How to cancel pending or partial auction orders on Kite
Auction market orders on NSE / BSE are placed during a specific intraday window (14:00 to 15:00 IST for NSE equity short-delivery auctions). Kite lets you cancel pending or partial auction orders within the window. After the window closes (15:00), no cancellation is possible.
Conflict-of-interest disclosure. This guide is published by WebNotes Editorial Team for informational purposes. WebNotes has no commercial relationship with Zerodha.
Step-by-step procedure
Six steps per the procedure infobox. The notes below cover the auction mechanics and the cancellation constraints.
When auctions happen
NSE conducts an auction session daily from approximately 14:00 to 15:00 IST. The auction is used by the exchange to settle short-delivery cases:
- If a seller failed to deliver on T+1, the exchange auctions the shares to fulfil the buyer’s obligation.
- The auction price can differ from the regular market price, often at a premium.
Buyers in the auction are participants willing to deliver the shares at the auction price.
Placing an auction order
To participate, you place a sell order in the auction segment via Kite > Orders > Auction. The order specifies:
- Scrip (NSE symbol).
- Quantity available for delivery.
- Limit price.
The order enters the auction order book and waits for matching.
Cancellation rules
| Order state | Cancellable? |
|---|---|
| Pending (no execution) | Yes, until 15:00 |
| Partial (some executed, rest pending) | Yes, for the pending portion only |
| Fully executed | No |
| Cancelled (already) | n/a |
Once matched and executed, no cancellation is possible (the trade is committed).
Partial fill handling
If your 100-share auction order partially matches (e.g., 60 executed):
- The 60-share execution is irreversible.
- The remaining 40 shares stay in the order book.
- You can cancel the 40 portion; the 60 portion is now your obligation to deliver.
Why cancel
Common reasons to cancel an auction order:
- Realised the auction price is unfavourable.
- Need the shares for a different trade.
- Auction not a useful participation for the day’s price action.
What happens after window close
After 15:00, the auction matches definitively:
- Unmatched orders are cancelled by the system.
- Matched orders settle through the regular T+1 cycle.
You cannot cancel an order after the window closes; if a pending order exists at 15:00, it will either match (and you must deliver) or be auto-cancelled by the system.
See also
- Auction market on NSE / BSE
- Multiple offers at the same price in auction
- How to track previous auction trades on Console
- Kite Positions tab explained
- Kite Holdings tab explained
- How to quick exit holdings / positions
- How to group / filter positions on Kite
- Short delivery on Indian exchanges
- T+1 settlement in Indian equity
- Day’s P&L on holdings calculation
- Realised vs unrealised profit calculation
- Margin available / used / cash on Kite funds
- Margin required on order window
- SPAN and exposure margin on Kite
- Delivery margin field on Kite
- Settlement (F&O)
- Auto square-off on Zerodha
- How to add scrips to the Kite marketwatch
- Market depth view on Kite
- How to fix LTP zero on marketwatch
- How to use the marketwatch on Kite
- Limit order
- Market order
- Order types in Indian equity
- National Stock Exchange
- Bombay Stock Exchange
- Kite (Zerodha)
- Kite web
- Kite mobile app
- Zerodha
- Zerodha Console
External references
References
- NSE India, Auction session for short-delivery resolution, nseindia.com.
- Zerodha Support, Auction orders on Kite, support.zerodha.com.
- SEBI, T+1 settlement and short-delivery framework, sebi.gov.in.