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Label Element Value
Prospectus [Line Items] rr_ProspectusLineItems  
Document Type dei_DocumentType 485BPOS
Document Period End Date dei_DocumentPeriodEndDate Mar. 03, 2022
Entity Registrant Name dei_EntityRegistrantName Innovator ETFs Trust
Entity Central Index Key dei_EntityCentralIndexKey 0001415726
Entity Inv Company Type dei_EntityInvCompanyType N-1A
Amendment Flag dei_AmendmentFlag false
Document Creation Date dei_DocumentCreationDate Mar. 04, 2022
Document Effective Date dei_DocumentEffectiveDate Mar. 04, 2022
Innovator Buffer Step-Up Strategy ETF  
Prospectus [Line Items] rr_ProspectusLineItems  
Trading Symbol dei_TradingSymbol BSTP
Risk/Return [Heading] rr_RiskReturnHeading Innovator Buffer Step-Up Strategy ETF
Objective [Heading] rr_ObjectiveHeading Investment Objective
Objective, Primary [Text Block] rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock

The Fund seeks to provide investors with investment exposure to the price return of the SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust, subject to potential investment gains up to a limit (prior to taking into account management fees and other fees), while providing the potential for downside protection against investment losses up to a limit (prior to taking into account management fees and other fees).

 

Expense [Heading] rr_ExpenseHeading Fees and Expenses of the Fund
Expense Narrative [Text Block] rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock

This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

 

Operating Expenses Caption [Text] rr_OperatingExpensesCaption Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Portfolio Turnover [Heading] rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading Portfolio Turnover
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block] rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it purchases and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover will cause the Fund to incur additional transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the example, may affect the Fund’s performance. Because the Fund has not yet commenced operations, portfolio turnover information is unavailable at this time.

 

 

Expense Example [Heading] rr_ExpenseExampleHeading Example
Expense Example Narrative [Text Block] rr_ExpenseExampleNarrativeTextBlock

This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.

 

This example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain at current levels. This example does not include the brokerage commissions that investors may pay to buy and sell Shares.

 

Strategy [Heading] rr_StrategyHeading Principal Investment Strategies
Strategy Narrative [Text Block] rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock

The Fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) that seeks to provide risk-managed investment exposure to the SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust (the “Underlying ETF”).  The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing substantially all of its assets in exchange-traded options contracts on the Underlying ETF (the “Options Portfolio”).  The Fund’s investment adviser is Innovator Capital Management, LLC (“Innovator or the Adviser”) and the Fund’s investment sub-adviser is Milliman Financial Risk Management LLC (“Milliman or the Sub-Adviser”).  Through the Options Portfolio, the Fund will seek to participate in the price return of the Underlying ETF, subject to investment gains up to a limit (prior to taking into account management fees and other fees), and provide protection against Underlying ETF losses up to a limit (prior to taking into account management fees and other fees). The Sub-Adviser will actively monitor the performance of the Options Portfolio and, as described below, rebalance or “step-up” the portfolio to protect capital or capture portfolio gains experienced by the Fund, depending on its evaluation of market conditions.  There is no guarantee the Fund will be successful in implementing this strategy.

 

The Underlying ETF is an exchange-traded unit investment trust that uses a full replication strategy, meaning it invests entirely in the S&P 500® Index. The investment objective of the Underlying ETF is to seek to provide investment results that, before expenses, correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the S&P 500® Index, which includes five hundred (500) selected companies, all of which are listed on national stock exchanges and spans over 24 separate industry groups. The S&P 500® Index is rebalanced quarterly and reconstituted annually. Through its Options Portfolio, the Fund will have exposure to companies in the information technology sector. The Fund will not receive or benefit from any dividend payments made by the Underlying ETF.

 

An option contract gives the purchaser of the option, in exchange for the premium paid, the right to purchase (for a call option) or sell (for a put option) the underlying asset at a specified price (the “strike price”) on a specified date (the “expiration date”).  The Fund intends to implement its investment strategy through an Options Portfolio comprised of FLexible EXchange® Options (“FLEX Options”) that reference the Underlying ETF with one-year expiration dates.  The Fund’s NAV is dependent on the value of the FLEX Options, which is based principally upon the price of the Underlying ETF and the time remaining until the expiration date of the FLEX Options.  As the price of the Underlying ETF changes and time moves towards the expiration date of the FLEX Options (the final day of the one-year term of the FLEX Options), the value of the FLEX Options, and therefore the Fund’s NAV, will change.  The Sub-Adviser seeks to specifically select the strike price for each FLEX Option contract such that if the FLEX Options were exercised on the expiration date, the Fund’s NAV would be provided with downside protection (the “Buffer”) and a maximum gain potential on the price return of the Underlying ETF.  The Buffer seeks to provide protection against the first 9% of Underlying ETF losses over the duration of its one-year contract. At the one-year expiration or step-up reset of the Options Portfolio, the Sub-Adviser will purchase an Options Portfolio that seeks to provide for a Buffer of 9% of Underlying ETF losses over the duration of the new one-year expiration date.  There is no guarantee that the Sub-Adviser will be successful in its attempt to provide a Buffer.  The maximum gain potential and the Buffer of Underlying ETF performance that the Options Portfolio seeks to provide are prior to taking into account annual Fund management fees, transaction fees and any extraordinary expenses incurred by the Fund.  These expenses will have the effect of reducing the maximum gain potential amount and Buffer amount experienced by shareholders.

