485BPOS

 

As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 28, 2023

1933 Act Registration No. 333-171759

1940 Act Registration No. 811-22519

United States

Securities and Exchange Commission

Washington, D.C. 20549

Form N-1A
 

Registration Statement Under the Securities Act of 1933	[   ]
Pre-Effective Amendment No. __	[   ]
Post-Effective Amendment No. 93	[X]
and/or
Registration Statement Under the Investment Company Act of 1940	[   ]
Amendment No. 94	[X]

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX^® Fund II

(Exact name of registrant as specified in charter)

120 East Liberty Drive, Suite 400

Wheaton, Illinois 60187

(Address of Principal Executive Offices) (Zip Code)

Registrant’s Telephone Number, including Area Code: (800) 621-1675

W. Scott Jardine, Esq., Secretary

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX^® Fund II

First Trust Advisors L.P.

120 East Liberty Drive, Suite 400

Wheaton, Illinois 60187

(Name and Address of Agent for Service)

Copy to:

Eric F. Fess, Esq.

Chapman and Cutler LLP

320 South Canal Street

Chicago, Illinois 60606

It is proposed that this filing will become effective (check appropriate box):

[   ] immediately upon filing pursuant to paragraph (b)

[X] on May 1, 2023 pursuant to paragraph (b)

[   ] 60 days after filing pursuant to paragraph (a)(1)

[   ] on (date) pursuant to paragraph (a)(1)

[   ] 75 days after filing pursuant to paragraph (a)(2)

[   ] on (date) pursuant to paragraph (a)(2) of Rule 485.

If appropriate, check the following box:

[   ] this post-effective amendment designates a new effective date for a previously filed post-effective amendment.

Contents of Post-Effective Amendment No. 93

This Post-Effective Amendment to the Registration Statement comprises the following papers and contents:

The Facing Sheet

Part A - Prospectus for First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust China AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Europe AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX^® ETF, First Trust Germany AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF, First Trust Japan AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX^® Fund and First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX^® Fund

Part B - Statement of Additional Information for First Trust Asia Pacific Ex-Japan AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust China AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Europe AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX^® ETF, First Trust Germany AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF, First Trust Japan AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX^® Fund and First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX^® Fund

Part C - Other Information

Signatures

Index to Exhibits

Exhibits

 

First Trust

Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

 

Prospectus 

FUND NAME	TICKER SYMBOL	EXCHANGE
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	FPA	Nasdaq
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund	FBZ	Nasdaq
First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund	FCA	Nasdaq
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund	FDT	Nasdaq
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	FDTS	Nasdaq
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund	FEM	Nasdaq
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	FEMS	Nasdaq
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund	FEP	Nasdaq
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF	FEUZ	Nasdaq
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund	FGM	Nasdaq
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF	NFTY	Nasdaq
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	FJP	Nasdaq
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund	FLN	Nasdaq
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund	FSZ	Nasdaq
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund	FKU	Nasdaq

 

Each of the funds listed above (each a “Fund,” and collectively, the “Funds”) lists and principally trades its shares on either The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC (“Nasdaq" or the “Exchange”). Market prices may differ to some degree from the net asset value of the shares. Unlike mutual funds, each Fund issues and redeems shares at net asset value, only in large blocks of shares called "Creation Units." 

Each Fund is a series of First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II (the “Trust”) and an exchange-traded index fund organized as a separate series of a registered management investment company. 

Except when aggregated in Creation Units, the shares are not redeemable securities of the Funds. 

The Securities and Exchange Commission has not approved or disapproved of these securities or passed upon the adequacy or accuracy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

NOT FDIC INSURED MAY LOSE VALUE NO BANK GUARANTEE

May 1, 2023

 

Table of Contents 

Summary Information
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FPA)	3
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund (FBZ)	13
First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund (FCA)	22
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund (FDT)	31
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FDTS)	40
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund (FEM)	49
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FEMS)	58
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund (FEP)	68
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF (FEUZ)	76
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund (FGM)	84
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF (NFTY)	92
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FJP)	100
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund (FLN)	109
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund (FSZ)	118
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund (FKU)	127
Additional Information on the Funds' Investment Objectives and Strategies	136
Fund Investments	138
Risks of Investing in the Funds	139
Fund Organization	152
Management of the Funds	152
How to Buy and Sell Shares	153
Dividends, Distributions and Taxes	154
Federal Tax Matters	154
Distribution Plan	158
Net Asset Value	158
Fund Service Providers	159
Index Providers	159
Disclaimers	159
Premium/Discount Information	161
Total Return Information	161
Financial Highlights	167
Other Information	182

Summary Information

First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FPA)

Investment Objective

The First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index (the “Index”).

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment) 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) None

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) 

Management Fees	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	0.00%
Other Expenses	0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	0.80%

Example

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

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: 

1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
$82	$255	$444	$990

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 82% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.

The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in the Asia Pacific region excluding Japan, as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure

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First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FPA)

stock market performance of companies in the Asia Pacific region excluding Japan, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.

According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:

1.

The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.

2.

The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; stocks of companies in emerging markets and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.329 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.

3.

For South Korean stocks currently at their foreign ownership limit, the direct listed security is replaced in the universe with its depositary receipt if available (subject to above liquidity requirements). If none is available, the stock is excluded.

4.

The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.

5.

The top 100 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 4 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.

6.

The Index is subject to sector/country weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector/country percentages of the Base Index. A stock will be moved to a lower-weighted quintile when its weight, added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector/country, is greater than the sector/country weighting constraint. Stocks that fail the sector/country weighting constraints at the lowest quintile will be removed from the Index.

The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 101 securities and the Fund had significant investments in materials companies, Australian issuers, South Korean issuers and Asian issuers, although this may change from time to time. In order to gain exposure to certain Chinese companies that are included in the Index but are unavailable to direct investment by foreign investors, the Fund invests significantly in non-Chinese shell companies that have created structures known as variable interest entities (“VIEs”) in order to gain exposure to such Chinese companies. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.

Principal Risks

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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

ASIA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian issuers. Many Asian economies have experienced rapid growth and industrialization, and there is no assurance that this growth rate will be maintained. Some Asian economies are highly dependent on trade, and economic conditions in other countries within and outside Asia can impact these economies. Certain of these economies may be adversely affected by trade or policy disputes with its major trade partners. There is also a high concentration of market capitalization and trading volume in a small number of issuers representing a limited number of industries, as well as a high concentration of investors and financial intermediaries. Certain Asian countries have experienced and may in the future experience expropriation and nationalization of assets, confiscatory taxation, currency manipulation, political instability, armed conflict and social instability as a result of religious, ethnic, socio-economic and/or political unrest. In particular, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Asian economies. Governments of certain Asian countries

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First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FPA)

have exercised, and continue to exercise, substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector. In certain cases, the government owns or controls many companies, including the largest in the country. Accordingly, government actions could have a significant effect on the issuers of the Fund’s securities or on economic conditions generally. Recent developments in relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on the economy of Asian countries and a commensurately negative impact on the Fund.

ASIA-PACIFIC RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian-Pacific issuers. This includes risks associated with the economic, market, regulatory, political, natural disasters and local risks of the Asia-Pacific region, which are heightened as compared to a fund with a more geographically diversified portfolio. The region has historically been highly dependent on global trade with nations taking strong roles in both the importing and exporting of goods. The respective stock markets in the region tend to have a larger prevalence of smaller companies that are inherently more volatile and less liquid than larger companies. Varying levels of accounting and disclosure standards, restrictions on foreign ownership, minority ownership rights and corporate governance standards are also common for the region.

AUSTRALIA RISK. Investing in securities of Australian companies may involve additional risks. The Australian economy is heavily dependent on the Asian, European and U.S. markets. Reduced spending by any of these economies on Australian products may adversely affect the Australian market. Additionally, Australia is located in a geographic region that has historically been prone to natural disasters. The occurrence of a natural disaster in the region could negatively impact the Australian economy and affect the value of the securities held by the Fund.

AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.

CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund will effect some or all of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects all of its creations and redemptions in-kind. Because the Fund may effect redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of portfolio securities may result in capital gains or losses and may also result in higher brokerage costs.

CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.

CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts

5

First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FPA)

may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.

EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.

GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.

INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.

INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.

INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance,

6

First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FPA)

which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.

INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.

LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.

MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

MATERIALS COMPANIES RISK. Materials and processing companies are involved in the extraction or processing of raw materials such as metals, ore and forestry products. These companies are sensitive to changes in the business cycle and fluctuations in the supply and demand for raw materials. Further, certain materials and processing companies can be affected by shifts in the housing market, as many produced raw materials are components of construction projects. Rising wage costs can also impact companies that rely on skilled labor. In addition, materials and processing companies may be significantly affected by volatility of commodity prices, import controls, worldwide competition, liability for environmental damage, depletion of resources and mandated expenditures for safety and pollution control devices.

NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.

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First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FPA)

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.

OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.

PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.

SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger,

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First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FPA)

more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.

SOUTH KOREA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of South Korean issuers. Substantial political tensions exist between North Korea and South Korea. Escalated tensions involving the two nations and the outbreak of hostilities between the two nations, or even the threat of an outbreak of hostilities, could have a severe adverse effect on the South Korean economy. In addition, South Korea’s economic growth potential has recently been on a decline because of a rapidly aging population and structural problems, among other factors. The South Korean economy is heavily reliant on trading exports, especially to other Asian countries and the U.S., and disruptions or decreases in trade activity could lead to further declines. The South Korean economy’s dependence on the economies of Asia and the U.S. means that a reduction in spending by these economies on South Korean products and services or negative changes in any of these economies may cause an adverse impact on the South Korean economy and therefore, on the Fund’s investments. In addition, South Korea is located in a part of the world that has historically been prone to natural disasters such as earthquakes, hurricanes or tsunamis, and is economically sensitive to environmental events. Any such event may adversely impact South Korea’s economy or business operations of companies in South Korea.

TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.

VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES RISK. In China, direct ownership of companies in certain sectors by foreign individuals and entities is prohibited. In order to allow for foreign investment in these businesses, many Chinese companies have created VIE structures to enable indirect foreign ownership. In such an arrangement, a Chinese operating company typically establishes an offshore shell company in another jurisdiction, such as the Cayman Islands. That shell company enters into service and other contracts with the Chinese issuer or operating company to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese company, then issues shares on an exchange outside of mainland China, and U.S. investors hold stock in the non-Chinese shell company rather than directly in the Chinese issuer or operating company. This arrangement allows U.S. investors, such as the Fund, to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese issuer or operating company through contractual means rather than through formal equity ownership. Because neither the shell company nor the Fund owns actual equity interests in the Chinese operating company, they do not have the voting rights or other types of control that an equity holder would expect to benefit from. Although VIEs are a longstanding industry practice and well known to officials and regulators in China, VIEs are not formally recognized under Chinese law. Intervention by the Chinese government with respect to VIEs could significantly affect the Chinese company’s performance and the enforceability of the VIE’s contractual arrangements that establish the links between the Chinese company and the shell company in which the Fund invests. This could considerably impact the financial condition of the shell company in which the Fund invests by limiting its ability to consolidate the financial results of the Chinese operating company into its own financial statements, as well as make the value of the shares held by the Fund effectively worthless. Further, if Chinese officials prohibit the existence of VIEs, the market value of the Fund’s associated holdings would likely suffer significant, and possibly permanent effects, which could negatively impact the Fund’s net asset value and could result in substantial losses. Further, it is uncertain whether any new laws, rules or regulations relating to VIE structures will be adopted or, if adopted, what impact they would have on the value of the Fund’s shares.

VIEs are also subject to the investment risks associated with the underlying Chinese issuer or operating company. Chinese companies are not subject to the same degree of regulatory requirements or accounting standards and oversight as companies in more developed countries. As a result, information about the Chinese securities and VIEs in which the Fund invests may be less reliable and incomplete. There also may be significant obstacles to obtaining information necessary for investigations into or litigation against Chinese companies and VIEs, and shareholders may have limited legal remedies, which could negatively impact the Fund. Additionally, U.S.-listed VIEs may be delisted if they do not meet U.S. accounting standards and auditor oversight requirements. Delisting would significantly decrease the liquidity and value of the securities, decrease the ability of the Fund to invest in such securities and may increase the cost of the Fund if required to seek alternative markets in which to invest in such securities.

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First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FPA)

Annual Total Return

The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.

On October 13, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of December 15, 2014, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index.

First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund
Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31

 

During the periods shown in the chart above: 

Best Quarter		Worst Quarter
24.28%	June 30, 2020	-30.45%	March 31, 2020

The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.

All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.

Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.

10

First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FPA)

Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022 

	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Since Inception	Inception Date
Return Before Taxes	-15.62%	-3.25%	2.36%	1.65%	4/18/2011
Return After Taxes on Distributions	-17.00%	-4.57%	1.06%	0.42%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	-9.23%	-2.92%	1.27%	0.75%
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-14.51%	-2.24%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq DM Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-13.59%	0.83%	N/A	N/A
MSCI Pacific ex-Japan Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-5.94%	2.18%	3.81%	3.55%

(1)

Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

Management

Investment Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust” or the “Advisor”)

Portfolio Managers

The Fund’s portfolio is managed by a team (the “Investment Committee”) consisting of:

•

Daniel J. Lindquist, Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director of First Trust

•

David G. McGarel, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of First Trust

•

Jon C. Erickson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Roger F. Testin, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Stan Ueland, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Chris A. Peterson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Erik Russo, Vice President of First Trust

The Investment Committee members are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Each Investment Committee member has served as a part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2011, except for Chris A. Peterson and Erik Russo who have served as part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2016 and 2020, respectively.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund issues and redeems shares on a continuous basis, at net asset value, only in large blocks of shares called “Creation Units.” Individual shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Since shares of the Fund trade on securities exchanges in the secondary market at their market price rather than their net asset value, the Fund’s shares may trade at a price greater than (premium) or less than (discount) the Fund’s net asset value. An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”). Recent information, including the Fund’s net asset value, market price, premiums and discounts, bid-ask spreads and the median bid-ask spread for the Fund’s most recent fiscal year, is available online at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions on shares held in a tax-deferred account, while not immediately taxable, will be subject to tax when the shares are no longer held in a tax-deferred account.

11

First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FPA)

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, bank or other financial intermediary (collectively, “intermediaries”), First Trust and First Trust Portfolios L.P., the Fund’s distributor, may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

12

Summary Information

First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund (FBZ)

Investment Objective

The First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Brazil Index (the “Index”).

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment) 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) None

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) 

Management Fees	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	0.00%
Other Expenses	0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	0.80%

Example

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

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: 

1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
$82	$255	$444	$990

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 95% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.

The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in Brazil, as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. Brazil is an emerging market country, as classified by the Index Provider, based on factors such as national income per capita, national market capitalization and national trading volume. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Brazil Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed

13

First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund (FBZ)

to measure stock market performance of companies in Brazil, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.

According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:

1.

The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.

2.

The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.329 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.

3.

The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.

4.

The top 50 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.

5.

The Index is subject to sector weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector percentages of the Base Index. For example, if financial companies comprise 15% of the Base Index, the Index will be comprised of no more than 30% financials. Stocks will fail the sector constraint if the weight assigned to the stock, when added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector, is greater than the sector weighting constraint.

The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 50 securities and the Fund had significant investments in financial companies and Brazilian issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.

Principal Risks

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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.

BRAZIL RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Brazilian issuers. Brazil is an emerging market and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in Brazil or for U.S. authorities to pursue. Investing in Brazil may involve a higher degree of risk and special considerations not typically associated with investing in more established economies or securities markets. Investment exposure to Brazil may subject the Fund, to a greater extent than if investments were made in developed countries, to the risks of adverse securities markets, exchange rates and social, political, regulatory, economic, or environmental events and natural disasters which may occur in Brazil. The economy, industries, and securities and currency markets of Brazil may be adversely affected by protectionist trade policies, slow economic activity worldwide, political and social instability and regional and global conflicts. Brazil has experienced security

14

First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund (FBZ)

concerns, such as terrorism and strained international relations. Incidents involving the country’s or region’s security may cause uncertainty in Brazilian markets and may adversely affect its economy and the Fund’s investments.

CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund will effect some or all of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects all of its creations and redemptions in-kind. Because the Fund may effect redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of portfolio securities may result in capital gains or losses and may also result in higher brokerage costs.

CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.

CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.

EMERGING MARKETS RISK. Investments in securities issued by governments and companies operating in emerging market countries involve additional risks relating to political, economic, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in securities and instruments issued by U.S. companies or by companies operating in other developed market countries. Investments in emerging markets securities are generally considered speculative in nature and are subject to the following heightened risks: smaller market capitalization of securities markets which may suffer periods of relative illiquidity; significant price volatility; restrictions on foreign investment; possible repatriation of investment income and capital; rapid inflation; and currency convertibility issues. Emerging market countries also often have less uniformity in accounting, auditing and reporting requirements, unsettled securities laws, unreliable securities valuation and greater risk associated with custody of securities. Financial and other reporting by companies and government entities also may be less reliable in emerging market countries. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in emerging market countries or for U.S. authorities to pursue. For funds that track an index or are managed based upon a benchmark, the index may not weight the securities in emerging market countries on the basis of investor protection limitations, financial reporting quality or available oversight mechanisms. Furthermore, investors may be required to register the proceeds of sales and future economic or political crises could lead to price controls, forced mergers, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, seizure, nationalization or creation of government monopolies.

EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended

15

First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund (FBZ)

periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.

FINANCIAL COMPANIES RISK. Financial companies, such as retail and commercial banks, insurance companies and financial services companies, are especially subject to the adverse effects of economic recession, currency exchange rates, extensive government regulation, decreases in the availability of capital, volatile interest rates, portfolio concentrations in geographic markets, industries or products (such as commercial and residential real estate loans), competition from new entrants and blurred distinctions in their fields of business.

GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.

INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.

INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.

INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents

16

First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund (FBZ)

may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.

INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.

LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.

LATIN AMERICA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Latin American issuers. The economies of Latin American countries have in the past experienced considerable difficulties, including high inflation rates, high interest rates, high unemployment, government overspending and political instability. International economic conditions, particularly those in the United States, Europe and Asia, as well as world prices for oil and other commodities may also influence the development of Latin American economies. Many Latin American countries are highly reliant on the exportation of commodities and their economies may be significantly impacted by fluctuations in commodity prices and the global demand for certain commodities. Investments in Latin American countries may be subject to currency risks, such as restrictions on the flow of money in and out of a country, extreme volatility relative to the U.S. dollar, and devaluation, all of which could decrease the value of investments in Latin American companies. Other Latin American investment risks may include inadequate investor protection, less developed regulatory, accounting, auditing and financial standards, unfavorable changes in laws or regulations, natural disasters, corruption and military activity. The governments of many Latin American countries may also exercise substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector, and any such exercise could have a significant effect on companies in which the Fund invests. Securities of companies in Latin America may also be subject to significant price volatility.

MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may

17

First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund (FBZ)

not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.

OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.

PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements

18

First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund (FBZ)

more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.

SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.

TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.

VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.

Annual Total Return

The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.

On July 14, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Brazil Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Brazil Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of May 18, 2015, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Brazil Index.

First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund
Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31

 

During the periods shown in the chart above: 

Best Quarter		Worst Quarter
28.34%	June 30, 2020	-49.90%	March 31, 2020

The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.

19

First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund (FBZ)

All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.

Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.

Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022 

	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Since Inception	Inception Date
Return Before Taxes	1.45%	0.71%	-1.43%	-2.77%	4/18/2011
Return After Taxes on Distributions	-2.44%	-2.34%	-3.91%	-5.01%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	0.78%	-0.54%	-2.00%	-2.80%
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Brazil Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	2.31%	2.59%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Brazil Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	7.14%	-2.27%	-2.63%	N/A
MSCI Brazil Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	14.15%	-0.82%	-1.75%	-3.47%

(1)

Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

Management

Investment Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust” or the “Advisor”)

Portfolio Managers

The Fund’s portfolio is managed by a team (the “Investment Committee”) consisting of:

•

Daniel J. Lindquist, Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director of First Trust

•

David G. McGarel, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of First Trust

•

Jon C. Erickson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Roger F. Testin, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Stan Ueland, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Chris A. Peterson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Erik Russo, Vice President of First Trust

The Investment Committee members are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Each Investment Committee member has served as a part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2011, except for Chris A. Peterson and Erik Russo who have served as part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2016 and 2020, respectively.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund issues and redeems shares on a continuous basis, at net asset value, only in large blocks of shares called “Creation Units.” Individual shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Since shares of the Fund trade on securities exchanges in the secondary market at their market price rather than their net asset value, the Fund’s shares may trade at a price greater than (premium) or less than (discount) the Fund’s net asset value. An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in

20

First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund (FBZ)

the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”). Recent information, including the Fund’s net asset value, market price, premiums and discounts, bid-ask spreads and the median bid-ask spread for the Fund’s most recent fiscal year, is available online at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions on shares held in a tax-deferred account, while not immediately taxable, will be subject to tax when the shares are no longer held in a tax-deferred account.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, bank or other financial intermediary (collectively, “intermediaries”), First Trust and First Trust Portfolios L.P., the Fund’s distributor, may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

21

Summary Information

First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund (FCA)

Investment Objective

The First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® China Index (the “Index”).

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment) 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) None

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) 

Management Fees	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	0.00%
Other Expenses	0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	0.80%

Example

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

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: 

1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
$82	$255	$444	$990

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 117% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.

The Index is composed of B Shares, depositary receipts and U.S.-listed common stock issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in China, as classified by the Index Provider. B Shares are shares of Chinese companies traded on either the Shanghai exchange in U.S. dollars or on the Shenzhen stock exchange in Hong Kong dollars. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. China is an emerging market country, as classified by the Index Provider, based on factors such as national income per capita, national market capitalization and national trading volume. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq China Index (the “Base Index”) that

22

First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund (FCA)

may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in China, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.

According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:

1.

The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.

2.

The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.329 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.

3.

The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.

4.

The top 50 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.

5.

The Index is subject to sector weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector percentages of the Base Index. For example, if financial companies comprise 15% of the Base Index, the Index will be comprised of no more than 30% financials. Stocks will fail the sector constraint if the weight assigned to the stock, when added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector, is greater than the sector weighting constraint.

The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 50 securities and the Fund had significant investments in Chinese issuers and Asian issuers, although this may change from time to time. In order to gain exposure to certain Chinese companies that are included in the Index but are unavailable to direct investment by foreign investors, the Fund invests significantly in non-Chinese shell companies that have created structures known as variable interest entities (“VIEs”) in order to gain exposure to such Chinese companies. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.

Principal Risks

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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

ASIA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian issuers. Many Asian economies have experienced rapid growth and industrialization, and there is no assurance that this growth rate will be maintained. Some Asian economies are highly dependent on trade, and economic conditions in other countries within and outside Asia can impact these economies. Certain of these economies may be adversely affected by trade or policy disputes with its major trade partners. There is also a high concentration of market capitalization and trading volume in a small number of issuers representing a limited number of industries, as well as a high concentration of investors and financial intermediaries. Certain Asian countries have experienced and may in the future experience expropriation and nationalization of assets, confiscatory taxation, currency manipulation, political instability, armed conflict and social instability as a result of religious, ethnic, socio-economic and/or political unrest. In particular, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Asian economies. Governments of certain Asian countries have exercised, and continue to exercise, substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector. In certain cases, the government owns or controls many companies, including the largest in the country. Accordingly, government actions could have a significant effect on the issuers of the Fund’s securities or on economic conditions generally. Recent developments in

23

First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund (FCA)

relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on the economy of Asian countries and a commensurately negative impact on the Fund.

AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.

CHINA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Chinese issuers, including those issuers with securities listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. China is an emerging market and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in China or for U.S. authorities to pursue. The central government has historically exercised substantial control over virtually every sector of the Chinese economy through administrative regulation and/or state ownership and actions of the Chinese central and local government authorities continue to have a substantial effect on economic conditions in China. Export growth continues to be a major driver of China’s rapid economic growth. Reduction in spending on Chinese products and services, institution of tariffs or other trade barriers, or a downturn in any of the economies of China’s key trading partners may have an adverse impact on the Chinese economy. Recent developments in relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on China’s export industry and a commensurately negative impact on a Fund.

CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.

CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.

EMERGING MARKETS RISK. Investments in securities issued by governments and companies operating in emerging market countries involve additional risks relating to political, economic, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in securities and instruments issued by U.S. companies or by companies operating in other developed market countries.

24

First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund (FCA)

Investments in emerging markets securities are generally considered speculative in nature and are subject to the following heightened risks: smaller market capitalization of securities markets which may suffer periods of relative illiquidity; significant price volatility; restrictions on foreign investment; possible repatriation of investment income and capital; rapid inflation; and currency convertibility issues. Emerging market countries also often have less uniformity in accounting, auditing and reporting requirements, unsettled securities laws, unreliable securities valuation and greater risk associated with custody of securities. Financial and other reporting by companies and government entities also may be less reliable in emerging market countries. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in emerging market countries or for U.S. authorities to pursue. For funds that track an index or are managed based upon a benchmark, the index may not weight the securities in emerging market countries on the basis of investor protection limitations, financial reporting quality or available oversight mechanisms. Furthermore, investors may be required to register the proceeds of sales and future economic or political crises could lead to price controls, forced mergers, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, seizure, nationalization or creation of government monopolies.

EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.

GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.

INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.

INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.

INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled

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First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund (FCA)

rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.

INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.

LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.

MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally,

26

First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund (FCA)

in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.

OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.

PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.

27

First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund (FCA)

SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.

TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.

VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES RISK. In China, direct ownership of companies in certain sectors by foreign individuals and entities is prohibited. In order to allow for foreign investment in these businesses, many Chinese companies have created VIE structures to enable indirect foreign ownership. In such an arrangement, a Chinese operating company typically establishes an offshore shell company in another jurisdiction, such as the Cayman Islands. That shell company enters into service and other contracts with the Chinese issuer or operating company to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese company, then issues shares on an exchange outside of mainland China, and U.S. investors hold stock in the non-Chinese shell company rather than directly in the Chinese issuer or operating company. This arrangement allows U.S. investors, such as the Fund, to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese issuer or operating company through contractual means rather than through formal equity ownership. Because neither the shell company nor the Fund owns actual equity interests in the Chinese operating company, they do not have the voting rights or other types of control that an equity holder would expect to benefit from. Although VIEs are a longstanding industry practice and well known to officials and regulators in China, VIEs are not formally recognized under Chinese law. Intervention by the Chinese government with respect to VIEs could significantly affect the Chinese company’s performance and the enforceability of the VIE’s contractual arrangements that establish the links between the Chinese company and the shell company in which the Fund invests. This could considerably impact the financial condition of the shell company in which the Fund invests by limiting its ability to consolidate the financial results of the Chinese operating company into its own financial statements, as well as make the value of the shares held by the Fund effectively worthless. Further, if Chinese officials prohibit the existence of VIEs, the market value of the Fund’s associated holdings would likely suffer significant, and possibly permanent effects, which could negatively impact the Fund’s net asset value and could result in substantial losses. Further, it is uncertain whether any new laws, rules or regulations relating to VIE structures will be adopted or, if adopted, what impact they would have on the value of the Fund’s shares.

VIEs are also subject to the investment risks associated with the underlying Chinese issuer or operating company. Chinese companies are not subject to the same degree of regulatory requirements or accounting standards and oversight as companies in more developed countries. As a result, information about the Chinese securities and VIEs in which the Fund invests may be less reliable and incomplete. There also may be significant obstacles to obtaining information necessary for investigations into or litigation against Chinese companies and VIEs, and shareholders may have limited legal remedies, which could negatively impact the Fund. Additionally, U.S.-listed VIEs may be delisted if they do not meet U.S. accounting standards and auditor oversight requirements. Delisting would significantly decrease the liquidity and value of the securities, decrease the ability of the Fund to invest in such securities and may increase the cost of the Fund if required to seek alternative markets in which to invest in such securities.

Annual Total Return

The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two broad based securities market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.

On July 14, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined China Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® China Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that

28

First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund (FCA)

the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of May 18, 2015, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined China Index.

First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund
Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31

 

During the periods shown in the chart above: 

Best Quarter		Worst Quarter
21.60%	September 30, 2017	-22.64%	September 30, 2015

The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.

All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.

Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.

Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022 

	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Since Inception	Inception Date
Return Before Taxes	-17.10%	-2.16%	2.24%	0.58%	4/18/2011
Return After Taxes on Distributions	-18.98%	-3.82%	0.73%	-0.80%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	-10.10%	-2.24%	1.07%	-0.15%
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® China Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-16.04%	-1.28%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq China Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-20.26%	-5.66%	2.00%	N/A
MSCI China Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-21.93%	-4.54%	2.43%	1.63%

(1)

Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

29

First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund (FCA)

Management

Investment Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust” or the “Advisor”)

Portfolio Managers

The Fund’s portfolio is managed by a team (the “Investment Committee”) consisting of:

•

Daniel J. Lindquist, Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director of First Trust

•

David G. McGarel, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of First Trust

•

Jon C. Erickson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Roger F. Testin, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Stan Ueland, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Chris A. Peterson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Erik Russo, Vice President of First Trust

The Investment Committee members are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Each Investment Committee member has served as a part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2011, except for Chris A. Peterson and Erik Russo who have served as part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2016 and 2020, respectively.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund issues and redeems shares on a continuous basis, at net asset value, only in large blocks of shares called “Creation Units.” Individual shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Since shares of the Fund trade on securities exchanges in the secondary market at their market price rather than their net asset value, the Fund’s shares may trade at a price greater than (premium) or less than (discount) the Fund’s net asset value. An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”). Recent information, including the Fund’s net asset value, market price, premiums and discounts, bid-ask spreads and the median bid-ask spread for the Fund’s most recent fiscal year, is available online at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions on shares held in a tax-deferred account, while not immediately taxable, will be subject to tax when the shares are no longer held in a tax-deferred account.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, bank or other financial intermediary (collectively, “intermediaries”), First Trust and First Trust Portfolios L.P., the Fund’s distributor, may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

30

Summary Information

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund (FDT)

Investment Objective

The First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Index (the “Index”).

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment) 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) None

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) 

Management Fees	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	0.00%
Other Expenses	0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	0.80%

Example

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

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: 

1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
$82	$255	$444	$990

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 95% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.

The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in developed markets excluding the United States, as classified by the Index Provider. The Index Provider classifies a country as “developed” based on a number of criteria, including national income per capita, national market capitalization and national trading volume. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Developed Markets Ex-US Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an

31

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund (FDT)

indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in developed markets excluding the United States, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.

According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:

1.

The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.

2.

The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.548 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.

3.

For South Korean stocks currently at their foreign ownership limit, the direct listed security is replaced in the universe with its depositary receipt if available (subject to above liquidity requirements). If none is available, the stock is excluded.

4.

The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.

5.

The top 300 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 4 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.

6.

The Index is subject to sector/country weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector/country percentages of the Base Index. A stock will be moved to a lower-weighted quintile when its weight, added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector/country, is greater than the sector/country weighting constraint. Stocks that fail the sector/country weighting constraints at the lowest quintile will be removed from the Index.

The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 299 securities and the Fund had significant investments in materials companies, Japanese issuers, Asian issuers and European issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.

Principal Risks

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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

ASIA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian issuers. Many Asian economies have experienced rapid growth and industrialization, and there is no assurance that this growth rate will be maintained. Some Asian economies are highly dependent on trade, and economic conditions in other countries within and outside Asia can impact these economies. Certain of these economies may be adversely affected by trade or policy disputes with its major trade partners. There is also a high concentration of market capitalization and trading volume in a small number of issuers representing a limited number of industries, as well as a high concentration of investors and financial intermediaries. Certain Asian countries have experienced and may in the future experience expropriation and nationalization of assets, confiscatory taxation, currency manipulation, political instability, armed conflict and social instability as a result of religious, ethnic, socio-economic and/or political unrest. In particular, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Asian economies. Governments of certain Asian countries have exercised, and continue to exercise, substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector. In certain cases, the government owns or controls many companies, including the largest in the country. Accordingly, government actions could have a significant effect on the issuers of the Fund’s securities or on economic conditions generally. Recent developments in

32

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund (FDT)

relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on the economy of Asian countries and a commensurately negative impact on the Fund.

AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.

CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund will effect some or all of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects all of its creations and redemptions in-kind. Because the Fund may effect redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of portfolio securities may result in capital gains or losses and may also result in higher brokerage costs.

CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.

CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.

EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.

EUROPE RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of European issuers. Political or economic disruptions in European countries, even in countries in which the Fund is not invested, may adversely affect security values and thus the Fund’s holdings. A significant number of countries in Europe are member states in the European Union (the “EU”), and the member states no longer control their own monetary policies by directing independent

33

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund (FDT)

interest rates for their currencies. In these member states, the authority to direct monetary policies, including money supply and official interest rates for the Euro, is exercised by the European Central Bank. In a 2016 referendum, the United Kingdom elected to withdraw from the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. As the second largest economy among EU members, the implications of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal are difficult to gauge and cannot be fully known. Its departure may negatively impact the EU and Europe as a whole by causing volatility within the EU, triggering prolonged economic downturns in certain European countries or sparking additional member states to contemplate departing the EU (thereby perpetuating political instability in the region).

GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.

INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.

INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.

INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents

34

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund (FDT)

may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.

INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.

JAPAN RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Japanese issuers. The Japanese economy may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability, which could have a negative impact on Japanese securities. Japan’s economy is characterized by government intervention and protectionism, reliance on oil imports, an unstable financial services sector and relatively high unemployment. Since 2000, Japan has experienced relatively low economic growth, and it may remain low in the future. Its economy is heavily dependent on international trade and has been adversely affected by trade tariffs and competition from emerging economies. As such, economic growth is heavily dependent on continued growth in international trade, relatively low commodities prices, government support of the financial services sector and other government policies. Any changes or trends in these economic factors could have a significant impact on Japanese markets overall and may negatively affect the Fund’s investments. Japan’s economy and equity market also share a strong correlation with U.S. markets and the Japanese economy may be affected by economic problems in the U.S. Despite a strengthening in the economic relationship between Japan and China, the countries’ political relationship has at times been strained. Should political tension increase, it could adversely affect the economy and destabilize the region as a whole. Additionally, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Japan’s economy. Japan’s geography also subjects it to an increased risk of natural disasters, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, typhoons and tsunamis, all of which could negatively impact the Fund’s investments.

LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.

MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

35

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund (FDT)

MATERIALS COMPANIES RISK. Materials and processing companies are involved in the extraction or processing of raw materials such as metals, ore and forestry products. These companies are sensitive to changes in the business cycle and fluctuations in the supply and demand for raw materials. Further, certain materials and processing companies can be affected by shifts in the housing market, as many produced raw materials are components of construction projects. Rising wage costs can also impact companies that rely on skilled labor. In addition, materials and processing companies may be significantly affected by volatility of commodity prices, import controls, worldwide competition, liability for environmental damage, depletion of resources and mandated expenditures for safety and pollution control devices.

NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.

OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.

PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

36

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund (FDT)

REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.

SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.

TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.

VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.

Annual Total Return

The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two broad based securities market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.

On October 13, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Developed Markets Ex-US Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of February 11, 2015, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Developed Markets Ex-US Index.

37

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund (FDT)

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund
Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31

 

During the periods shown in the chart above: 

Best Quarter		Worst Quarter
18.75%	June 30, 2020	-28.32%	March 31, 2020

The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.

All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.

Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.

Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022 

	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Since Inception	Inception Date
Return Before Taxes	-18.57%	-2.42%	3.21%	2.05%	4/18/2011
Return After Taxes on Distributions	-19.32%	-3.47%	2.26%	1.15%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	-11.00%	-2.22%	2.09%	1.20%
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-18.23%	-1.71%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Developed Markets Ex-US Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-15.51%	1.23%	4.56%	N/A
MSCI World ex USA Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-14.29%	1.79%	4.59%	3.86%

(1)

Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

38

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund (FDT)

Management

Investment Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust” or the “Advisor”)

Portfolio Managers

The Fund’s portfolio is managed by a team (the “Investment Committee”) consisting of:

•

Daniel J. Lindquist, Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director of First Trust

•

David G. McGarel, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of First Trust

•

Jon C. Erickson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Roger F. Testin, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Stan Ueland, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Chris A. Peterson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Erik Russo, Vice President of First Trust

The Investment Committee members are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Each Investment Committee member has served as a part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2011, except for Chris A. Peterson and Erik Russo who have served as part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2016 and 2020, respectively.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund issues and redeems shares on a continuous basis, at net asset value, only in large blocks of shares called “Creation Units.” Individual shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Since shares of the Fund trade on securities exchanges in the secondary market at their market price rather than their net asset value, the Fund’s shares may trade at a price greater than (premium) or less than (discount) the Fund’s net asset value. An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”). Recent information, including the Fund’s net asset value, market price, premiums and discounts, bid-ask spreads and the median bid-ask spread for the Fund’s most recent fiscal year, is available online at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions on shares held in a tax-deferred account, while not immediately taxable, will be subject to tax when the shares are no longer held in a tax-deferred account.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, bank or other financial intermediary (collectively, “intermediaries”), First Trust and First Trust Portfolios L.P., the Fund’s distributor, may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

39

Summary Information

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FDTS)

Investment Objective

The First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Small Cap Index (the “Index”).

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment) 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) None

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) 

Management Fees	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	0.00%
Other Expenses	0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	0.80%

Example

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

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: 

1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
$82	$255	$444	$990

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 109% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.

The Index is composed of securities issued by small cap companies operating in developed market countries excluding the United States, as classified by the Index Provider. The Index Provider classifies a country as “developed” based on a number of criteria, including national income per capita, national market capitalization and national trading volume. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Developed Markets ex-US Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or

40

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FDTS)

risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in developed market countries excluding the United States, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.

According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:

1.

The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.

2.

The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization greater than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) and less than the small cap breakpoint (90th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.548 billion and the small cap breakpoint was $432 million. The Index Provider may include stocks above the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.

3.

For South Korean stocks currently at their foreign ownership limit, the direct listed security is replaced in the universe with its depositary receipt if available (subject to above liquidity requirements). If none is available, the stock is excluded.

4.

The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.

5.

The top 400 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 4 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.

6.

The Index is subject to sector/country weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector/country percentages of the Base Index. A stock will be moved to a lower-weighted quintile when its weight, added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector/country, is greater than the sector/country weighting constraint. Stocks that fail the sector/country weighting constraints at the lowest quintile will be removed from the Index.

The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 399 securities and the Fund had significant investments in industrials companies, materials companies, Japanese issuers, Asian issuers and European issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.

Principal Risks

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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

ASIA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian issuers. Many Asian economies have experienced rapid growth and industrialization, and there is no assurance that this growth rate will be maintained. Some Asian economies are highly dependent on trade, and economic conditions in other countries within and outside Asia can impact these economies. Certain of these economies may be adversely affected by trade or policy disputes with its major trade partners. There is also a high concentration of market capitalization and trading volume in a small number of issuers representing a limited number of industries, as well as a high concentration of investors and financial intermediaries. Certain Asian countries have experienced and may in the future experience expropriation and nationalization of assets, confiscatory taxation, currency manipulation, political instability, armed conflict and social instability as a result of religious, ethnic, socio-economic and/or political unrest. In particular, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Asian economies. Governments of certain Asian countries have exercised, and continue to exercise, substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector. In certain cases, the

41

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FDTS)

government owns or controls many companies, including the largest in the country. Accordingly, government actions could have a significant effect on the issuers of the Fund’s securities or on economic conditions generally. Recent developments in relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on the economy of Asian countries and a commensurately negative impact on the Fund.

AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.

CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund will effect some or all of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects all of its creations and redemptions in-kind. Because the Fund may effect redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of portfolio securities may result in capital gains or losses and may also result in higher brokerage costs.

CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.

CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.

EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.

EUROPE RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of European issuers. Political or economic disruptions in European countries, even in countries in which the Fund is not invested, may adversely

42

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FDTS)

affect security values and thus the Fund’s holdings. A significant number of countries in Europe are member states in the European Union (the “EU”), and the member states no longer control their own monetary policies by directing independent interest rates for their currencies. In these member states, the authority to direct monetary policies, including money supply and official interest rates for the Euro, is exercised by the European Central Bank. In a 2016 referendum, the United Kingdom elected to withdraw from the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. As the second largest economy among EU members, the implications of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal are difficult to gauge and cannot be fully known. Its departure may negatively impact the EU and Europe as a whole by causing volatility within the EU, triggering prolonged economic downturns in certain European countries or sparking additional member states to contemplate departing the EU (thereby perpetuating political instability in the region).

GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.

INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.

INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.

INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in

43

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FDTS)

market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.

INDUSTRIALS COMPANIES RISK. Industrials companies convert unfinished goods into finished durables used to manufacture other goods or provide services. Examples of industrials companies include companies involved in the production of electrical equipment and components, industrial products, manufactured housing and telecommunications equipment, as well as defense and aerospace companies. General risks of industrials companies include the general state of the economy, exchange rates, commodity prices, intense competition, consolidation, domestic and international politics, government regulation, import controls, excess capacity, consumer demand and spending trends. In addition, industrials companies may also be significantly affected by overall capital spending levels, economic cycles, rapid technological changes, delays in modernization, labor relations, environmental liabilities, governmental and product liability and e-commerce initiatives.

INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.

JAPAN RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Japanese issuers. The Japanese economy may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability, which could have a negative impact on Japanese securities. Japan’s economy is characterized by government intervention and protectionism, reliance on oil imports, an unstable financial services sector and relatively high unemployment. Since 2000, Japan has experienced relatively low economic growth, and it may remain low in the future. Its economy is heavily dependent on international trade and has been adversely affected by trade tariffs and competition from emerging economies. As such, economic growth is heavily dependent on continued growth in international trade, relatively low commodities prices, government support of the financial services sector and other government policies. Any changes or trends in these economic factors could have a significant impact on Japanese markets overall and may negatively affect the Fund’s investments. Japan’s economy and equity market also share a strong correlation with U.S. markets and the Japanese economy may be affected by economic problems in the U.S. Despite a strengthening in the economic relationship between Japan and China, the countries’ political relationship has at times been strained. Should political tension increase, it could adversely affect the economy and destabilize the region as a whole. Additionally, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Japan’s economy. Japan’s geography also subjects it to an increased risk of natural disasters, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, typhoons and tsunamis, all of which could negatively impact the Fund’s investments.

MARKET CAPITALIZATION DEVIATION RISK. There can be no assurance that the securities held by the Fund will stay within the Fund’s intended market capitalization range. As a result, the Fund may be exposed to additional risk or investors may not be given the opportunity to invest fully in a certain market capitalization range.

MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect

44

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FDTS)

certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

MATERIALS COMPANIES RISK. Materials and processing companies are involved in the extraction or processing of raw materials such as metals, ore and forestry products. These companies are sensitive to changes in the business cycle and fluctuations in the supply and demand for raw materials. Further, certain materials and processing companies can be affected by shifts in the housing market, as many produced raw materials are components of construction projects. Rising wage costs can also impact companies that rely on skilled labor. In addition, materials and processing companies may be significantly affected by volatility of commodity prices, import controls, worldwide competition, liability for environmental damage, depletion of resources and mandated expenditures for safety and pollution control devices.

NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.

OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.

PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, but not identical, to the same forces influencing

45

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FDTS)

the prices of the holdings of the Fund trading individually or in the aggregate at any point in time. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.

SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.

TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.

VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.

Annual Total Return

The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index, two market indices and a broad-based market index. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.

On October 13, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Small Cap Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of September 8, 2014, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Developed Markets Ex-US Small Cap Index.

46

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FDTS)

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund
Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31

 

During the periods shown in the chart above: 

Best Quarter		Worst Quarter
25.82%	June 30, 2020	-32.51%	March 31, 2020

The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.

All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.

Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.

Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022 

	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Since Inception	Inception Date
Return Before Taxes	-15.00%	-0.84%	4.55%	4.51%	2/15/2012
Return After Taxes on Distributions	-16.31%	-1.91%	3.54%	3.46%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	-8.92%	-1.08%	3.12%	3.07%
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Small Cap Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-14.80%	-0.08%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Developed Markets Ex-US Small Cap Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-18.14%	-0.81%	4.65%	N/A
MSCI World ex-USA Small Cap Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-20.59%	0.45%	5.77%	5.80%
MSCI World ex-USA Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-14.29%	1.79%	4.59%	4.87%

(1)

Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

47

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FDTS)

Management

Investment Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust” or the “Advisor”)

Portfolio Managers

The Fund’s portfolio is managed by a team (the “Investment Committee”) consisting of:

•

Daniel J. Lindquist, Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director of First Trust

•

David G. McGarel, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of First Trust

•

Jon C. Erickson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Roger F. Testin, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Stan Ueland, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Chris A. Peterson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Erik Russo, Vice President of First Trust

The Investment Committee members are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Each Investment Committee member has served as a part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2012, except for Chris A. Peterson and Erik Russo who have served as part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2016 and 2020, respectively.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund issues and redeems shares on a continuous basis, at net asset value, only in large blocks of shares called “Creation Units.” Individual shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Since shares of the Fund trade on securities exchanges in the secondary market at their market price rather than their net asset value, the Fund’s shares may trade at a price greater than (premium) or less than (discount) the Fund’s net asset value. An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”). Recent information, including the Fund’s net asset value, market price, premiums and discounts, bid-ask spreads and the median bid-ask spread for the Fund’s most recent fiscal year, is available online at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions on shares held in a tax-deferred account, while not immediately taxable, will be subject to tax when the shares are no longer held in a tax-deferred account.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, bank or other financial intermediary (collectively, “intermediaries”), First Trust and First Trust Portfolios L.P., the Fund’s distributor, may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

48

Summary Information

First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund (FEM)

Investment Objective

The First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Index (the “Index”).

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment) 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) None

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) 

Management Fees	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	0.00%
Other Expenses	0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	0.80%

Example

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

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: 

1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
$82	$255	$444	$990

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 106% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.

The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in emerging market countries, as classified by the Index Provider. The Index Provider classifies a country as "emerging" based on a number of criteria including national income per capita, national market capitalization and national trading volume. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Emerging Markets Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to

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First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund (FEM)

traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in emerging market countries, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.

According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:

1.

The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.

2.

The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.548 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.

3.

The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.

4.

The top 150 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.

5.

The Index is subject to sector/country weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector/country percentages of the Base Index. A stock will be moved to a lower-weighted quintile when its weight, added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector/country, is greater than the sector/country weighting constraint. Stocks that fail the sector/country weighting constraints at the lowest quintile will be removed from the Index.

The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 150 securities and the Fund had significant investments in industrials companies and Asian issuers, although this may change from time to time. In order to gain exposure to certain Chinese companies that are included in the Index but are unavailable to direct investment by foreign investors, the Fund invests significantly in non-Chinese shell companies that have created structures known as variable interest entities (“VIEs”) in order to gain exposure to such Chinese companies. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.

Principal Risks

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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

ASIA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian issuers. Many Asian economies have experienced rapid growth and industrialization, and there is no assurance that this growth rate will be maintained. Some Asian economies are highly dependent on trade, and economic conditions in other countries within and outside Asia can impact these economies. Certain of these economies may be adversely affected by trade or policy disputes with its major trade partners. There is also a high concentration of market capitalization and trading volume in a small number of issuers representing a limited number of industries, as well as a high concentration of investors and financial intermediaries. Certain Asian countries have experienced and may in the future experience expropriation and nationalization of assets, confiscatory taxation, currency manipulation, political instability, armed conflict and social instability as a result of religious, ethnic, socio-economic and/or political unrest. In particular, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Asian economies. Governments of certain Asian countries have exercised, and continue to exercise, substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector. In certain cases, the government owns or controls many companies, including the largest in the country. Accordingly, government actions could have a significant effect on the issuers of the Fund’s securities or on economic conditions generally. Recent developments in

50

First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund (FEM)

relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on the economy of Asian countries and a commensurately negative impact on the Fund.

AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.

CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund will effect some or all of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects all of its creations and redemptions in-kind. Because the Fund may effect redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of portfolio securities may result in capital gains or losses and may also result in higher brokerage costs.

CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.

CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.

EMERGING MARKETS RISK. Investments in securities issued by governments and companies operating in emerging market countries involve additional risks relating to political, economic, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in securities and instruments issued by U.S. companies or by companies operating in other developed market countries. Investments in emerging markets securities are generally considered speculative in nature and are subject to the following heightened risks: smaller market capitalization of securities markets which may suffer periods of relative illiquidity; significant price volatility; restrictions on foreign investment; possible repatriation of investment income and capital; rapid inflation; and currency convertibility issues. Emerging market countries also often have less uniformity in accounting, auditing and reporting requirements, unsettled securities laws, unreliable securities valuation and greater risk associated with custody of securities. Financial and other reporting by companies and government entities also may be less reliable in emerging market countries. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in emerging market countries or for U.S. authorities to pursue. For funds that track an index or are managed based upon a benchmark, the index may not

51

First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund (FEM)

weight the securities in emerging market countries on the basis of investor protection limitations, financial reporting quality or available oversight mechanisms. Furthermore, investors may be required to register the proceeds of sales and future economic or political crises could lead to price controls, forced mergers, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, seizure, nationalization or creation of government monopolies.

EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.

GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.

INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.

INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.

INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance,

52

First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund (FEM)

which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.

INDUSTRIALS COMPANIES RISK. Industrials companies convert unfinished goods into finished durables used to manufacture other goods or provide services. Examples of industrials companies include companies involved in the production of electrical equipment and components, industrial products, manufactured housing and telecommunications equipment, as well as defense and aerospace companies. General risks of industrials companies include the general state of the economy, exchange rates, commodity prices, intense competition, consolidation, domestic and international politics, government regulation, import controls, excess capacity, consumer demand and spending trends. In addition, industrials companies may also be significantly affected by overall capital spending levels, economic cycles, rapid technological changes, delays in modernization, labor relations, environmental liabilities, governmental and product liability and e-commerce initiatives.

INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.

LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.

MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally,

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First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund (FEM)

in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.

OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.

PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.

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First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund (FEM)

SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.

TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.

VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES RISK. In China, direct ownership of companies in certain sectors by foreign individuals and entities is prohibited. In order to allow for foreign investment in these businesses, many Chinese companies have created VIE structures to enable indirect foreign ownership. In such an arrangement, a Chinese operating company typically establishes an offshore shell company in another jurisdiction, such as the Cayman Islands. That shell company enters into service and other contracts with the Chinese issuer or operating company to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese company, then issues shares on an exchange outside of mainland China, and U.S. investors hold stock in the non-Chinese shell company rather than directly in the Chinese issuer or operating company. This arrangement allows U.S. investors, such as the Fund, to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese issuer or operating company through contractual means rather than through formal equity ownership. Because neither the shell company nor the Fund owns actual equity interests in the Chinese operating company, they do not have the voting rights or other types of control that an equity holder would expect to benefit from. Although VIEs are a longstanding industry practice and well known to officials and regulators in China, VIEs are not formally recognized under Chinese law. Intervention by the Chinese government with respect to VIEs could significantly affect the Chinese company’s performance and the enforceability of the VIE’s contractual arrangements that establish the links between the Chinese company and the shell company in which the Fund invests. This could considerably impact the financial condition of the shell company in which the Fund invests by limiting its ability to consolidate the financial results of the Chinese operating company into its own financial statements, as well as make the value of the shares held by the Fund effectively worthless. Further, if Chinese officials prohibit the existence of VIEs, the market value of the Fund’s associated holdings would likely suffer significant, and possibly permanent effects, which could negatively impact the Fund’s net asset value and could result in substantial losses. Further, it is uncertain whether any new laws, rules or regulations relating to VIE structures will be adopted or, if adopted, what impact they would have on the value of the Fund’s shares.

VIEs are also subject to the investment risks associated with the underlying Chinese issuer or operating company. Chinese companies are not subject to the same degree of regulatory requirements or accounting standards and oversight as companies in more developed countries. As a result, information about the Chinese securities and VIEs in which the Fund invests may be less reliable and incomplete. There also may be significant obstacles to obtaining information necessary for investigations into or litigation against Chinese companies and VIEs, and shareholders may have limited legal remedies, which could negatively impact the Fund. Additionally, U.S.-listed VIEs may be delisted if they do not meet U.S. accounting standards and auditor oversight requirements. Delisting would significantly decrease the liquidity and value of the securities, decrease the ability of the Fund to invest in such securities and may increase the cost of the Fund if required to seek alternative markets in which to invest in such securities.

Annual Total Return

The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two broad based securities market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.

On October 13, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Emerging Markets Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily

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First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund (FEM)

indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of February 11, 2015, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Emerging Markets Index.

First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund
Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31

 

During the periods shown in the chart above: 

Best Quarter		Worst Quarter
21.43%	June 30, 2020	-32.89%	March 31, 2020

The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.

All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.

Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.

Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022 

	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Since Inception	Inception Date
Return Before Taxes	-14.33%	-1.49%	1.25%	0.43%	4/18/2011
Return After Taxes on Distributions	-16.51%	-3.10%	-0.16%	-0.86%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	-8.57%	-1.77%	0.33%	-0.24%
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-14.38%	-0.58%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Emerging Markets Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-15.31%	-0.39%	2.18%	N/A
MSCI Emerging Markets Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-20.09%	-1.40%	1.44%	0.79%

(1)

Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

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First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund (FEM)

Management

Investment Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust” or the “Advisor”)

Portfolio Managers

The Fund’s portfolio is managed by a team (the “Investment Committee”) consisting of:

•

Daniel J. Lindquist, Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director of First Trust

•

David G. McGarel, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of First Trust

•

Jon C. Erickson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Roger F. Testin, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Stan Ueland, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Chris A. Peterson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Erik Russo, Vice President of First Trust

The Investment Committee members are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Each Investment Committee member has served as a part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2011, except for Chris A. Peterson and Erik Russo who have served as part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2016 and 2020, respectively.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund issues and redeems shares on a continuous basis, at net asset value, only in large blocks of shares called “Creation Units.” Individual shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Since shares of the Fund trade on securities exchanges in the secondary market at their market price rather than their net asset value, the Fund’s shares may trade at a price greater than (premium) or less than (discount) the Fund’s net asset value. An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”). Recent information, including the Fund’s net asset value, market price, premiums and discounts, bid-ask spreads and the median bid-ask spread for the Fund’s most recent fiscal year, is available online at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions on shares held in a tax-deferred account, while not immediately taxable, will be subject to tax when the shares are no longer held in a tax-deferred account.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, bank or other financial intermediary (collectively, “intermediaries”), First Trust and First Trust Portfolios L.P., the Fund’s distributor, may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

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Summary Information

First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FEMS)

Investment Objective

The First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Small Cap Index (the “Index”).

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment) 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) None

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) 

Management Fees	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	0.00%
Other Expenses	0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	0.80%

Example

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

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: 

1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
$82	$255	$444	$990

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 117% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.

The Index is composed of securities issued by small cap companies operating in emerging market countries, as classified by the Index Provider. The Index Provider classifies a country as "emerging" based on a number of criteria, including national income per capita, national market capitalization and national trading volume. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Emerging Markets Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional

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First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FEMS)

indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in emerging market countries, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.

According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:

1.

The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.

2.

The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization greater than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) and less than the small cap breakpoint (90th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.548 billion and the small cap breakpoint was $432 million. The Index Provider may include stocks above the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.

3.

The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.

4.

The top 200 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.

5.

The Index is subject to sector/country weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector/country percentages of the Base Index. A stock will be moved to a lower-weighted quintile when its weight, added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector/country, is greater than the sector/country weighting constraint. Stocks that fail the sector/country weighting constraints at the lowest quintile will be removed from the Index.

The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 200 securities and the Fund had significant investments in Taiwanese issuers, Turkish issuers and Asian issuers, although this may change from time to time. In order to gain exposure to certain Chinese companies that are included in the Index but are unavailable to direct investment by foreign investors, the Fund invests significantly in non-Chinese shell companies that have created structures known as variable interest entities (“VIEs”) in order to gain exposure to such Chinese companies. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.

Principal Risks

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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

ASIA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian issuers. Many Asian economies have experienced rapid growth and industrialization, and there is no assurance that this growth rate will be maintained. Some Asian economies are highly dependent on trade, and economic conditions in other countries within and outside Asia can impact these economies. Certain of these economies may be adversely affected by trade or policy disputes with its major trade partners. There is also a high concentration of market capitalization and trading volume in a small number of issuers representing a limited number of industries, as well as a high concentration of investors and financial intermediaries. Certain Asian countries have experienced and may in the future experience expropriation and nationalization of assets, confiscatory taxation, currency manipulation, political instability, armed conflict and social instability as a result of religious, ethnic, socio-economic and/or political unrest. In particular, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Asian economies. Governments of certain Asian countries have exercised, and continue to exercise, substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector. In certain cases, the government owns or controls many companies, including the largest in the country. Accordingly, government actions could

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First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FEMS)

have a significant effect on the issuers of the Fund’s securities or on economic conditions generally. Recent developments in relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on the economy of Asian countries and a commensurately negative impact on the Fund.

AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.

CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund will effect some or all of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects all of its creations and redemptions in-kind. Because the Fund may effect redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of portfolio securities may result in capital gains or losses and may also result in higher brokerage costs.

CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.

CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.

EMERGING MARKETS RISK. Investments in securities issued by governments and companies operating in emerging market countries involve additional risks relating to political, economic, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in securities and instruments issued by U.S. companies or by companies operating in other developed market countries. Investments in emerging markets securities are generally considered speculative in nature and are subject to the following heightened risks: smaller market capitalization of securities markets which may suffer periods of relative illiquidity; significant price volatility; restrictions on foreign investment; possible repatriation of investment income and capital; rapid inflation; and currency convertibility issues. Emerging market countries also often have less uniformity in accounting, auditing and reporting requirements, unsettled securities laws, unreliable securities valuation and greater risk associated with custody of securities. Financial and other reporting by companies and government entities also may be less reliable in emerging market countries. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in emerging market countries

60

First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FEMS)

or for U.S. authorities to pursue. For funds that track an index or are managed based upon a benchmark, the index may not weight the securities in emerging market countries on the basis of investor protection limitations, financial reporting quality or available oversight mechanisms. Furthermore, investors may be required to register the proceeds of sales and future economic or political crises could lead to price controls, forced mergers, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, seizure, nationalization or creation of government monopolies.

EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.

GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.

INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.

INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.

INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate

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First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FEMS)

assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.

INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.

MARKET CAPITALIZATION DEVIATION RISK. There can be no assurance that the securities held by the Fund will stay within the Fund’s intended market capitalization range. As a result, the Fund may be exposed to additional risk or investors may not be given the opportunity to invest fully in a certain market capitalization range.

MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.

OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third-parties, failed

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First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FEMS)

or inadequate processes and technology or systems failures. The Fund relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.

PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.

SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.

TAIWAN RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Taiwanese issuers. Taiwan is an emerging market and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in Taiwan or for U.S.

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First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FEMS)

authorities to pursue. Taiwan’s geographic proximity and history of political contention with China have resulted in ongoing tensions between the two countries. These tensions may materially affect the Taiwanese economy and its securities market. Taiwan’s economy is export-oriented, so it depends on an open world trade regime and remains vulnerable to fluctuations in the world economy. Rising labor costs and increasing environmental consciousness have led some labor-intensive industries to relocate to countries with cheaper work forces, and continued labor outsourcing may adversely affect the Taiwanese economy.

TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.

TURKEY RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Turkish issuers. The Turkish economy is heavily dependent on relationships with certain key trading partners, including European Union countries, China and Russia. The Turkish economy has certain significant economic weaknesses, such as its relatively high current account deficit and currency depreciation. Turkey has historically experienced acts of terrorism and strained relations related to border disputes with certain neighboring countries. The continuation of the conflict on the Turkish-Syrian border, for example, could have an adverse impact on the Turkish economy. Turkey is subject to considerable degrees of social and political instability. Unanticipated or sudden political, economic or social developments as well as natural disasters, have caused and may cause further volatility in the Turkish securities markets or currency market and as a result may adversely affect the Fund’s investments.

VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES RISK. In China, direct ownership of companies in certain sectors by foreign individuals and entities is prohibited. In order to allow for foreign investment in these businesses, many Chinese companies have created VIE structures to enable indirect foreign ownership. In such an arrangement, a Chinese operating company typically establishes an offshore shell company in another jurisdiction, such as the Cayman Islands. That shell company enters into service and other contracts with the Chinese issuer or operating company to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese company, then issues shares on an exchange outside of mainland China, and U.S. investors hold stock in the non-Chinese shell company rather than directly in the Chinese issuer or operating company. This arrangement allows U.S. investors, such as the Fund, to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese issuer or operating company through contractual means rather than through formal equity ownership. Because neither the shell company nor the Fund owns actual equity interests in the Chinese operating company, they do not have the voting rights or other types of control that an equity holder would expect to benefit from. Although VIEs are a longstanding industry practice and well known to officials and regulators in China, VIEs are not formally recognized under Chinese law. Intervention by the Chinese government with respect to VIEs could significantly affect the Chinese company’s performance and the enforceability of the VIE’s contractual arrangements that establish the links between the Chinese company and the shell company in which the Fund invests. This could considerably impact the financial condition of the shell company in which the Fund invests by limiting its ability to consolidate the financial results of the Chinese operating company into its own financial statements, as well as make the value of the shares held by the Fund effectively worthless. Further, if Chinese officials prohibit the existence of VIEs, the market value of the Fund’s associated holdings would likely suffer significant, and possibly permanent effects, which could negatively impact the Fund’s net asset value and could result in substantial losses. Further, it is uncertain whether any new laws, rules or regulations relating to VIE structures will be adopted or, if adopted, what impact they would have on the value of the Fund’s shares.

VIEs are also subject to the investment risks associated with the underlying Chinese issuer or operating company. Chinese companies are not subject to the same degree of regulatory requirements or accounting standards and oversight as companies in more developed countries. As a result, information about the Chinese securities and VIEs in which the Fund invests may be less reliable and incomplete. There also may be significant obstacles to obtaining information necessary for investigations into or litigation against Chinese companies and VIEs, and shareholders may have limited legal remedies, which could negatively impact the Fund. Additionally, U.S.-listed VIEs may be delisted if they do not meet U.S. accounting standards and auditor oversight requirements. Delisting would significantly decrease the liquidity and value of the securities, decrease the ability of the Fund to invest in such securities and may increase the cost of the Fund if required to seek alternative markets in which to invest in such securities.

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First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FEMS)

Annual Total Return

The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index, two market indices and a broad-based market index. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.

On October 13, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Emerging Markets Small Cap Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Small Cap Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of September 8, 2014, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Emerging Markets Small Cap Index.

First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund
Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31

 

During the periods shown in the chart above: 

Best Quarter		Worst Quarter
32.17%	June 30, 2020	-35.53%	March 31, 2020

The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.

All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.

Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.

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First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FEMS)

Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022 

	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Since Inception	Inception Date
Return Before Taxes	1.36%	2.64%	5.14%	6.11%	2/15/2012
Return After Taxes on Distributions	-0.74%	0.71%	3.52%	4.53%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	0.63%	1.13%	3.24%	4.08%
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Small Cap Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	2.75%	4.16%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Emerging Markets Small Cap Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-13.78%	1.72%	4.07%	N/A
MSCI Emerging Markets Small Cap Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-18.02%	1.06%	3.21%	3.23%
MSCI Emerging Markets Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-20.09%	-1.40%	1.44%	17.86%

(1)

Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

Management

Investment Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust” or the “Advisor”)

Portfolio Managers

The Fund’s portfolio is managed by a team (the “Investment Committee”) consisting of:

•

Daniel J. Lindquist, Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director of First Trust

•

David G. McGarel, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of First Trust

•

Jon C. Erickson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Roger F. Testin, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Stan Ueland, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Chris A. Peterson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Erik Russo, Vice President of First Trust

The Investment Committee members are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Each Investment Committee member has served as a part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2012, except for Chris A. Peterson and Erik Russo who have served as part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2016 and 2020, respectively.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund issues and redeems shares on a continuous basis, at net asset value, only in large blocks of shares called “Creation Units.” Individual shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Since shares of the Fund trade on securities exchanges in the secondary market at their market price rather than their net asset value, the Fund’s shares may trade at a price greater than (premium) or less than (discount) the Fund’s net asset value. An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”). Recent information, including the Fund’s net asset value, market price, premiums and discounts, bid-ask spreads and the median bid-ask spread for the Fund’s most recent fiscal year, is available online at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx.

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First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FEMS)

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions on shares held in a tax-deferred account, while not immediately taxable, will be subject to tax when the shares are no longer held in a tax-deferred account.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, bank or other financial intermediary (collectively, “intermediaries”), First Trust and First Trust Portfolios L.P., the Fund’s distributor, may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

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Summary Information

First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund (FEP)

Investment Objective

The First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Europe Index (the “Index”).

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment) 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) None

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) 

Management Fees	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	0.00%
Other Expenses	0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	0.80%

Example

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

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: 

1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
$82	$255	$444	$990

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 88% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.

The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in Europe, as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. As of December 30, 2022, the Index Provider’s list of European countries included Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Luxembourg, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and United Kingdom. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Europe Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its

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First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund (FEP)

benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in Europe, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.

According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:

1.

The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.

2.

The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; stocks of companies in emerging markets and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.548 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.

3.

The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.

4.

The top 200 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.

5.

The Index is subject to sector/country weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector/country percentages of the Base Index. A stock will be moved to a lower-weighted quintile when its weight, added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector/country, is greater than the sector/country weighting constraint. Stocks that fail the sector/country weighting constraints at the lowest quintile will be removed from the Index.

The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 199 securities and the Fund had significant investments in issuers in the United Kingdom and European issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.

Principal Risks

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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.

CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.

CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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

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First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund (FEP)

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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.

EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.

EUROPE RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of European issuers. Political or economic disruptions in European countries, even in countries in which the Fund is not invested, may adversely affect security values and thus the Fund’s holdings. A significant number of countries in Europe are member states in the European Union (the “EU”), and the member states no longer control their own monetary policies by directing independent interest rates for their currencies. In these member states, the authority to direct monetary policies, including money supply and official interest rates for the Euro, is exercised by the European Central Bank. In a 2016 referendum, the United Kingdom elected to withdraw from the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. As the second largest economy among EU members, the implications of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal are difficult to gauge and cannot be fully known. Its departure may negatively impact the EU and Europe as a whole by causing volatility within the EU, triggering prolonged economic downturns in certain European countries or sparking additional member states to contemplate departing the EU (thereby perpetuating political instability in the region).

GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.

INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.

INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility

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First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund (FEP)

of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.

INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.

INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.

LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.

MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and

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First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund (FEP)

its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.

OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.

PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large

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First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund (FEP)

discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.

SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.

TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.

UNITED KINGDOM RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of United Kingdom issuers. Investments in issuers located in the United Kingdom may subject the Fund to regulatory, political, currency, security and economic risk specific to the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom has one of the largest economies in Europe and is heavily dependent on trade with the European Union (“EU”), and to a lesser extent the United States and China. As a result, the economy of the United Kingdom may be impacted by changes to the economic health of EU member counties, the United States and China. In 2016, the United Kingdom voted via referendum to leave the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. The precise impact on the United Kingdom’s economy as a result of its departure from the EU depends to a large degree on its ability to conclude favorable trade deals with the EU and other countries, including the United States, China, India and Japan. While new trade deals may boost economic growth, such growth may not be able to offset the increased costs of trade with the EU resulting from the United Kingdom’s loss of its membership in the EU single market. Certain sectors within the United Kingdom’s economy may be particularly affected by Brexit, including the automotive, chemicals, financial services and professional services.

VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.

Annual Total Return

The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two broad based securities market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.

On October 13, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Europe Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Europe Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance

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First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund (FEP)

that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of February 11, 2015, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Europe Index.

First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund
Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31

 

During the periods shown in the chart above: 

Best Quarter		Worst Quarter
22.10%	December 31, 2022	-31.13%	March 31, 2020

The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.

All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.

Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.

Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022 

	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Since Inception	Inception Date
Return Before Taxes	-22.87%	-0.93%	4.87%	3.41%	4/18/2011
Return After Taxes on Distributions	-23.85%	-2.06%	3.81%	2.39%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	-13.58%	-1.15%	3.37%	2.21%
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Europe Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-22.82%	-0.40%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq DM Europe Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-16.42%	1.51%	N/A	N/A
MSCI Europe Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-15.06%	1.87%	4.58%	3.93%

(1)

Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

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First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund (FEP)

Management

Investment Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust” or the “Advisor”)

Portfolio Managers

The Fund’s portfolio is managed by a team (the “Investment Committee”) consisting of:

•

Daniel J. Lindquist, Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director of First Trust

•

David G. McGarel, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of First Trust

•

Jon C. Erickson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Roger F. Testin, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Stan Ueland, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Chris A. Peterson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Erik Russo, Vice President of First Trust

The Investment Committee members are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Each Investment Committee member has served as a part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2011, except for Chris A. Peterson and Erik Russo who have served as part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2016 and 2020, respectively.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund issues and redeems shares on a continuous basis, at net asset value, only in large blocks of shares called “Creation Units.” Individual shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Since shares of the Fund trade on securities exchanges in the secondary market at their market price rather than their net asset value, the Fund’s shares may trade at a price greater than (premium) or less than (discount) the Fund’s net asset value. An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”). Recent information, including the Fund’s net asset value, market price, premiums and discounts, bid-ask spreads and the median bid-ask spread for the Fund’s most recent fiscal year, is available online at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions on shares held in a tax-deferred account, while not immediately taxable, will be subject to tax when the shares are no longer held in a tax-deferred account.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, bank or other financial intermediary (collectively, “intermediaries”), First Trust and First Trust Portfolios L.P., the Fund’s distributor, may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

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Summary Information

First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF (FEUZ)

Investment Objective

The First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an index called the Nasdaq® AlphaDEX® Eurozone Index (the “Index”).

