Prop Firm News-Trading Blackout Windows: The Exact Minutes, Firm by Firm (2026)
"News trading restricted" is the least useful sentence in a prop firm's rulebook, because it does not say for how long. A blackout window can run from one minute to thirty, apply to every account tier or only some of them, and in several cases can be removed entirely for a fee. We went through our trading rules database of 34 firms that restrict news trading and pulled the exact window each firm actually publishes, with the source.
Of 34 firms in our data that restrict news trading, 19 publish a specific minute window. The rest either give no number at all, or (like Take Profit Trader's) narrow it to a specific account tier or a specific list of releases. Four firms let you pay an add-on fee to remove the restriction entirely.
The windows, shortest to longest
| Window | Firm | Applies to | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 min | Take Profit Trader | PRO accounts only, FOMC/NFP/CPI specifically | takeprofittrader.com |
| 2 min | Maven Trading | All except Instant accounts; red-folder events | maventrading.com/faqs |
| 2 min | Blueberry Funded | Evaluation and funded, both stages | help.blueberryfunded.com |
| 2 min (close-before) | Onyx Futures | Positions must close before tier-1 releases, not a hold-through ban | onyx-futures.com/terms |
| 3 min | Nova Funded | All programs | novafunded.com/faq |
| 3 min | Forge of Traders | Evaluation and funded | forgeoftraders.com/faqs |
| 3 min (add-on removes it) | MyFundedCapital | Restricted by default on every program | myfundedcapital.com/faq |
| 5 min | E8 Markets | SimFI Performance product only; Signature and Pro allow news trading on all stages | help.e8markets.com |
| 5 min | TradersEdgeFX | Major (red) news events | tradersedgefx.com/rules |
| 5 min (add-on removes it) | Capital Mint Markets | Restricted by default on all programmes | capitalmintmarkets.com/our-rules |
| 5 min | Paid To Trade | Static and Instant accounts; 1-Step Trail is exempt | help.paidtotrade.net |
| 5 min | 100X Club | 1-Step and 2-Step only; Instant Funding is exempt | 100x.club |
| 5 min | Firewood Funded | All programs | funded.firewoodfx.com/faq |
| 5 min | FundedFun | All programs; positions opened 5+ hours before an event are exempt | fundedfun.com/terms-of-use |
| 30 min (add-on removes it) | Dolvero | CFD challenges only; crypto challenges are exempt at all times | dolvero.com/rules |
Five minutes is the most common window by far, which tracks with FXStreet and Forex Factory both defaulting to a 5-minute high-impact flag on their own calendars; several firms name one of those two calendars directly as their reference source rather than defining "high-impact" themselves.
Paying to remove the restriction
Three firms above sell the restriction away as an add-on rather than enforcing it unconditionally: Dolvero charges 15% of the challenge fee to lift its 30-minute CFD window, and MyFundedCapital charges 15% on Instant Funding or 20% on its 1-Step and Scale Up challenges to lift its 3-minute default restriction. Capital Mint Markets also sells a News Trading add-on to remove its 5-minute default, though it does not publish the exact percentage in the source we hold, so that figure is left out rather than estimated.
Restricted, but no published window
Four firms in our data restrict news trading without stating a specific window in the source we hold: PineX Capital ("news trading is not permitted," no minutes given), Fundedbit (its terms and FAQ both use the phrase "restricted-window news trading" without disclosing which windows), Fondeo ("restricted," referencing a rules-document section without a number), and MyFundedFutures ("Tier 1 news trading not allowed on funded accounts," no minute figure). If you trade at any of these four, the honest answer is to ask the firm's support directly rather than assume a figure from this table applies, since none of it was published where we could verify it.
Every firm above times its window from the scheduled release, not from when the price actually moves or when a trader happens to be watching. A trade opened 90 seconds before a 2-minute-window release is a violation even if the trader had no way of knowing the event was imminent without an economic calendar open. The failure mode is rarely reckless news trading; it is a trader who simply did not know a red-folder release was 90 seconds away.
Knowing exactly when the window opens
Every window above is timed against a scheduled release, which means the practical problem is not remembering a rule, it is knowing the exact minute an event fires relative to your open position. A basic economic calendar tells you the day; it does not reliably flag impact level or give you a live warning as the release approaches. Newsquawk is one of the tools we track built specifically around that gap: its economic calendar carries an impact indicator per event, and it pairs that with a live audio squawk and analyst chat during the release itself, rather than a calendar you have to remember to refresh. We have not verified that any firm above endorses a specific calendar tool, and Newsquawk is not a PropFirmMap partner, so this is a description of what the tool does, not a recommendation that it satisfies any specific firm's rule. Full verified spec sheet, including what we could and could not confirm, is on the Newsquawk tool page.
Methodology
Every window and every add-on figure above is quoted from the firm's own published rules or FAQ, cited by URL, and stored in our firm_trading_rules table with its own extraction date. We re-verified Maven Trading's 2-minute rule live against maventrading.com/faqs this session; its wording matched our stored note exactly. E8 Markets' help-center article is a JavaScript-rendered page that returned no readable text to a plain fetch this session, so that row is cited to our stored source and its prior verification date rather than a fresh read. No figure above is estimated, rounded, or carried over from a similar firm's rule; where a firm does not publish a specific number, it is listed in the undisclosed section above instead of being assigned one.
Disclosure
Maven Trading is a PropFirmMap affiliate partner. The other 18 firms named in this piece, and Newsquawk, are not partners and do not pay PropFirmMap a commission. Every window and add-on figure above is reported the same way regardless of partnership status.
Frequently asked questions
Does a 2-minute window mean I can't hold a position through the release?
Usually not; most firms in this table restrict opening or closing a trade inside the window, not holding an existing position through it. Onyx Futures is the exception on this list, since its rule specifically requires a position to be closed before the release rather than held through it. Read your specific firm's exact wording before assuming either interpretation.
Why do some firms exempt Instant Funding accounts from their news-trading restriction?
Instant Funding products typically skip the evaluation phase and carry a different risk model for the firm, so several firms (Maven Trading, 100X Club, Paid To Trade among them) apply their news-trading restriction only to their evaluation-style programs and not to Instant.
Is a firm with no published window safer to trade news at?
No. An undisclosed window means the firm still restricts news trading, just without telling you the exact minutes, which makes it easier to violate by accident, not safer.
Where can I check every rule at a firm, not just news trading?
See the full filterable matrix at /prop-firm-rules, or the broader explainer on EAs, copy trading, hedging and scalping at Prop Firm Trading Rules Explained.
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