 

 

Please note, as further described below, the Fund does not expect that the Options Portfolio will be held until the expiration date of the FLEX OptionsInstead, the Sub-Adviser will seek to opportunistically manage the Funds investment exposure by periodically terminating its FLEX Options investments earlier than its one-year expiration date and immediately reset the Funds Options Portfolio for a new one-year period.  Both the maximum gain potential and the sought-after Buffer are measured from the price of the Underlying ETF at the time the FLEX Option contracts are into by the Fund and has the potential to be fully provided only at the expiration date of its one-year options contracts.  As a result, the degree to which a shareholder may benefit from the Fund’s potential for participating in the price return of the Underlying ETF and the Buffer against Underlying ETF losses will depend on the time at which the investor purchases Shares of the Fund and the Sub-Adviser’s determination of when to reset the Options Portfolio.

 

The Fund does not pursue a defined outcome strategy.  Defined outcome strategies seek to produce pre-determined investment outcomes based upon the performance of an underlying security over a specific period of time (e.g., one year).  The Fund does not seek to achieve the full one-year investment outcomes of the Options Portfolio and will not seek to provide a set level of investment outcomes over a stated time period.  Unlike other ETFs that utilize a defined outcome investment strategy, the Fund does not seek to provide shareholders with a set Buffer percentage and maximum upside potential over any specified time period.   Shareholders will experience investment results that are very different than if the Fund held the Options Portfolio for its contract duration. 

 

Step-Up Strategy

 

The Fund’s “step-up” investment strategy seeks to help a Fund’s shareholder offset the timing risks inherent in owning an options package for one year.  The successful implementation of the step-up investment strategy is not guaranteed.  As explained further below, the Options Portfolio seeks to track the price performance of the Underlying ETF, subject to the sought-after Buffer and maximum upside performance potential that are established upon the execution of the option contracts.  As a result of the performance of the FLEX Options contracts during the term of the options contract (the value of which is derived from, in part, the value of the Underlying ETF’s share price), the Fund may have little or no upside available for the remainder of the options contract term, because the Underlying ETF’s share price has increased in value to a point at or near the strike price of the sold options, or little or no ability to benefit from the Buffer, because the Underlying ETF’s share price has decreased in value by more than the downside protection. With the step-up investment strategy, the Fund may, at the end of each month, sell the then-current Options Portfolio and immediately enter into new FLEX Options contracts that establish a new one-year duration.  In doing so, the Fund will continue to have the potential to increase in a market environment where the value of the Underlying ETF is steadily increasing. Likewise, the Fund will have the potential to derive continued benefit from a Buffer in a market environment where the Underlying ETF is steadily decreasing, as it will have the ability to reset the Options Portfolio at the end of each month for a new 9% Buffer of Underlying ETF losses that the Options Portfolio seeks to protect over the duration of each one-year contract term.  The ability to provide downside protection as part of the implementation of the Funds step-up investment strategy may not be successful.

 

For the duration of the Fund’s existing Options Portfolio, the Sub-Adviser will actively review the performance of the Fund at each month-end to determine whether to step-up the Options Portfolio.  The Sub-Adviser will consider the price movements of the Underlying ETF, the changes in the Fund’s NAV, market volatility, time remaining until the expiration of the FLEX Options contracts and strike prices of the replacement FLEX Options contracts when evaluating whether to reset the Options Portfolio.  To the extent the Fund’s NAV increases (generally a range from 2% to 6%) or decreases (generally a range from -1% to -5%) from the Fund’s NAV at the commencement of the term of the existing Options Portfolio, the Sub-Adviser will seek to realize any gains experienced by the Fund or Buffer used by the Fund by resetting the Fund’s Options Portfolio and, in doing so, “step-up” the Fund’s upside potential and Buffer. The Sub-Adviser will also purchase and sell FLEX Options over the course of the month that have the same or similar terms (i.e., strike price and expiration date) as the then-current Options Portfolio as necessary to manage any creations or redemptions of “Creation Units” (as defined below).  The Fund’s step-up investment strategy is expected to cause the Fund to have a higher portfolio turnover rate than funds that do not actively reset its options portfolio prior to expiration. 

