How to Fix Bybit API Error 10016 & 10017 (Order/Position Not Found) – 2026 Guide

In high-volatility sessions, Bybit quant traders often hit the dreaded Error 10016 (Server Error) or Error 10017 (Order/Position does not exist). These errors are profit-killers, especially when your script tries to close a position that the API engine hasn’t indexed yet.

Here is the technical breakdown and the “State-Sync” solution to keep your bot running.

Step 1: Implement a “Wait-and-Retry” Logic

Never let your script crash on a 10017 error. Use a recursive retry logic with a small backoff (50ms – 200ms).

Step 2: Verify Position State via REST before Execution

Instead of assuming the position exists because your local database says so, always call the /v5/position/list endpoint immediately before a critical exit trade. If the API returns an empty list, your script should trigger a Force Sync or alert the operator.

Here is the original English documentation summary for the Bybit V5 Position List endpoint.

## Endpoint Overview

• Path: /v5/position/list
• Method: GET
• Auth: Required (Private)

---

### Request Parameters

In V5, the category parameter is mandatory to define the product type.

Parameter	Required	Type	Description
category	Yes	string	Product type: linear, inverse, option
symbol	No	string	Symbol name (e.g., BTCUSDT). Returns all if empty
baseCoin	No	string	Base coin. For option only
settleCoin	No	string	Settlement coin. Mandatory for linear if symbol is not passed
limit	No	integer	Limit per page. [1, 200], default: 20
cursor	No	string	Cursor used for pagination

---

### Key Response Fields

The response data is nested under result.list. Key fields include:

• positionIdx: Position index. 0: One-way Mode; 1: Hedge Mode Buy side; 2: Hedge Mode Sell side.
• size: Position size.
• avgPrice: Average entry price.
• positionValue: Position value.
• leverage: Current effective leverage.
• markPrice: Latest mark price.
• unrealisedPnl: Unrealised PNL.
• liqPrice: Estimated liquidation price.
• positionStatus: Position status (Normal, Liq, Adl).
• adRankIndex: ADL rank index (1 to 5).

---

### Important Notes

1. Mandatory Filters: For Linear contracts, if you do not provide a symbol, you must provide settleCoin (e.g., USDT or USDC) to fetch multiple positions.
2. Hedge Mode: If your account is in Hedge Mode, a single symbol will return two entries distinguished by positionIdx (1 and 2).
3. Data Consistency: The avgPrice might be slightly different from the entry price shown on the web UI due to how the system calculates floating-point values or fees.

Official Documentation:Bybit API V5 – Get Position Info

Step 3: Switch to WebSocket for Real-time Updates

If you are still relying on REST polling for position updates, you are trading in the past.

• Subscribe to the position and execution private topics via WebSocket.
• This reduces the “10017” lag by up to 300ms compared to REST.

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