MT4 or MT5 rejects an order — what should you check?

When MT4 or MT5 rejects an order, read the exact message and verify the account state first. The issue may concern price, volume, stop distance, permissions or trading hours. Increasing the position, removing protection and repeatedly clicking are not a diagnosis. Separate a technical correction from changed risk before contacting support. It concerns MetaQuotes platforms; your provider determines the account and instrument settings.

Does an error mean that nothing happened on the account?

Separate a confirmed rejection, a fill and an uncertain response. Following a connection error or timeout, check positions, active orders and history before retrying. The instruction may already have reached the server. Identify the specific ticket, symbol, volume and time; the absence of a new row in one window is insufficient evidence.

In an MT5 program, OrderSend=true does not prove a fill. The OrderSend documentation requires evaluation of the result structure and subsequent events. Check the quantity actually executed, not just requested. When reducing risk, use the correct position-closing operation. An opposite sell can create another position on a hedging account. The procedure after a lost response is developed in the guide to mobile account operation.

Which code should you check: MT4 or MT5?

Numbers from the two platforms are not interchangeable. MQL4 retrieves an error through GetLastError(); a MQL5 request result contains retcode. The pairs below identify similar problem categories, not identical handling of every operation. They come from the official MQL4 and MQL5 lists.

Save the message text and the intended operation: a new entry, modification or closure. A new price proposal is covered in the article on requotes.

Why can a price look correct while the stop is invalid?

Separate the platform point, minimum price increment and required distance in the specification. Decimal places describe formatting, not the entire valid price grid. MT5 documentation distinguishes Point, Tick size, Stops Level and Freeze Level. Stops Level concerns minimum distance; Freeze Level restricts operations within a freezing area. One cannot replace the other.

If entry were at the stated Ask, the distance to the corrected stop would be 0.00030. For 10,000 base-currency units, planned price loss is 3 USD rather than 2.70 USD at the original level. We assume USD valuation and exact fills solely for arithmetic, excluding costs and slippage. Recalculate volume or decline the entry. Moving the stop without recalculating increases the loss budget.

MT4 documentation cautions that zero MODE_STOPLEVEL may mean no restriction or a level dynamically controlled by the server. Zero is not a promise that every stop will be accepted. Read fresh quotes before another attempt; the market need not remain at the previous snapshot. the stop loss and take profit article develops the price-side rules.

For a rejected modification, also read the freezing area: MODE_FREEZELEVEL in MT4 or SYMBOL_TRADE_FREEZE_LEVEL in MT5. Record its value and unit. Changing the decimal formatting in the form does not reduce that operational restriction.

Does a correct volume step solve the problem?

Check minimum, maximum and increment separately for the lot, the position-volume unit. In our own model, minimum volume is 0.10 lot and the step is 0.01. A calculated 0.04 is a step multiple but remains below the minimum. Raising it to 0.10 increases exposure 2.5 times. That change does not repair the original plan.

Available margin answers a different question from stop-loss risk. Do not respond to insufficient funds by selecting higher leverage. Record the permissible quantity, cost and account reserve, and reject a configuration that breaches your limit. For a partial closure, also check the quantity remaining after the operation. the position-sizing article shows the complete calculation.

What should you check when trading is disabled or prices are missing?

Start with the correct account, server and full symbol, including any suffix. Read the session for that instrument; another pair's hours or another venue's schedule do not settle the issue. Check the last quote time, connection state and permitted operations. A close-only mode is not a reason to use a new opposite entry as a workaround.

For an automated program, separate terminal consent, program settings and server permissions. Working quotes do not prove permission to trade. Do not enable every permission blindly. If the cause is unclear, prepare a support request containing platform/version, masked account identifier, symbol, time with time zone, request type, parameters and exact response. Passwords and login codes do not belong in that request.

A technically valid order can still breach the risk plan. Recalculate planned loss after every change to price or volume.

What to do after closing this article?

1. Create one incident record. Separate the original request, response and confirmed account state. Record known facts and missing fields. Do not infer rejection or execution from an expectation alone; use the provider's official channel when the state remains unclear.
2. Copy the specification on demo. Record point, tick size, stop distance, minimum volume and volume step. Calculate one hypothetical level without submitting a trade. Then inspect the form; do not deliberately generate errors on a funded account.
3. Compare the plan before and after correction. Include the new distance, quantity, costs and margin. If the correction breaches your limit, stop that configuration. The exercise aims for a correct diagnosis, not a green confirmation at any price.