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment) 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) None

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) 

Management Fees	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	0.00%
Other Expenses	0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	0.80%

Example

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

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: 

1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
$82	$255	$444	$990

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 56% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.

The Index is composed of securities issued by companies operating in countries in the Eurozone, as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Eurozone is comprised of countries that have adopted the euro as their common currency and sole legal tender, and may include Austria, Belgium, Germany, Spain, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands and Portugal. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Eurozone Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional passive-style indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Index generally includes securities with market capitalizations that are greater

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First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF (FEUZ)

than the NYSE mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile). The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of the developed and emerging market countries of the Eurozone as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.

According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:

1.

The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.

2.

The Index Provider then removes any duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile).

3.

The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. The five growth factors are 3-, 6- & 12-month price appreciation, sales to price and 1 year sales growth. The three value factors are book value to price, cash flow to price and return on assets. All stocks are ranked on the sum of ranks for the growth factors and, separately, all stocks are ranked on the sum of ranks for the value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.

4.

The top 150 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.

5.

The Index is subject to sector and country constraints which are set at 15% above the sector and country percentages of the Base Index. Stocks will fail the country/sector constraint if the weight assigned to the stock, when added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its country/sector, is greater than the country/sector weighting constraint.

The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 150 securities and the Fund had significant investments in German issuers and European issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.

Principal Risks

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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.

CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.

CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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

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First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF (FEUZ)

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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.

EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.

EUROPE RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of European issuers. Political or economic disruptions in European countries, even in countries in which the Fund is not invested, may adversely affect security values and thus the Fund’s holdings. A significant number of countries in Europe are member states in the European Union (the “EU”), and the member states no longer control their own monetary policies by directing independent interest rates for their currencies. In these member states, the authority to direct monetary policies, including money supply and official interest rates for the Euro, is exercised by the European Central Bank. In a 2016 referendum, the United Kingdom elected to withdraw from the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. As the second largest economy among EU members, the implications of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal are difficult to gauge and cannot be fully known. Its departure may negatively impact the EU and Europe as a whole by causing volatility within the EU, triggering prolonged economic downturns in certain European countries or sparking additional member states to contemplate departing the EU (thereby perpetuating political instability in the region).

GERMANY RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of German issuers. The German economy is dependent to a significant extent on the economies of certain key trading partners, including the United States, France, Italy and other European countries. Reduction in spending on German products and services, or changes in any of the economies may have an adverse impact on the German economy. In addition, heavy regulation of labor and product markets in Germany may have an adverse effect on German issuers. Such regulations may negatively impact economic growth or cause prolonged periods of recession. Concerns regarding the economic health of the EU have led to tremendous downward pressure on certain financial institutions, including German financial services companies. Secessionist movements, such as the Catalan movement in Spain, may have an adverse effect on the German economy.

GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.

INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a

78

First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF (FEUZ)

fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.

INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.

INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.

INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.

LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.

MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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

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First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF (FEUZ)

the spread between the Fund’s net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.

OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.

PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.

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First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF (FEUZ)

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.

SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.

TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.

VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.

Annual Total Return

The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.

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First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF (FEUZ)

First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF
Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31

 

During the periods shown in the chart above: 

Best Quarter		Worst Quarter
23.61%	December 31, 2022	-29.55%	March 31, 2020

The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.

All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.

Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.

Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022 

	1 Year	5 Years	Since Inception	Inception Date
Return Before Taxes	-19.65%	-1.60%	4.08%	10/21/2014
Return After Taxes on Distributions	-20.72%	-2.51%	3.23%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	-11.68%	-1.57%	2.82%
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Eurozone Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-19.54%	-1.14%	4.60%
Nasdaq Eurozone Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-17.95%	0.35%	3.67%
MSCI EMU Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-17.86%	0.60%	3.59%

Management

Investment Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust” or the “Advisor”)

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First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF (FEUZ)

Portfolio Managers

The Fund’s portfolio is managed by a team (the “Investment Committee”) consisting of:

•

Daniel J. Lindquist, Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director of First Trust

•

David G. McGarel, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of First Trust

•

Jon C. Erickson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Roger F. Testin, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Stan Ueland, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Chris A. Peterson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Erik Russo, Vice President of First Trust

The Investment Committee members are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Each Investment Committee member has served as a part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2014, except for Chris A. Peterson and Erik Russo who have served as part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2016 and 2020, respectively.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund issues and redeems shares on a continuous basis, at net asset value, only in large blocks of shares called “Creation Units.” Individual shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Since shares of the Fund trade on securities exchanges in the secondary market at their market price rather than their net asset value, the Fund’s shares may trade at a price greater than (premium) or less than (discount) the Fund’s net asset value. An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”). Recent information, including the Fund’s net asset value, market price, premiums and discounts, bid-ask spreads and the median bid-ask spread for the Fund’s most recent fiscal year, is available online at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions on shares held in a tax-deferred account, while not immediately taxable, will be subject to tax when the shares are no longer held in a tax-deferred account.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, bank or other financial intermediary (collectively, “intermediaries”), First Trust and First Trust Portfolios L.P., the Fund’s distributor, may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

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Summary Information

First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund (FGM)

Investment Objective

The First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Germany Index (the “Index”).

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment) 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) None

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) 

Management Fees	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	0.00%
Other Expenses	0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	0.80%

Example

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

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: 

1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
$82	$255	$444	$990

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 152% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.

The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in Germany, as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Germany Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies

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First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund (FGM)

in Germany, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.

According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:

1.

The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.

2.

The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.329 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.

3.

The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.

4.

The top 40 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.

5.

The Index is subject to sector weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector percentages of the Base Index. For example, if financial companies comprise 15% of the Base Index, the Index will be comprised of no more than 30% financials. Stocks will fail the sector constraint if the weight assigned to the stock, when added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector, is greater than the sector weighting constraint.

The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 40 securities and the Fund had significant investments in German issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.

Principal Risks

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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.

CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.

CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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

85

First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund (FGM)

to intended users. In addition, cyber security breaches of the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.

EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.

EUROPE RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of European issuers. Political or economic disruptions in European countries, even in countries in which the Fund is not invested, may adversely affect security values and thus the Fund’s holdings. A significant number of countries in Europe are member states in the European Union (the “EU”), and the member states no longer control their own monetary policies by directing independent interest rates for their currencies. In these member states, the authority to direct monetary policies, including money supply and official interest rates for the Euro, is exercised by the European Central Bank. In a 2016 referendum, the United Kingdom elected to withdraw from the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. As the second largest economy among EU members, the implications of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal are difficult to gauge and cannot be fully known. Its departure may negatively impact the EU and Europe as a whole by causing volatility within the EU, triggering prolonged economic downturns in certain European countries or sparking additional member states to contemplate departing the EU (thereby perpetuating political instability in the region).

GERMANY RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of German issuers. The German economy is dependent to a significant extent on the economies of certain key trading partners, including the United States, France, Italy and other European countries. Reduction in spending on German products and services, or changes in any of the economies may have an adverse impact on the German economy. In addition, heavy regulation of labor and product markets in Germany may have an adverse effect on German issuers. Such regulations may negatively impact economic growth or cause prolonged periods of recession. Concerns regarding the economic health of the EU have led to tremendous downward pressure on certain financial institutions, including German financial services companies. Secessionist movements, such as the Catalan movement in Spain, may have an adverse effect on the German economy.

GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.

INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare

86

First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund (FGM)

circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.

INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.

INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.

INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.

LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.

MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.

87

First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund (FGM)

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.

OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.

PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences may be due, in large part, to the fact that supply and demand

88

First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund (FGM)

forces at work in the secondary trading market for shares will be closely related, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.

SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.

TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.

VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.

Annual Total Return

The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.

On July 14, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Germany Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Germany Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of December 15, 2014, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Germany Index.

89

First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund (FGM)

First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund
Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31

 

During the periods shown in the chart above: 

Best Quarter		Worst Quarter
30.09%	June 30, 2020	-29.13%	March 31, 2020

The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.

All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.

Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.

Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022 

	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Since Inception	Inception Date
Return Before Taxes	-30.39%	-4.76%	2.73%	3.67%	2/14/2012
Return After Taxes on Distributions	-31.98%	-5.74%	1.82%	2.78%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	-18.06%	-3.90%	1.74%	2.50%
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Germany Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-30.51%	-4.53%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Germany Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-22.28%	-3.41%	2.58%	N/A
MSCI Germany Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-22.34%	-3.02%	2.66%	3.64%

(1)

Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

Management

Investment Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust” or the “Advisor”)

90

First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund (FGM)

Portfolio Managers

The Fund’s portfolio is managed by a team (the “Investment Committee”) consisting of:

•

Daniel J. Lindquist, Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director of First Trust

•

David G. McGarel, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of First Trust

•

Jon C. Erickson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Roger F. Testin, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Stan Ueland, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Chris A. Peterson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Erik Russo, Vice President of First Trust

The Investment Committee members are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Each Investment Committee member has served as a part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2012, except for Chris A. Peterson and Erik Russo who have served as part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2016 and 2020, respectively.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund issues and redeems shares on a continuous basis, at net asset value, only in large blocks of shares called “Creation Units.” Individual shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Since shares of the Fund trade on securities exchanges in the secondary market at their market price rather than their net asset value, the Fund’s shares may trade at a price greater than (premium) or less than (discount) the Fund’s net asset value. An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”). Recent information, including the Fund’s net asset value, market price, premiums and discounts, bid-ask spreads and the median bid-ask spread for the Fund’s most recent fiscal year, is available online at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions on shares held in a tax-deferred account, while not immediately taxable, will be subject to tax when the shares are no longer held in a tax-deferred account.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, bank or other financial intermediary (collectively, “intermediaries”), First Trust and First Trust Portfolios L.P., the Fund’s distributor, may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

91

Summary Information

First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF (NFTY)

Investment Objective

The First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index (the “Index”).

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment) 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) None

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) 

Management Fees	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	0.00%
Other Expenses	0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	0.80%

Example

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

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: 

1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
$82	$255	$444	$990

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 56% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by NSE Indices Limited (the “Index Provider”). The Index Provider makes all decisions on additions and deletions of companies comprising the Index.

According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to track the performance of the 50 largest and most liquid Indian securities listed on the National Stock Exchange of India (“NSE”) by investing in all of the components of the NIFTY 50 (the “Benchmark Index”). The Benchmark Index measures the equity performance of the top 50 companies (weighted by free float market capitalization) whose equity securities trade in the Indian securities markets, and is designed to reflect the overall conditions of the Indian equity market as well as the Indian economy. The Index includes the same 50 stocks included in the Benchmark Index but gives each an equal weight. According to the Index Provider, while the Index rebalances quarterly and reconstitutes semi-annually, throughout the year, off-cycle rebalancing and reconstitution of the Index may be initiated in case any of the

92

First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF (NFTY)

Index constituents ceases to form part of the Benchmark Index due to suspension or delisting. The Index may be composed of emerging market companies, securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies and companies with various market capitalizations.

The Index is rebalanced quarterly and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s quarterly rebalance schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. According to the Index Provider, an unscheduled Index reconstitution may be undertaken if an Index constituent becomes subject to a merger, spin-off or delisting; or in specific cases of capital restructuring which may result in a change in the stock price of a constituent company. An unscheduled Index reconstitution may also be undertaken, at the discretion of the Index Provider, due to adverse regulatory findings or actions against a constituent company by the Indian securities markets or other regulatory and/or government agencies. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 50 securities and the Fund had significant investments in financial companies and Indian issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.

Principal Risks

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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.

CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund will effect some or all of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects all of its creations and redemptions in-kind. Because the Fund may effect redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of portfolio securities may result in capital gains or losses and may also result in higher brokerage costs.

CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.

CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.

93

First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF (NFTY)

EMERGING MARKETS RISK. Investments in securities issued by governments and companies operating in emerging market countries involve additional risks relating to political, economic, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in securities and instruments issued by U.S. companies or by companies operating in other developed market countries. Investments in emerging markets securities are generally considered speculative in nature and are subject to the following heightened risks: smaller market capitalization of securities markets which may suffer periods of relative illiquidity; significant price volatility; restrictions on foreign investment; possible repatriation of investment income and capital; rapid inflation; and currency convertibility issues. Emerging market countries also often have less uniformity in accounting, auditing and reporting requirements, unsettled securities laws, unreliable securities valuation and greater risk associated with custody of securities. Financial and other reporting by companies and government entities also may be less reliable in emerging market countries. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in emerging market countries or for U.S. authorities to pursue. For funds that track an index or are managed based upon a benchmark, the index may not weight the securities in emerging market countries on the basis of investor protection limitations, financial reporting quality or available oversight mechanisms. Furthermore, investors may be required to register the proceeds of sales and future economic or political crises could lead to price controls, forced mergers, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, seizure, nationalization or creation of government monopolies.

EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.

FINANCIAL COMPANIES RISK. Financial companies, such as retail and commercial banks, insurance companies and financial services companies, are especially subject to the adverse effects of economic recession, currency exchange rates, extensive government regulation, decreases in the availability of capital, volatile interest rates, portfolio concentrations in geographic markets, industries or products (such as commercial and residential real estate loans), competition from new entrants and blurred distinctions in their fields of business.

INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.

INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.

INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately.

94

First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF (NFTY)

Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.

INDIA REGULATORY RISK. The Fund is registered in India as a Foreign Portfolio Investor (“FPI”) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (“SEBI”). Only while maintaining FPI registration would the Fund be able to buy, sell or deal in Indian securities. Investment by FPIs in Indian securities are subject to certain limits and restrictions under the applicable law, and the applications of such limits and restrictions could adversely impact the ability of the Fund to make investments in India.

INDIA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Indian issuers. India is an emerging market and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in India or for U.S. authorities to pursue. Investment in Indian securities involves risks in addition to those associated with investments in securities of issuers in more developed countries, which may adversely affect the value of the Fund’s assets. Such heightened risks include, among others, political and legal uncertainty, greater government control over the economy, currency fluctuations or blockage and the risk of nationalization or expropriation of assets. In addition, religious and border disputes persist in India. Moreover, India has experienced civil unrest and hostilities with neighboring countries, including Pakistan, and the Indian government has confronted separatist movements in several Indian states. The securities market of India is considered an emerging market that is characterized by a large number of listed companies that have significantly smaller market capitalizations, greater price volatility, greater delays and possibility of disruptions in settlement transactions, greater political uncertainties and greater dependence on international trade or development assistance and substantially less liquidity than companies in more developed markets. These factors, coupled with restrictions on foreign investment and other factors, limit the supply of securities available for investment by the Fund. This will affect the rate at which the Fund is able to invest in the securities of Indian companies, the purchase and sale prices for such securities and the timing of purchases and sales. Certain restrictions on foreign investments may decrease the liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio, subject the Fund to higher transaction costs, or inhibit the Fund’s ability to track the Index. Investments in Indian securities may also be limited or prevented, at times, due to the limits on foreign ownership imposed by the Reserve Bank of India (“RBI”) or the Securities and Exchange Board of India ("SEBI"). In addition, a natural or other disaster could occur in India that could affect the Indian economy or operations of the Fund, causing an adverse impact on the Fund.

INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.

LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.

95

First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF (NFTY)

MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.

OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.

PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor

96

First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF (NFTY)

cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.

TAX RISK. The Fund will be subject to tax in India on the purchase and sale of Indian securities held by the Fund, which will reduce the Fund’s returns. For more information regarding the tax implications of investing in Indian securities, please see the section entitled “Federal Tax Matters.”

TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.

Annual Total Return

The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.

On April 17, 2018 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Taiwan Index to the NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period.

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First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF (NFTY)

First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF
Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31

 

During the periods shown in the chart above: 

Best Quarter		Worst Quarter
25.70%	December 31, 2020	-35.46%	March 31, 2020

The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.

All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.

Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.

Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022 

	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Since Inception	Inception Date
Return Before Taxes	-4.45%	5.50%	6.30%	5.84%	2/14/2012
Return After Taxes on Distributions	-6.53%	4.83%	5.35%	4.89%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	-2.52%	4.03%	4.57%	4.20%
NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-2.86%	N/A	N/A	N/A
NIFTY 50 Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-5.14%	7.25%	8.66%	7.88%
MSCI India Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-7.95%	6.01%	7.43%	6.77%

(1)

On April 17, 2018, the Fund's underlying index changed from the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Taiwan Index to the NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and total returns shown for the periods prior to April 17, 2018, are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the current index, would have generated. Since the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of September 29, 2017, it was not in existence for all the periods disclosed.

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First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF (NFTY)

Management

Investment Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust” or the “Advisor”)

Portfolio Managers

The Fund’s portfolio is managed by a team (the “Investment Committee”) consisting of:

•

Daniel J. Lindquist, Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director of First Trust

•

David G. McGarel, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of First Trust

•

Jon C. Erickson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Roger F. Testin, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Stan Ueland, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Chris A. Peterson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Erik Russo, Vice President of First Trust

The Investment Committee members are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Each Investment Committee member has served as a part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2012, except for Chris A. Peterson and Erik Russo who have served as part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2016 and 2020, respectively.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund issues and redeems shares on a continuous basis, at net asset value, only in large blocks of shares called “Creation Units.” Individual shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Since shares of the Fund trade on securities exchanges in the secondary market at their market price rather than their net asset value, the Fund’s shares may trade at a price greater than (premium) or less than (discount) the Fund’s net asset value. An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”). Recent information, including the Fund’s net asset value, market price, premiums and discounts, bid-ask spreads and the median bid-ask spread for the Fund’s most recent fiscal year, is available online at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions on shares held in a tax-deferred account, while not immediately taxable, will be subject to tax when the shares are no longer held in a tax-deferred account.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, bank or other financial intermediary (collectively, “intermediaries”), First Trust and First Trust Portfolios L.P., the Fund’s distributor, may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

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Summary Information

First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FJP)

Investment Objective

The First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Japan Index (the “Index”).

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment) 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) None

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) 

Management Fees	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	0.00%
Other Expenses	0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	0.80%

Example

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

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: 

1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
$82	$255	$444	$990

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 79% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.

The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in Japan, as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Japan Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in Japan,

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as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.

According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:

1.

The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.

2.

The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.329 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.

3.

The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.

4.

The top 100 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.

5.

The Index is subject to sector weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector percentages of the Base Index. For example, if financial companies comprise 15% of the Base Index, the Index will be comprised of no more than 30% financials. Stocks will fail the sector constraint if the weight assigned to the stock, when added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector, is greater than the sector weighting constraint.

The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 100 securities and the Fund had significant investments in industrial companies and Japanese issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.

Principal Risks

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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

ASIA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian issuers. Many Asian economies have experienced rapid growth and industrialization, and there is no assurance that this growth rate will be maintained. Some Asian economies are highly dependent on trade, and economic conditions in other countries within and outside Asia can impact these economies. Certain of these economies may be adversely affected by trade or policy disputes with its major trade partners. There is also a high concentration of market capitalization and trading volume in a small number of issuers representing a limited number of industries, as well as a high concentration of investors and financial intermediaries. Certain Asian countries have experienced and may in the future experience expropriation and nationalization of assets, confiscatory taxation, currency manipulation, political instability, armed conflict and social instability as a result of religious, ethnic, socio-economic and/or political unrest. In particular, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Asian economies. Governments of certain Asian countries have exercised, and continue to exercise, substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector. In certain cases, the government owns or controls many companies, including the largest in the country. Accordingly, government actions could have a significant effect on the issuers of the Fund’s securities or on economic conditions generally. Recent developments in relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on the economy of Asian countries and a commensurately negative impact on the Fund.

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First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FJP)

AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.

CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.

CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.

EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.

GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.

INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.

102

First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FJP)

INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.

INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.

INDUSTRIALS COMPANIES RISK. Industrials companies convert unfinished goods into finished durables used to manufacture other goods or provide services. Examples of industrials companies include companies involved in the production of electrical equipment and components, industrial products, manufactured housing and telecommunications equipment, as well as defense and aerospace companies. General risks of industrials companies include the general state of the economy, exchange rates, commodity prices, intense competition, consolidation, domestic and international politics, government regulation, import controls, excess capacity, consumer demand and spending trends. In addition, industrials companies may also be significantly affected by overall capital spending levels, economic cycles, rapid technological changes, delays in modernization, labor relations, environmental liabilities, governmental and product liability and e-commerce initiatives.

INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.

JAPAN RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Japanese issuers. The Japanese economy may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability, which could have a negative impact on Japanese securities. Japan’s economy is characterized by government intervention and protectionism, reliance on oil imports, an unstable financial services sector and relatively high unemployment. Since 2000, Japan has experienced relatively low economic growth, and it may remain low in the future. Its economy is heavily dependent on international trade and has been adversely affected by trade tariffs and competition from emerging economies. As such, economic growth is heavily dependent on continued growth in international trade, relatively low commodities prices, government support of the financial services sector and other government policies. Any changes or trends in these economic factors could have a significant impact on Japanese markets overall and may negatively affect the Fund’s investments. Japan’s

103

First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FJP)

economy and equity market also share a strong correlation with U.S. markets and the Japanese economy may be affected by economic problems in the U.S. Despite a strengthening in the economic relationship between Japan and China, the countries’ political relationship has at times been strained. Should political tension increase, it could adversely affect the economy and destabilize the region as a whole. Additionally, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Japan’s economy. Japan’s geography also subjects it to an increased risk of natural disasters, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, typhoons and tsunamis, all of which could negatively impact the Fund’s investments.

LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.

MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.

OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet

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First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FJP)

its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.

PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.

SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.

TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.

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First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FJP)

VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.

Annual Total Return

The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.

On July 14, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Japan Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Japan Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of December 15, 2014, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Japan Index.

First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund
Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31

 

During the periods shown in the chart above: 

Best Quarter		Worst Quarter
14.30%	December 31, 2022	-20.55%	March 31, 2020

The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.

All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.

Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.

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First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FJP)

Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022 

	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Since Inception	Inception Date
Return Before Taxes	-12.04%	-4.56%	3.49%	2.14%	4/18/2011
Return After Taxes on Distributions	-12.84%	-5.32%	2.83%	1.52%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	-7.15%	-3.68%	2.47%	1.41%
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Japan Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-12.24%	-4.09%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Japan Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-15.52%	-0.31%	5.59%	N/A
MSCI Japan Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-16.65%	0.23%	5.55%	4.76%

(1)

Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

Management

Investment Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust” or the “Advisor”)

Portfolio Managers

The Fund’s portfolio is managed by a team (the “Investment Committee”) consisting of:

•

Daniel J. Lindquist, Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director of First Trust

•

David G. McGarel, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of First Trust

•

Jon C. Erickson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Roger F. Testin, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Stan Ueland, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Chris A. Peterson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Erik Russo, Vice President of First Trust

The Investment Committee members are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Each Investment Committee member has served as a part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2011, except for Chris A. Peterson and Erik Russo who have served as part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2016 and 2020, respectively.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund issues and redeems shares on a continuous basis, at net asset value, only in large blocks of shares called “Creation Units.” Individual shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Since shares of the Fund trade on securities exchanges in the secondary market at their market price rather than their net asset value, the Fund’s shares may trade at a price greater than (premium) or less than (discount) the Fund’s net asset value. An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”). Recent information, including the Fund’s net asset value, market price, premiums and discounts, bid-ask spreads and the median bid-ask spread for the Fund’s most recent fiscal year, is available online at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions on shares held in a tax-deferred account, while not immediately taxable, will be subject to tax when the shares are no longer held in a tax-deferred account.

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First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FJP)

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, bank or other financial intermediary (collectively, “intermediaries”), First Trust and First Trust Portfolios L.P., the Fund’s distributor, may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

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Summary Information

First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund (FLN)

Investment Objective

The First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Latin America Index (the “Index”).

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment) 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) None

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) 

Management Fees	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	0.00%
Other Expenses	0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	0.80%

Example

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

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: 

1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
$82	$255	$444	$990

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 104% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.

The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in Latin America, as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. Securities issued by companies operating in Brazil, Mexico and other emerging market countries may comprise a significant portion of the Index. The Index may also be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Latin America Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the

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First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund (FLN)

AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in Latin America, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.

According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:

1.

The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.

2.

The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.548 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.

3.

The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.

4.

The top 50 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.

5.

The Index is subject to sector/country weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector/country percentages of the Base Index. A stock will be moved to a lower-weighted quintile when its weight, added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector/country, is greater than the sector/country weighting constraint. Stocks that fail the sector/country weighting constraints at the lowest quintile will be removed from the Index.

The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 50 securities and the Fund had significant investments in materials companies, Brazilian issuers, Mexican issuers and Latin American issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.

Principal Risks

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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.

BRAZIL RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Brazilian issuers. Brazil is an emerging market and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in Brazil or for U.S. authorities to pursue. Investing in Brazil may involve a higher degree of risk and special considerations not typically associated with investing in more established economies or securities markets. Investment exposure to Brazil may subject the Fund, to a greater extent than if investments were made in developed countries, to the risks of adverse securities markets, exchange rates and social, political, regulatory, economic, or environmental events and natural disasters which may occur in Brazil. The economy, industries, and securities and currency markets of Brazil may be adversely affected by protectionist trade policies,

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First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund (FLN)

slow economic activity worldwide, political and social instability and regional and global conflicts. Brazil has experienced security concerns, such as terrorism and strained international relations. Incidents involving the country’s or region’s security may cause uncertainty in Brazilian markets and may adversely affect its economy and the Fund’s investments.

CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund will effect some or all of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects all of its creations and redemptions in-kind. Because the Fund may effect redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of portfolio securities may result in capital gains or losses and may also result in higher brokerage costs.

CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.

CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.

EMERGING MARKETS RISK. Investments in securities issued by governments and companies operating in emerging market countries involve additional risks relating to political, economic, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in securities and instruments issued by U.S. companies or by companies operating in other developed market countries. Investments in emerging markets securities are generally considered speculative in nature and are subject to the following heightened risks: smaller market capitalization of securities markets which may suffer periods of relative illiquidity; significant price volatility; restrictions on foreign investment; possible repatriation of investment income and capital; rapid inflation; and currency convertibility issues. Emerging market countries also often have less uniformity in accounting, auditing and reporting requirements, unsettled securities laws, unreliable securities valuation and greater risk associated with custody of securities. Financial and other reporting by companies and government entities also may be less reliable in emerging market countries. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in emerging market countries or for U.S. authorities to pursue. For funds that track an index or are managed based upon a benchmark, the index may not weight the securities in emerging market countries on the basis of investor protection limitations, financial reporting quality or available oversight mechanisms. Furthermore, investors may be required to register the proceeds of sales and future economic or political crises could lead to price controls, forced mergers, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, seizure, nationalization or creation of government monopolies.

EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the

111

First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund (FLN)

cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.

GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.

INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.

INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.

INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.

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First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund (FLN)

INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.

LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.

LATIN AMERICA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Latin American issuers. The economies of Latin American countries have in the past experienced considerable difficulties, including high inflation rates, high interest rates, high unemployment, government overspending and political instability. International economic conditions, particularly those in the United States, Europe and Asia, as well as world prices for oil and other commodities may also influence the development of Latin American economies. Many Latin American countries are highly reliant on the exportation of commodities and their economies may be significantly impacted by fluctuations in commodity prices and the global demand for certain commodities. Investments in Latin American countries may be subject to currency risks, such as restrictions on the flow of money in and out of a country, extreme volatility relative to the U.S. dollar, and devaluation, all of which could decrease the value of investments in Latin American companies. Other Latin American investment risks may include inadequate investor protection, less developed regulatory, accounting, auditing and financial standards, unfavorable changes in laws or regulations, natural disasters, corruption and military activity. The governments of many Latin American countries may also exercise substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector, and any such exercise could have a significant effect on companies in which the Fund invests. Securities of companies in Latin America may also be subject to significant price volatility.

MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

MATERIALS COMPANIES RISK. Materials and processing companies are involved in the extraction or processing of raw materials such as metals, ore and forestry products. These companies are sensitive to changes in the business cycle and fluctuations in the supply and demand for raw materials. Further, certain materials and processing companies can be affected by shifts in the housing market, as many produced raw materials are components of construction projects. Rising wage costs can also impact companies that rely on skilled labor. In addition, materials and processing companies may be significantly

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First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund (FLN)

affected by volatility of commodity prices, import controls, worldwide competition, liability for environmental damage, depletion of resources and mandated expenditures for safety and pollution control devices.

MEXICO RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Mexican issuers. The Mexican economy is dependent upon external trade with other economies, specifically with the United States and certain Latin American countries. Mexico is an emerging market and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in Mexico or for U.S. authorities to pursue. As a result, Mexico is dependent on, among other things, the U.S. economy and any change in the price or demand for Mexican exports may have an adverse impact on the Mexican economy. Recent political developments in the United States have raised potential implications for the current trade arrangements between the United States and Mexico, which could negatively affect the value of Mexican securities. Historically, Mexico has experienced substantial economic instability resulting from, among other things, periods of very high inflation, high interest rates, economic volatility, high unemployment rates and significant devaluations of the Mexican currency, the peso, as well as destabilizing events caused by local insurrections, social upheavals, drug related violence and public health crises. Recurrence of these or similar conditions may adversely impact the Mexican economy. Mexico has also experienced adverse economic impacts as a result of earthquakes and hurricanes, as well as outbreaks of violence. Incidents involving Mexico’s security may have an adverse effect on the Mexican economy and cause uncertainty in its financial markets.

NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.

OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.

PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor

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cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.

SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.

TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.

VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.

Annual Total Return

The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.

On October 13, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Latin America Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Latin America Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of February 11, 2015, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Latin America Index.

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First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund (FLN)

First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund
Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31

 

During the periods shown in the chart above: 

Best Quarter		Worst Quarter
30.58%	December 31, 2020	-46.21%	March 31, 2020

The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.

All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.

Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.

Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022 

	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Since Inception	Inception Date
Return Before Taxes	2.17%	-0.47%	-1.03%	-1.34%	4/18/2011
Return After Taxes on Distributions	-0.15%	-1.88%	-2.51%	-2.76%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	1.22%	-0.95%	-1.40%	-1.57%
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Latin America Index (1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	3.05%	0.82%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Latin America Index (1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	5.49%	-2.09%	-3.04%	N/A
MSCI EM Latin America Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	8.92%	-1.08%	-2.15%	-2.77%

(1)

Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

Management

Investment Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust” or the “Advisor”)

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Portfolio Managers

The Fund’s portfolio is managed by a team (the “Investment Committee”) consisting of:

•

Daniel J. Lindquist, Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director of First Trust

•

David G. McGarel, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of First Trust

•

Jon C. Erickson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Roger F. Testin, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Stan Ueland, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Chris A. Peterson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Erik Russo, Vice President of First Trust

The Investment Committee members are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Each Investment Committee member has served as a part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2011, except for Chris A. Peterson and Erik Russo who have served as part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2016 and 2020, respectively.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund issues and redeems shares on a continuous basis, at net asset value, only in large blocks of shares called “Creation Units.” Individual shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Since shares of the Fund trade on securities exchanges in the secondary market at their market price rather than their net asset value, the Fund’s shares may trade at a price greater than (premium) or less than (discount) the Fund’s net asset value. An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”). Recent information, including the Fund’s net asset value, market price, premiums and discounts, bid-ask spreads and the median bid-ask spread for the Fund’s most recent fiscal year, is available online at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions on shares held in a tax-deferred account, while not immediately taxable, will be subject to tax when the shares are no longer held in a tax-deferred account.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, bank or other financial intermediary (collectively, “intermediaries”), First Trust and First Trust Portfolios L.P., the Fund’s distributor, may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

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Summary Information

First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund (FSZ)

Investment Objective

The First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Switzerland Index (the “Index”).

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment) 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) None

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) 

Management Fees	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	0.00%
Other Expenses	0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	0.80%

Example

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

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: 

1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
$82	$255	$444	$990

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 64% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.

The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in Switzerland, as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Switzerland Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of

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First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund (FSZ)

companies in Switzerland, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.

According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:

1.

The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.

2.

The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.329 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.

3.

The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.

4.

The top 40 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.

5.

The Index is subject to sector weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector percentages of the Base Index. For example, if financial companies comprise 15% of the Base Index, the Index will be comprised of no more than 30% financials. Stocks will fail the sector constraint if the weight assigned to the stock, when added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector, is greater than the sector weighting constraint.

The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 40 securities and the Fund had significant investments in financial companies, industrials companies and Swiss issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.

Principal Risks

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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.

CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.

CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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

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First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund (FSZ)

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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.

EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.

EUROPE RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of European issuers. Political or economic disruptions in European countries, even in countries in which the Fund is not invested, may adversely affect security values and thus the Fund’s holdings. A significant number of countries in Europe are member states in the European Union (the “EU”), and the member states no longer control their own monetary policies by directing independent interest rates for their currencies. In these member states, the authority to direct monetary policies, including money supply and official interest rates for the Euro, is exercised by the European Central Bank. In a 2016 referendum, the United Kingdom elected to withdraw from the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. As the second largest economy among EU members, the implications of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal are difficult to gauge and cannot be fully known. Its departure may negatively impact the EU and Europe as a whole by causing volatility within the EU, triggering prolonged economic downturns in certain European countries or sparking additional member states to contemplate departing the EU (thereby perpetuating political instability in the region).

FINANCIAL COMPANIES RISK. Financial companies, such as retail and commercial banks, insurance companies and financial services companies, are especially subject to the adverse effects of economic recession, currency exchange rates, extensive government regulation, decreases in the availability of capital, volatile interest rates, portfolio concentrations in geographic markets, industries or products (such as commercial and residential real estate loans), competition from new entrants and blurred distinctions in their fields of business.

GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.

INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.

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First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund (FSZ)

INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.

INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.

INDUSTRIALS COMPANIES RISK. Industrials companies convert unfinished goods into finished durables used to manufacture other goods or provide services. Examples of industrials companies include companies involved in the production of electrical equipment and components, industrial products, manufactured housing and telecommunications equipment, as well as defense and aerospace companies. General risks of industrials companies include the general state of the economy, exchange rates, commodity prices, intense competition, consolidation, domestic and international politics, government regulation, import controls, excess capacity, consumer demand and spending trends. In addition, industrials companies may also be significantly affected by overall capital spending levels, economic cycles, rapid technological changes, delays in modernization, labor relations, environmental liabilities, governmental and product liability and e-commerce initiatives.

INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.

LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.

MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants to reduce their role or step away from these activities in times of market stress could inhibit the effectiveness of the arbitrage process

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First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund (FSZ)

in maintaining the relationship between the underlying values of the Fund’s portfolio securities and the Fund’s market price. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.

OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.

PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances,

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an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.

SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.

SWITZERLAND RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Swiss issuers. Switzerland’s economy is heavily dependent on trading relationships with certain key trading partners, including the United States, United Kingdom, China, France and Germany. Future changes in the price or the demand for Swiss products or services by the United States, United Kingdom, China, France and Germany or changes in these countries’ economies, trade regulations or currency exchange rates could adversely impact the Swiss economy and the issuers to which the Fund has exposure. Switzerland’s economy relies heavily on the banking sector, and in recent years, Switzerland has responded to increasing pressure from neighboring countries and trading partners to reform its banking secrecy laws. Recently, allegations have surfaced that certain Swiss banking institutions marketed and sold offshore tax evasion services to U.S. citizens. Future litigation or settlements arising from these accusations may have a negative impact on certain companies to which the Fund has exposure.

TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.

VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.

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Annual Total Return

The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two broad based securities market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.

On July 14, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Switzerland Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Switzerland Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of December 15, 2014, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Switzerland Index.

First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund
Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31

 

During the periods shown in the chart above: 

Best Quarter		Worst Quarter
18.16%	June 30, 2020	-22.08%	March 31, 2020

The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.

All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.

Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.

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First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund (FSZ)

Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022 

	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Since Inception	Inception Date
Return Before Taxes	-20.88%	2.93%	7.45%	7.77%	2/14/2012
Return After Taxes on Distributions	-22.06%	1.99%	6.56%	6.87%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	-12.41%	1.84%	5.57%	5.87%
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Switzerland Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-20.98%	3.36%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Switzerland Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-18.21%	5.03%	6.67%	N/A
MSCI Switzerland Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-18.32%	5.53%	6.84%	7.54%

(1)

Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

Management

Investment Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust” or the “Advisor”)

Portfolio Managers

The Fund’s portfolio is managed by a team (the “Investment Committee”) consisting of:

•

Daniel J. Lindquist, Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director of First Trust

•

David G. McGarel, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of First Trust

•

Jon C. Erickson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Roger F. Testin, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Stan Ueland, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Chris A. Peterson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Erik Russo, Vice President of First Trust

The Investment Committee members are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Each Investment Committee member has served as a part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2012, except for Chris A. Peterson and Erik Russo who have served as part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2016 and 2020, respectively.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund issues and redeems shares on a continuous basis, at net asset value, only in large blocks of shares called “Creation Units.” Individual shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Since shares of the Fund trade on securities exchanges in the secondary market at their market price rather than their net asset value, the Fund’s shares may trade at a price greater than (premium) or less than (discount) the Fund’s net asset value. An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”). Recent information, including the Fund’s net asset value, market price, premiums and discounts, bid-ask spreads and the median bid-ask spread for the Fund’s most recent fiscal year, is available online at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions on shares held in a tax-deferred account, while not immediately taxable, will be subject to tax when the shares are no longer held in a tax-deferred account.

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First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund (FSZ)

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, bank or other financial intermediary (collectively, “intermediaries”), First Trust and First Trust Portfolios L.P., the Fund’s distributor, may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

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Summary Information

First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund (FKU)

Investment Objective

The First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® United Kingdom Index (the “Index”).

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment) 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) None

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) 

Management Fees	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	0.00%
Other Expenses	0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	0.80%

Example

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

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: 

1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
$82	$255	$444	$990

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 98% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.

The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in the United Kingdom (i.e., England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales), as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq United Kingdom Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive,

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First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund (FKU)

rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in the United Kingdom as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.

According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:

1.

The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.

2.

The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.329 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.

3.

The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.

4.

The top 75 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.

5.

The Index is subject to sector weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector percentages of the Base Index. For example, if financial companies comprise 15% of the Base Index, the Index will be comprised of no more than 30% financials. Stocks will fail the sector constraint if the weight assigned to the stock, when added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector, is greater than the sector weighting constraint.

The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 75 securities and the Fund had significant investments in consumer discretionary companies and issuers located in the United Kingdom and European issuers. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.

Principal Risks

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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.

CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY COMPANIES RISK. Consumer discretionary companies, such as retailers, media companies and consumer services companies, provide non-essential goods and services. These companies manufacture products and provide discretionary services directly to the consumer, and the success of these companies is tied closely to the performance of the overall domestic and international economy, interest rates, competition and consumer confidence. Success depends heavily on disposable household income and consumer spending. Changes in demographics and consumer tastes can also affect the demand for, and success of, consumer discretionary products in the marketplace.

CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency.

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First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund (FKU)

Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.

CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.

EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.

EUROPE RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of European issuers. Political or economic disruptions in European countries, even in countries in which the Fund is not invested, may adversely affect security values and thus the Fund’s holdings. A significant number of countries in Europe are member states in the European Union (the “EU”), and the member states no longer control their own monetary policies by directing independent interest rates for their currencies. In these member states, the authority to direct monetary policies, including money supply and official interest rates for the Euro, is exercised by the European Central Bank. In a 2016 referendum, the United Kingdom elected to withdraw from the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. As the second largest economy among EU members, the implications of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal are difficult to gauge and cannot be fully known. Its departure may negatively impact the EU and Europe as a whole by causing volatility within the EU, triggering prolonged economic downturns in certain European countries or sparking additional member states to contemplate departing the EU (thereby perpetuating political instability in the region).

GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.

INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare

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First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund (FKU)

circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.

INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.

INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.

INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.

LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.

MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.

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MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.

OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.

PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences may be due, in large part, to the fact that supply and demand

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forces at work in the secondary trading market for shares will be closely related, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.

SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.

TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.

UNITED KINGDOM RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of United Kingdom issuers. Investments in issuers located in the United Kingdom may subject the Fund to regulatory, political, currency, security and economic risk specific to the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom has one of the largest economies in Europe and is heavily dependent on trade with the European Union (“EU”), and to a lesser extent the United States and China. As a result, the economy of the United Kingdom may be impacted by changes to the economic health of EU member counties, the United States and China. In 2016, the United Kingdom voted via referendum to leave the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. The precise impact on the United Kingdom’s economy as a result of its departure from the EU depends to a large degree on its ability to conclude favorable trade deals with the EU and other countries, including the United States, China, India and Japan. While new trade deals may boost economic growth, such growth may not be able to offset the increased costs of trade with the EU resulting from the United Kingdom’s loss of its membership in the EU single market. Certain sectors within the United Kingdom’s economy may be particularly affected by Brexit, including the automotive, chemicals, financial services and professional services.

VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.

Annual Total Return

The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional

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performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.

On July 14, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined United Kingdom Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® United Kingdom Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of May 18, 2015, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined United Kingdom Index.

First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund
Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31

 

During the periods shown in the chart above: 

Best Quarter		Worst Quarter
23.45%	December 31, 2022	-40.79%	March 31, 2020

The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.

All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.

Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.

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First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund (FKU)

Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022 

	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Since Inception	Inception Date
Return Before Taxes	-23.52%	-0.86%	2.61%	3.81%	2/14/2012
Return After Taxes on Distributions	-25.30%	-2.36%	1.21%	2.43%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	-14.00%	-1.25%	1.42%	2.39%
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® United Kingdom Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-22.91%	0.09%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq United Kingdom Index(1) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-9.02%	0.41%	3.18%	N/A
MSCI United Kingdom Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	-4.84%	0.96%	3.07%	3.54%

(1)

Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

Management

Investment Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust” or the “Advisor”)

Portfolio Managers

The Fund’s portfolio is managed by a team (the “Investment Committee”) consisting of:

•

Daniel J. Lindquist, Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director of First Trust

•

David G. McGarel, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of First Trust

•

Jon C. Erickson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Roger F. Testin, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Stan Ueland, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Chris A. Peterson, Senior Vice President of First Trust

•

Erik Russo, Vice President of First Trust

The Investment Committee members are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Each Investment Committee member has served as a part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2012, except for Chris A. Peterson and Erik Russo who have served as part of the portfolio management team of the Fund since 2016 and 2020, respectively.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund issues and redeems shares on a continuous basis, at net asset value, only in large blocks of shares called “Creation Units.” Individual shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Since shares of the Fund trade on securities exchanges in the secondary market at their market price rather than their net asset value, the Fund’s shares may trade at a price greater than (premium) or less than (discount) the Fund’s net asset value. An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”). Recent information, including the Fund’s net asset value, market price, premiums and discounts, bid-ask spreads and the median bid-ask spread for the Fund’s most recent fiscal year, is available online at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions on shares held in a tax-deferred account, while not immediately taxable, will be subject to tax when the shares are no longer held in a tax-deferred account.

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Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, bank or other financial intermediary (collectively, “intermediaries”), First Trust and First Trust Portfolios L.P., the Fund’s distributor, may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

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Additional Information on the Funds' Investment Objectives and Strategies

Each Fund is a series of First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II and is regulated as an “investment company” under the 1940 Act. Each Fund operates as an index fund and is not actively managed by First Trust. As such, each Fund’s investment objective is to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of its Index. In seeking to achieve this objective, each Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise its Index. Nasdaq, Inc. serves as the index provider for the indices tracked by First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF, First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund and First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund, and NSE Indices Limited serves as the index provider for the index tracked by First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF. Both Nasdaq, Inc. and NSE Indices Limited may individually be referred to throughout this prospectus as an “Index Provider” and collectively as the “Index Providers.”

Each Fund will generally employ a full replication strategy, meaning that it will normally invest in all of the securities comprising its Index in proportion to their weightings in the Index. However, under various circumstances, full replication of the Index may not be possible or practicable. In those circumstances, a Fund may purchase a sample of securities in its Index. There may also be instances in which First Trust may choose to overweight certain securities in an Index, purchase securities not in an Index which First Trust believes are appropriate to substitute for certain securities in the Index, use futures or derivative instruments or utilize various combinations of the above techniques in seeking to track an Index. Each Fund may sell securities that are represented in its Index in anticipation of their removal from the Index or purchase securities not represented in the Index in anticipation of their addition to the Index.

Each Fund’s investment objective, its 90% investment strategy and each of the policies described herein are non-fundamental policies that may be changed by the Board of Trustees of the Trust (the “Board”) without shareholder approval upon 60 days’ prior written notice to shareholders. Certain fundamental policies of the Funds are set forth in the Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) under “Investment Objective and Policies.”

While it is not expected that the Funds will invest in the securities of other investment companies, any such investments would be subject to limitations imposed by the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”) and the related rules and interpretations. Each Fund has adopted a policy that it will not invest in other investment companies in excess of 1940 Act limits in reliance on Sections 12(d)(1)(F) or 12(d)(1)(G) of the 1940 Act.

Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index

The Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index is a modified market capitalization-weighted index that employs the AlphaDEX® stock selection methodology and ranks the stocks in the Nasdaq Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index (the Index’s base index) separately on growth and value factors. The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually in April and October.

Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Brazil Index

The Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Brazil Index is a modified market capitalization-weighted index that employs the AlphaDEX® stock selection methodology and ranks the stocks in the Nasdaq Brazil Index (the Index’s base index) separately on growth and value factors. The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually in January and July.

Nasdaq AlphaDEX® China Index

The Nasdaq AlphaDEX® China Index is a modified market capitalization-weighted index that employs the AlphaDEX® stock selection methodology and ranks the stocks in the Nasdaq China Index (the Index’s base index) separately on growth and value factors. The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually in January and July.

Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Index

The Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Index is a modified market capitalization-weighted index that employs the AlphaDEX® stock selection methodology and ranks the stocks in the Nasdaq Developed Markets Ex-US Index (the Index’s base index) separately on growth and value factors. The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually in April and October.

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Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Small Cap Index

The Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Small Cap Index is a modified market capitalization-weighted index that employs the AlphaDEX® stock selection methodology and ranks the stocks in the Nasdaq Developed Markets Ex-US Index (the Index’s base index) separately on growth and value factors. The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually in April and October.

Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Index

The Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Index is a modified market capitalization-weighted index that employs the AlphaDEX® stock selection methodology and ranks the stocks in the Nasdaq Emerging Markets Index (the Index’s base index) separately on growth and value factors. The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually in April and October.

Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Small Cap Index

The Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Small Cap Index is a modified market capitalization-weighted index that employs the AlphaDEX® stock selection methodology and ranks the stocks in the Nasdaq Emerging Markets Index (the Index’s base index) separately on growth and value factors. The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually in April and October.

Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Europe Index

The Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Europe Index is a modified market capitalization-weighted index that employs the AlphaDEX® stock selection methodology and ranks the stocks in the Nasdaq Europe Index (the Index’s base index) separately on growth and value factors. The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually in April and October.

Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Eurozone Index

The Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Eurozone Index is a modified market capitalization-weighted index that employs the AlphaDEX® stock selection methodology and ranks the stocks in the Nasdaq Eurozone Index (the Index’s base index) separately on growth and value factors. The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually in April and October.

Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Germany Index

The Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Germany Index is a modified market capitalization-weighted index that employs the AlphaDEX® stock selection methodology and ranks the stocks in the Nasdaq Germany Index (the Index’s base index) separately on growth and value factors. The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually in January and July.

Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Japan Index

The Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Japan Index is a modified market capitalization-weighted index that employs the AlphaDEX® stock selection methodology and ranks the stocks in the Nasdaq Japan Index (the Index’s base index) separately on growth and value factors. The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually in January and July.

Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Latin America Index

The Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Latin America Index is a modified market capitalization-weighted index that employs the AlphaDEX® stock selection methodology and ranks the stocks in the Nasdaq Latin America Index (the Index’s base index) separately on growth and value factors. The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually in April and October.

Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Switzerland Index

The Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Switzerland Index is a modified market capitalization-weighted index that employs the AlphaDEX® stock selection methodology and ranks the stocks in the Nasdaq Switzerland Index (the Index’s base index) separately on growth and value factors. The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually in January and July.

Nasdaq AlphaDEX® United Kingdom Index

The Nasdaq AlphaDEX® United Kingdom Index is a modified market capitalization-weighted index that employs the AlphaDEX® stock selection methodology and ranks the stocks in the Nasdaq United Kingdom Index (the Index’s base index) separately on growth and value factors. The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually in January and July.

NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index

The NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index is a an equal-weight index that seeks to track the performance of the 50 largest and most liquid Indian securities listed on the National Stock Exchange of India. The Index reconstitutes semi-annually in March and September and rebalances quarterly in December, March, June and September.

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More information regarding each Index, including additional detail on the Index methodology, may be found on an Index Provider’s website. Neither the Fund, the Board, First Trust, or any of their affiliates, are responsible for the information set forth on an Index Provider’s website. Information from an Index Provider’s website and any other information not expressly included in this prospectus is not incorporated by reference in, and should not be considered part of, this prospectus.

Fund Investments

Principal Investments

Equity Securities

The Funds invest in equity securities, including common stocks, depositary receipts and preferred shares. Common stock represents an equity ownership interest in issuers. Holders of common stock are entitled to the income and increase in the value of the assets and business of the issuers after all debt obligations and obligations to preferred stockholders are satisfied. Depositary receipts are certificates typically issued by a bank or trust company that represent ownership interests in securities of non-U.S. companies. Depositary receipts may or may not be jointly sponsored by the underlying issuer. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure but have priority over common stockholders.

Real Estate Investment Trusts

Certain Funds may invest in real estate investment trusts ("REITs"). REITs are financial vehicles that pool investors’ capital to purchase or finance real estate. REITs are generally classified as equity REITs, mortgage REITs or a combination of equity and mortgage REITs. Equity REITs invest the majority of their assets directly in real property and derive income primarily from the collection of rents. Equity REITs can also realize capital gains by selling properties that have appreciated in value. Mortgage REITs invest the majority of their assets in real estate mortgages and derive income from the collection of interest payments. REITs are not taxed on income distributed to shareholders provided they comply with the applicable tax requirements.

Non-Principal Investments

Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments

Normally, a Fund invests substantially all of its assets to meet its investment objective. Each Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in securities with maturities of less than one year or cash equivalents, or it may hold cash. The percentage of a Fund invested in such holdings varies and depends on several factors, including market conditions. For temporary defensive purposes and during periods of high cash inflows or outflows, a Fund may depart from its principal investment strategies and invest part or all of its assets in these securities, or it may hold cash. During such periods, a Fund may not be able to achieve its investment objective. A Fund may adopt a defensive strategy when the portfolio managers believe securities in which the Fund normally invests have elevated risks due to political or economic factors and in other extraordinary circumstances. For more information on eligible short-term investments, see the SAI.

Illiquid Investments

A Fund may invest up to 15% of their net assets in investments and other instruments that are, at the time of investment, illiquid (determined using the Securities and Exchange Commission's standard applicable to investment companies, i.e., any investment that the Fund reasonably expects cannot be sold or disposed of in current market conditions in seven calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment). For this purpose, illiquid investments may include, but are not limited to, restricted securities (securities the disposition of which is restricted under the federal securities laws), securities that may only be resold pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), that are deemed to be illiquid, and certain repurchase agreements.

Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings

Each Fund’s portfolio holdings are available on the Funds' website at www.ftportfolios.com. A description of the policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of each Fund's portfolio securities is included in the Funds' SAI, which is also available on the Funds' website.

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Risks of Investing in the Funds

Risk is inherent in all investing. Investing in a Fund involves risk, including the risk that you may lose all or part of your investment. There can be no assurance that a Fund will meet its stated objective. Before you invest, you should consider the following risks in addition to the Principal Risks set forth above in this prospectus. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

Principal Risks

ASIA RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in the securities of Asian issuers. Such investments subject a Fund to certain risks associated specifically with investments in securities of Asian issuers, including distinct legal, regulatory, political and economic risks. Many Asian economies have experienced rapid growth and industrialization, and there is no assurance that this growth rate will be maintained. Some Asian economies are highly dependent on trade, and economic conditions in other countries within and outside Asia can impact these economies. Certain of these economies may be adversely affected by trade or policy disputes with its major trade partners. There is also a high concentration of market capitalization and trading volume in a small number of issuers representing a limited number of industries, as well as a high concentration of investors and financial intermediaries. Certain Asian countries have experienced and may in the future experience expropriation and nationalization of assets, confiscatory taxation, currency manipulation, political instability, armed conflict and social instability as a result of religious, ethnic, socio-economic and/or political unrest. In particular, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Asian economies. Governments of certain Asian countries have exercised, and continue to exercise, substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector. In certain cases, the government owns or controls many companies, including the largest in the country. Accordingly, government actions could have a significant effect on the issuers of a Fund’s securities or on economic conditions generally. Issuers in Asia may not be subject to the same accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards as U.S. companies and if their securities are not listed on a U.S. exchange, they may not be subject to the same corporate governance standards as U.S. issuers. In addition, satisfactory custodial services for investment securities may not be available in some Asia countries, which may result in a Fund incurring additional costs and delays in providing transportation and custody services for such securities outside such countries. Recent developments in relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on the economy of Asian countries and a commensurately negative impact on the Fund.

ASIA-PACIFIC RISK. Certain Funds are subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian-Pacific issuers. This includes risks associated with the economic, market, regulatory, political, natural disasters and local risks of the Asia-Pacific region, which are heightened as compared to a fund with a more geographically diversified portfolio. The region has historically been highly dependent on global trade with nations taking strong roles in both the importing and exporting of goods. In particular, the Australian economy is heavily dependent on the Asian, European and U.S. markets. Reduced spending by any of these economies on Australian products may adversely affect the Australian market. The respective stock markets in the region tend to have a larger prevalence of smaller companies that are inherently more volatile and less liquid than larger companies. Varying levels of accounting and disclosure standards, restrictions on foreign ownership, minority ownership rights and corporate governance standards are also common for the region.

AUSTRALIA RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in the securities of Australian issuers. Investing in securities of Australian companies may involve additional risks. The Australian economy is heavily dependent on the Asian, European and U.S. markets. Reduced spending by any of these economies on Australian products may adversely affect the Australian market. Additionally, Australia is located in a geographic region that has historically been prone to natural disasters. The occurrence of a natural disaster in the region could negatively impact the Australian economy and affect the value of the securities held by a Fund.

AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with a Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for a Fund. Although participants are not obligated to make a market in a Fund’s shares or submit purchase and redemption orders for creation units. To the extent that these institutions exit the business, reduce their role or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, a Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount to the Fund’s net asset value and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

BRAZIL RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in the securities of Brazilian issuers. The investment in securities of Brazilian companies involves a high degree of risk and special considerations not typically associated with investing in the U.S. securities

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markets. Such heightened risks include, among others, a high level of price volatility in the Brazilian equity and currency markets, chronic structural public sector deficits, a rising unemployment rate and disparities of wealth. Brazil has historically experienced high rates of inflation and may continue to do so in the future. An increase in prices for commodities, the depreciation of the Brazilian currency (the real) and potential future governmental measures seeking to maintain the value of the real in relation to the U.S. dollar, may trigger increases in inflation in Brazil and may slow the rate of growth of the Brazilian economy. Inflationary pressures also may limit the ability of certain Brazilian issuers to access foreign financial markets and may lead to further government intervention in the economy, including the introduction of government policies that may adversely affect the overall performance of the Brazilian economy, which in turn could adversely affect a Fund's investments. The Brazilian government has exercised, and continues to exercise, significant influence over the Brazilian economy, which may have significant effects on Brazilian companies and on market conditions and prices of Brazilian securities. The Brazilian economy has been characterized by frequent, and occasionally drastic, intervention by the Brazilian government. The Brazilian government has often changed monetary, taxation, credit, tariff and other policies to influence the core of Brazil’s economy. The Brazilian government’s actions to control inflation and affect other economic policies have involved, among others, the setting of wage and price controls, blocking access to bank accounts, fluctuation of the base interest rates, imposing exchange controls and limiting imports into Brazil. In the past, the Brazilian government has maintained domestic price controls, and no assurances can be given that price controls will not be re-imposed in the future. Investments in Brazilian securities may also be subject to certain restrictions on foreign investment. Brazilian law provides that whenever a serious imbalance in Brazil’s balance of payments exists or is anticipated, the Brazilian government may impose temporary restrictions on the remittance to foreign investors of the proceeds of their investment in Brazil and on the conversion of Brazilian currency into foreign currency. The likelihood of such restrictions may be affected by the extent of Brazil’s foreign currency reserves, the size of Brazil’s debt service burden relative to the economy as a whole, and political constraints to which Brazil may be subject. There can be no assurance that the Brazilian government will not impose restrictions or restrictive exchange control policies in the future, which could have the effect of preventing or restricting access to foreign currency. The market for Brazilian securities is directly influenced by the flow of international capital, and economic and market conditions of certain countries, especially other emerging market countries in Central and South America. Adverse economic conditions or developments in other emerging market countries have at times significantly affected the availability of credit in the Brazilian economy and resulted in considerable outflows of funds and declines in the amount of foreign currency invested in Brazil. Crises in neighboring emerging market countries also may increase investors’ risk aversion, which may adversely impact the market value of the securities issued by Brazilian companies, including securities in which a Fund may invest.

CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. Certain Funds intend to effect a significant portion of creations and redemptions for cash, rather than in-kind securities. As a result, an investment in such a Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects its creations and redemptions only in-kind. ETFs are able to make in-kind redemptions and 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 a Fund will generally cause the 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 Funds intend to distribute these gains to shareholders to avoid being taxed on this gain at the fund level and otherwise comply with the 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 a different 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 a Fund sold and redeemed its shares entirely 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 a Fund’s shares than for ETFs that distribute portfolio securities in-kind.

CHINA RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in the securities of Chinese issuers. Therefore, in addition to the risks associated with investments in non-U.S. securities generally, a Fund is subject to certain risks associated specifically with investments in securities of Chinese issuers, including those issuers with securities listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. China is an emerging market and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. The central government has historically exercised substantial control over virtually every sector of the Chinese economy through administrative regulation and/or state ownership and actions of the Chinese central and local government authorities continue to have a substantial effect on economic conditions in China. Furthermore, China’s economy is dependent on the economies of other Asian countries and can be significantly affected by currency fluctuations and increasing competition from Asia’s other emerging economies. China has experienced security concerns, such as terrorism and strained international relations. Incidents involving China’s or the region’s security may cause uncertainty in Chinese markets and may adversely affect the

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Chinese economy and the value of a Fund’s investments. Export growth continues to be a major driver of China’s rapid economic growth. Reduction in spending on Chinese products and services, institution of tariffs or other trade barriers, or a downturn in any of the economies of China’s key trading partners may have an adverse impact on the Chinese economy. Recent developments in relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on China’s export industry and a commensurately negative impact on a Fund.

As of the date of this prospectus, Executive Order 13959, as amended or supplemented from time to time, regarding securities investments that finance Chinese Military-Industrial Complex Companies (the "Executive Order") remains in effect. To comply with the Executive Order, a Fund may be forced to sell certain securities impacted by the Executive Order ("Prohibited Securities"). Certain securities that are designated as Prohibited Securities may have less liquidity as a result of such designation and the market price of such Prohibited Securities may decline and a Fund may incur a loss as a result. In addition, the market for securities of other Chinese-based issuers may also be negatively impacted resulting in reduced liquidity and price declines. Additionally, certain Prohibited Securities that have been, or will be, sold by a Fund may not be immediately removed from the Fund's corresponding Index. This disparity between a Fund's portfolio and its Index constituents could result in tracking error and a greater difference between the Fund's performance and the performance of its Index for any period during which a Prohibited Security remains in the Fund's Index.

CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY COMPANIES RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in consumer discretionary companies. Consumer discretionary companies, such as retailers, media companies and consumer services companies, provide non-essential goods and services. These companies manufacture products and provide discretionary services directly to the consumer, and the success of these companies is tied closely to the performance of the overall domestic and international economy, interest rates, competition and consumer confidence. Success depends heavily on disposable household income and consumer spending. Consumer discretionary companies may also be strongly affected by social trends and marketing campaigns. These companies may be subject to severe competition, which may have an adverse impact on their profitability. Changes in demographics and consumer tastes can also affect the demand for, and success of, consumer discretionary products in the marketplace. Consumer discretionary companies have historically been characterized as relatively cyclical and therefore more volatile in times of change.

CURRENCY RISK. Certain Funds invest in securities denominated in a non-U.S. currency. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, the value of dividends and interest earned from such securities and gains and losses realized on the sale of such securities. A Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. Changes in currency exchange rates may affect a Fund's net asset value, the value of dividends and interest earned, and gains and losses realized on the sale of securities. An increase in the strength of the U.S. dollar relative to other currencies may cause the value of a Fund to decline. Certain non-U.S. currencies may be particularly volatile, and non-U.S. governments may intervene in the currency markets, causing a decline in value or liquidity in a Fund's non-U.S. holdings whose value is tied to the affected non-U.S. currency. Additionally, the prices of non-U.S. securities that are traded in U.S. dollars are often indirectly influenced by currency fluctuations.

CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Funds are susceptible to operational risks through breaches in cyber security. A breach in cyber security refers to both intentional and unintentional events that may cause a Fund to lose proprietary information, suffer data corruption or lose operational capacity. Such events could cause a Fund to incur regulatory penalties, reputational damage, additional compliance costs associated with corrective measures and/or financial loss. These risks typically are not covered by insurance. In general, cyber incidents can result from deliberate attacks or unintentional events. Cyber incidents include, but are not limited to, gaining unauthorized access to digital systems (e.g., through “hacking” or malicious software coding) for purposes of misappropriating assets or sensitive information, corrupting data or causing operational disruption. Cyber attacks may also be carried out in a manner that does not require gaining unauthorized access, such as causing denial-of-service attacks on websites (i.e., efforts to make network services unavailable to intended users). Cyber security failures by or breaches of the systems of the Advisor, distributor and other service providers (including, but not limited to, sub-advisors, index providers, fund accountants, custodians, transfer agents and administrators), market makers, authorized participants or the issuers of securities in which a Fund invests, have the ability to cause disruptions and impact business operations, potentially resulting in: financial losses; interference with a Fund’s ability to calculate its net asset value; disclosure of confidential trading information; impediments to trading; submission of erroneous trades or erroneous creation or redemption orders; the inability of a Fund or its service providers to transact business; violations of applicable privacy and other laws; regulatory fines penalties,

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reputational damage, reimbursement or other compensation costs; or additional compliance costs. Substantial costs may be incurred by a Fund in order to resolve or prevent cyber incidents in the future. While the Funds have established business continuity plans in the event of, and risk management systems to prevent, such cyber attacks, there are inherent limitations in such plans and systems, including the possibility that certain risks have not been identified and that prevention and remediation efforts will not be successful. Furthermore, the Funds cannot control the cyber security plans and systems put in place by service providers to the Funds, issuers in which the Funds invest, market makers or authorized participants. However, there is no guarantee that such efforts will succeed, and the Funds and their shareholders could be negatively impacted as a result.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Certain Funds may invest in depositary receipts. Depositary receipts are securities issued by a bank or trust company reflecting ownership of underlying securities issued by a foreign company. An investment in depositary receipts involves further risks due to certain unique features. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights pursuant to a deposit agreement between the underlying issuer and the depositary. In certain cases, the depositary will vote the shares deposited with it as directed by the underlying issuer’s board of directors. Furthermore, investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipt. Moreover, if depositary receipts are converted into shares, the laws in certain countries may limit the ability of a non-resident to trade the shares and to reconvert the shares to depositary receipts. Depositary receipts may be “sponsored” or “unsponsored.” Sponsored depositary receipts are established jointly by a depositary and the underlying issuer, whereas unsponsored depositary receipts may be established by a depositary without participation by the underlying issuer. Holders of unsponsored depositary receipts generally bear all the costs associated with establishing the unsponsored depositary receipts. In addition, the issuers of the securities underlying unsponsored depositary receipts are not obligated to disclose material information in the U.S. and, therefore, there may be less information available regarding such issuers and there may not be a correlation between such information and the market value of the depositary receipts.

EMERGING MARKETS RISK. Investments in securities issued by emerging market governments and companies operating in emerging market countries involve additional risks relating to political, economic, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in securities and instruments issued by U.S. companies or by companies operating in other developed market countries. This is due to, among other things, the potential for greater market volatility, lower trading volume, a lack of liquidity, potential for market manipulation, higher levels of inflation, political and economic instability, greater risk of a market shutdown and more governmental limitations on foreign investments in emerging market countries than are typically found in more developed market countries. Moreover, emerging market countries often have less uniformity in accounting and reporting requirements, unsettled securities laws, less reliable securities valuations and greater risks associated with custody of securities than developed markets. In addition, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, which regulates auditors of U.S. public companies, is unable to inspect audit work papers in certain emerging market countries. Emerging market countries often have greater risk of capital controls through such measures as taxes or interest rate control than developed markets. Certain emerging market countries may also lack the infrastructure necessary to attract large amounts of foreign trade and investment. Local securities markets in emerging market countries may trade a small number of securities and may be unable to respond effectively to increases in trading volume, potentially making prompt liquidation of holdings difficult or impossible. Settlement procedures in emerging market countries are frequently less developed and reliable than those in the U.S. and other developed market countries. In addition, significant delays may occur in registering the transfer of securities. Settlement or registration problems may make it more difficult for the Fund. to value its portfolio securities and could cause the Fund to miss attractive investment opportunities. Investing in emerging market countries involves a higher risk of expropriation, nationalization, confiscation of assets and property or the imposition of restrictions on foreign investments and on repatriation of capital invested by certain emerging market countries. Enforcing legal rights may be made difficult, costly and slow in emerging markets as there may be additional problems enforcing claims against non-U.S. governments. As such, the rights and remedies associated with emerging market investment securities may be different than those available for investments in more developed markets. For example, it may be more difficult for shareholders to bring derivative litigation or for U.S. regulators to bring enforcement actions against issuers in emerging markets.

In addition, due to the differences in regulatory, accounting, audit and financial recordkeeping standards, including financial disclosures, less information about emerging market companies is publicly available and information that is available may be unreliable or outdated. This may affect the Index Provider’s ability to compute and construct the Index and may further impede the Advisor’s ability to accurately evaluate the index data provided. This potential for error in index construction and index data could affect the overall performance of the Fund..

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EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of a Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors' perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting the issuers occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market. Additionally, holders of an issuer's common stock may be subject to greater risks than holders of its preferred stock and debt securities because common stockholders' claims are subordinated to those of holders of preferred stocks and debt securities upon the bankruptcy of an issuer.

EUROPE RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in the securities of European issuers. Therefore, in addition to the risks associated with investments in non-U.S. securities generally, such Funds are subject to certain risks associated specifically with investments in securities of European issuers. Political or economic disruptions in European countries, even in countries in which a Fund is not invested, may adversely affect security values and thus the Fund’s holdings. A significant number of countries in Europe are member states in the EU, and the member states no longer control their own monetary policies by directing independent interest rates for their currencies. In these member states, the authority to direct monetary policies, including money supply and official interest rates for the Euro, is exercised by the European Central Bank. In a 2016 referendum, the United Kingdom elected to withdraw from the EU. After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. As the second largest economy among EU members, the implications of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal are difficult to gauge and cannot be fully known. Trade between the United Kingdom and the EU is highly integrated through supply chains and trade in services, as well as through multinational companies. The United Kingdom’s departure may negatively impact the EU and Europe as a whole by causing volatility within the EU, triggering prolonged economic downturns in certain European countries or sparking additional member states to contemplate departing the EU (thereby perpetuating political instability in the region).

FINANCIAL COMPANIES RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in financial companies. Financial companies are subject to extensive governmental regulation and intervention, which may adversely affect the scope of their activities, the prices they can charge, the amount and types of capital they must maintain and, potentially, their size. Governmental regulation may change frequently and may have significant adverse consequences for financial companies, including effects not intended by such regulation. The impact of more stringent capital requirements, or recent or future regulation in various countries, on any individual financial company or on financial companies as a whole cannot be predicted. Certain risks may impact the value of investments in financial companies more severely than those of investments in other issuers, including the risks associated with companies that operate with substantial financial leverage. Financial companies may also be adversely affected by volatility in interest rates, loan losses and other customer defaults, decreases in the availability of money or asset valuations, credit rating downgrades and adverse conditions in other related markets. Insurance companies in particular may be subject to severe price competition and/or rate regulation, which may have an adverse impact on their profitability. Financial companies are also a target for cyber attacks and may experience technology malfunctions and disruptions as a result.

GERMANY RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in the securities of German issuers. The German economy is dependent to a significant extent on the economies of certain key trading partners, including the United States, France, Italy and other European countries. Reduction in spending on German products and services, or changes in any of the economies may have an adverse impact on the German economy. In addition, heavy regulation of labor and product markets in Germany may have an adverse effect on German issuers. Such regulations may negatively impact economic growth or cause prolonged periods of recession. Concerns regarding the economic health of the EU have led to tremendous downward pressure on certain financial institutions, including German financial services companies. Secessionist movements, such as the Catalan movement in Spain, may have an adverse effect on the German economy. Recent developments in relations between the United States and its trading partners have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on Germany's export industry and a commensurately negative impact on the Fund.

GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Certain Funds utilize a growth style of investing. Growth stocks generally are priced higher than non-growth stocks in relation to an issuer’s earnings and other measures because investors believe they have greater growth potential. However, there is no guarantee that such an issuer will realize that growth potential. In addition, the market values of growth stocks may be more volatile than other types of investments, and therefore more susceptible to rapid price swings, especially during periods of economic uncertainty or in response to adverse news about the condition of

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the issuer, such as earnings disappointments. The returns on growth stocks may or may not move in tandem with the returns on other styles of investing or the overall stock market. Growth stocks may fall out of favor and trail the returns of funds employing other styles of investing. Growth stocks may also be more adversely affected in a down market, as growth stocks typically have little or no dividend income to absorb the effect of adverse market conditions.

INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. A Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that a Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if a Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes a Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject a Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by a Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, a Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.

INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. Each Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, a Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking ETFs or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving a Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund’s shares. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for a Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, a Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity. To the extent buying or selling activity increases, a Fund can be exposed to increased brokerage costs and adverse tax consequences and the market price of the Fund can be negatively affected.

INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile an Index accurately, or that an Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in an Index, and do not guarantee that an Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage each Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate an Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by a Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of an Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When a Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by a Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose a Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile an Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where an Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where an Index contains incorrect constituents, a Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact a Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in an Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither a Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that an Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause an Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of an Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to an Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.

INDIA REGULATORY RISK. First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF is registered in India as an FPI with SEBI. Only while maintaining FPI registration will the Fund be able to buy, sell or deal in Indian securities. Investments by FPIs in Indian securities are subject to certain limits and restrictions under the applicable law, and the applications of such limits and restrictions could adversely impact the ability of the Fund to make investments in India.

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The Fund’s investments will be made in accordance with investment restrictions prescribed under FPI regulations, or the SEBI (Foreign Portfolio Investors) Regulations, 2014, as applicable. If new policy announcements or regulations in India are made which require retrospective changes in the structure or operations of the Fund, these may adversely impact the performance of the Fund. The general limit on the aggregate ownership by FPIs such as the Fund of the outstanding securities of Indian companies is 24%, which may be increased with the approval of the shareholders of the company up to the foreign direct investment limit applicable to the sector to which the relevant Indian company belongs, or reduced to a level approved by the shareholders. However, many companies have applied for and received regulatory approval of higher limits, including, in a few cases, no limit at all. In addition to these aggregate ownership limits, the total ownership of any single FPI and its investor group in the equity shares of an Indian company must be less than 10% of the total issued and paid-up capital of the company.

INDIA RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in the securities of Indian issuers. Investment in Indian securities involves risks in addition to those associated with investments in securities of issuers in more developed countries, which may adversely affect the value of a Fund’s assets. Such heightened risks include, among others, political and legal uncertainty, greater government control over the economy, currency fluctuations or blockage and the risk of nationalization or expropriation of assets. In addition, religious and border disputes persist in India. Moreover, India has experienced civil unrest and hostilities with neighboring countries, including Pakistan, and the Indian government has confronted separatist movements in several Indian states. In addition, inflation in India remains at very high levels. High inflation may lead to the adoption of corrective measures designed to moderate growth, regulate prices of staples and other commodities and otherwise contain inflation. Such measures could inhibit economic activity in India. The securities market of India is characterized by a large number of listed companies that have significantly smaller market capitalizations, greater price volatility, greater delays and possibility of disruptions in settlement transactions, greater political uncertainties and greater dependence on international trade or development assistance and substantially less liquidity than companies in more developed markets. The securities industry in India is also subject less governmental regulation than in other countries. Indian issuers are subject to less regulation and scrutiny with regard to financial reporting, accounting and auditing than U.S. companies. Therefore, information regarding Indian corporations may be less reliable and all material information may not be available. Certain restrictions on foreign investment may decrease the liquidity of a Fund’s portfolio or subject the Fund to higher transaction costs. Investments in Indian securities may also be limited or prevented, at times, due to the limits on foreign ownership imposed by the RBI. The Indian government has exercised, and continues to exercise, significant influence over many aspects of the Indian economy, and the number of public sector enterprises in India is substantial. Accordingly, Indian government actions in the future could have a significant effect on the Indian economy, which could affect the prices and yields of securities in a Fund’s portfolio. In addition, the economy of India may differ favorably or unfavorably from the U.S. economy in such respects as the rate of growth of gross domestic product, the rate of inflation, capital reinvestment, resource self-sufficiency and balance of payments position. Agriculture occupies a more prominent position in the Indian economy than in the U.S. economy, and therefore the Indian economy is more susceptible to adverse changes in weather. Furthermore, monsoons and other natural disasters in India and surrounding regions also can affect the value of a Fund’s investments.

INDUSTRIALS COMPANIES RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in industrials companies. The value of securities issued by industrials companies may be adversely affected by supply and demand related to their specific products or services and industrials sector products in general. The products of manufacturing companies may face obsolescence due to rapid technological developments and frequent new product introduction. World events and changes in government regulations, import controls, economic conditions and exchange rates may adversely affect the performance of companies in the industrials sector. Industrials companies may be adversely affected by liability for environmental damage and product liability claims. Industrials companies may also be adversely affected by changes or trends in commodity prices, which may be influenced by unpredictable factors. Industrials companies, particularly aerospace and defense companies, may also be adversely affected by government spending policies because companies in this sector tend to rely to a significant extent on government demand for their products and services.

INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of a Fund’s assets and distributions may decline. This risk is more prevalent with respect to debt securities held by a Fund. Inflation creates uncertainty over the future real value (after inflation) of an investment. Inflation rates may change frequently and drastically as a result of various factors, including unexpected shifts in the domestic or global economy, and a Fund’s investments may not keep pace with inflation, which may result in losses to Fund investors.

JAPAN RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in the securities of Japanese issuers. Therefore, in addition to the risks associated with investments in non-U.S. securities generally, such Funds are subject to certain risks associated specifically with investments in securities of Japanese issuers. The Japanese economy may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and

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social instability, which could have a negative impact on Japanese securities. Japan’s economy is characterized by government intervention and protectionism, reliance on oil imports, an unstable financial services sector, relatively high unemployment and an aging workforce. Since 2000, Japan has experienced relatively low economic growth, and it may remain low in the future. Its economy is heavily dependent on international trade and has been adversely affected by trade tariffs and competition from emerging economies. As such, economic growth is heavily dependent on continued growth in international trade, relatively low commodities prices, government support of the financial services sector and other government policies. Any changes or trends in these economic factors could have a significant impact on Japan’s markets overall and may negatively affect a Fund’s investments. Japan’s economy and equity market also share a strong correlation with U.S. markets and the Japanese economy may be affected by economic problems in the United States. Despite a strengthening in the economic relationship between Japan and China, the countries’ political relationship has at times been strained. Should political tension increase, it could adversely affect the economy and destabilize the region as a whole. Additionally, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Japan’s economy. Japan’s geography also subjects it to an increased risk of natural disasters, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, typhoons and tsunamis, all of which could negatively impact a Fund’s investments.

LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. The Funds may invest in the securities of large capitalization companies. 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.

LATIN AMERICA RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in Latin American issuers. The economies of Latin American countries have in the past experienced considerable difficulties, including high inflation rates, high interest rates, high unemployment, government overspending and political instability. International economic conditions, particularly those in the United States, Europe and Asia, as well as world prices for oil and other commodities may also influence the development of Latin American economies. Many Latin American countries are highly reliant on the exportation of commodities and their economies may be significantly impacted by fluctuations in commodity prices and the global demand for certain commodities. In the past, certain Latin American economies have been influenced by changing supply and demand for a particular currency, monetary policies of governments (including exchange control programs, restrictions on local exchanges or markets and limitations on foreign investment in a country or on investment by residents of a country in other countries), and currency devaluations and revaluations. Other Latin American investment risks may include inadequate investor protection, less developed regulatory, accounting, auditing and financial standards, unfavorable changes in laws or regulations, natural disasters, corruption and military activity. The governments of many Latin American countries may also exercise substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector, and any such exercise could have a significant effect on companies in which a Fund invests. Securities of companies in Latin America may also be subject to significant price volatility.

MARKET CAPITALIZATION DEVIATION RISK. Certain Funds seek to hold securities with a market capitalization that falls within a specific range. However, because of possible corporate action or market movement, there can be no assurance that the securities held by a Fund will stay within the Fund’s intended market capitalization range. As a result, a Fund may be exposed to additional risk or investors may not be given the opportunity to invest fully in a certain market capitalization range.

MARKET MAKER RISK. The Funds face numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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 a Fund’s portfolio securities and the Fund’s market price. A Fund 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 a Fund’s net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of a Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of a Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments due to short-term market movements or any longer periods during more prolonged market downturns. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on a Fund and its investments. For

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example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. Additionally, in February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine which has caused and could continue to cause significant market disruptions and volatility within the markets in Russia, Europe, and the United States. The hostilities and sanctions resulting from those hostilities could have a significant impact on certain Fund investments as well as Fund performance. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of a Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of a Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, a Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

MATERIALS COMPANIES RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in materials companies. Materials and processing companies are involved in the extraction or processing of raw materials such as metals, ore and forestry products. Changes in world events, political and economic conditions, energy conservation, environmental policies, commodity price volatility, changes in currency exchange rates, imposition of import controls, increased competition, depletion of resources, technical progress and labor relations, among other factors, may adversely affect materials and processing companies. These companies are also at risk of liability for environmental damage and product liability claims. Production of materials may exceed demand as a result of market imbalances or economic downturns, leading to poor investment returns.

MEXICO RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in Mexican issuers. The Mexican economy is dependent upon external trade with other economies, specifically with the United States and certain Latin American countries. As a result, Mexico is dependent on, among other things, the U.S. economy and any change in the price or demand for Mexican exports may have an adverse impact on the Mexican economy. Recent political developments in the United States have raised potential implications for the current trade arrangements between the United States and Mexico, which could negatively affect the value of Mexican securities. Historically, Mexico has experienced substantial economic instability resulting from, among other things, periods of very high inflation, high interest rates, economic volatility, high unemployment rates and significant devaluations of the Mexican currency, the peso, as well as destabilizing events caused by local insurrections, social upheavals, drug related violence and public health crises. Recurrence of these or similar conditions may adversely impact the Mexican economy. Mexico has also experienced adverse economic impacts as a result of earthquakes and hurricanes, as well as outbreaks of violence. Incidents involving Mexico’s security may have an adverse effect on the Mexican economy and cause uncertainty in its financial markets.

NON-CORRELATION RISK. A Fund’s return may not match the return of its Index for a number of reasons. A Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to its Index and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, a Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in its Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. An investment in securities of non-U.S. companies involves risks not associated with domestic issuers. Investment in non-U.S. securities may involve higher costs than investment in U.S. securities, including higher transaction and custody costs as well as the imposition of additional taxes by non-U.S. governments. Non-U.S. investments may also involve risks associated with the level of currency exchange rates, less complete financial information about the issuers, less market liquidity, more market volatility and political instability. Future political and economic developments, the possible imposition of withholding taxes on dividend income, the possible seizure or nationalization of non-U.S. holdings, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, the possible establishment of capital controls, exchange controls or freezes on the convertibility of currency or the adoption of other governmental restrictions might adversely affect an investment in non-U.S. securities. Additionally, non-U.S. issuers may be subject to less stringent regulation, and to different accounting, auditing and recordkeeping requirements. The U.S. and non-U.S. markets often rise and fall at different times or by different amounts due to economic or other regional developments particular to a given country or region.

OPERATIONAL RISK. Each Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of a Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third-parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or systems failures. Each Fund relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect each Fund's ability to meet

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its investment objective. Although the Funds and the Funds’ investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.

PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Funds are not actively managed. Each Fund invests in securities included in or representative of its Index regardless of investment merit. The Funds generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that an Index is no longer calculated, the corresponding Index license is terminated or the identity or character of an Index is materially changed, the applicable Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. Certain Funds have an investment strategy that may frequently involve buying and selling portfolio securities. High portfolio turnover may result in a Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs, including brokerage commissions, dealer mark-ups and other costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause a Fund’s performance to be less than expected.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Preferred securities often include provisions that permit the issuer, at its discretion, to defer distributions for a stated period without any adverse consequences to the issuer. If a Fund owns a preferred security that is deferring its distributions, the Fund may be required to report income for federal income tax purposes although it has not yet received such income in cash. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may elect a number of directors to the issuer’s board of director. Generally, once the issuer pays all the arrearages, the preferred security holders no longer have voting rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may redeem the securities prior to a specified date. For instance, for certain types of preferred securities, a redemption may be triggered by a change in federal income tax or securities laws or a change in regulatory trademark. As with redemption provisions of debt securities, a special redemption by the issuer may negatively impact the return of the preferred security held by a Fund. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of a Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. First Trust cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, but not identical, to the same forces influencing the prices of the holdings of a Fund trading individually or in the aggregate at any point in time. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), First Trust believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained absent disruptions to the creation and redemption mechanism, extreme market volatility or potential lack of authorized participants. During stressed market conditions, the market for a Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for a Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of a Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.

REIT RISK. Certain Funds invest in REITs. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. Additionally, investing in REITs involves certain other risks related to their structure and focus, which include, but are not limited to, dependency upon management skills, limited diversification, the risks of locating and managing financing for projects, heavy cash flow dependency, possible default by borrowers, the costs and potential losses of self-liquidation of one or more holdings, the risk of a possible lack of mortgage funds and associated interest rate risks, overbuilding, property vacancies, increases in property taxes and operating expenses, changes in zoning laws, losses due to environmental damages, changes in neighborhood values and appeal to purchasers, the possibility of failing to maintain exemptions from registration under the 1940 Act, failure to satisfy the requirements of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 for maintaining REIT status and, in many cases, relatively small market capitalization, which may result in less market liquidity and greater price volatility for a REIT’s shares. REITs are also

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subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities.

SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. The stock price of small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more volatile than those of larger companies and therefore a Fund’s share price may be more volatile than those of funds that invest a larger percentage of their assets in stocks issued by large capitalization companies. Stock prices of small and/or mid capitalization companies are also generally more vulnerable than those of large capitalization companies to adverse business and economic developments. Securities of small and/or mid capitalization companies may be thinly traded, making it difficult for a Fund to buy and sell them. In addition, small and/or mid capitalization companies are typically less financially stable than larger, more established companies and may reinvest a high proportion of their earnings in their business and may not pay dividends. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may also depend on a small number of essential personnel who may also be less experienced than the management of larger companies, making these companies more vulnerable to experiencing adverse effects due to the loss or inexperience of personnel. Small and/or mid capitalization companies also normally have less diverse product lines than those of large capitalization companies and are more susceptible to adverse developments concerning their products.

SOUTH KOREA RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in the securities of South Korean issuers. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of South Korean issuers. Substantial political tensions exist between North Korea and South Korea. Escalated tensions involving the two nations and the outbreak of hostilities between the two nations, or even the threat of an outbreak of hostilities, could have a severe adverse effect on the South Korean economy. In addition, South Korea’s economic growth potential has recently been on a decline because of a rapidly aging population and structural problems, among other factors. The South Korean economy is heavily reliant on trading exports, especially to other Asian countries and the U.S., and disruptions or decreases in trade activity could lead to further declines. The South Korean economy’s dependence on the economies of Asia and the U.S. mean that a reduction in spending by these economies on South Korean products and services or negative changes in any of these economies may cause an adverse impact on the South Korean economy and therefore, on a Fund’s investments. In addition, South Korea is located in a part of the world that has historically been prone to natural disasters such as earthquakes, hurricanes or tsunamis, and is economically sensitive to environmental events. Any such event may adversely impact South Korea’s economy or business operations of companies in South Korea. South Korea has privatized, or has begun the process of privatizing, certain entities and industries. Newly privatized companies may face strong competition from government-sponsored competitors that have not been privatized. In some instances, investors in newly privatized entities have suffered losses due to the inability of the newly privatized entities to adjust quickly to a competitive environment or changing regulatory and legal standards or, in some cases, due to re-nationalization of such privatized entities. There is no assurance that similar losses will not recur.

SWITZERLAND RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in the securities of Swiss issuers. Switzerland’s economy is heavily dependent on trading relationships with certain key trading partners, including the United States, United Kingdom, China, France and Germany. Future changes in the price or the demand for Swiss products or services by the United States, United Kingdom, China, France and Germany or changes in these countries’ economies, trade regulations or currency exchange rates could adversely impact the Swiss economy and the issuers to which a Fund has exposure. Switzerland’s economy relies heavily on the banking sector, and in recent years, Switzerland has responded to increasing pressure from neighboring countries and trading partners to reform its banking secrecy laws. Recently, allegations have surfaced that certain Swiss banking institutions marketed and sold offshore tax evasion services to U.S. citizens. Future litigation or settlements arising from these accusations may have a negative impact on certain companies to which a Fund has exposure. Due to the lack of natural resources, Switzerland is dependent upon imports for raw materials. As a result, any drastic price fluctuations in the price of certain raw materials will likely have a significant impact on the Swiss economy. Secessionist movements, such as the Catalan movement in Spain, may have an adverse effect on the Swiss economy.

TAX RISK. First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF will be subject to tax in India on the purchase and sale of Indian securities held by the Fund, which will reduce the Fund’s returns. For more information regarding the tax implications of investing in Indian securities, please see the section entitled “Federal Tax Matters.”

TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund shares on an 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 Fund shares on an Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to an Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. There can be no assurance that the requirements of an Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of a Fund will continue to be met or will remain unchanged. A Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on an Exchange in the event a Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.

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TURKEY RISK. Certain Funds are subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Turkish issuers. In recent years, the Turkish economy has experienced certain significant economic weaknesses, such as currency depreciation and its relatively high current account deficit, which it may finance by borrowing through volatile, short-term instruments. Such instruments may be valued in currencies other than the Turkish lira and thus may be difficult for Turkey to repay if it has insufficient foreign currency reserves. With few of its own natural resources, the Turkish economy is import-dependent. The Turkish economy is dependent upon exports to other economies, and any change in the price or demand for Turkish exports may have an adverse impact on the Turkish economy. Turkey has experienced strained relations with certain economic partners, including the U.S. and certain EU countries, over geopolitical matters. Any economic sanctions on Turkish individuals or Turkish corporate entities, or even the threat of sanctions, could result in a decline in the value and liquidity of Turkish securities, a weakening of the Turkish lira or other adverse consequences to the Turkish economy. Turkey has historically experienced acts of terrorism and strained relations related to border disputes with certain neighboring countries. The continuation of the conflict on the Turkish-Syrian border, for example, could have an adverse impact on the Turkish economy. Turkey has also experienced strained relations with other countries in the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia, due to geopolitical events. Historically, Turkey’s national politics have been unpredictable and subject to influence by the military or political intervention in the economy, and its government may be subject to sudden change. Disparities of wealth, the pace and success of democratization and capital markets development, religious and racial disaffection and separatist movements have also led to social and political unrest and conflict. Unanticipated or sudden political, economic or social developments have caused and may cause further volatility in the Turkish securities markets or currency market, result in sudden and significant investment losses and as a result may adversely affect issuers to which a Fund has exposure.

UNITED KINGDOM RISK. Certain Funds invest significantly in the securities of U.K. issuers. The United Kingdom’s economy relies heavily on the export of both goods and services to EU member countries, and to a lesser extent the United States and China. The United Kingdom has one of the largest economies in Europe and is heavily dependent on trade with EU member countries. Trade between the United Kingdom and the EU is highly integrated through supply chains and trade in services, as well as through multinational companies. As a result, the economy of the United Kingdom may be impacted by changes to the economic health of EU member counties, the United States and China. In 2016, the United Kingdom voted via referendum to leave the EU. After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. The precise impact on the United Kingdom’s economy as a result of its departure from the EU depends to a large degree on its ability to conclude favorable trade deals with the EU and other countries, including the United States, China, India and Japan. While new trade deals may boost economic growth, such growth may not be able to offset the increased costs of trade with the EU resulting from the United Kingdom’s loss of its membership in the EU single market. Certain sectors within the United Kingdom’s economy may be particularly affected by Brexit, including the automotive, chemicals, financial services and professional services. A particularly contentious element of the United Kingdom’s negotiated withdrawal from the EU was the treatment of Northern Ireland (which is part of the United Kingdom) following the United Kingdom’s departure. Under the terms of the withdrawal agreement, Northern Ireland would maintain regulatory alignment with the EU (essentially creating a customs border in the Irish Sea) to maintain an open border with the Republic of Ireland (an EU member state) while safeguarding the rules of the EU single market. The ultimate effects of this arrangement on Northern Ireland’s economy remain to be seen.

VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Certain Funds utilize a value style of investing. A value style of investing focuses on undervalued companies with characteristics for improved valuations. Value stocks are subject to the risk that valuations never improve or that the returns on value stocks are less than returns on other styles of investing or the overall stock market. As a result, the value of a Fund’s investments will vary and at times may be lower or higher than that of other types of investments. Historically, value investments have performed best during periods of economic recovery. Therefore, the value investing style may over time go in and out of favor and may trail the returns of other styles of investing. Value stocks also may decline in price, even though in theory they are already underpriced.

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES RISK. In China, direct ownership of companies in certain sectors by foreign individuals and entities is prohibited. In order to allow for foreign investment in these businesses, many Chinese companies have created VIE structures to enable indirect foreign ownership. In such an arrangement, a Chinese operating company typically establishes an offshore shell company in another jurisdiction, such as the Cayman Islands. That shell company enters into service and other contracts with the Chinese issuer or operating company to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese company, then issues shares on an exchange outside of mainland China, and U.S. investors hold stock in the non-Chinese shell company rather than directly in the Chinese issuer or operating company. This arrangement allows U.S. investors, such as a Fund, to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese issuer or operating company through contractual means rather than through formal equity ownership. Because neither the shell company nor the Fund owns actual equity interests in the Chinese operating company, they do not have the voting rights or other types of control that an equity holder would expect to benefit from. Although

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VIEs are a longstanding industry practice and well known to officials and regulators in China, VIEs are not formally recognized under Chinese law. Intervention by the Chinese government with respect to VIEs could significantly affect the Chinese company’s performance and the enforceability of the VIE’s contractual arrangements that establish the links between the Chinese company and the shell company in which a Fund invests. This could considerably impact the financial condition of the shell company in which a Fund invests by limiting its ability to consolidate the financial results of the Chinese operating company into its own financial statements, as well as make the value of the shares held by the Fund effectively worthless. Further, if Chinese officials prohibit the existence of VIEs, the market value of a Fund’s associated holdings would likely suffer significant, and possibly permanent effects, which could negatively impact the Fund’s net asset value and could result in substantial losses. Further, it is uncertain whether any new laws, rules or regulations relating to VIE structures will be adopted or, if adopted, what impact they would have on the value of a Fund’s shares.

VIEs are also subject to the investment risks associated with the underlying Chinese issuer or operating company. Chinese companies are not subject to the same degree of regulatory requirements or accounting standards and oversight as companies in more developed countries. As a result, information about the Chinese securities and VIEs in which a Fund invests may be less reliable and incomplete. There also may be significant obstacles to obtaining information necessary for investigations into or litigation against Chinese companies and VIEs, and shareholders may have limited legal remedies, which could negatively impact a Fund. Additionally, U.S.-listed VIEs may be delisted if they do not meet U.S. accounting standards and auditor oversight requirements. Delisting would significantly decrease the liquidity and value of the securities, decrease the ability of a Fund to invest in such securities and may increase the cost of the Fund if required to seek alternative markets in which to invest in such securities.

Non-Principal Risks

BORROWING AND LEVERAGE RISK. If a Fund borrows money, it must pay interest and other fees, which may reduce the Fund’s returns. Any such borrowings are intended to be temporary. However, under certain market conditions, including periods of decreased liquidity, such borrowings might be outstanding for longer periods of time. As prescribed by the 1940 Act, a Fund will be required to maintain specified asset coverage of at least 300% with respect to any bank borrowing immediately following such borrowing and at all times thereafter. A Fund may be required to dispose of assets on unfavorable terms if market fluctuations or other factors reduce the Fund’s asset coverage to less than the prescribed amount.

FAILURE TO QUALIFY AS A REGULATED INVESTMENT COMPANY RISK. If, in any year, a Fund fails to qualify as a regulated investment company under the applicable tax laws, the Fund would be taxed as an ordinary corporation. In such circumstances, a Fund could be required to recognize unrealized gains, pay substantial taxes and interest and make substantial distributions before requalifying as a regulated investment company that is accorded special tax treatment.

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RISK. Each Fund relies on a license and related sublicense that permits a Fund to use its Index and associated trade names, trademarks and service marks (the “Intellectual Property”) in connection with the Fund’s name and investment strategies. Such license and related sublicense may be terminated by the Index Provider, and, as a result, a Fund may lose its ability to use the Intellectual Property. There is also no guarantee that the Index Provider has all rights to license the Intellectual Property for use by a Fund. Accordingly, in the event the license is terminated or the Index Provider does not have rights to license the Intellectual Property, it may have a significant effect on the operation of a Fund.

INTERNATIONAL CLOSED MARKET TRADING RISK. Because securities held by the Funds may trade on non-U.S. exchanges that are closed when the Funds' primary listing exchange is open, there are likely to be deviations between the current price of an underlying security and the last quoted price for the underlying security (i.e., a Fund’s quote from the closed foreign market) used for purposes of calculating a Fund's net asset value, resulting in premiums or discounts to the Funds' net asset value that may be greater than those experienced by other exchange-traded funds. However, because shares can be created and redeemed in Creation Units at a Fund’s net asset value, it is not expected that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of the Funds will be sustained over the long term (unlike shares of many closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset values). In addition, shareholders may not be able to redeem their shares of a Fund, or purchase and sell shares of a Fund on the listing exchange for the Fund, on days when the net asset value of the Fund could be significantly affected by events in the relevant foreign markets.

ISSUER SPECIFIC CHANGES RISK. The value of an individual security or particular type of security can be more volatile than the market as a whole and can perform differently from the value of the market as a whole.

LEGISLATION/LITIGATION RISK. From time to time, various legislative initiatives are proposed in the United States and abroad, which may have a negative impact on certain companies in which a Fund invests. In addition, litigation regarding any of the

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issuers of the securities owned by a Fund, or industries represented by these issuers, may negatively impact the value of the securities. Such legislation or litigation may cause a Fund to lose value or may result in higher portfolio turnover if the Advisor determines to sell such a holding.

RESTRICTED SECURITIES RISK. Certain Funds may invest in restricted securities. Restricted securities are securities that cannot be offered for public resale unless registered under the applicable securities laws or that have a contractual restriction that prohibits or limits their resale. Restricted securities include private placement securities that have not been registered under the applicable securities laws, such as Rule 144A securities, and securities of U.S. and non-U.S. issuers that are issued pursuant to Regulation S. Private placements are generally subject to strict restrictions on resale. Restricted securities may be illiquid as they generally are not listed on an exchange and may have no active trading market. A Fund may be unable to sell a restricted security on short notice or may be able to sell them only at a price below current value. It may be more difficult to determine a market value for a restricted security. Also, a Fund may get limited information about the issuer of a restricted security, so it may be less able to predict a loss. In addition, if Fund management receives material non-public information about the issuer, a Fund may as a result be unable to sell the securities. Certain restricted securities may involve a high degree of business and financial risk and may result in substantial losses.

Fund Organization

Each Fund is a series of the Trust, an investment company registered under the 1940 Act. Each Fund is treated as a separate fund with its own investment objectives and policies. The Trust is organized as a Massachusetts business trust. The Board is responsible for the overall management and direction of the Trust. The Board elects the Trust’s officers and approves all significant agreements, including those with the investment advisor, distributor, custodian and fund administrative and accounting agent.

Management of the Funds

First Trust Advisors L.P., 120 East Liberty Drive, Wheaton, Illinois 60187, is the investment advisor to the Funds. In this capacity, First Trust is responsible for the selection and ongoing monitoring of the securities in each Fund’s portfolio and certain other services necessary for the management of the portfolios.

First Trust is a limited partnership with one limited partner, Grace Partners of DuPage L.P., and one general partner, The Charger Corporation. Grace Partners of DuPage L.P. is a limited partnership with one general partner, The Charger Corporation, and a number of limited partners. The Charger Corporation is an Illinois corporation controlled by James A. Bowen, the Chief Executive Officer of First Trust. First Trust discharges its responsibilities subject to the policies of the Funds.

First Trust serves as advisor or sub-advisor for 9 mutual fund portfolios, 10 exchange-traded funds consisting of 207 series and 14 closed-end funds. It is also the portfolio supervisor of certain unit investment trusts sponsored by First Trust Portfolios L.P. (“FTP”), an affiliate of First Trust, 120 East Liberty Drive, Wheaton, Illinois 60187. FTP specializes in the underwriting, trading and distribution of unit investment trusts and other securities. FTP is the principal underwriter of the shares of a Fund.

There is no one individual primarily responsible for portfolio management decisions for the Funds. Investments are made under the direction of the Investment Committee. The Investment Committee consists of Daniel J. Lindquist, David G. McGarel, Jon C. Erickson, Roger F. Testin, Stan Ueland, Chris A. Peterson and Erik Russo.

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Mr. Lindquist is Chairman of the Investment Committee and presides over Investment Committee meetings. Mr. Lindquist is responsible for overseeing the implementation of each Fund’s investment strategy. Mr. Lindquist was a Senior Vice President of First Trust and FTP from September 2005 to July 2012 and is now a Managing Director of First Trust and FTP. Mr. Lindquist is a recipient of the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

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Mr. McGarel is the Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and a Managing Director of First Trust and FTP. As First Trust’s Chief Investment Officer, Mr. McGarel consults with the other members of the Investment Committee on market conditions and First Trust’s general investment philosophy. Mr. McGarel was a Senior Vice President of First Trust and FTP from January 2004 to July 2012. Mr. McGarel is a recipient of the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

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Mr. Erickson joined First Trust in 1994 and is a Senior Vice President of First Trust and FTP. As the head of First Trust’s Equity Research Group, Mr. Erickson is responsible for determining the securities to be purchased and sold by funds that do not utilize quantitative investment strategies. Mr. Erickson is a recipient of the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

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Mr. Testin is a Senior Vice President of First Trust and FTP. Mr. Testin is the head of First Trust’s Portfolio Management Group. Mr. Testin has been a Senior Vice President of First Trust and FTP since November 2003. Mr. Testin is a recipient of the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

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Mr. Ueland joined First Trust as a Vice President in August 2005 and has been a Senior Vice President of First Trust and FTP since September 2012. At First Trust, he plays an important role in executing the investment strategies of each portfolio of exchange-traded funds advised by First Trust.

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Mr. Peterson is a Senior Vice President and head of First Trust’s strategy research group. He joined First Trust in January of 2000. Mr. Peterson is responsible for developing and implementing quantitative equity investment strategies. Mr. Peterson received his B.S. in Finance from Bradley University in 1997 and his M.B.A. from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business in 2005. He has over 20 years of financial services industry experience and is a recipient of the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

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Mr. Russo is a Vice President of First Trust. He is responsible for implementing the investment strategies of each portfolio of exchange-traded funds advised by First Trust in his role as a Portfolio Manager. Mr. Russo joined First Trust in January of 2010.

For additional information concerning First Trust, including a description of the services provided to the Funds, see the Funds' SAI. Additional information about the compensation of Investment Committee members, other accounts managed by members of the Investment Committee and ownership by members of the Investment Committee of shares of the Funds is provided in the SAI.

Management Fee

Pursuant to investment management agreements between First Trust and the Trust, on behalf of the Funds (the “Investment Management Agreements”), First Trust manages the investment of each Fund’s assets. First Trust is paid an annual management fee by each Fund equal to 0.80% of such Fund’s average daily net assets and is responsible for the expenses of such Fund including the cost of transfer agency, custody, fund administration, license fees, legal, audit and other services, but excluding fee payments under the Investment Management Agreements, interest, taxes, acquired fund fees and expenses, if any, brokerage commissions and other expenses connected with the execution of portfolio transactions, distribution and service fees payable pursuant to a Rule 12b-1 plan, if any, and extraordinary expenses.

As approved by the Trust’s Board of Trustees, the management fee paid to First Trust will be reduced at certain levels of Fund net assets (“breakpoints”). See the Fund's Statement of Additional Information for more information on the breakpoints. A discussion regarding the basis for the Board's approval of the amendment to the Investment Management Agreement incorporating the breakpoints is available in the Funds' Annual Report to Shareholders for the fiscal period ended December 31, 2022.

A discussion regarding the basis of the Board’s approval of the continuation of the Investment Management Agreements is available in the Funds' Semi-Annual Report to Shareholders for the fiscal period ended June 30, 2022.

How to Buy and Sell Shares

Most investors buy and sell shares of a Fund in secondary market transactions through brokers. Shares of each Fund are listed for trading on the secondary market on one or more national securities exchanges. Shares can be bought and sold throughout the trading day like other publicly traded shares. There is no minimum investment when buying shares on an Exchange. Although shares are generally purchased and sold in “round lots” of 100 shares, brokerage firms typically permit investors to purchase or sell shares in smaller “odd lots,” at no per-share price differential. When buying or selling shares through a broker, investors should expect to pay brokerage commissions, investors may receive less than the net asset value of the shares because shares are bought and sold at market prices rather than at net asset value, and investors may pay some or all of the bid-ask spread for each transaction (purchase or sale) of Fund shares. Share prices are reported in dollars and cents per share.

Under normal circumstances, a Fund will pay out redemption proceeds to a redeeming authorized participant within two days after the authorized participant’s redemption request is received, in accordance with the process set forth in a Fund’s SAI and in the agreement between the authorized participant and the Fund’s distributor. However, each Fund reserves the right, including under stressed market conditions, to take up to seven days after the receipt of a redemption request to pay an authorized participant, all as permitted by the 1940 Act. If a Fund has foreign investments in a country where a local market holiday, or series of consecutive holidays, or the extended delivery cycles for transferring foreign investments to redeeming authorized participants prevents the Fund from delivering such foreign investments to an authorized participant in response

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to a redemption request, a Fund may take up to 15 days after the receipt of the redemption request to deliver such investments to the authorized participant.

For purposes of the 1940 Act, each Fund is treated as a registered investment company, and the acquisition of shares by other registered investment companies and companies relying on Section 3(c)(1) or 3(c)(7) of the 1940 Act is subject to the restrictions of Section 12(d)(1) of the 1940 Act and the related rules and interpretations.

Book Entry

Shares are held in book-entry form, which means that no share certificates are issued. The Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) or its nominee is the record owner of all outstanding shares of a Fund and is recognized as the owner of all shares for all purposes.