 

 

The following chart contains a hypothetical illustration of the Fund’s step-up mechanism. The chart is provided for illustrative purposes only. There is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful in its attempt to step-up the Funds Options Portfolio. The chart is not intended to predict or project the performance or operationality of the Fund.

 

 

 

a03.jpg

 

 

Options Portfolio

 

The Fund will invest in an Options Portfolio consisting of FLEX Options that reference the Underlying ETF with rotating expiration dates of approximately one year.  The Options Portfolio is designed to produce investment outcomes only for the duration of its one-year options contracts and not for any different period of time.  As described above, the Fund does not seek to achieve the full one-year investment outcomes of the Options Portfolio, as the Sub-Adviser intends to opportunistically reset the Options Portfolio prior to the one-year expiration date of the FLEX Options. 

 

The Sub-Adviser seeks to specifically select the strike price for each FLEX Option contract such that if the FLEX Options were exercised on the expiration date (the final day of the one-year term), the Fund’s NAV would be subject to the Buffer and maximum gains on the performance of the Underlying ETF’s share price over the duration of the options contract, as follows:

 

 

In the event that the Underlying ETF decreases in value by less than 9% over the duration of the Options Portfolio, the Options Portfolio seeks to provide investment return of 0%.

 

 

In the event that the Options Portfolio decreases in value by more than 9% over the duration of the Options Portfolio, the Options Portfolio seeks to provide investment return that is 9% less than the return experienced by the Underlying ETF.

 

 

 

In the event that the Underlying ETF increases in value over the duration of the Options Portfolio, the Options Portfolio seeks to provide investment returns that match the performance of the Underlying ETF, up to a maximum percentage return the Fund can achieve for the duration of the Options Portfolio, which is dependent on prevailing market conditions at the times the Fund enters into the FLEX Options.

 

While it is very unlikely that the Options Portfolio will be held until the expiration date of the FLEX Options, changes in the value of the Options Portfolio will impact the Fund’s NAV.  The Fund’s NAV is dependent on the value of the FLEX Options, which is based principally upon the price of the Underlying ETF and the time remaining until the expiration date of the FLEX Options.  As the price of the Underlying ETF changes and time moves towards the expiration date of the FLEX Options, the value of the FLEX Options, and therefore the Fund’s NAV, will change.  The Sub-Adviser anticipates the Fund’s NAV will move in the same direction as the price movements of the Underlying ETF.  However there is no guarantee that the Funds NAV will move in the same direction as the price movements of the Underlying ETF and it is not expected for the Funds NAV to directly correlate on a day-to-day basis with the returns experienced by the Underlying ETF. A component of an option’s value is the number of days remaining until its expiration date.  The amount of time remaining until the option contract’s expiration date affects the impact of the Buffer on the Fund’s NAV, which may not be in full effect until the expiration date of the Fund’s options contracts. Therefore, while changes in the price of the Underlying ETF will result in changes to the Fund’s NAV, the Sub-Adviser generally anticipates that the rate of change in the Fund’s NAV will be less than that experienced by the Underlying ETF until the expiration date of the options contracts.

 

Because the Funds investment strategy is not designed to hold the Options Portfolio to its expiration date, shareholders will experience investment results that are very different than if the Fund held the Options Portfolio for its contract duration.  Shareholders may realize losses on price decreases of the Underlying ETF of less than the 9% Buffer and may lose their entire investment.  These potential losses are possible even if a shareholder remained in the Fund for a one-year period after an Options Portfolio was established, as it is likely that the Options Portfolio will reset during that time. 

 

The Options Portfolio is designed to protect against Underlying ETF losses and provide for maximum gain potential based upon the price of the Underlying ETF at the time the FLEX Option contracts are into by the Fund.  The Sub-Adviser will seek to realize gains experienced by the Fund (which are limited to the maximum gain potential) due to price movements of the Underlying ETF or realize the Buffer used by the Fund due to price movements of the Underlying ETF by resetting the Fund’s Options Portfolio and the Fund’s upside potential and Buffer.  However, the degree to which a shareholder may benefit from the Options Portfolio’s Underlying ETF upside potential and Buffer against Underlying ETF losses will depend on the time at which the investor purchases Shares of the Fund.  At any given time after Sub-Adviser resets the Options Portfolio there may be limited upside potential or Buffer remaining due to the price performance of the Underlying ETF (and therefore, the value of the FLEX Options).  If the price of the Underlying ETF is near or has exceeded the strike prices of the Fund’s Options Portfolio, such investor may have little to no upside potential until if and when the Sub-Adviser determines to step-up the Fund’s Options Portfolio, and would still remain vulnerable to significant downside risk before the sought-after protection from the Buffer began.  Similarly, if the Underlying ETF has decreased in price significantly to equal or exceed the Fund’s anticipated Buffer, the shareholder would also remain vulnerable to significant downside risk and would receive no benefit from the Buffer. If a shareholder purchases Shares after the Buffer has been used and prior to the Fund resetting its Options Portfolio, a shareholder may lose their entire investment.

