or BSE Thursday expiry.
However, the Dussehra holiday on October 20, 2026 falls on Tuesday, and since NSE weekly expiry currently follows a Tuesday expiry cycle, this holiday will lead to a change in the expiry day.
Index Expiries in October 2026 for NSE & BSE
Here's the complete NSE and BSE index expiry schedule for October 2026.
NSE Index expiries in October 2026
NSE index derivatives expire every Tuesday. October 2026 has four Tuesdays, giving NSE traders four weekly index expiries on 6, 13, 19 (Monday), and 27. The monthly expiry falls on October 27, which is the last Tuesday of the month.
Due to the Dussehra holiday on October 20, 2026, the NSE weekly expiry scheduled for October 20 will be advanced to Monday, October 19, 2026.
BSE Index expiries in October 2026
BSE index derivatives expire every Thursday. October 2026 has five Thursdays; thus, the weekly SENSEX contracts are scheduled to expire on October 1, 8, 15, 22 and 29. The monthly expiry falls on October 29, which is the last Thursday of the month.
Stock F&O expiries in October 2026
Stock futures and options on both NSE and BSE follow their respective monthly expiry schedules, i.e, the last Tuesday of the month for NSE and the last Thursday of the month for BSE. Below are the stock FnO expiry dates for October 2026.
MCX commodity expiries in October 2026
Commodity contracts on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) each follow their own expiry schedule. MCX contract expiration dates depend upon the type of metal, energy, and agricultural commodity under consideration and are spread across the entire month. The following table shows MCX commodities' futures and option contracts that expire in October 2026.
Wrap up
In October 2026, BSE will have 5 weekly expiry dates while NSE will have 4 weekly expiries, reversing September's pattern. The Dussehra holiday on Tuesday, October 20, changes the NSE weekly expiry from Tuesday, October 20, 2026, to Monday, October 19, 2026. The last week of October is the most important period for derivatives traders, as the NSE monthly expiry is on October 27, 2026, while the BSE monthly expiry is on October 29, 2026.
To trade successfully in the Indian financial market, traders should always refer to the latest exchange circulars and expiry calendars before planning trades, as exchanges can revise expiry dates or trading schedules through fresh notifications. Thus, keeping track of expiry dates can be useful for planning positions, rollovers, and avoiding any last-minute surprises.