Investors owning shares are beneficial owners as shown on the records of DTC or its participants. DTC serves as the securities depository for all shares. Participants in DTC include securities brokers and dealers, banks, trust companies, clearing corporations and other institutions that directly or indirectly maintain a custodial relationship with DTC. As a beneficial owner of shares, you are not entitled to receive physical delivery of share certificates or to have shares registered in your name, and you are not considered a registered owner of shares. Therefore, to exercise any right as an owner of shares, you must rely upon the procedures of DTC and its participants. These procedures are the same as those that apply to any other stocks that you hold in book-entry or “street name” form.

Share Trading Prices

The trading price of shares of a Fund on the secondary market is based on market price and may differ from such Fund’s daily net asset value and can be affected by market forces of supply and demand, economic conditions and other factors.

Frequent Purchases and Redemptions of the Funds' Shares

The Funds impose no restrictions on the frequency of purchases and redemptions (“market timing”). In determining not to approve a written, established policy, the Board evaluated the risks of market timing activities by the Funds' shareholders. The Board considered that the Funds' shares can only be purchased and redeemed directly from the Funds in Creation Units by broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (i.e., authorized participants (“APs”)) and that the vast majority of trading in the Funds' shares occurs on the secondary market. Because the secondary market trades do not involve the Funds directly, it is unlikely those trades would cause many of the harmful effects of market timing, including dilution, disruption of portfolio management, increases in the Funds' trading costs and the realization of capital gains. With respect to trades directly with the Funds, to the extent effected in-kind (i.e., for securities), those trades do not cause any of the harmful effects that may result from frequent cash trades. To the extent that may effect the purchase or redemption of Creation Units in exchange wholly or partially for cash, the Board noted that such trades could result in dilution to a Fund and increased transaction costs, which could negatively impact the Funds' ability to achieve their investment objective. However, the Board noted that direct trading by APs is critical to ensuring that the shares trade at or close to net asset value. In addition, the Funds impose fixed and variable transaction fees on purchases and redemptions of Creation Units to cover the custodial and other costs incurred by the Funds in effecting trades. Finally, the Advisor monitors purchase and redemption orders from APs for patterns of abusive trading and the Funds reserve the right to not accept orders from APs that the Advisor has determined may be disruptive to the management of the Funds.

Dividends, Distributions and Taxes

Dividends from net investment income from the Funds, if any, are declared and paid quarterly by each Fund. Each Fund distributes its net realized capital gains, if any, to shareholders at least annually.

Distributions in cash may be reinvested automatically in additional whole shares only if the broker through whom you purchased shares makes such option available. Such shares will generally be reinvested by the broker based upon the market price of those shares and investors may be subject to customary brokerage commissions charged by the broker.

Federal Tax Matters

This section summarizes some of the main U.S. federal income tax consequences of owning shares of the Funds. This section is current as of the date of this prospectus. Tax laws and interpretations change frequently, and these summaries do not describe all of the tax consequences to all taxpayers. For example, these summaries generally do not describe your situation if you are

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a corporation, a non-U.S. person, a broker-dealer, or other investor with special circumstances. In addition, this section does not describe your state, local or non-U.S. tax consequences.

This federal income tax summary is based in part on the advice of counsel to the Funds. The Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") could disagree with any conclusions set forth in this section. The following disclosure may not be sufficient for you to use for the purpose of avoiding penalties under federal tax law.

As with any investment, you should seek advice based on your individual circumstances from your own tax advisor.

Fund Status

Each Fund intends to continue to qualify as a “regulated investment company” under the federal tax laws. If a Fund qualifies as a regulated investment company and distributes its income as required by the tax law, the Fund generally will not pay federal income taxes.

Distributions

The Funds' distributions are generally taxable. After the end of each year, you will receive a tax statement that separates the distributions of a Fund into two categories: ordinary income distributions and capital gain dividends. Ordinary income distributions are generally taxed at your ordinary tax rate, however, as further discussed below certain ordinary income distributions received from a Fund may be taxed at the capital gains tax rates.Some portion of the ordinary income distributions that are attributable to dividends received by a Fund from shares in certain real estate investment trusts may be designated by the Fund as eligible for a deduction for qualified business income, provided certain holding period requirements are satisfied. Generally, you will treat all capital gain dividends as long-term capital gains regardless of how long you have owned your shares.

To determine your actual tax liability for your capital gain dividends, you must calculate your total net capital gain or loss for the tax year after considering all of your other taxable transactions, as described below. In addition, the Funds may make distributions that represent a return of capital for tax purposes and thus will generally not be taxable to you; however, such distributions may reduce your tax basis in your shares, which could result in you having to pay higher taxes in the future when shares are sold or redeemed, even if you sell or redeem the shares at a loss from your original investment. A “return of capital” is a return, in whole or in part, of the funds that you previously invested in the Fund. A return of capital distribution should not be considered part of a Fund’s dividend yield or total return of an investment in Fund shares. The tax status of your distributions from a Fund is not affected by whether you reinvest your distributions in additional shares or receive them in cash. The income from a Fund that you must take into account for federal income tax purposes is not reduced by amounts used to pay a deferred sales fee, if any. The tax laws may require you to treat distributions made to you in January as if you had received them on December 31 of the previous year.

Income from a Fund may also be subject to a 3.8% “Medicare tax.” This tax generally applies to your net investment income if your adjusted gross income exceeds certain threshold amounts, which are $250,000 in the case of married couples filing joint returns and $200,000 in the case of single individuals.

Capital Gains and Losses and Certain Ordinary Income Dividends

If you are an individual, the maximum marginal stated federal tax rate for net capital gain is generally 20% (15% or 0% for taxpayers with taxable incomes below certain thresholds). Some capital gains including some portion of your capital gain dividends may be taxed at a higher maximum stated tax rate. Capital gain received from assets held for more than one year that is considered "unrecaptured section 1250 gain" (which may be the case, for example, with some capital gains attributable to equity interests in real estate investment trusts in entities treated as real estate investment trusts that constitute interests for federal income tax purposes) is taxed at a maximum marginal stated federal tax rate of 25%. In the case of capital gain dividends, the determination of which portion of the capital gain dividend, if any, is subject to the 25% tax rate, will be made based on rules prescribed by the United States Treasury. Capital gains may also be subject to the Medicare tax described above.

Net capital gain equals net long-term capital gain minus net short-term capital loss for the taxable year. Capital gain or loss is long-term if the holding period for the asset is more than one year and is short-term if the holding period for the asset is one year or less. You must exclude the date you purchase your shares to determine your holding period. However, if you receive a capital gain dividend from a Fund and sell your shares at a loss after holding them for six months or less, the loss will be recharacterized as long-term capital loss to the extent of the capital gain dividend received. The tax rates for capital gains realized from assets held for one year or less are generally the same as for ordinary income. The Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, treats certain capital gains as ordinary income in special situations.

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An election may be available to you to defer recognition of the gain attributable to a capital gain dividend if you make certain qualifying investments within a limited time. You should talk to your tax advisor about the availability of this deferral election and its requirements.

Ordinary income dividends received by an individual shareholder from a RIC such as each of the Funds are generally taxed at the same rates that apply to net capital gain (as discussed above), provided certain holding period requirements are satisfied and provided the dividends are attributable to qualifying dividends received by the Funds themselves. Distributions with respect to shares in real estate investment trusts and foreign corporations are qualifying dividends only in limited circumstances. Each Fund will provide notice to its shareholders of the amount of any distribution which may be taken into account as a dividend which is eligible for the capital gains tax rates.

Dividends Received Deduction

A corporation that owns shares generally will not be entitled to the dividends received deduction with respect to many dividends received from a Fund because the dividends received deduction is generally not available for distributions from RICs. However, certain ordinary income dividends on shares that are attributable to qualifying dividends received by the Funds from certain corporations may be reported by the Funds as being eligible for the dividends received deduction.

Sale of Shares

If you sell or redeem your shares, you will generally recognize a taxable gain or loss. To determine the amount of this gain or loss, you must subtract your tax basis in your shares from the amount you receive in the transaction. Your tax basis in your shares is generally equal to the cost of your shares, generally including brokerage fees, if any. In some cases, however, you may have to adjust your tax basis after you purchase your shares. An election may be available to you to defer recognition of capital gain if you make certain qualifying investments within a limited time. You should talk to your tax advisor about the availability of this deferral election and its requirements.

Taxes on Purchase and Redemption of Creation Units

If you exchange securities for Creation Units, you will generally recognize a gain or a loss. The gain or loss will be equal to the difference between the market value of the Creation Units at the time and your aggregate basis in the securities surrendered and the cash component paid. If you exchange Creation Units for securities, you will generally recognize a gain or loss equal to the difference between your basis in the Creation Units and the aggregate market value of the securities received and the cash redemption amount. The IRS, however, may assert that a loss realized upon an exchange of securities for Creation Units or Creation Units for securities cannot be deducted currently under the rules governing “wash sales,” or on the basis that there has been no significant change in economic position.

Treatment of Fund Expenses

Expenses incurred and deducted by the Funds will generally not be treated as income taxable to you.

Non-U.S. Tax Credit

Because the Funds will invest in non-U.S. securities, the tax statement that you receive may include an item showing non-U.S. taxes a Fund paid to other countries. In this case, dividends taxed to you will include your share of the taxes such Fund paid to other countries. You may be able to deduct or receive a tax credit for your share of these taxes.

Non-U.S. Investors

If you are a non-U.S. investor (i.e., an investor other than a U.S. citizen or resident or a U.S. corporation, partnership, estate or trust), you should be aware that, generally, subject to applicable tax treaties, distributions from a Fund will be characterized as dividends for federal income tax purposes (other than dividends which a Fund properly reports as capital gain dividends) and will be subject to U.S. federal income taxes, including withholding taxes, subject to certain exceptions described below. However, distributions received by a non-U.S. investor from a Fund that are properly reported by a Fund as capital gain dividends may not be subject to U.S. federal income taxes, including withholding taxes, provided that a Fund makes certain elections and certain other conditions are met. Distributions from a Fund that are properly reported by the Fund as an interest-related dividend attributable to certain interest income received by the Fund or as a short-term capital gain dividend attributable to certain net short-term capital gain income received by the Fund may not be subject to U.S. federal income taxes, including withholding taxes when received by certain non-U.S. investors, provided that the Fund makes certain elections and certain other conditions are met. For tax years after December 31, 2022, amounts paid to or recognized by a non-U.S. affiliate that are excluded from tax under the portfolio interest, capital gain dividends, short-term capital gains or tax-exempt interest

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dividend exceptions or applicable treaties, may be taken into consideration in determining whether a corporation is an “applicable corporation” subject to a 15% minimum tax on adjusted financial statement income.

Distributions may be subject to a U.S. withholding tax of 30% in the case of distributions to (i) certain non-U.S. financial institutions that have not entered into an agreement with the U.S. Treasury to collect and disclose certain information and are not resident in a jurisdiction that has entered into such an agreement with the U.S. Treasury and (ii) certain other non-U.S. entities that do not provide certain certifications and information about the entity’s U.S. owners. This withholding tax is also currently scheduled to apply to the gross proceeds from the disposition of securities that produce U.S. source interest or dividends. However, proposed regulations may eliminate the requirement to withhold on payments of gross proceeds from dispositions.

Investments in Certain Non-U.S. Corporations

If a Fund holds an equity interest in any “passive foreign investment companies” (“PFICs”), which are generally certain non-U.S. corporations that receive at least 75% of their annual gross income from passive sources (such as interest, dividends, certain rents and royalties or capital gains) or that hold at least 50% of their assets in investments producing such passive income, the Fund could be subject to U.S. federal income tax and additional interest charges on gains and certain distributions with respect to those equity interests, even if all the income or gain is timely distributed to its shareholders. A Fund will not be able to pass through to its shareholders any credit or deduction for such taxes. A Fund may be able to make an election that could ameliorate these adverse tax consequences. In this case, a Fund would recognize as ordinary income any increase in the value of such PFIC shares, and as ordinary loss any decrease in such value to the extent it did not exceed prior increases included in income. Under this election, a Fund might be required to recognize in a year income in excess of its distributions from PFICs and its proceeds from dispositions of PFIC stock during that year, and such income would nevertheless be subject to the distribution requirement and would be taken into account for purposes of the 4% excise tax. Dividends paid by PFICs are not treated as qualified dividend income.

First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF - Indian Tax Matters

Capital Gains Tax. The income of the Fund in India from the sale or transfer of shares will be classified as capital gains, and the Fund will be required to pay capital gains tax on such income. In the case of the sale of listed shares held by the Fund for more than one year, the income would be classified as long term capital gains and would be exempt from tax provided the shares are sold on the stock exchange and subjected to Securities Transaction Tax (“STT”). The aforesaid exemption from long term capital gains tax would be available with respect to shares acquired on or after October 1, 2004 and on or before March 31, 2018 only if on such acquisition STT was chargeable. Certain exceptions in this regard, such as acquisition of shares in a public offer, bonus, rights issue, etc. for which the condition of chargeability of STT on acquisition is not applicable, have been notified.

With effect from April 1, 2018, long-term capital gains on the sale of listed shares in excess of INR 0.1 million is taxable at the rate of 10% (plus applicable surcharge and cess (which is a type of tax)) subject to satisfaction of certain conditions. However, as a grandfathering measure, the cost of acquisition of such a long-term capital asset, which has been acquired by the Fund before February 1, 2018, shall be deemed to be the higher of following: (a) the actual cost of acquisition of such asset; or (b) lower of the fair market value of such asset as on January 31, 2018 or full value of consideration as received on its transfer/disposal.

In the case of the sale of listed shares held by the Fund for one year or less, the income would be classified as short-term capital gains and would be taxable at 15% (plus applicable surcharge and cess) provided the shares are sold on the stock exchange and subjected to STT.

For above purposes, the applicable rate of surcharge is 2% or 5% (depending on the level of income of the Fund). Whereas, the applicable rate of cess (which is imposed on the sum total of tax and surcharge) is 4% (3% prior to April 1, 2018).

Dividends. Until March 31, 2020, dividends received by the Fund from Indian companies were exempt from tax in India because Indian companies were required to pay dividend distribution tax. The Indian Finance Act, 2020 has amended the dividend taxation framework effective April 1, 2020 and accordingly dividends would now be taxable in the hands of the shareholders at 20%, plus applicable surcharge and cess. There is an anomaly in the rates of surcharge applicable to non-resident taxpayers such as regulated investment trusts. While the intention of the legislation seems to be to cap the surcharge on dividend tax to 15%, the enabling rule provides for a surcharge at a graded scale with a cap of 37%.

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Considering the above, the highest effective tax rate on dividend income arising to the Fund could be 28.496% though the rate should be 23.92% if the surcharge is capped at 15%. Note that the Fund can obtain the reduced withholding tax rate of 25% under the US-India tax treaty if the Fund is considered as a tax resident of the United States and qualifies for treaty benefits.

Even if the Fund is eligible for treaty benefits, Indian companies will still be required to withhold tax at the domestic law rate, disregarding the treaty rates. Any excess taxes withheld can be off-set against capital gains tax liability during the year or claimed as a refund in the annual tax return.

STT. The Fund will be required to pay a STT of 0.1% of the transaction value on each purchase and sale of shares on the stock exchanges in India.

Please note that the above description is based on current provisions of Indian law, and any change or modification made by subsequent legislation, regulation, or administrative or judicial decision could increase the Indian tax liability of the Fund and thus reduce the return to Fund shareholders. There can be no assurance that the Indian tax authorities and/or regulators will not take a position contrary to the views expressed herein. If the Indian tax authorities and/or regulators take a position contrary to the views expressed herein, adverse unpredictable consequences may follow.

Distribution Plan

FTP serves as the distributor of Creation Units for the Funds on an agency basis. FTP does not maintain a secondary market in shares.

The Board has adopted a Distribution and Service Plan pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act. In accordance with the Rule 12b-1 plan, the Funds are authorized to pay an amount up to 0.25% of their average daily net assets each year to reimburse FTP for amounts expended to finance activities primarily intended to result in the sale of Creation Units or the provision of investor services. FTP may also use this amount to compensate securities dealers or other persons that are APs for providing distribution assistance, including broker-dealer and shareholder support and educational and promotional services.

The Funds do not currently pay 12b-1 fees, and pursuant to a contractual arrangement, the Funds will not pay 12b-1 fees any time before April 30, 2024. However, in the event 12b-1 fees are charged in the future, because these fees are paid out of the Funds' assets, over time these fees will increase the cost of your investment and may cost you more than certain other types of sales charges.

Net Asset Value

Each Fund's net asset value is determined as of the close of trading (normally 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time) on each day the New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE") is open for trading. If the NYSE closes early on a valuation day, the Fund’s net asset value will be determined as of that time. Net asset value per share is calculated for a Fund by taking the market price of the Fund’s total assets, including interest or dividends accrued but not yet collected, less all liabilities (including accrued expenses and dividends declared but unpaid), and dividing such amount by the total number of shares outstanding. The result, rounded to the nearest cent, is the net asset value per share. All valuations are subject to review by the Board or its delegate.

Each Fund's investments are valued daily at market value or, in the absence of market value with respect to any portfolio securities, at fair value, in accordance with valuation procedures approved by the Board and in accordance with the 1940 Act and the rules thereunder. Rule 2a-5 under the 1940 Act requires the fair valuation of all portfolio investments for which market quotations are not readily available. Pursuant to Rule 2a-5 under the 1940 Act, the Board has appointed the Advisor as its valuation designee for all portfolio investments. Portfolio securities listed on any exchange other than Nasdaq and the London Stock Exchange Alternative Investment Market (“AIM”) are valued at the last sale price on the business day as of which such value is being determined. Securities listed on Nasdaq or AIM are valued at the official closing price on the business day as of which such value is being determined.

Portfolio securities traded on more than one securities exchange are valued at the last sale price or official closing price, as applicable, on the business day as of which such value is being determined at the close of the exchange representing the primary exchange for such securities. Portfolio securities traded in the over-the-counter market, but excluding securities trading on Nasdaq or AIM, are valued at the mean of the most recent bid and asked price, if available, and otherwise at the last trade price. Short-term investments that mature in less than 60 days when purchased are fair valued at cost adjusted for amortization

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of premiums and accretion of discount, provided the Advisor has determined that the use of amortized cost is an appropriate reflection of fair value given market and issuer-specific conditions existing at the time of the determination.

Certain securities may not be able to be priced by pre-established pricing methods. Such securities may be valued by the Advisor at fair value. The use of fair value pricing by a Fund is governed by valuation procedures approved by the Board and in accordance with the provisions of the 1940 Act and the rules thereunder. These securities generally include, but are not limited to, certain restricted securities (securities which may not be publicly sold without registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”) for which a pricing service is unable to provide a market price; securities whose trading has been formally suspended; a security whose market or fair value price is not available from a pre-established pricing source; a security with respect to which an event has occurred that is likely to materially affect the value of the security after the market has closed but before the calculation of a Fund's net asset value or make it difficult or impossible to obtain a reliable market quotation; and a security whose price, as provided by the pricing service, does not, in the opinion of the Advisor, reflect the security’s fair value. As a general principle, the current fair value of a security would appear to be the amount which the owner might reasonably expect to receive for the portfolio investment upon the measurement date under current market conditions. When fair value prices are used, generally they will differ from the current market quotations or official closing prices on the applicable exchange. A variety of factors may be considered in determining the fair value of such securities. See the Funds' SAI for details.

Because foreign securities exchanges may be open on different days than the days during which an investor may buy or sell shares of a Fund, the value of such Fund's securities may change on days when investors are not able to buy or sell shares of the Fund. The value of securities denominated in foreign currencies is converted into U.S. dollars at the exchange rates in effect at the time of valuation. Any use of a different rate from the rates used by a Fund's Index may adversely effect such Fund's ability to track its index.

Fund Service Providers

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co., 50 Post Office Square, Boston, Massachusetts 02110, acts as the administrator, accounting agent, custodian and transfer agent for the Funds. Chapman and Cutler LLP, 320 S. Canal St., Chicago, Illinois 60606, serves as legal counsel to the Funds. First Trust serves as the fund reporting agent for the Funds.

Index Providers

The Indices are compiled by the Index Providers. The Index Providers are not affiliated with the Funds, FTP or First Trust. Each Fund is entitled to use the applicable Index pursuant to a sublicensing arrangement by and among the Fund, Index Provider, First Trust and FTP, which in turn has a licensing agreement with the Index Provider. Each Index Provider, or its agent, also serves as calculation agent for the applicable Index (each, an “Index Calculation Agent”). Each Index Calculation Agent is responsible for the management of the day-to-day operations of each Index, including calculating the value of such Index every 15 seconds, widely disseminating the Index values every 15 seconds and tracking corporate actions resulting in Index adjustments.

Disclaimers

First Trust does not guarantee the accuracy and/or the completeness of the Indices or any data included therein, and First Trust shall have no liability for any errors, omissions or interruptions therein. First Trust makes no warranty, express or implied, as to results to be obtained by the Funds, owners of the shares of the Funds or any other person or entity from the use of the Indices or any data included therein. First Trust makes no express or implied warranties, and expressly disclaims all warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose or use with respect to the Indices or any data included therein. Without limiting any of the foregoing, in no event shall First Trust have any liability for any special, punitive, direct, indirect or consequential damages (including lost profits) arising out of matters relating to the use of the Indices, even if notified of the possibility of such damages.

AlphaDEX Funds

“AlphaDEX®” is a registered trademark of FTP. The Trust, and First Trust on behalf of the Trust, has been granted the right by FTP to use the name “AlphaDEX®” for certain purposes.

FTP has licensed to Nasdaq, Inc., free of charge, the right to use certain intellectual property owned by FTP, including the AlphaDEX® trademark and the AlphaDEX® stock selection method, in connection with Nasdaq, Inc.’s creation of the Indices

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tracked by the AlphaDEX Funds (the "Nasdaq Indices"). Notwithstanding such license, Nasdaq, Inc. is solely responsible for the creation, compilation and administration of the Nasdaq Indices and has the exclusive right to determine the stocks included in the Nasdaq Indices and the Nasdaq Indices’ methodologies. A patent application with respect to the AlphaDEX® stock selection method is pending at the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

The AlphaDEX® Funds are not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by Nasdaq, Inc. or its affiliates (Nasdaq, Inc., with its affiliates, are referred to as the “Corporations”). The Corporations have not passed on the legality or suitability of, or the accuracy or adequacy of descriptions and disclosures relating to, the AlphaDEX® Funds. The Corporations make no representation or warranty, express or implied to the owners of the AlphaDEX® Funds or any member of the public regarding the advisability of investing in securities generally or in the AlphaDEX® Funds particularly, or the ability of the Nasdaq Indices to track general stock market performance. The Corporations’ only relationship to First Trust ("Licensee") is in the licensing of the “Nasdaq,” Nasdaq, Inc., and the Nasdaq Indices’ registered trademarks, trade names and service marks of the Corporations and the use of the Nasdaq Indices which are determined, composed and calculated by the Corporations without regard to Licensee or the AlphaDEX® Funds. Nasdaq, Inc. has no obligation to take the needs of the Licensee or the owners of the AlphaDEX® Funds into consideration in determining, composing or calculating the Nasdaq Indices. The Corporations are not responsible for and have not participated in the determination of the timing of, prices at, or quantities of the AlphaDEX® Funds to be issued or in the determination or calculation of the equation by which an AlphaDEX® Fund is to be converted into cash. The Corporations have no liability in connection with the administration, marketing or trading of the AlphaDEX® Funds.

THE CORPORATIONS DO NOT GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY AND/OR UNINTERRUPTED CALCULATION OF THE NASDAQ INDICES OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. THE CORPORATIONS MAKE NO WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED BY LICENSEE, OWNERS OF THE ALPHADEX® FUNDS, OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY FROM THE USE OF THE NASDAQ INDICES OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. THE CORPORATIONS MAKE NO EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE WITH RESPECT TO THE NASDAQ INDICES OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. WITHOUT LIMITING ANY OF THE FOREGOING, IN NO EVENT SHALL THE CORPORATIONS HAVE ANY LIABILITY FOR ANY LOST PROFITS OR SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, INDIRECT, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, EVEN IF NOTIFIED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF

First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF (the "Fund") is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by NSE INDICES LIMITED (formerly known as India Index Services & Products Limited "IISL"). NSE INDICES LIMITED does not make any representation or warranty, express or implied, to the owners of the Fund or any member of the public regarding the advisability of investing in securities generally or in the Fund particularly or the ability of the NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index to track general stock market performance in India. The relationship of NSE INDICES LIMITED to the Issuer is only in respect of the licensing of the Indices and certain trademarks and trade names associated with such Indices which is determined, composed and calculated by NSE INDICES LIMITED without regard to the Issuer or the Fund. NSE INDICES LIMITED does not have any obligation to take the needs of the Issuer or the owners of the Fund into consideration in determining, composing or calculating NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index. NSE INDICES LIMITED is not responsible for or has not participated in the determination of the timing of, prices at, or quantities of the Fund to be issued or in the determination or calculation of the equation by which the Fund is to be converted into cash. NSE INDICES LIMITED has no obligation or liability in connection with the administration, marketing or trading of the Fund.

NSE INDICES LIMITED do not guarantee the accuracy and/or the completeness of the NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index or any data included therein and NSE INDICES LIMITED shall not have any responsibility or liability for any errors, omissions, or interruptions therein. NSE INDICES LIMITED does not make any warranty, express or implied, as to results to be obtained by the Issuer, owners of the Fund, or any other person or entity from the use of the NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index or any data included therein. NSE INDICES LIMITED makes no express or implied warranties, and expressly disclaim all warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose or use with respect to the NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index or any data included therein. Without limiting any of the foregoing, NSE INDICES LIMITED expressly disclaim any and all liability for any claims, damages or losses arising out of or related to the Fund, including any and all direct, special, punitive, indirect or consequential damages (including lost profits), even if notified of the possibility of such damages.

An investor, by subscribing or purchasing an interest in the Fund, will be regarded as having acknowledged, understood and accepted the disclaimer referred to in the Clauses above and will be bound by it.

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Premium/Discount Information

Information showing the number of days the market price of the Funds' shares was greater (at a premium) and less (at a discount) than the Funds' net asset value for the most recently completed year, and the most recently completed calendar quarters since that year (or life of a Fund, if shorter), is available at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx.

Total Return Information

The tables below compare the total return of a Fund to the total return of the Index on which it is based and each Fund's benchmark index(es). The information presented for a Fund is for the period indicated.

"Average annual total returns" represent the average annual change in the value of an investment over the period indicated. “Cumulative total returns” represent the total change in value of an investment over the period indicated. The return information shown under “Annual Total Return” in a Fund’s summary prospectus represents the average annual total returns of the Fund as of the calendar year end, while the information presented below is as of the Fund’s fiscal year end. The net asset value per share of a Fund is the value of one share of the Fund and is computed by dividing the value of all assets of the Fund (including accrued interest and dividends), less liabilities (including accrued expenses and dividends declared but unpaid), by the total number of outstanding shares. The net asset value return is based on the net asset value per share of a Fund and the market return is based on the market price per share of a Fund. The price used to calculate market return (“Market Price”) is determined by using the midpoint of the national best bid and offer price (“NBBO”) as of the time that a Fund’s net asset value is calculated. Under SEC rules, the NBBO consists of the highest displayed buy and lowest sell prices among the various exchanges trading a Fund at the time a Fund's net asset value is calculated. Prior to January 1, 2019, the price used was the midpoint between the highest bid and the lowest offer on the stock exchange on which shares of a Fund were listed for trading as of the time that a Fund's net asset value was calculated. Since the shares of a Fund typically do not trade in the secondary market until several days after a Fund's inception, for the period from inception to the first day of secondary market trading in shares of a Fund, the net asset value of a Fund is used as a proxy for the secondary market trading price to calculate market returns. Market and net asset value returns assume that all distributions have been reinvested in a Fund at Market Price and net asset value, respectively. An index is a statistical composite that tracks a specified financial market or sector. Unlike a Fund, an index does not actually hold a portfolio of securities and therefore does not incur the expenses incurred by a Fund. These expenses negatively impact the performance of a Fund. Also, market returns do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, market returns would be lower. The total returns reflect the reinvestment of dividends on securities in the index. The returns shown in the table below do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of shares of a Fund. The investment return and principal value of shares of a Fund will vary with changes in market conditions. Shares of a Fund may be worth more or less than their original cost when they are redeemed or sold in the market. The Funds' past performance is no guarantee of future results.

First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FPA)
Total Returns as of December 31, 2022 

		Average Annual			Cumulative
	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (4/18/2011)	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (4/18/2011)
Fund Performance
Net Asset Value	-15.62%	-3.25%	2.36%	1.65%	-15.22%	26.30%	21.06%
Market Price	-15.27%	-3.26%	2.17%	1.57%	-15.28%	23.93%	20.01%
Index Performance
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index(1)	-14.51%	-2.24%	N/A	N/A	-10.70%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq DM Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index(1)	-13.59%	0.83%	N/A	N/A	4.21%	N/A	N/A
MSCI Pacific ex-Japan Index	-5.94%	2.18%	3.81%	3.55%	11.38%	45.32%	50.50%

(1)

 Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

161

First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund (FBZ)
Total Returns as of December 31, 2022 

		Average Annual			Cumulative
	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (4/18/2011)	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (4/18/2011)
Fund Performance
Net Asset Value	1.45%	0.71%	-1.43%	-2.77%	3.62%	-13.43%	-28.04%
Market Price	1.27%	0.66%	-1.58%	-2.80%	3.37%	-14.69%	-28.24%
Index Performance
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Brazil Index(1)	2.31%	2.59%	N/A	N/A	13.67%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Brazil Index(1)	7.14%	-2.27%	-2.63%	N/A	-10.86%	-23.38%	N/A
MSCI Brazil Index	14.15%	-0.82%	-1.75%	-3.47%	-4.03%	-16.22%	-33.89%

(1)

 Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund (FCA)
Total Returns as of December 31, 2022 

		Average Annual			Cumulative
	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (4/18/2011)	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (4/18/2011)
Fund Performance
Net Asset Value	-17.10%	-2.16%	2.24%	0.58%	-10.33%	24.81%	6.96%
Market Price	-17.58%	-2.22%	1.99%	0.48%	-10.62%	21.73%	5.73%
Index Performance
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® China Index(1)	-16.04%	-1.28%	N/A	N/A	-6.22%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq China Index(1)	-20.26%	-5.66%	2.00%	N/A	-25.25%	21.91%	N/A
MSCI China Index	-21.93%	-4.54%	2.43%	1.63%	-20.74%	27.08%	20.83%

(1)

 Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund (FDT)
Total Returns as of December 31, 2022 

		Average Annual			Cumulative
	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (4/18/2011)	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (4/18/2011)
Fund Performance
Net Asset Value	-18.57%	-2.42%	3.21%	2.05%	-11.53%	37.11%	26.83%
Market Price	-18.86%	-2.52%	3.10%	2.02%	-11.99%	35.77%	26.36%
Index Performance
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Index(1)	-18.23%	-1.71%	N/A	N/A	-8.24%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Developed Markets Ex-US Index(1)	-15.51%	1.23%	4.56%	N/A	6.32%	56.27%	N/A
MSCI World ex USA Index	-14.29%	1.79%	4.59%	3.86%	9.29%	56.59%	55.77%

(1)

 Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

162

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FDTS)
Total Returns as of December 31, 2022 

		Average Annual			Cumulative
	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (2/15/2012)	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (2/15/2012)
Fund Performance
Net Asset Value	-15.00%	-0.84%	4.55%	4.51%	-4.13%	56.08%	61.58%
Market Price	-14.88%	-0.78%	4.44%	4.49%	-3.85%	54.46%	61.15%
Index Performance
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Small Cap Index(1)	-14.80%	-0.08%	N/A	N/A	-0.40%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Developed Markets Ex-US Small Cap Index(1)	-18.14%	-0.81%	4.65%	N/A	-3.99%	57.58%	N/A
MSCI World ex-USA Small Cap Index	-20.59%	0.45%	5.77%	5.80%	2.27%	75.21%	84.64%
MSCI World ex-USA Index	-14.29%	1.79%	4.59%	4.87%	9.29%	56.59%	67.76%

(1)

 Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund (FEM)
Total Returns as of December 31, 2022 

		Average Annual			Cumulative
	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (4/18/2011)	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (4/18/2011)
Fund Performance
Net Asset Value	-14.33%	-1.49%	1.25%	0.43%	-7.25%	13.19%	5.17%
Market Price	-14.30%	-1.65%	1.07%	0.38%	-7.99%	11.26%	4.59%
Index Performance
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Index(1)	-14.38%	-0.58%	N/A	N/A	-2.88%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Emerging Markets Index(1)	-15.31%	-0.39%	2.18%	N/A	-1.93%	24.04%	N/A
MSCI Emerging Markets Index	-20.09%	-1.40%	1.44%	0.79%	-6.79%	15.33%	9.65%

(1)

 Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FEMS)
Total Returns as of December 31, 2022 

		Average Annual			Cumulative
	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (2/15/2012)	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (2/15/2012)
Fund Performance
Net Asset Value	1.36%	2.64%	5.14%	6.11%	13.94%	65.00%	90.67%
Market Price	1.91%	2.62%	5.04%	6.15%	13.78%	63.54%	91.39%
Index Performance
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Small Cap Index(1)	2.75%	4.16%	N/A	N/A	22.63%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Emerging Markets Small Cap Index(1)	-13.78%	1.72%	4.07%	N/A	8.91%	49.05%	N/A
MSCI Emerging Markets Small Cap Index	-18.02%	1.06%	3.21%	3.23%	5.41%	37.20%	41.27%
MSCI Emerging Markets Index	-20.09%	-1.40%	1.44%	1.52%	-6.79%	15.33%	17.86%

(1)

 Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

163

First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund (FEP)
Total Returns as of December 31, 2022 

		Average Annual			Cumulative
	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (4/18/2011)	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (4/18/2011)
Fund Performance
Net Asset Value	-22.87%	-0.93%	4.87%	3.41%	-4.55%	60.83%	48.06%
Market Price	-22.73%	-0.98%	4.63%	3.37%	-4.82%	57.28%	47.34%
Index Performance
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Europe Index(1)	-22.82%	-0.40%	N/A	N/A	-2.00%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq DM Europe Index(1)	-16.42%	1.51%	N/A	N/A	7.80%	N/A	N/A
MSCI Europe Index	-15.06%	1.87%	4.58%	3.93%	9.70%	56.53%	56.96%

(1)

 Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF (FEUZ)
Total Returns as of December 31, 2022 

		Average Annual		Cumulative
	1 Year	5 Years	Inception (10/21/2014)	5 Years	Inception (10/21/2014)
Fund Performance
Net Asset Value	-19.65%	-1.60%	4.08%	-7.74%	38.80%
Market Price	-19.96%	-1.82%	3.95%	-8.76%	37.37%
Index Performance
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Eurozone Index	-19.54%	-1.14%	4.60%	-5.56%	44.59%
Nasdaq Eurozone Index	-17.95%	0.35%	3.67%	1.75%	34.37%
MSCI EMU Index	-17.86%	0.60%	3.59%	3.03%	33.52%

 

First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund (FGM)
Total Returns as of December 31, 2022 

		Average Annual			Cumulative
	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (2/14/2012)	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (2/14/2012)
Fund Performance
Net Asset Value	-30.39%	-4.76%	2.73%	3.67%	-21.63%	30.89%	48.02%
Market Price	-30.61%	-4.77%	2.64%	3.64%	-21.69%	29.74%	47.51%
Index Performance
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Germany Index(1)	-30.51%	-4.53%	N/A	N/A	-20.70%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Germany Index(1)	-22.28%	-3.41%	2.58%	N/A	-15.94%	29.00%	N/A
MSCI Germany Index	-22.34%	-3.02%	2.66%	3.64%	-14.23%	30.02%	47.46%

(1)

 Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

164

First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF (NFTY)
Total Returns as of December 31, 2022 

		Average Annual			Cumulative
	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (2/14/2012)	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (2/14/2012)
Fund Performance
Net Asset Value	-4.45%	5.50%	6.30%	5.84%	30.70%	84.14%	85.43%
Market Price	-3.97%	5.79%	6.25%	5.91%	32.48%	83.33%	86.65%
Index Performance
NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index (1)	-2.86%	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
NIFTY 50 Index	-5.14%	7.25%	8.66%	7.88%	41.89%	129.44%	128.10%
MSCI India Index	-7.95%	6.01%	7.43%	6.77%	33.89%	104.77%	103.95%

(1)

 On April 17, 2018, the Fund's underlying index changed from the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Taiwan Index to the NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and total returns shown for the periods prior to April 17, 2018, are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the current index, would have generated. Since the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of September 29, 2017, it was not in existence for all the periods disclosed.