 

 

General Information About FLEX Options

 

FLEX Options are customizable exchange-traded option contracts guaranteed for settlement by the Options Clearing Corporation (the “OCC”). The OCC guarantees performance by each of the counterparties to the FLEX Options, becoming the “buyer for every seller and the seller for every buyer,” protecting clearing members and options traders from counterparty risk.

 

The Fund’s FLEX Options reference the Underlying ETF and are cash-settled. Cash-settled options give the Fund the right to receive the cash value of the Underlying ETF’s share price (for purchased call options), the right to deliver the cash value of the Underlying ETF’s share price (for purchased put options), the obligation to deliver the cash value of the Underlying ETF’s share price (for sold call options) and the obligation to receive the cash value of the Underlying ETF’s share price (for sold put options). The FLEX Options held by the Fund are European style options, which are exercisable at the strike price only on the FLEX Option expiration date.

 

To the extent the Underlying ETF is considered to be concentrated (i.e., holds 25% or more of its total assets) in the securities of a particular industry or group of industries, the Fund will concentrate to approximately the same extent. As of the date of this prospectus, through its investment in the Underlying ETF Portfolio and its usage of FLEX Options, the Fund has significant exposure to the information technology sector.

 

The Fund is classified as “non-diversified” under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”).

 

Risk [Heading] rr_RiskHeading Principal Risks
Risk Narrative [Text Block] rr_RiskNarrativeTextBlock

You could lose money by investing in the Fund. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental agency. There can be no assurance that the Fund’s investment objectives will be achieved.

 

Step-Up Strategy Risk. The Fund seeks to provide risk-managed investment exposure to the Underlying ETF through its step-up investment strategy. Because the step-up strategy makes it very unlikely that the Fund will hold an option contract to its expriation, shareholders will likely experience investment results that are very different than if the Fund held the options contracts until expiration and/or those of the Underlying ETF. There is also no guarantee the Fund will be successful in implementing this strategy.

 

In order to provide the Buffer, the Fund’s strategy is subject to maximum potential gains. This maximum potential gain will likely change at each resetting of the Option’s Portfolio. In the event an investor purchases Shares after the FLEX Option contracts were entered into and prior to the time the Sub-Adviser determines to step-up the Options Portfolio or the expiration of such option contracts, there may be little or no ability for that investor to experience an investment gain on their Shares or little or no ability to benefit from a Buffer protection of the Option Portfolio until the Sub-Adviser rebalances the Fund’s Options Portfolio. However, there is no guarantee that, at the end of any given month, the Fund will be able to enter into a more advantageous Options Portfolio and effectively implement the step-up mechanism.

 

 

In addition, the Fund’s step-up strategy may result in performance over certain periods of time that is lower than that of the Underlying ETF or of a fund that is designed to hold an options portfolio until expiration. Because the value of the Options Portfolio does not increase or decrease at the same rate as the Underlying ETF’s share price on a day-to-day basis (although they generally move in the same direction) there may be periods of time in which the Fund’s NAV underperforms the price return of the Underlying ETF. In this situation, if the Sub-Adviser rebalances the Options Portfolio prior to its one-year expiration in accordance with the step-up strategy, the Fund may have underperformed the Underlying ETF for that period of time. Similarly, the Sub-Adviser may elect to reset the Fund’s Options Portfolio at a point in time in which the Fund has utilized all or a portion of its Buffer. While this will provide shareholders with the potential of an additional Buffer, the Options Portfolio would simultaneously reset its maximum gain potential and could lower the Fund’s upside performance potential over certain time periods.

 

Buffer Risk. There can be no guarantee that the Fund will be successful in implementing its strategy to provide Buffer protection with its investment in the Options Portfolio. A shareholder may lose their entire investment. The Buffer is provided at the expiration of the options contracts. Any interim losses experienced by the Underlying ETF may be experienced by the Fund and its shareholders. Because the Options Portfolio provides a Buffer against the first 9% of Underlying ETF losses measured from the time in which the Fund enters into the FLEX Options contracts and only for the duration of the one-year term of the options contract, it is possible that, during the term of any Options Portfolio, shareholders will realize some losses on price decreases of the Underlying ETF. These potential losses are possible even if a shareholder remained in the Fund for a one-year period after an Options Portfolio was established, as it is likely that the Options Portfolio will reset during that time. The Fund does not provide principal protection or non-principal protection, and an investor may experience significant losses on its investment, including the loss of its entire investment.

