Can Assignment Happen before the Option’s Expiration Date?
Yes, assignment can happen before expiration only for American-style options. The option buyer has the right to exercise at any time up to expiration.
Early assignment is most common when a call option is deep in-the-money, or just before the underlying asset's ex-dividend date, as the buyer may want to capture the dividend.
Glossar
Assignment
Obligation ⎊ Assignment in options trading refers to the mandatory fulfillment of the contract terms imposed upon the option seller, or writer, when the buyer chooses to exercise their right.
Before Expiration
Horizon ⎊ The temporal window preceding an option's final settlement date dictates the rate of time decay, or theta.
Early Assignment
Assignment ⎊ In the realm of cryptocurrency derivatives and options trading, early assignment denotes the preemptive exercise of an option contract prior to its standard expiration date.