First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FJP)
Total Returns as of December 31, 2022 

		Average Annual			Cumulative
	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (4/18/2011)	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (4/18/2011)
Fund Performance
Net Asset Value	-12.04%	-4.56%	3.49%	2.14%	-20.79%	40.94%	28.18%
Market Price	-13.15%	-4.80%	3.29%	2.03%	-21.81%	38.28%	26.51%
Index Performance
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Japan Index(1)	-12.24%	-4.09%	N/A	N/A	-18.84%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Japan Index(1)	-15.52%	-0.31%	5.59%	N/A	-1.55%	72.30%	N/A
MSCI Japan Index	-16.65%	0.23%	5.55%	4.76%	1.14%	71.68%	72.32%

(1)

 Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund (FLN)
Total Returns as of December 31, 2022 

		Average Annual			Cumulative
	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (4/18/2011)	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (4/18/2011)
Fund Performance
Net Asset Value	2.17%	-0.47%	-1.03%	-1.34%	-2.34%	-9.85%	-14.58%
Market Price	2.58%	-0.48%	-1.19%	-1.35%	-2.38%	-11.31%	-14.73%
Index Performance
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Latin America Index(1)	3.05%	0.82%	N/A	N/A	4.18%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Latin America Index(1)	5.49%	-2.09%	-3.04%	N/A	-10.00%	-26.58%	N/A
MSCI EM Latin America Index	8.92%	-1.08%	-2.15%	-2.77%	-5.30%	-19.53%	-27.98%

(1)

 Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

165

First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund (FSZ)
Total Returns as of December 31, 2022 

		Average Annual			Cumulative
	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (2/14/2012)	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (2/14/2012)
Fund Performance
Net Asset Value	-20.88%	2.93%	7.45%	7.77%	15.56%	105.15%	125.75%
Market Price	-20.77%	2.86%	7.35%	7.76%	15.15%	103.30%	125.43%
Index Performance
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Switzerland Index(1)	-20.98%	3.36%	N/A	N/A	17.95%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq Switzerland Index(1)	-18.21%	5.03%	6.67%	N/A	27.79%	90.73%	N/A
MSCI Switzerland Index	-18.32%	5.53%	6.84%	7.54%	30.88%	93.78%	120.42%

(1)

 Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund (FKU)
Total Returns as of December 31, 2022 

		Average Annual			Cumulative
	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (2/14/2012)	5 Years	10 Years	Inception (2/14/2012)
Fund Performance
Net Asset Value	-23.52%	-0.86%	2.61%	3.81%	-4.22%	29.34%	50.26%
Market Price	-24.10%	-0.73%	2.57%	3.79%	-3.62%	28.86%	49.85%
Index Performance
Nasdaq AlphaDEX® United Kingdom Index(1)	-22.91%	0.09%	N/A	N/A	0.47%	N/A	N/A
Nasdaq United Kingdom Index(1)	-9.02%	0.41%	3.18%	N/A	2.05%	36.80%	N/A
MSCI United Kingdom Index	-4.84%	0.96%	3.07%	3.54%	4.91%	35.27%	45.98%

(1)

 Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

166

Financial Highlights

The financial highlights table is intended to help you understand each Fund's financial performance for the periods shown. Certain information reflects financial results for a single share of a Fund. The total returns represent the rate that an investor would have earned (or lost) on an investment in a Fund (assuming reinvestment of all dividends and distributions). The information for the periods indicated has been derived from financial statements audited by Deloitte & Touche LLP, whose report, along with each Fund's financial statements, is included in the Funds' Annual Report to Shareholders dated December 31, 2022 and is incorporated by reference in the Funds’ SAI, which is available upon request.

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

Financial Highlights
For a share outstanding throughout each period

First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FPA) 

	Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Net asset value, beginning of period	$31.57	$32.25	$28.57	$27.65	$35.73
Income from investment operations:
Net investment income (loss)	0.97	1.28	0.58	0.63	0.40
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)	(5.88)	(0.37)	3.61	1.40	(7.72)
Total from investment operations	(4.91)	0.91	4.19	2.03	(7.32)
Distributions paid to shareholders from:
Net investment income	(1.08)	(1.59)	(0.51)	(1.09)	(0.69)
Return of capital	—	—	—	(0.02)	(0.07)
Total distributions	(1.08)	(1.59)	(0.51)	(1.11)	(0.76)
Net asset value, end of period	$25.58	$31.57	$32.25	$28.57	$27.65
Total Return(a)	(15.62)%	2.75%	14.89%	7.35%	(20.71)%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period (in 000’s)	$11,511	$25,258	$17,736	$19,997	$30,419
Ratios to average net assets:
Ratio of total expenses to average net assets	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets	3.63%	4.03%	2.33%	2.64%	1.68%
Portfolio turnover rate(b)	82%	102%	103%	101%	88%

(a)

Total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all distributions at net asset value during the period, and redemption at net asset value on the last day of the period. The returns presented do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Total return is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year.

(b)

Portfolio turnover is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year and does not include securities received or delivered from processing creations or redemptions and in-kind transactions.

167

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

Financial Highlights
For a share outstanding throughout each period

First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund (FBZ) 

	Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Net asset value, beginning of period	$11.47	$13.39	$17.24	$13.38	$15.51
Income from investment operations:
Net investment income (loss)	0.95	0.94	0.09	0.35	0.55
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)	(0.82)	(2.08)	(3.60)	5.08	(0.97)
Total from investment operations	0.13	(1.14)	(3.51)	5.43	(0.42)
Distributions paid to shareholders from:
Net investment income	(1.04)	(0.78)	(0.28)	(1.57)	(0.54)
Net realized gain	—	—	—	—	(1.17)
Return of capital	—	—	(0.06)	—	—
Total distributions	(1.04)	(0.78)	(0.34)	(1.57)	(1.71)
Net asset value, end of period	$10.56	$11.47	$13.39	$17.24	$13.38
Total Return(a)	1.45%	(9.00)%	(19.48)%	41.06%	(1.17)%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period (in 000’s)	$63,377	$12,039	$9,373	$116,374	$129,081
Ratios to average net assets:
Ratio of total expenses to average net assets	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets	8.88%	7.36%	0.72%	2.15%	6.84%
Portfolio turnover rate(b)	95%	225%	154%	90%	128%

(a)

Total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all distributions at net asset value during the period, and redemption at net asset value on the last day of the period. The returns presented do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Total return is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year.

(b)

Portfolio turnover is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year and does not include securities received or delivered from processing creations or redemptions and in-kind transactions.

168

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

Financial Highlights
For a share outstanding throughout each period

First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund (FCA) 

	Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Net asset value, beginning of period	$27.57	$29.16	$26.87	$23.81	$29.77
Income from investment operations:
Net investment income (loss)	1.28	1.22	1.22	1.03	0.84
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)	(5.97)	(1.47)	2.26	3.03	(6.07)
Total from investment operations	(4.69)	(0.25)	3.48	4.06	(5.23)
Distributions paid to shareholders from:
Net investment income	(1.28)	(1.34)	(1.19)	(1.00)	(0.73)
Net asset value, end of period	$21.60	$27.57	$29.16	$26.87	$23.81
Total Return(a)	(17.10)%	(1.18)%	13.58%	17.34%	(17.87)%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period (in 000’s)	$7,560	$9,649	$13,121	$9,403	$7,142
Ratios to average net assets:
Ratio of total expenses to average net assets	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets	5.19%	3.66%	5.16%	4.21%	2.90%
Portfolio turnover rate(b)	117%	166%	83%	111%	97%

(a)

Total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all distributions at net asset value during the period, and redemption at net asset value on the last day of the period. The returns presented do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Total return is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year.

(b)

Portfolio turnover is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year and does not include securities received or delivered from processing creations or redemptions and in-kind transactions.

169

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

Financial Highlights
For a share outstanding throughout each period

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund (FDT) 

	Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Net asset value, beginning of period	$60.64	$56.88	$55.79	$49.24	$62.31
Income from investment operations:
Net investment income (loss)	1.67	1.52	0.68	1.19	1.04
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)	(12.95)	4.55	1.78	6.91	(13.06)
Total from investment operations	(11.28)	6.07	2.46	8.10	(12.02)
Distributions paid to shareholders from:
Net investment income	(1.09)	(2.31)	(1.37)	(1.55)	(1.01)
Return of capital	—	—	—	—	(0.04)
Total distributions	(1.09)	(2.31)	(1.37)	(1.55)	(1.05)
Net asset value, end of period	$48.27	$60.64	$56.88	$55.79	$49.24
Total Return(a)	(18.57)%	10.70%	4.61%	16.56%	(19.52)%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period (in 000’s)	$419,333	$414,579	$360,418	$691,886	$940,633
Ratios to average net assets:
Ratio of total expenses to average net assets	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets	3.09%	2.42%	1.39%	2.13%	1.76%
Portfolio turnover rate(b)	95%	111%	117%	107%	109%

(a)

Total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all distributions at net asset value during the period, and redemption at net asset value on the last day of the period. The returns presented do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Total return is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year.

(b)

Portfolio turnover is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year and does not include securities received or delivered from processing creations or redemptions and in-kind transactions.

170

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

Financial Highlights
For a share outstanding throughout each period

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FDTS) 

	Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Net asset value, beginning of period	$46.06	$42.72	$39.03	$33.54	$44.89
Income from investment operations:
Net investment income (loss)	1.09	0.74	0.46	0.61	0.58
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)	(8.09)	3.99	4.09	5.77	(11.28)
Total from investment operations	(7.00)	4.73	4.55	6.38	(10.70)
Distributions paid to shareholders from:
Net investment income	(1.39)	(1.39)	(0.86)	(0.89)	(0.62)
Return of capital	—	—	—	—	(0.03)
Total distributions	(1.39)	(1.39)	(0.86)	(0.89)	(0.65)
Net asset value, end of period	$37.67	$46.06	$42.72	$39.03	$33.54
Total Return(a)	(15.00)%	11.09%	12.18%	19.13%	(24.03)%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period (in 000’s)	$7,535	$13,817	$8,544	$9,758	$10,063
Ratios to average net assets:
Ratio of total expenses to average net assets	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets	2.88%	1.46%	1.35%	1.66%	1.30%
Portfolio turnover rate(b)	109%	116%	127%	119%	142%

(a)

Total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all distributions at net asset value during the period, and redemption at net asset value on the last day of the period. The returns presented do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Total return is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year.

(b)

Portfolio turnover is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year and does not include securities received or delivered from processing creations or redemptions and in-kind transactions.

171

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

Financial Highlights
For a share outstanding throughout each period

First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund (FEM) 

	Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Net asset value, beginning of period	$26.24	$25.31	$26.36	$22.80	$27.84
Income from investment operations:
Net investment income (loss)	1.34	1.11	0.63	0.88	0.88
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)	(5.19)	0.90	(1.00)	3.56	(5.12)
Total from investment operations	(3.85)	2.01	(0.37)	4.44	(4.24)
Distributions paid to shareholders from:
Net investment income	(1.29)	(1.08)	(0.68)	(0.88)	(0.80)
Net asset value, end of period	$21.10	$26.24	$25.31	$26.36	$22.80
Total Return(a)	(14.33)%	7.90%	(0.92)%	19.81%	(15.48)%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period (in 000’s)	$372,378	$436,915	$441,711	$644,615	$452,607
Ratios to average net assets:
Ratio of total expenses to average net assets	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets	5.90%	4.03%	2.53%	3.61%	3.37%
Portfolio turnover rate(b)	106%	119%	111%	122%	103%

(a)

Total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all distributions at net asset value during the period, and redemption at net asset value on the last day of the period. The returns presented do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Total return is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year.

(b)

Portfolio turnover is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year and does not include securities received or delivered from processing creations or redemptions and in-kind transactions.

172

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

Financial Highlights
For a share outstanding throughout each period

First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (FEMS) 

	Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Net asset value, beginning of period	$40.29	$41.24	$39.28	$32.44	$43.02
Income from investment operations:
Net investment income (loss)	1.86	1.57	0.74	1.11	1.19
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)	(1.60)	(0.01)	2.41	7.46	(10.26)
Total from investment operations	0.26	1.56	3.15	8.57	(9.07)
Distributions paid to shareholders from:
Net investment income	(1.77)	(2.51)	(1.19)	(1.73)	(1.44)
Net realized gain	—	—	—	—	(0.07)
Total distributions	(1.77)	(2.51)	(1.19)	(1.73)	(1.51)
Net asset value, end of period	$38.78	$40.29	$41.24	$39.28	$32.44
Total Return(a)	1.36%	3.68%	8.73%	26.90%	(21.42)%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period (in 000’s)	$166,753	$143,030	$152,581	$163,004	$157,326
Ratios to average net assets:
Ratio of total expenses to average net assets	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets	4.60%	3.65%	2.38%	2.88%	3.02%
Portfolio turnover rate(b)	117%	127%	123%	127%	126%

(a)

Total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all distributions at net asset value during the period, and redemption at net asset value on the last day of the period. The returns presented do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Total return is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year.

(b)

Portfolio turnover is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year and does not include securities received or delivered from processing creations or redemptions and in-kind transactions.

173

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

Financial Highlights
For a share outstanding throughout each period

First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund (FEP) 

	Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Net asset value, beginning of period	$43.31	$38.50	$37.64	$31.11	$39.07
Income from investment operations:
Net investment income (loss)	0.93	1.05	0.42	0.87	0.84
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)	(10.90)	5.26	1.32	6.65	(7.99)
Total from investment operations	(9.97)	6.31	1.74	7.52	(7.15)
Distributions paid to shareholders from:
Net investment income	(0.96)	(1.50)	(0.88)	(0.99)	(0.81)
Net asset value, end of period	$32.38	$43.31	$38.50	$37.64	$31.11
Total Return(a)	(22.87)%	16.53%	4.95%	24.38%	(18.67)%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period (in 000’s)	$254,167	$573,909	$442,765	$511,890	$592,586
Ratios to average net assets:
Ratio of total expenses to average net assets	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets	3.23%	2.33%	1.32%	2.49%	2.30%
Portfolio turnover rate(b)	88%	105%	109%	102%	99%

(a)

Total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all distributions at net asset value during the period, and redemption at net asset value on the last day of the period. The returns presented do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Total return is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year.

(b)

Portfolio turnover is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year and does not include securities received or delivered from processing creations or redemptions and in-kind transactions.

174

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

Financial Highlights
For a share outstanding throughout each period

First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF (FEUZ) 

	Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Net asset value, beginning of period	$46.36	$42.10	$40.88	$34.43	$43.81
Income from investment operations:
Net investment income (loss)	0.85	1.10	0.50	0.73	0.80
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)	(10.05)	4.32	1.34	6.51	(9.34)
Total from investment operations	(9.20)	5.42	1.84	7.24	(8.54)
Distributions paid to shareholders from:
Net investment income	(1.12)	(1.16)	(0.62)	(0.79)	(0.84)
Net asset value, end of period	$36.04	$46.36	$42.10	$40.88	$34.43
Total Return(a)	(19.65)%	12.90%	4.69%	21.15%	(19.82)%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period (in 000’s)	$16,219	$81,135	$27,363	$53,145	$49,925
Ratios to average net assets:
Ratio of total expenses to average net assets	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets	2.09%	2.27%	1.26%	1.96%	2.10%
Portfolio turnover rate(b)	56%	59%	93%	87%	90%

(a)

Total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all distributions at net asset value during the period, and redemption at net asset value on the last day of the period. The returns presented do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Total return is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year.

(b)

Portfolio turnover is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year and does not include securities received or delivered from processing creations or redemptions and in-kind transactions.

175

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

Financial Highlights
For a share outstanding throughout each period

First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund (FGM) 

	Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Net asset value, beginning of period	$53.78	$51.56	$44.39	$37.57	$51.26
Income from investment operations:
Net investment income (loss)	1.77	0.91	0.68	1.02	0.72
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)	(18.27)	2.08	7.17	6.82	(13.59)
Total from investment operations	(16.50)	2.99	7.85	7.84	(12.87)
Distributions paid to shareholders from:
Net investment income	(1.92)	(0.77)	(0.68)	(1.02)	(0.82)
Net asset value, end of period	$35.36	$53.78	$51.56	$44.39	$37.57
Total Return(a)	(30.39)%	5.74%	17.90%	21.06%	(25.40)%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period (in 000’s)	$14,144	$99,497	$95,381	$144,261	$139,022
Ratios to average net assets:
Ratio of total expenses to average net assets	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets	2.23%	1.67%	1.40%	2.48%	1.66%
Portfolio turnover rate(b)	152%	80%	106%	99%	81%

(a)

Total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all distributions at net asset value during the period, and redemption at net asset value on the last day of the period. The returns presented do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Total return is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year.

(b)

Portfolio turnover is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year and does not include securities received or delivered from processing creations or redemptions and in-kind transactions.

176

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

Financial Highlights
For a share outstanding throughout each period

First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF (NFTY) 

	Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Net asset value, beginning of period	$48.23	$38.83	$35.26	$35.35	$36.33
Income from investment operations:
Net investment income (loss)	0.22	0.48	0.30	0.26	0.23
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)	(2.35)	9.65	3.50	(0.01)	(1.21)
Total from investment operations	(2.13)	10.13	3.80	0.25	(0.98)
Distributions paid to shareholders from:
Net investment income	(0.05)	(0.73)	(0.23)	(0.27)	(0.01)
Net realized gain	(2.52)	—	—	—	—
Return of capital	—	—	—	(0.07)	—
Total distributions	(2.57)	(0.73)	(0.23)	(0.34)	—
Net asset value, end of period	$43.53	$48.23	$38.83	$35.26	$35.35
Total Return(a)	(4.45)%	26.15%	10.66%	0.71%	(2.67)%(b)
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period (in 000’s)	$73,999	$62,703	$3,883	$3,526	$3,535
Ratios to average net assets:
Ratio of total expenses to average net assets	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets	0.68%	0.95%	0.98%	0.74%	0.77%
Portfolio turnover rate(c)	56%	57%	38%	24%	156%(d)

(a)

Total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all distributions at net asset value during the period, and redemption at net asset value on the last day of the period. The returns presented do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Total return is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year.

(b)

The Fund received a reimbursement from the advisor in the amount of $7,227, which represents less than $0.01 per share. Since the advisor reimbursed the Fund, there was no effect on the Fund’s total return.

(c)

Portfolio turnover is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year and does not include securities received or delivered from processing creations or redemptions and in-kind transactions.

(d)

The variation in the portfolio turnover rate is due to the change in the Fund’s underlying index effective April 17, 2018 which resulted in a complete rebalance of the Fund’s portfolio.

177

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

Financial Highlights
For a share outstanding throughout each period

First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (FJP) 

	Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Net asset value, beginning of period	$49.86	$51.42	$51.10	$48.55	$59.80
Income from investment operations:
Net investment income (loss)	1.19	0.81	0.49	1.12	0.79
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)	(7.23)	(1.16)	0.34	2.84	(11.30)
Total from investment operations	(6.04)	(0.35)	0.83	3.96	(10.51)
Distributions paid to shareholders from:
Net investment income	(0.94)	(1.21)	(0.51)	(1.41)	(0.74)
Net asset value, end of period	$42.88	$49.86	$51.42	$51.10	$48.55
Total Return(a)	(12.04)%	(0.69)%	1.71%	8.27%	(17.66)%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period (in 000’s)	$85,768	$34,901	$41,136	$76,647	$152,934
Ratios to average net assets:
Ratio of total expenses to average net assets	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets	2.92%	1.53%	1.13%	1.90%	1.34%
Portfolio turnover rate(b)	79%	126%	136%	127%	90%

(a)

Total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all distributions at net asset value during the period, and redemption at net asset value on the last day of the period. The returns presented do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Total return is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year.

(b)

Portfolio turnover is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year and does not include securities received or delivered from processing creations or redemptions and in-kind transactions.

178

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

Financial Highlights
For a share outstanding throughout each period

First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund (FLN) 

	Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Net asset value, beginning of period	$17.35	$19.43	$22.67	$18.33	$20.43
Income from investment operations:
Net investment income (loss)	0.98	0.89	0.52	0.48	0.52
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)	(0.65)	(2.16)	(3.44)	4.29	(2.06)
Total from investment operations	0.33	(1.27)	(2.92)	4.77	(1.54)
Distributions paid to shareholders from:
Net investment income	(0.93)	(0.81)	(0.20)	(0.43)	(0.51)
Return of capital	—	—	(0.12)	—	(0.05)
Total distributions	(0.93)	(0.81)	(0.32)	(0.43)	(0.56)
Net asset value, end of period	$16.75	$17.35	$19.43	$22.67	$18.33
Total Return(a)	2.17%	(6.66)%	(12.32)%	26.26%	(7.50)%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period (in 000’s)	$70,358	$7,805	$13,599	$131,463	$17,418
Ratios to average net assets:
Ratio of total expenses to average net assets	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets	7.82%	4.28%	0.81%	2.02%	2.46%
Portfolio turnover rate(b)	104%	91%	34%	165%	158%

(a)

Total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all distributions at net asset value during the period, and redemption at net asset value on the last day of the period. The returns presented do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Total return is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year.

(b)

Portfolio turnover is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year and does not include securities received or delivered from processing creations or redemptions and in-kind transactions.

179

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

Financial Highlights
For a share outstanding throughout each period

First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund (FSZ) 

	Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Net asset value, beginning of period	$71.39	$60.85	$54.11	$43.89	$52.73
Income from investment operations:
Net investment income (loss)	1.98	0.78	0.88	1.07	0.82
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)	(17.03)	10.92	6.78	10.24	(8.66)
Total from investment operations	(15.05)	11.70	7.66	11.31	(7.84)
Distributions paid to shareholders from:
Net investment income	(1.92)	(1.16)	(0.92)	(1.09)	(0.84)
Return of capital	—	—	—	—	(0.16)
Total distributions	(1.92)	(1.16)	(0.92)	(1.09)	(1.00)
Net asset value, end of period	$54.42	$71.39	$60.85	$54.11	$43.89
Total Return(a)	(20.88)%	19.34%	14.50%	25.91%	(15.11)%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period (in 000’s)	$97,959	$99,943	$97,354	$148,811	$151,409
Ratios to average net assets:
Ratio of total expenses to average net assets	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets	2.30%	1.25%	1.59%	2.24%	1.79%
Portfolio turnover rate(b)	64%	66%	86%	77%	65%

(a)

Total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all distributions at net asset value during the period, and redemption at net asset value on the last day of the period. The returns presented do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Total return is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year.

(b)

Portfolio turnover is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year and does not include securities received or delivered from processing creations or redemptions and in-kind transactions.

180

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

Financial Highlights
For a share outstanding throughout each period

First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund (FKU) 

	Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Net asset value, beginning of period	$43.97	$38.06	$40.99	$32.11	$39.97
Income from investment operations:
Net investment income (loss)	1.54	1.29	0.58	1.34	1.13
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)	(12.02)	5.93	(2.95)	8.91	(7.35)
Total from investment operations	(10.48)	7.22	(2.37)	10.25	(6.22)
Distributions paid to shareholders from:
Net investment income	(1.76)	(1.31)	(0.56)	(1.37)	(1.64)
Net asset value, end of period	$31.73	$43.97	$38.06	$40.99	$32.11
Total Return(a)	(23.52)%	19.10%	(5.25)%	32.36%	(16.16)%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period (in 000’s)	$31,728	$98,943	$19,030	$18,444	$9,632
Ratios to average net assets:
Ratio of total expenses to average net assets	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%	0.80%
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets	4.29%	3.34%	1.72%	3.58%	2.81%
Portfolio turnover rate(b)	98%	45%	109%	73%	107%

(a)

Total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all distributions at net asset value during the period, and redemption at net asset value on the last day of the period. The returns presented do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Total return is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year.

(b)

Portfolio turnover is calculated for the time period presented and is not annualized for periods of less than a year and does not include securities received or delivered from processing creations or redemptions and in-kind transactions.

181

Other Information

Continuous Offering

Each Fund issues, on a continuous offering basis, its shares in one or more groups of a fixed number of Fund shares (each such group of such specified number of individual Fund shares, a “Creation Unit Aggregation”). The method by which Creation Unit Aggregations of Fund shares are created and traded may raise certain issues under applicable securities laws. Because new Creation Unit Aggregations of shares are issued and sold by a Fund on an ongoing basis, a “distribution,” as such term is used in the Securities Act, may occur at any point. Broker-dealers and other persons are cautioned that some activities on their part may, depending on the circumstances, result in their being deemed participants in a distribution in a manner which could render them statutory underwriters and subject them to the prospectus delivery requirement and liability provisions of the Securities Act.

For example, a broker-dealer firm or its client may be deemed a statutory underwriter if it takes Creation Unit Aggregations after placing an order with FTP, breaks them down into constituent shares and sells such shares directly to customers, or if it chooses to couple the creation of a supply of new shares with an active selling effort involving solicitation of secondary market demand for shares. A determination of whether one is an underwriter for purposes of the Securities Act must take into account all the facts and circumstances pertaining to the activities of the broker-dealer or its client in the particular case, and the examples mentioned above should not be considered a complete description of all the activities that could lead to a characterization as an underwriter.

Broker-dealer firms should also note that dealers who are not “underwriters” but are effecting transactions in shares, whether or not participating in the distribution of shares, are generally required to deliver a prospectus. This is because the prospectus delivery exemption in Section 4(a)(3) of the Securities Act is not available in respect of such transactions as a result of Section 24(d) of the 1940 Act. As a result, broker-dealer firms should note that dealers who are not underwriters but are participating in a distribution (as contrasted with ordinary secondary market transactions) and thus dealing with the shares that are part of an overallotment within the meaning of Section 4(a)(3)(C) of the Securities Act would be unable to take advantage of the prospectus delivery exemption provided by Section 4(a)(3) of the Securities Act. Firms that incur a prospectus delivery obligation with respect to shares are reminded that, under the Securities Act Rule 153, a prospectus delivery obligation under Section 5(b)(2) of the Securities Act owed to a broker-dealer in connection with a sale on the applicable Exchange is satisfied by the fact that the prospectus is available from the applicable Exchange upon request. The prospectus delivery mechanism provided in Rule 153 is available with respect to transactions on a national securities exchange, a trading facility or an alternative trading system.

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First Trust

Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

 

 

 

First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund
First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund

For More Information

For more detailed information on the Funds, several additional sources of information are available to you. The SAI, incorporated by reference into this prospectus, contains detailed information on the Funds' policies and operation. Additional information about the Funds' investments is available in the annual and semi-annual reports to shareholders. In the Funds' annual reports, you will find a discussion of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly impacted the Funds' performance during the last fiscal year. The Funds' most recent SAI, annual and semi-annual reports and certain other information are available free of charge by calling the Funds at (800) 621-1675, on the Funds' website at www.ftportfolios.com or through your financial advisor. Shareholders may call the toll-free number above with any inquiries.

You may obtain this and other information regarding the Funds, including the SAI and the Codes of Ethics adopted by First Trust, FTP and the Trust, directly from the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). Information on the SEC’s website is free of charge. Visit the SEC’s online EDGAR database at www.sec.gov. You may also request information regarding the Funds by sending a request (along with a duplication fee) to the SEC by sending an electronic request to publicinfo@sec.gov.

First Trust Advisors L.P.
120 East Liberty Drive, Suite 400
Wheaton, Illinois 60187
(800) 621-1675

www.ftportfolios.com

SEC File #: 333-171759
811-22519

STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Investment Company Act File No. 811-22519

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II 

FUND NAME	TICKER SYMBOL	EXCHANGE
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	FPA	Nasdaq
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund	FBZ	Nasdaq
First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund	FCA	Nasdaq
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund	FDT	Nasdaq
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	FDTS	Nasdaq
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund	FEM	Nasdaq
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	FEMS	Nasdaq
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund	FEP	Nasdaq
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF	FEUZ	Nasdaq
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund	FGM	Nasdaq
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF	NFTY	Nasdaq
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	FJP	Nasdaq
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund	FLN	Nasdaq
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund	FSZ	Nasdaq
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund	FKU	Nasdaq

DATED MAY 1, 2023

This Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) is not a prospectus. It should be read in conjunction with the prospectus dated May 1, 2023, as it may be revised from time to time (the “Prospectus”), for each of the First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF, First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF, First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund and First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund (each, a “Fund” and collectively, the “Funds”), each a series of the First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II (the “Trust”). Capitalized terms used herein that are not defined have the same meaning as in the Prospectus, unless otherwise noted. A copy of the Prospectus may be obtained without charge by writing to the Trust’s distributor, First Trust Portfolios L.P., 120 East Liberty Drive, Suite 400, Wheaton, Illinois 60187, or by calling toll free at (800) 621-1675.

The audited financial statements for the Funds' most recent fiscal year appear in the Funds' Annual Report to Shareholders dated December 31, 2022, which was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on March 9, 2023. The

financial statements from the Annual Report are incorporated herein by reference. The Annual Report is available without charge by calling (800) 621-1675 or by visiting the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.

Table of Contents 

General Description of the Trust and the Funds	1
Exchange Listing and Trading	3
Investment Objectives and Policies	3
Investment Strategies	5
Sublicense Agreements	13
Investment Risks	13
Management of the Funds	18
Brokerage Allocations	29
Administrator, Fund Accounting Agent, Transfer Agent, Custodian, Distributor, Index Provider and Exchanges	30
Additional Payments to Financial Intermediaries	33
Additional Information	34
Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures	39
Creation and Redemption of Creation Units	40
Federal Tax Matters	43
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF - Indian Tax Matters	48
Determination of Net Asset Value	51
Dividends and Distributions	52
Miscellaneous Information	53
Financial Statements	53
Exhibit A—Principal Holders Table	A-1
Exhibit B—Proxy Voting Guidelines	B-1

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General Description of the Trust and the Funds

The Trust was organized as a Massachusetts business trust on December 3, 2010 and is authorized to issue an unlimited number of shares in one or more series. The Trust is an open-end management investment company, registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”). The Trust currently offers shares in 15 series. This SAI relates to the Funds, which are diversified series.

Each Fund, as a series of the Trust, represents a beneficial interest in a separate portfolio of securities and other assets, with its own objectives and policies. On April 17, 2018, First Trust Taiwan AlphaDEX® Fund changed its name to First Trust NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF pursuant to the approval of the Board of Trustees of the Trust.

The Board of Trustees of the Trust (the “Board,” “Board of Trustees” or “Trustees”) has the right to establish additional series in the future, to determine the preferences, voting powers, rights and privileges thereof and to modify such preferences, voting powers, rights and privileges without shareholder approval. Shares of any series may also be divided into one or more classes at the discretion of the Trustees.

The Trust or any series or class thereof may be terminated at any time by the Board of Trustees upon written notice to the shareholders.

Each share has one vote with respect to matters upon which a shareholder vote is required consistent with the requirements of the 1940 Act and the rules promulgated thereunder. Shares of all series of the Trust vote together as a single class except as otherwise required by the 1940 Act or if the matter being voted on affects only a particular series, and, if a matter affects a particular series differently from other series, the shares of that series will vote separately on such matter. The Trust’s Declaration of Trust (the “Declaration”) requires a shareholder vote only on those matters where the 1940 Act requires a vote of shareholders and otherwise permits the Trustees to take actions without seeking the consent of shareholders. For example, the Declaration gives the Trustees broad authority to approve reorganizations between a Fund and another entity, such as another exchange-traded fund, or the sale of all or substantially all of a Fund's assets, or the termination of the Trust or any Fund without shareholder approval if the 1940 Act would not require such approval.

The Declaration provides that by becoming a shareholder of a Fund, each shareholder shall be expressly held to have agreed to be bound by the provisions of the Declaration and to any By-laws adopted by the Trust. The Declaration provides that, except as set forth therein and authorized by the Trustees, shareholders have no rights, privileges, claims or remedies under any contract or agreement entered into by the Trust or a Fund with any service provider or other agent to or contractor with the Trust or a Fund including, without limitation, any third party beneficiary rights.

The Declaration may, except in limited circumstances, be amended by the Trustees in any respect without a shareholder vote. The Declaration provides that the Trustees may establish the number of Trustees and that vacancies on the Board of Trustees may be filled by the remaining Trustees, except when election of Trustees by the shareholders is required under the 1940 Act. Trustees are then elected by a plurality of votes cast by shareholders at a meeting at which a quorum is present. The Declaration also provides that Trustees may be removed, with or without cause, by a vote of shareholders holding at least two-thirds of the voting power of the Trust, or by a vote of two-thirds of the remaining Trustees. The provisions of the Declaration relating to the election and removal of Trustees may not be amended without the approval of two-thirds of the Trustees.

The holders of Fund shares are required to disclose information on direct or indirect ownership of Fund shares as may be required to comply with various laws applicable to the Funds or as the Trustees may determine, and ownership of Fund shares may be disclosed by the Funds if so required by law or regulation. In addition, pursuant to the Declaration, the Trustees may, in their discretion, require the Trust to redeem shares held by any shareholder for any reason under terms set by the Trustees.