 

Upside Participation Risk.  There can be no guarantee that the Fund will be successful in its strategy to provide shareholders with a total return that correlates to increases in the price of the Underlying ETF over time.  The Fund may realize different returns than the price return of the Underlying ETF until the expiration of the options contracts.  In the event the Sub-Adviser utilizes the Fund’s step-up mechanism and resets the Options Portfolio and there is a difference between the NAV performance of the Fund and the price return of the Underlying ETF, such difference would result in a shareholder experiencing different returns than the Underlying ETF. 

 

FLEX Options Risk. The Fund will utilize FLEX Options issued and guaranteed for settlement by the OCC. The Fund bears the risk that the OCC will be unable or unwilling to perform its obligations under the FLEX Options contracts. In the unlikely event that the OCC becomes insolvent or is otherwise unable to meet its settlement obligations, the Fund could suffer significant losses. Additionally, FLEX Options may be less liquid than certain other securities such as standardized options. In less liquid market for the FLEX Options, the Fund may have difficulty closing out certain FLEX Options positions at desired times and prices. In connection with the creation and redemption of Shares, to the extent market participants are not willing or able to enter into FLEX Option transactions with the Fund at prices that reflect the market price of the Shares, the Fund’s net asset value (“NAV”) and, in turn the share price of the Fund, could be negatively impacted.

 

The Fund may experience substantial downside from specific FLEX Option positions and certain FLEX Option positions may expire worthless. The value of the underlying FLEX Options will be affected by, among others, changes in the Underlying ETF’s share price, changes in interest rates, changes in the actual and implied volatility of the Underlying ETF and the remaining time to until the FLEX Options expire. The value of the FLEX Options does not increase or decrease at the same rate as the Underlying ETF’s share price on a day-to-day basis (although they generally move in the same direction). However, as a FLEX Option approaches its expiration date, its value typically increasingly moves with the value of the Underlying ETF.

 

 

Clearing Member Default Risk. Transactions in some types of derivatives are required to be centrally cleared (“cleared derivatives”). In a transaction involving cleared derivatives, the Fund’s counterparty is a clearing house, such as the OCC, rather than a bank or broker. Since the Fund is not a member of clearing houses and only members of a clearing house (“clearing members”) can participate directly in the clearing house, the Fund will hold cleared derivatives through accounts at clearing members. In cleared derivatives positions, the Fund will make payments (including margin payments) to and receive payments from a clearing house through their accounts at clearing members. Customer funds held at a clearing organization in connection with any options contracts are held in a commingled omnibus account and are not identified to the name of the clearing member’s individual customers. As a result, assets deposited by the Fund with any clearing member as margin for FLEX Options may, in certain circumstances, be used to satisfy losses of other clients of the Fund’s clearing member. In addition, although clearing members guarantee performance of their clients’ obligations to the clearing house, there is a risk that the assets of the Fund might not be fully protected in the event of the clearing member’s bankruptcy, as the Fund would be limited to recovering only a pro rata share of all available funds segregated on behalf of the clearing member’s customers for the relevant account class.

 

Underlying ETF Risk. The Fund will have exposure to an ETF that tracks the performance of the S&P 500® Index through its usage in FLEX Options. Because the value of the FLEX Options held by the Fund are based on the value of the Underlying ETF, the Fund’s investment performance largely depends on the investment performance and associated risks of the Underlying ETF. The Underlying ETF is subject to many of the same structural risks as the Fund that are described in more detail herein, such as Authorized Participant Concentration Risk, Equity Securities Risk, Fluctuation of Net Asset Value Risk, Information Technology Companies Risk, Large Capitalization Companies Risk, Market Maker Risk, Market Risk, Operational Risk and Trading Issues Risk.

 

Information Technology Companies Risk. The Underlying ETF invests significantly in information technology companies, and therefore the Fund has significant exposure to such companies through its exposure to the Underlying ETF by virtue of its investment in FLEX Options that reference the Underlying ETF. Information technology companies face intense competition, both domestically and internationally, which may have an adverse effect on profit margins. Like other technology companies, information technology companies may have limited product lines, markets, financial resources or personnel. The products of information technology companies may face obsolescence due to rapid technological developments, frequent new product introduction, unpredictable changes in growth rates and competition for the services of qualified personnel. Companies in the information technology sector are heavily dependent on patent and intellectual property rights. The loss or impairment of these rights may adversely affect the profitability of these companies. Information technology companies are facing increased government and regulatory scrutiny and may be subject to adverse government or regulatory action.

