The distinction is between automating a strategy you own and buying a tool whose purpose is to defeat the evaluation. The first is a way of trading; the second makes the result meaningless for both sides. Nothing here is a judgement on automation generally - it is about whose strategy the account is testing.
Trading rules
Expert advisors,within the same rules.
Automated trading is allowed on all three programmes where it represents legitimate trading and follows every other rule, including the two-minute minimum hold. An advisor you built yourself is fine. Third-party systems designed or marketed to pass prop-firm evaluations may be prohibited, and identical activity across many accounts is reviewed.
The rule
Are expert advisors allowed?
Percentages are what the industry publishes. These are the same rules in dollars, worked on a $100,000 simulated account, so there is nothing left to convert.
- Your own advisor
- Allowed
Provided it stays inside every published rule.
- Challenge-passing systems
- May be prohibited
Software sold specifically to beat prop-firm evaluations falls under prohibited trading.
- Minimum hold still applies
- 2 minutes
An advisor that closes faster than this breaks the rule on every trade it takes.
- Shared advisors across accounts
- Reviewed
Mass-identical activity across many customers is examined as possible coordinated trading.
- Hosting
- VPS permitted
Running an advisor on a virtual server is allowed. Account access still has to stay with you.
Plan applicability
Which programmesthis rule applies to
Our three programmes do not share one rulebook. This table is the part of the page to read before you buy.
Why it exists
The reasoning,stated plainly
Worked example
The same rule,as a number
A $100,000 simulated account, because that is the size most people are deciding about.
Two automated accounts
Same technology, different answers.
- Trader A
- Own advisor
Holds positions for 15 minutes, manages its own risk, one account.
- Outcome
- Compliant
Nothing about the automation itself is a problem.
- Trader B
- Bought a pass-the-challenge bot
Identical fills to dozens of other accounts, 40-second holds.
- Outcome
- Two rules broken
Prohibited system, plus every trade inside the 2 minutes minimum hold.
If you are unsure which side a system falls on, ask support before you run it rather than after the evaluation is complete.
Commonly misread
What tradersget wrong here
Every item below has cost somebody an account. They are published for that reason rather than for completeness.
“Bots are banned”
They are not. Legitimate automation of your own strategy is allowed on every programme.
“An advisor is exempt from the minimum hold”
It is not. Every trade on every programme has to stay open 2 minutes.
The full cluster
Every questionabout this rule
The answers our support team works from, each on its own page.
Are Expert Advisors or automated strategies allowed?
Automated trading may be allowed provided the strategy complies with GFN rules and represents legitimate trading behaviour.
Can I use an EA I created myself?
Yes, provided it complies with all trading and risk-management rules.
Can I use an EA purchased specifically to pass prop-firm challenges?
Third-party strategies designed or marketed to exploit or auto-pass funding challenges may be prohibited, and GFN can review activity for unrealistic behaviour.
Can hundreds of customers use the same EA?
Mass-identical trading activity may create concerns regarding strategy ownership, copy trading or coordinated trading.
Can I use a VPS?
A VPS may be used for legitimate trading technology where permitted, but it must not be used to hide account sharing, circumvent location restrictions or disguise prohibited trading activity.
Related rules
The rulesthat sit next to this one
Is copy trading allowed?
Copying between accounts you own may be permitted. Copying another trader, or letting someone else manage your account, is prohibited.
What trading is prohibited?
Exploiting platform errors, latency arbitrage, coordinated trading and account sharing are prohibited on every programme, and what happens if found.
Can I scalp?
Scalping is allowed on every GFN programme, with one condition: each trade must stay open for at least 2 minutes. Latency exploitation is prohibited.
Instant: the full rule sheet
Every objective on the Instant programme, in dollars, at all six account sizes.
1 Step: the full rule sheet
Every objective on the 1 Step programme, in dollars, at all six account sizes.
2 Step: the full rule sheet
Every objective on the 2 Step programme, in dollars, at all six account sizes.
Ready when you are
Your capital stays yours.The risk is ours.
One evaluation fee, no time limits and up to 90% of simulated profits. Pick an account size and your credentials arrive by email within minutes.
No subscriptions or hidden fees
Payouts every 14 days
$400,000 max total allocation