 European Securities and Markets Authority, also known as ESMA, has adopted a range of product intervention measures on the provision of CFDs to retail clients. In order to be compliant, TickMill will be implementing these changes on the 21st of July 2018 and will affect retail clients who will see their leverage sharply reduced. Under the new rules, maximum leverage on the opening of a position on major FX pairs will be reduced to 1 to 30, while leverage limits on other instruments will vary from 1 to 20 to 1 to 2, according to the volatility of the underlying asset. Other significant restrictions include a margin closeout rule on an account-by-account basis and negative balance protection on an account-by-account basis. However, if you want to maintain your current levels of leverage and conditions, there may be an option for you. If you qualify as a professional client, you would fall outside the scope of the ESMA changes. Nevertheless, not everyone is eligible to become reclassified as a professional client as there are specific criteria to be met. In order to qualify, you must satisfy at least two out of the three following eligibility criteria. A. You have carried out transactions in significant size on the relevant market at an average frequency of 10 trades per quarter over the previous four quarters. B. The size of your financial instrument's portfolio, defined as including cash deposits and financial instruments, exceeds €500,000. Or C. You work or have worked in the financial sector for at least one year in a professional position, which requires knowledge of leveraged products. If you meet two out of these three requirements, then you could be eligible for professional client status. Keep in mind that after the new measures are implemented, professional clients will receive leverage of up to 1 to 500. However, they will waive other regulatory protections. Some of the protections they will keep include segregation of funds, FSCS protection, access to the financial ombudsman's service and negative balance protection, together with some great benefits, including ultra-low commissions and super-fast execution. If you want to get an edge by becoming a tick-mill professional client and keep trading with some of the best trading conditions in the industry, please contact us.