 

Large Capitalization Companies Risk. The Underlying ETF invests securities of large capitalization companies, and therefore the Fund has significant exposure to such companies through its exposure to the Underlying ETF by virtue of its investment in FLEX Options that reference the Underlying ETF. Large capitalization companies may grow at a slower rate and be less able to adapt to changing market conditions than smaller capitalization companies. Thus, the return on investment in securities of large capitalization companies may be less than the return on investment in securities of small and/or mid capitalization companies. The performance of large capitalization companies also tends to trail the overall market during different market cycles.

 

 

Equity Securities Risk. The Underlying ETF invests in equity securities, and therefore the Fund has significant exposure to equity securities through its exposure to the Underlying ETF by virtue of its investment in FLEX Options that reference the Underlying ETF. Equity securities may decline in value because of declines in the price of a particular holding or the broad stock market. Such declines may relate directly to the issuer of a security or broader economic or market events, including changes in interest rates. The value of shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities the Underlying ETF invests in.

 

Correlation Risk. The FLEX Options held by the Fund will be exercisable at the strike price only on their expiration date. As a FLEX Option approaches its expiration date, its value typically will increasingly move with the value of the Underlying ETF. However, prior to the expiration date, the value of the FLEX Options prior to the expiration date may vary because of related factors other than the value of the Underlying ETF. The value of the FLEX Options will be determined based upon market quotations or using other recognized pricing methods. Factors that may influence the value of the FLEX Options include interest rate changes and implied volatility levels of the Underlying ETF, among others. The value of the FLEX Options held by the Fund typically do not increase or decrease at the same level as the Underlying ETF’s share price on a day-to-day basis due to these factors (although they generally move in the same direction).

 

Investment Objective Risk. Certain circumstances under which the Fund might not achieve its objective include, but are not limited, to (i) if the Fund disposes of FLEX Options, (ii) if the Fund is unable to maintain the proportional relationship based on the number of FLEX Options in the Fund’s portfolio, (iii) significant accrual of Fund expenses in connection with effecting the Fund’s principal investment strategy or (iv) adverse tax law changes affecting the treatment of FLEX Options.

 

Management Risk. The Fund is subject to management risk because it is an actively managed portfolio. The Sub-Adviser will apply investment techniques and risk analyses in making investment decisions for the Fund, but there can be no guarantee that the Fund will meet its investment objective.

 

Market Risk. The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during more prolonged market downturns. Assets may decline in value due to factors affecting financial markets generally or particular asset classes or industries represented in the markets. The value of FLEX Options or other assets may also decline due to general market conditions, economic trends or events that are not specifically related to the issuer of the security or other asset, or due to factors that affect a particular issuer or issuers, country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class. During a general market downturn, multiple asset classes may be negatively affected. Changes in market conditions and interest rates will not have the same impact on all types of securities. Securities, including the Shares, are subject to market fluctuations and liquidity constraints that may be caused by such factors as economic, political, or regulatory developments, changes in interest rates, and/or perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments.

 

 

Counterparty Risk. Counterparty risk is the risk an issuer, guarantor or counterparty of a security in the Fund is unable or unwilling to meet its obligation on the security. Counterparty risk may arise because of the counterparty’s financial condition, market activities, or for other reasons. The Fund may be unable to recover its investment from the counterparty or may obtain a limited and/or delayed recovery. The OCC acts as guarantor and central counterparty with respect to the FLEX Options. As a result, the ability of the Fund to meet its objective depends on the OCC being able to meet its obligations. In the unlikely event that the OCC becomes insolvent or is otherwise unable to meet its settlement obligations, the Fund could suffer significant losses.

 

Non-Diversification Risk. The Fund is classified as “non-diversified” under the 1940 Act. As a result, the Fund is only limited as to the percentage of its assets which may be invested in the securities of any one issuer by the diversification requirements imposed by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). The Fund may invest a relatively high percentage of its assets in a limited number of issuers. As a result, the Fund may be more susceptible to a single adverse economic or regulatory occurrence affecting one or more of these issuers, experience increased volatility and be highly invested in certain issuers.

 

Market Underperformance Risk. The Fund’s investment strategy may cause the Fund to underperform the Underlying ETF and/or the S&P 500® Index. The underperformance may be a result of management risk or the implementation of the Fund’s investment strategy.

 

Liquidity Risk. In the event that trading in the underlying FLEX Options is limited or absent, the value of the Fund’s FLEX Options may decrease. There is no guarantee that a liquid secondary trading market will exist for the FLEX Options. The trading in FLEX Options may be less deep and liquid than the market for certain other securities, including certain non-customized options. In a less liquid market for the FLEX Options, terminating the FLEX Options may require the payment of a premium or acceptance of a discounted price and may take longer to complete. In a less liquid market for the FLEX Options, the liquidation of a large number of options may more significantly impact the price. A less liquid trading market may adversely impact the value of the FLEX Options and the value of your investment.

 

Valuation Risk. During periods of reduced market liquidity or in the absence of readily available market quotations for the holdings of the Fund, the ability of the Fund to value the FLEX Options becomes more difficult and the judgment of the Fund’s investment adviser (employing the fair value procedures adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Trust (the “Board”)) may play a greater role in the valuation of the Fund’s holdings due to reduced availability of reliable objective pricing data. Consequently, while such determinations may be made in good faith, it may nevertheless be more difficult for the Fund to accurately assign a daily value.

 

 

Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risks arising from a number of factors, including, but not limited to, human error in implementation of the Fund’s investment strategy, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third-parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or systems failures. The Fund and its investment adviser and Sub-Adviser seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures. However, these measures do not address every possible risk and may be inadequate to address these risks.

 

Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. Only an authorized participant (“AP”) may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. The Fund has a limited number of institutions that may act as APs on an agency basis (i.e., on behalf of other market participants). To the extent that APs exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders with respect to the Fund and no other AP is able to step forward to create or redeem “Creation Units” (as defined in “Purchase and Sale of Shares,”) Shares may be more likely to trade at a premium or discount to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or delisting.

 

Market Maker Risk. If the Fund has lower average daily trading volumes, it may rely on a small number of third-party market makers to provide a market for the purchase and sale of Shares. Any trading halt or other problem relating to the trading activity of these market makers could result in a dramatic change in the spread between the Fund’s NAV and the price at which the Shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Shares. In addition, decisions by market makers or APs to reduce their role or step away from these activities in times of market stress could inhibit the effectiveness of the arbitrage process in maintaining the relationship between the underlying values of the Fund’s portfolio securities and the Fund’s market price. This reduced effectiveness could result in Shares trading at a discount to NAV and also in greater than normal intra-day bid-ask spreads for Shares.

 

Portfolio Turnover Risk. High portfolio turnover may result in increased transaction costs to the Fund, including brokerage commissions, dealer markups and other transaction costs on the sale of the securities and on reinvestment in other securities.

 

Trading Issues Risk. Although the Shares are listed for trading on the Exchange, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for such Shares will develop or be maintained. Shares trade on the Exchange at market price that may be below, at or above the Fund’s NAV. Trading in Shares on the Exchange may be halted due to market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make trading in Shares inadvisable. In addition, trading in Shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange “circuit breaker” rules. Market makers are under no obligation to make a market in the Shares, and APs are not obligated to submit purchase or redemption orders for Creation Units. There can be no assurance that the requirements of the Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of the Fund will continue to be met or will remain unchanged.

 

Fluctuation of Net Asset Value Risk. The Fund’s Shares trade on the Exchange at their market price rather than their NAV. The market price may be at, above or below the Fund’s NAV. Differences in market price and NAV may be due, in large part, to the fact that supply and demand forces at work in the secondary trading market for Shares will be closely related to, but not identical to, the same forces influencing the prices of the holdings of the Fund trading individually or in the aggregate at any point in time. These differences can be especially pronounced during times of market volatility or stress. During these periods, the demand for Shares may decrease considerably and cause the market price of Shares to deviate significantly from the Fund’s NAV.

 

 

Cash Transactions Risk. The Fund may effectuate all or a portion of its creations and redemptions for cash, rather than in-kind securities. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects its creations and redemptions only on an in-kind basis. ETFs are able to make in-kind redemptions to avoid being taxed on gains on the distributed portfolio securities at the fund level. A fund that effects redemptions for cash may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. Any recognized gain on these sales by the fund will generally cause such fund to recognize a gain it might not otherwise have recognized, or to recognize such gain sooner than would otherwise be required if it were to distribute portfolio securities only in-kind. The Fund intends to distribute gains that arise by virtue of creations and redemptions being effectuated in cash to shareholders to avoid being taxed on this gain at the fund level and otherwise comply with special tax rules that apply to it. This strategy may cause shareholders to be subject to tax on gains they would not otherwise be subject to, or at an earlier date than if they had made an investment in another ETF. Moreover, cash transactions may have to be carried out over several days if the securities market is relatively illiquid and may involve considerable brokerage fees and taxes. These brokerage fees and taxes, which will be higher than if the Fund sold and redeemed its shares principally in-kind, will be passed on to those purchasing and redeeming Creation Units in the form of creation and redemption transaction fees. In addition, these factors may result in wider spreads between the bid and the offered prices of Fund Shares than for ETFs that distribute portfolio securities in-kind. The Fund’s use of cash for creations and redemptions could also result in dilution to the Fund and increased transaction costs, which could negatively impact the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective.

 

Cyber Security Risk. As the use of Internet technology has become more prevalent in the course of business, the investment industry has become more susceptible to potential operational risks through breaches in cyber security. A breach in cyber security refers to both intentional and unintentional events that may cause the Fund to lose proprietary information, suffer data corruption or lose operational capacity. Such events could cause the Fund to incur regulatory penalties, reputational damage, additional compliance costs associated with corrective measures and/or financial loss. Cyber security breaches may involve unauthorized access to the Fund’s digital information systems through “hacking” or malicious software coding, but may also result from outside attacks such as denial-of-service attacks through efforts to make network services unavailable to intended users. In addition, cyber security breaches of the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or issuers in which the Fund invests, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. The Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security. However, there is no guarantee that such efforts will succeed, especially because the Fund does not directly control the cyber security systems of issuers or third-party service providers.

 

Tax Risk. The Fund intends to elect and to qualify each year to be treated as a regulated investment company (“RIC”) under Subchapter M of the Code. However, the federal income tax treatment of certain aspects of the proposed operations of the Fund are not entirely clear. This includes the tax aspects of the Fund’s options strategy, its hedging strategy, the possible application of the “straddle” rules, and various loss limitation provisions of the Code. If, in any year, the Fund fails to qualify as a RIC under the applicable tax laws, the Fund would be taxed as an ordinary corporation. Certain options on an ETF may not qualify as “Section 1256 contracts” under Section 1256 of the Code, and disposition of such options will likely result in short-term capital gains or losses. The Fund intends to treat any income it may derive from the FLEX Options as “qualifying income” under the provisions of the Code applicable to RICs. In addition, based upon language in the legislative history, the Fund intends to treat the issuer of the FLEX Options as the referenced asset, which, assuming the referenced asset qualifies as a RIC, would allow the Fund to qualify for special rules in the RIC diversification requirements. If the income is not qualifying income or the issuer of the FLEX Options is not appropriately the referenced asset, the Fund could lose its own status as a RIC. In the event that a shareholder purchases Shares of the Fund shortly before a distribution by the Fund, the entire distribution may be taxable to the shareholder even though a portion of the distribution effectively represents a return of the purchase price.

 

 

The Shares will change in value, and you could lose money by investing in the Fund. The Fund may not achieve its investment objective.

 

Risk Lose Money [Text] rr_RiskLoseMoney You could lose money by investing in the Fund.
Risk Not Insured Depository Institution [Text] rr_RiskNotInsuredDepositoryInstitution An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental agency.
Risk Nondiversified Status [Text] rr_RiskNondiversifiedStatus The Fund is classified as “non-diversified” under the 1940 Act. As a result, the Fund is only limited as to the percentage of its assets which may be invested in the securities of any one issuer by the diversification requirements imposed by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). The Fund may invest a relatively high percentage of its assets in a limited number of issuers. As a result, the Fund may be more susceptible to a single adverse economic or regulatory occurrence affecting one or more of these issuers, experience increased volatility and be highly invested in certain issuers.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading] rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading Performance
Performance Narrative [Text Block] rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock

As of the date of this prospectus, the Fund has not yet commenced operations and therefore does not have a performance history. Once available, the Fund’s performance information will be accessible on the Fund’s website at www.innovatoretfs.com and will provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.

 

Performance One Year or Less [Text] rr_PerformanceOneYearOrLess As of the date of this prospectus, the Fund has not yet commenced operations and therefore does not have a performance history.
Performance Availability Website Address [Text] rr_PerformanceAvailabilityWebSiteAddress www.innovatoretfs.com
Innovator Buffer Step-Up Strategy ETF | Innovator Buffer Step-Up Strategy ETF  
Prospectus [Line Items] rr_ProspectusLineItems  
Management Fees (as a percentage of Assets) rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets 0.89%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets none
Other Expenses (as a percentage of Assets): rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets none [1]
Expenses (as a percentage of Assets) rr_ExpensesOverAssets 0.89%
Expense Example, with Redemption, 1 Year rr_ExpenseExampleYear01 $ 90
Expense Example, with Redemption, 3 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear03 $ 282
[1] “Other Expenses” are estimates based on the expenses the Fund expects to incur for the current fiscal year.