The Declaration provides a detailed process for the bringing of derivative actions by shareholders in order to permit legitimate inquiries and claims while avoiding the time, expense, distraction and other harm that can be caused to a Fund or its shareholders as a result of spurious shareholder demands and derivative actions. In addition, the Declaration provides that actions that are derivative in nature may not be brought directly. Prior to bringing a derivative action, a demand must first be made on the Trustees. The Declaration details various information, certifications, undertakings and acknowledgements that must be included in the demand. Following receipt of the demand, the Trustees have a period of 90 days, which may be extended by an additional 60 days, to consider the demand. If a majority of the Trustees who are considered independent for the purposes of considering the demand determine that maintaining the suit would not be in the best interests of the Funds, the Trustees are required to reject the demand and the complaining shareholder may not proceed with the derivative action unless the shareholder is able to sustain the burden of proof to a court that the decision of the Trustees not to pursue the requested

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action was not a good faith exercise of their business judgment on behalf of the Funds. In making such a determination, a Trustee is not considered to have a personal financial interest by virtue of being compensated for his or her services as a Trustee. If a demand is rejected, the complaining shareholder will be responsible for the costs and expenses (including attorneys’ fees) incurred by the Funds in connection with the consideration of the demand under a number of circumstances. In addition, if a court determines that a derivative action was made without reasonable cause or for an improper purpose, or if a derivative or direct action is dismissed on the basis of a failure to comply with the procedural provisions relating to shareholder actions as set forth in the Declaration, or if a direct action is dismissed by a court for failure to state a claim, the shareholder bringing the action may be responsible for a Fund's costs, including attorneys’ fees.

The provisions of the Declaration provide that any direct or derivative action commenced by a shareholder must be brought only in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts (Boston Division) or if any such action may not be brought in that court, then in the Business Litigation Session of Suffolk Superior Court in Massachusetts (the “Chosen Courts”). Except as prohibited by applicable law, if a shareholder commences an applicable action in a court other than a Chosen Court without the consent of a Fund, then such shareholder may be obligated to reimburse the Fund and any applicable Trustee or officer of the Fund made party to such proceeding for the costs and expenses (including attorneys’ fees) incurred in connection with any successful motion to dismiss, stay or transfer of the action. The Declaration also provides that any shareholder bringing an action against a Fund waives the right to trial by jury to the fullest extent permitted by law.

The Trust is not required to and does not intend to hold annual meetings of shareholders.

Under Massachusetts law applicable to Massachusetts business trusts, shareholders of such a trust may, under certain circumstances, be held personally liable as partners for its obligations. However, the Declaration contains an express disclaimer of shareholder liability for acts or obligations of the Trust and requires that notice of this disclaimer be given in each agreement, obligation or instrument entered into or executed by the Trust or the Trustees. The Declaration further provides for indemnification out of the assets and property of the Trust for all losses and expenses of any shareholder held personally liable for the obligations of the Trust. Thus, the risk of a shareholder incurring financial loss on account of shareholder liability is limited to circumstances in which both inadequate insurance existed and the Trust or a Fund itself was unable to meet its obligations.

The Declaration provides that a Trustee acting in his or her capacity as Trustee is liable to the Trust for his or her own bad faith, willful misfeasance, gross negligence, or reckless disregard of his or her duties involved in the conduct of the individual’s office, and for nothing else and shall not be liable for errors of judgment or mistakes of fact or law. The Declaration also provides that the Trustees of the Trust will be subject to the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts relating to Massachusetts business trusts, but not to the laws of Massachusetts relating to the trustees of common law trusts, such as donative or probate type trusts. The Declaration further provides that a Trustee acting in his or her capacity as Trustee is not personally liable to any person other than the Trust, for any act, omission, or obligation of the Trust. The Declaration requires the Trust to indemnify any persons who are or who have been Trustees, officers or employees of the Trust for any liability for actions or failure to act except to the extent prohibited by applicable federal law. In making any determination as to whether any person is entitled to the advancement of expenses in connection with a claim for which indemnification is sought, such person is entitled to a rebuttable presumption that he or she did not engage in conduct for which indemnification is not available. The Declaration provides that any Trustee who serves as chair of the Board of Trustees or of a committee of the Board of Trustees, as lead independent Trustee or as audit committee financial expert, or in any other similar capacity will not be subject to any greater standard of care or liability because of such position.

These provisions are not intended to restrict any shareholder rights under the federal securities laws and the Declaration specifically provides that no provision of the Declaration shall be effective to require a waiver of compliance with any provision of, or restrict any shareholder rights expressly granted by, the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “1933 Act”), the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “1934 Act”) or the 1940 Act, or any valid rule, regulation or order of the Securities Exchange Commission thereunder.

The Funds are advised by First Trust Advisors L.P. (the “Advisor” or “First Trust”).

The shares of each Fund are principally listed and traded on The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC (“Nasdaq" or the “Exchange”), as shown on the cover of this SAI. ETFs, such as the Funds, do not sell or redeem individual shares of a Fund. Instead, financial entities known as “Authorized Participants” (which are discussed in greater detail below) have contractual arrangements with each Fund or the Distributor to purchase and redeem Fund shares directly with a Fund in large blocks of shares known as “Creation Units.” An Authorized Participant that purchases a Creation Unit of Fund shares deposits with a Fund a “basket” of securities, cash and/or other assets identified by the Fund that day, and then receives the Creation Unit of Fund shares in return for those assets. The redemption process is the reverse of the purchase process: the Authorized Participant

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redeems a Creation Unit of Fund shares for a basket of securities, cash and/or other assets. The basket is generally representative of a Fund’s portfolio, and together with a cash balancing amount, it is equal to the NAV of the Fund shares comprising the Creation Unit. Pursuant to Rule 6c-11 of the 1940 Act, the Funds may utilize baskets that are not representative of each Fund’s portfolio. Such “custom baskets” are discussed in the section entitled “Creation and Redemption of Creation Units.”

Fund shares may be issued in advance of receipt of deposit securities subject to various conditions including a requirement to maintain on deposit with the Fund cash at least equal to 115% of the market value of the missing deposit securities. See the section entitled “Creation and Redemption of Creation Units.” In each instance of such cash creations or redemptions, transaction fees may be imposed that will be higher than the transaction fees associated with in-kind creations or redemptions. In all cases, such fees will be limited in accordance with the requirements of the SEC applicable to management investment companies offering redeemable securities.

Exchange Listing and Trading

There can be no assurance that the requirements of the Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of shares of a Fund will continue to be met. The Exchange may, but is not required to, remove the shares of a Fund from listing if (i) following the initial 12-month period beginning at the commencement of trading of a Fund, there are fewer than 50 beneficial owners of the shares of such Fund for 30 or more consecutive trading days; (ii) the value of such Fund’s Index (as defined below) is no longer calculated or available; (iii) such other event shall occur or condition exist that, in the opinion of the Exchange, makes further dealings on the Exchange inadvisable. The Exchange will remove the shares of a Fund from listing and trading upon termination of such Fund.

As in the case of other stocks traded on the Exchange, brokers’ commissions on transactions will be based on negotiated commission rates at customary levels.

The Funds reserve the right to adjust the price levels of shares in the future to help maintain convenient trading ranges for investors. Any adjustments would be accomplished through stock splits or reverse stock splits, which would have no effect on the net assets of each Fund.

Investment Objectives and Policies

The Prospectus describes the investment objectives and certain policies of the Funds. The following supplements the information contained in the Prospectus concerning the investment objectives and policies of the Funds.

Each Fund is subject to the following fundamental policies, which may not be changed without approval of the holders of a majority of the outstanding voting securities (as such term is defined in the 1940 Act) of a Fund:

(1)

A Fund may not issue senior securities, except as permitted under the 1940 Act.

(2)

A Fund, with the exception of First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF, may not borrow money, except that a Fund may (i) borrow money from banks for temporary or emergency purposes (but not for leverage or the purchase of investments) and (ii) engage in other transactions permissible under the 1940 Act that may involve a borrowing (such as obtaining short-term credits as are necessary for the clearance of transactions, engaging in delayed-delivery transactions, or purchasing certain futures, forward contracts and options), provided that the combination of (i) and (ii) shall not exceed 33⅓% of the value of a Fund's total assets (including the amount borrowed), less a Fund's liabilities (other than borrowings). The First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF may not borrow money, except that the Fund may (i) borrow money from banks for temporary or emergency purposes (but not for leverage or the purchase of investments); and (ii) engage in other transactions permissible under the 1940 Act that may involve a borrowing provided that the combination of (i) and (ii) shall not exceed 33⅓% of the value of the Fund's total assets (including the amount borrowed), less the Fund's liabilities (other than borrowings).

(3)

A Fund will not underwrite the securities of other issuers except to the extent a Fund may be considered an underwriter under the 1933 Act, in connection with the purchase and sale of portfolio securities.

(4)

A Fund will not purchase or sell real estate or interests therein, unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other instruments (but this shall not prohibit a Fund from purchasing or selling securities or other instruments backed by real estate or of issuers engaged in real estate activities).

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(5)

A Fund may not make loans to other persons, except through (i) the purchase of debt securities permissible under a Fund’s investment policies, (ii) repurchase agreements, or (iii) the lending of portfolio securities, provided that no such loan of portfolio securities may be made by a Fund if, as a result, the aggregate of such loans would exceed 33⅓% of the value of a Fund’s total assets.

(6)

A Fund may not purchase or sell physical commodities unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other instruments (but this shall not prevent a Fund from purchasing or selling options, futures contracts, forward contracts or other derivative instruments, or from investing in securities or other instruments backed by physical commodities).

(7)

A Fund may not invest 25% or more of the value of its total assets in securities of issuers in any one industry or group of industries, except to the extent that the Index that a Fund is based upon, concentrates in an industry or a group of industries. This restriction does not apply to obligations issued and guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies or instrumentalities.

For purposes of applying restriction (1) above, under the 1940 Act as currently in effect, the Funds are not permitted to issue senior securities, except that a Fund may borrow from any bank if, immediately after such borrowing and at all times thereafter, the value of such Fund’s total assets is at least 300% of the principal amount of all of a Fund’s borrowings (i.e., the principal amount of the borrowings may not exceed 33⅓% of a Fund's total assets). In the event that such asset coverage shall at any time fall below 300% the Fund shall, within three days thereafter (not including Sundays and holidays), reduce the amount of its borrowings to an extent that the asset coverage of such borrowings shall be at least 300%.

Except for restriction (2) above, if a percentage restriction is adhered to at the time of investment, a later increase in percentage resulting from a change in market value of the investment or the total assets will not constitute a violation of that restriction. With respect to restriction (2), if the limitations are exceeded as a result of a change in market value then the Fund will reduce the amount of borrowings within three days thereafter to the extent necessary to comply with the limitations (not including Sundays and holidays).

The fundamental investment limitations set forth above limit the Funds' ability to engage in certain investment practices and purchase securities or other instruments to the extent permitted by, or consistent with, applicable law. As such, these limitations will change as the statute, rules, regulations or orders (or, if applicable, interpretations) change, and no shareholder vote will be required or sought.

The foregoing fundamental policies of each Fund may not be changed without the affirmative vote of the majority of the outstanding voting securities of the respective Fund. The 1940 Act defines a majority vote as the vote of the lesser of (i) 67% or more of the voting securities represented at a meeting at which more than 50% of the outstanding securities are represented; or (ii) more than 50% of the outstanding voting securities. With respect to the submission of a change in an investment policy to the holders of outstanding voting securities of  a Fund, such matter shall be deemed to have been effectively acted upon with respect to a Fund if a majority of the outstanding voting securities of a Fund vote for the approval of such matter, notwithstanding that  such matter has not been approved by the holders of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of any other series of the Trust affected by such matter.

In addition to the foregoing fundamental policies, the Funds are also subject to strategies and policies discussed herein which, unless otherwise noted, are non-fundamental restrictions and policies and may be changed by the Board of Trustees.

The First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund has adopted a non-fundamental investment policy pursuant to Rule 35d-1 under the 1940 Act (a “Name Policy”) whereby the Fund, under normal market conditions, will invest at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities issued by companies domiciled or operating in the Asia Pacific region excluding Japan.

The First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund has adopted a Name Policy whereby the Fund, under normal market conditions, will invest at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities issued by companies domiciled or operating in Brazil.

The First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund has adopted a Name Policy whereby the Fund, under normal market conditions, will invest at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities issued by companies domiciled or operating in China.

The First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund has adopted a Name Policy whereby the Fund, under normal market conditions, will invest at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities issued by companies domiciled or operating in developed markets excluding the United States.

4

The First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund has adopted a Name Policy whereby the Fund, under normal market conditions, will invest at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities issued by companies domiciled or operating in developed markets, excluding the United States, that are classified by Nasdaq, Inc. as small capitalization companies.

The First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund has adopted a Name Policy whereby the Fund, under normal market conditions, will invest at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities issued by companies domiciled or operating in emerging markets.

The First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund has adopted a Name Policy whereby the Fund, under normal market conditions, will invest at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities issued by companies domiciled or operating in emerging markets that are classified by Nasdaq, Inc. as small capitalization companies.

The First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund has adopted a Name Policy whereby the Fund, under normal market conditions, will invest at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities issued by companies domiciled or operating in Europe.

The First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF has adopted a Name Policy whereby the Fund, under normal market conditions, will invest at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities issued by companies domiciled or operating in the "Eurozone," as classified by the Index Provider.

The First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund has adopted a Name Policy whereby the Fund, under normal market conditions, will invest at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities issued by companies domiciled or operating in Germany.

The First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF has adopted a Name Policy whereby the Fund, under normal market conditions, will invest at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities issued by companies domiciled or operating in India.

The First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund has adopted a Name Policy whereby the Fund, under normal market conditions, will invest at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities issued by companies domiciled or operating in Japan.

The First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund has adopted a Name Policy whereby the Fund, under normal market conditions, will invest at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities issued by companies domiciled or operating in Latin America.

The First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund has adopted a Name Policy whereby the Fund, under normal market conditions, will invest at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities issued by companies domiciled or operating in Switzerland.

The First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund has adopted a Name Policy whereby the Fund, under normal market conditions, will invest at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities issued by companies domiciled or operating in the United Kingdom.

As a result, each Fund must provide shareholders with a notice meeting the requirements of Rule 35d-1(c) at least 60 days prior to any change of such Fund’s Name Policy. For purposes of the Name Policy, each Fund considers both direct investments and indirect investments (e.g., investments in an underlying fund, derivatives and synthetic instruments with economic characteristics similar to the underlying asset), and the Fund may achieve exposure to a particular country or geographic region through direct investments or indirect investments.

Investment Strategies

The following information supplements the discussion of each Fund’s investment objectives, policies and strategies that appears in the Prospectus.

Under normal circumstances, each Fund will invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the common stocks or depositary receipts that comprise the index it seeks to track (each, an "Index" and collectively, the "Indices"). Fund shareholders are entitled to 60 days’ notice prior to any change in this non-fundamental investment policy.

The table below sets forth each Fund's Index. Nasdaq, Inc. serves as the index provider for the indices tracked by First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF, First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund and First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX®

5

Fund (the “Nasdaq Funds,” and the indices that the Nasdaq Funds seek to track, “Nasdaq Indices”). NSE INDICES LIMITED serves as the index provider for the NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index, the index tracked by First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF. Both Nasdaq, Inc. and NSE INDICES LIMITED may individually be referred to throughout this Statement of Additional Information as an “Index Provider” and collectively as the “Index Providers.” 

Fund	Index
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund	Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Brazil Index
First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund	Nasdaq AlphaDEX® China Index
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund	Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Index
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Small Cap Index
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund	Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Index
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Small Cap Index
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund	Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Europe Index
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF	Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Eurozone Index
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund	Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Germany Index
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF	NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Japan Index
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund	Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Latin America Index
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund	Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Switzerland Index
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund	Nasdaq AlphaDEX® United Kingdom Index

Types of Investments

Depositary Receipts. The Funds may invest in securities of foreign issuers in the form of sponsored or unsponsored American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”), American Depositary Shares (“ADSs”), Global Depositary Receipts (“GDRs”), European Depositary Receipts (“EDRs”) or other depositary receipts (collectively “Depositary Receipts”). ADRs and ADSs are Depositary Receipts normally issued by a U.S. bank or trust company that evidence ownership of underlying securities issued by a foreign corporation. EDRs and GDRs are typically issued by foreign banks or trust companies, although they also may be issued by U.S. banks or trust companies, and evidence ownership of underlying securities issued by either a foreign or a U.S. corporation. Generally, Depositary Receipts in registered form are designed for use in the U.S. securities market. Depositary Receipts in bearer form are designed for use in securities markets outside the United States. Depositary Receipts may not necessarily be denominated in the same currency as the underlying securities into which they may be converted. Ownership of unsponsored Depositary Receipts may not entitle a Fund to financial or other reports from the issuer of the underlying security, to which it would be entitled as the owner of sponsored Depositary Receipts. The issuers of unsponsored Depositary Receipts are not obligated to disclose material information in the United States; therefore, there may be less information available regarding such issuers and there may not be a correlation between such information and the market value of the Depositary Receipts.

Equities.  Equity securities represent an ownership position in a company. The prices of equity securities fluctuate based on, among other things, events specific to their issuers and market, economic and other conditions. Equity securities in which the Funds invest may include common and preferred stocks. Common stocks include the common stock of any class or series of a domestic or foreign corporation or any similar equity interest, such as a trust or partnership interest. These investments may or may not pay dividends and may or may not carry voting rights. Common stock occupies the most junior position in a company’s capital structure.

Fixed Income Investments and Cash Equivalents. Normally, each Fund invests substantially all of its assets to meet its investment objective. However, for temporary or defensive purposes, a Fund may invest in high quality money market instruments, fixed income investments and cash equivalents in order to provide income, liquidity and preserve capital.

Fixed income investments and cash equivalents held by each Fund may include, without limitation, the types of investments set forth below:

(1)

A Fund may invest in U.S. government securities, including bills, notes and bonds differing as to maturity and rates of interest, which are either issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury or by U.S. government agencies or instrumentalities. U.S. government securities include securities that are issued or guaranteed by the U.S.

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Treasury, by various agencies of the U.S. government, or by various instrumentalities that have been established or sponsored by the U.S. government. U.S. Treasury securities are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the United States. Securities issued or guaranteed by federal agencies and U.S. government-sponsored instrumentalities may or may not be backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. Some of the U.S. government agencies that issue or guarantee securities include the Export-Import Bank of the United States, the Farmers Home Administration, the Federal Housing Administration, the Maritime Administration, the Small Business Administration and The Tennessee Valley Authority. An instrumentality of the U.S. government is a government agency organized under federal charter with government supervision. Instrumentalities issuing or guaranteeing securities include, among others, the Federal Home Loan Banks, the Federal Land Banks, the Central Bank for Cooperatives, Federal Intermediate Credit Banks and the Federal National Mortgage Association (“Fannie Mae”). In the case of those U.S. government securities not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States, the investor must look principally to the agency or instrumentality issuing or guaranteeing the security for ultimate repayment and may not be able to assert a claim against the United States itself in the event that the agency or instrumentality does not meet its commitment. The U.S. government, its agencies and instrumentalities do not guarantee the market value of their securities; consequently, the value of such securities may fluctuate. In addition, each Fund may invest in sovereign debt obligations of non-U.S. countries. A sovereign debtor’s willingness or ability to repay principal and interest in a timely manner may be affected by a number of factors, including its cash flow situation, the extent of its non-U.S. reserves, the availability of sufficient non-U.S. exchange on the date a payment is due, the relative size of the debt service burden to the economy as a whole, the sovereign debtor’s policy toward principal international lenders and the political constraints to which it may be subject.

(2)

A Fund may invest in certificates of deposit issued against funds deposited in a bank or savings and loan association. Such certificates are for a definite period of time, earn a specified rate of return and are normally negotiable. If such certificates of deposit are non-negotiable, they will be considered illiquid securities and be subject to a Fund's 15% restriction on investments in illiquid securities. Pursuant to the certificate of deposit, the issuer agrees to pay the amount deposited plus interest to the bearer of the certificate on the date specified thereon. Under current FDIC regulations, the maximum insurance payable as to any one certificate of deposit is $250,000; therefore, certificates of deposit purchased by a Fund may not be fully insured. A Fund may only invest in certificates of deposit issued by U.S. banks with at least $1 billion in assets.

(3)

A Fund may invest in bankers’ acceptances, which are short-term credit instruments used to finance commercial transactions. Generally, an acceptance is a time draft drawn on a bank by an exporter or an importer to obtain a stated amount of funds to pay for specific merchandise. The draft is then “accepted” by a bank that, in effect, unconditionally guarantees to pay the face value of the instrument on its maturity date. The acceptance may then be held by the accepting bank as an asset or it may be sold in the secondary market at the going rate of interest for a specific maturity.

(4)

A Fund may invest in repurchase agreements, which involve purchases of debt securities with counterparties that are deemed by First Trust to present acceptable credit risks. In such an action, at the time a Fund purchases the security, it simultaneously agrees to resell and redeliver the security to the seller, who also simultaneously agrees to buy back the security at a fixed price and time. This assures a predetermined yield for a Fund during its holding period since the resale price is always greater than the purchase price and reflects an agreed-upon market rate. Such actions afford an opportunity for a Fund to invest temporarily available cash. A Fund may enter into repurchase agreements only with respect to obligations of the U.S. government, its agencies or instrumentalities, certificates of deposit or bankers’ acceptances in which a Fund may invest. Repurchase agreements may be considered loans to the seller, collateralized by the underlying securities. The risk to a Fund is limited to the ability of the seller to pay the agreed-upon sum on the repurchase date; in the event of default, the repurchase agreement provides that the affected Fund is entitled to sell the underlying collateral. If the value of the collateral declines after the agreement is entered into, however, and if the seller defaults under a repurchase agreement when the value of the underlying collateral is less than the repurchase price, a Fund could incur a loss of both principal and interest. The Investment Committee monitors the value of the collateral at the time the action is entered into and at all times during the term of the repurchase agreement. The Investment Committee does so in an effort to determine that the value of the collateral always equals or exceeds the agreed-upon repurchase price to be paid to a Fund. If the seller were to be subject to a federal bankruptcy proceeding, the ability of a Fund to liquidate the collateral could be delayed or impaired because of certain provisions of the bankruptcy laws.

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(5)

A Fund may invest in bank time deposits, which are monies kept on deposit with banks or savings and loan associations for a stated period of time at a fixed rate of interest. There may be penalties for the early withdrawal of such time deposits, in which case the yields of these investments will be reduced.

(6)

A Fund may invest in commercial paper, which are short-term unsecured promissory notes, including variable rate master demand notes issued by corporations to finance their current operations. Master demand notes are direct lending arrangements between a Fund and a corporation. There is no secondary market for the notes. However, they are redeemable by a Fund at any time. The Investment Committee will consider the financial condition of the corporation (e.g., earning power, cash flow and other liquidity ratios) and will continuously monitor the corporation’s ability to meet all of its financial obligations, because a Fund's liquidity might be impaired if the corporation were unable to pay principal and interest on demand. A Fund may invest in commercial paper only if it has received the highest rating from at least one nationally recognized statistical rating organization or, if unrated, judged by First Trust to be of comparable quality.

(7)

A Fund may invest in shares of money market funds, as consistent with its investment objective and policies. Shares of money market funds are subject to management fees and other expenses of those funds. Therefore, investments in money market funds will cause the Fund to bear proportionately the costs incurred by the money market funds’ operations. At the same time, a Fund will continue to pay its own management fees and expenses with respect to all of its assets, including any portion invested in the shares of other investment companies. It is possible for a Fund to lose money by investing in money market funds.

Illiquid Investments. The Funds may invest in illiquid investments (i.e., any investment that a Fund reasonably expects cannot be sold or disposed of in current market conditions in seven calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment). For purposes of this restriction, illiquid investments may include, but are not limited to, certain restricted securities (securities the disposition of which is restricted under the federal securities laws), securities that may only be resold pursuant to Rule 144A under the 1933 Act, and repurchase agreements with maturities in excess of seven days, among others. However, a Fund will not acquire illiquid investments if, as a result, such investments would comprise more than 15% of the value of a Fund’s net assets. The Advisor, subject to oversight by the Board of Trustees, has the ultimate authority to determine, to the extent permissible under the federal securities laws, which investments are liquid or illiquid for purposes of this 15% limitation under a Fund’s liquidity risk management program, adopted pursuant to Rule 22e-4 under the 1940 Act.

Restricted securities may be sold only in privately negotiated transactions or in a public offering with respect to which a registration statement is in effect under the 1933 Act. Where registration is required, a Fund may be obligated to pay all or part of the registration expenses and a considerable period may elapse between the time of the decision to sell and the time a Fund may be permitted to sell a security under an effective registration statement. If, during such a period, adverse market conditions were to develop, a Fund might obtain a less favorable price than that which prevailed when it decided to sell. Illiquid investments will be priced at fair value as determined in good faith under procedures adopted by the Board of Trustees. If, through the appreciation of illiquid investments or the depreciation of liquid investments, a Fund should be in a position where more than 15% of the value of its net assets are invested in illiquid investments, including restricted securities which are not readily marketable, the Advisor will report such occurrence to the Board of Trustees and take such steps as are deemed advisable to protect liquidity in accordance with a Fund’s liquidity risk management program.

Non-U.S. Investments.  Non-U.S. securities include securities issued or guaranteed by companies organized under the laws of countries other than the United States (including emerging markets), securities issued or guaranteed by foreign, national, provincial, state, municipal or other governments with taxing authority or by their agencies or instrumentalities and debt obligations of supra-national governmental entities such as the World Bank or European Union. Non-U.S. securities may also include U.S. dollar-denominated debt obligations, such as “Yankee Dollar” obligations, of foreign issuers and of supra-national government entities. Yankee Dollar obligations are U.S. dollar-denominated obligations issued in the U.S. capital markets by foreign corporations, banks and governments. Foreign securities also may be traded on foreign securities exchanges or in over-the-counter capital markets.

Certain of a Fund’s investment in foreign securities may be denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. To the extent a Fund invests in such instruments, the value of the assets of a Fund as measured in U.S. dollars will be affected by changes in exchange rates. Generally, a Fund’s currency exchange transactions will be conducted on a spot (i.e., cash) basis at the spot rate prevailing in the currency exchange market. The cost of a Fund’s currency exchange transactions will generally be the difference between the bid and offer spot rate of the currency being purchased or sold. In order to protect against uncertainty in the level of future currency exchange rates, a Fund is authorized to enter into various currency exchange transactions.

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Portfolio Turnover

The Funds buy and sell portfolio securities in the normal course of their investment activities. The proportion of a Fund's investment portfolio that is bought and sold during a year is known as a Fund's portfolio turnover rate. A portfolio turnover rate of 100% would occur, for example, if all of the portfolio securities (other than short-term securities) were replaced once during the fiscal year. A high portfolio turnover rate could result in the payment by a Fund of increased brokerage costs, expenses and taxes. The portfolio turnover rates for the specified periods are set forth in the table below. Significant variations in portfolio turnover from year-to-year are generally the result of fluctuations in the size of a Fund or changes to a Fund's portfolio holdings. 

Portfolio Turnover Rate
Fund	Fiscal Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	82%	102%
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund	95%	225%
First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund	117%	166%
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund	95%	111%
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	109%	116%
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund	106%	119%
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	117%	127%
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund	88%	105%
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF	56%	59%
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund	152%	80%
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF	56%	57%
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	79%	126%
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund	104%	91%
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund	64%	66%
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund	98%	45%

Lending of Portfolio Securities

In order to generate additional income, as a non-principal investment strategy, First Trust is authorized to select certain First Trust Funds, including the Funds, with notice to the Board of Trustees, to lend portfolio securities representing up to 33⅓% of the value of their total assets to broker-dealers, banks or other institutional borrowers of securities. As with other extensions of credit, there may be risks of delay in recovery of the securities or even loss of rights in the collateral should the borrower of the securities fail financially. However, such First Trust Funds will only enter into loan arrangements with broker-dealers, banks or other institutions which First Trust has determined are creditworthy under guidelines approved by the Board of Trustees. The First Trust Funds will pay a portion of the income earned on the lending transaction to the placing broker and may pay administrative and custodial fees in connection with these loans. First Trust may select any First Trust Fund to participate in the securities lending program, at its discretion with notice to the Board of Trustees.

In these loan arrangements, the First Trust Funds will receive collateral in the form of cash, U.S. government securities or other high-grade debt obligations in an amount at least equal to the value of the borrowed securities, marked to market daily. This collateral must be valued daily by First Trust or the First Trust Fund’s lending agent and, if the market value of the loaned securities increases, the borrower must furnish additional collateral to the lending First Trust Fund. During the time portfolio securities are on loan, the borrower pays the lending First Trust Fund any dividends or interest paid on the securities. Loans are subject to termination at any time by the lending First Trust Fund or the borrower. While a First Trust Fund does not have the right to vote securities on loan, it would terminate the loan and regain the right to vote if that were considered important with respect to the investment. When a First Trust Fund lends portfolio securities to a borrower, payments in lieu of dividends made by the borrower to the First Trust Fund will not constitute “qualified dividends” taxable at the same rate as long-term capital gains, even if the actual dividends would have constituted qualified dividends had the First Trust Fund held the securities. Please see "Securities Lending Risk" below for a description of the risks associated with securities lending activities.

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The following tables describe the securities lending activities of each Fund that engaged in securities lending activities during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022: 

FIRST TRUST ASIA PACIFIC EX-JAPAN ALPHADEX® FUND
Gross income from securities lending activities	$124,032
Fees and/or compensation for securities lending activities and related services
Fees paid to securities lending agent from a revenue split	442
Fees paid for any cash collateral management service (including fees deducted from a  pooled cash collateral reinvestment vehicle) that are not included in the revenue split	117,597
Administrative fees not included in revenue split	0
Indemnification fee not included in revenue split	0
Rebate (paid to borrower)	2,105
Other fees not included in revenue split (specify)	0
Aggregate fees/compensation for securities lending activities	120,144
Net income from securities lending activities	$3,888
FIRST TRUST CHINA ALPHADEX® FUND
Gross income from securities lending activities	$63,976
Fees and/or compensation for securities lending activities and related services
Fees paid to securities lending agent from a revenue split	1,032
Fees paid for any cash collateral management service (including fees deducted from a  pooled cash collateral reinvestment vehicle) that are not included in the revenue split	53,064
Administrative fees not included in revenue split	0
Indemnification fee not included in revenue split	0
Rebate (paid to borrower)	570
Other fees not included in revenue split (specify)	0
Aggregate fees/compensation for securities lending activities	54,666
Net income from securities lending activities	$9,310
FIRST TRUST DEVELOPED MARKETS EX-US ALPHADEX® FUND
Gross income from securities lending activities	$4,952,923
Fees and/or compensation for securities lending activities and related services
Fees paid to securities lending agent from a revenue split	18,445
Fees paid for any cash collateral management service (including fees deducted from a  pooled cash collateral reinvestment vehicle) that are not included in the revenue split	4,639,101
Administrative fees not included in revenue split	0
Indemnification fee not included in revenue split	0
Rebate (paid to borrower)	129,695
Other fees not included in revenue split (specify)	0
Aggregate fees/compensation for securities lending activities	4,787,241
Net income from securities lending activities	$165,682

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FIRST TRUST DEVELOPED MARKETS EX-US SMALL CAP ALPHADEX® FUND
Gross income from securities lending activities	$35,409
Fees and/or compensation for securities lending activities and related services
Fees paid to securities lending agent from a revenue split	501
Fees paid for any cash collateral management service (including fees deducted from a  pooled cash collateral reinvestment vehicle) that are not included in the revenue split	29,989
Administrative fees not included in revenue split	0
Indemnification fee not included in revenue split	0
Rebate (paid to borrower)	415
Other fees not included in revenue split (specify)	0
Aggregate fees/compensation for securities lending activities	30,905
Net income from securities lending activities	$4,504
FIRST TRUST EMERGING MARKETS ALPHADEX® FUND
Gross income from securities lending activities	$927,452
Fees and/or compensation for securities lending activities and related services
Fees paid to securities lending agent from a revenue split	3,977
Fees paid for any cash collateral management service (including fees deducted from a  pooled cash collateral reinvestment vehicle) that are not included in the revenue split	881,179
Administrative fees not included in revenue split	0
Indemnification fee not included in revenue split	0
Rebate (paid to borrower)	6,167
Other fees not included in revenue split (specify)	0
Aggregate fees/compensation for securities lending activities	891,323
Net income from securities lending activities	$36,129
FIRST TRUST EMERGING MARKETS SMALL CAP ALPHADEX® FUND
Gross income from securities lending activities	$1,358,764
Fees and/or compensation for securities lending activities and related services
Fees paid to securities lending agent from a revenue split	20,846
Fees paid for any cash collateral management service (including fees deducted from a  pooled cash collateral reinvestment vehicle) that are not included in the revenue split	1,136,916
Administrative fees not included in revenue split	0
Indemnification fee not included in revenue split	0
Rebate (paid to borrower)	13,377
Other fees not included in revenue split (specify)	0
Aggregate fees/compensation for securities lending activities	1,171,139
Net income from securities lending activities	$187,625

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FIRST TRUST EUROPE ALPHADEX® FUND
Gross income from securities lending activities	$3,316,749
Fees and/or compensation for securities lending activities and related services
Fees paid to securities lending agent from a revenue split	17,871
Fees paid for any cash collateral management service (including fees deducted from a  pooled cash collateral reinvestment vehicle) that are not included in the revenue split	3,088,335
Administrative fees not included in revenue split	0
Indemnification fee not included in revenue split	0
Rebate (paid to borrower)	49,485
Other fees not included in revenue split (specify)	0
Aggregate fees/compensation for securities lending activities	3,155,691
Net income from securities lending activities	$161,058
FIRST TRUST EUROZONE ALPHADEX® ETF
Gross income from securities lending activities	$127,754
Fees and/or compensation for securities lending activities and related services
Fees paid to securities lending agent from a revenue split	553
Fees paid for any cash collateral management service (including fees deducted from a  pooled cash collateral reinvestment vehicle) that are not included in the revenue split	120,533
Administrative fees not included in revenue split	0
Indemnification fee not included in revenue split	0
Rebate (paid to borrower)	1,712
Other fees not included in revenue split (specify)	0
Aggregate fees/compensation for securities lending activities	122,798
Net income from securities lending activities	$4,956
FIRST TRUST GERMANY ALPHADEX® FUND
Gross income from securities lending activities	$85,001
Fees and/or compensation for securities lending activities and related services
Fees paid to securities lending agent from a revenue split	397
Fees paid for any cash collateral management service (including fees deducted from a  pooled cash collateral reinvestment vehicle) that are not included in the revenue split	78,583
Administrative fees not included in revenue split	0
Indemnification fee not included in revenue split	0
Rebate (paid to borrower)	2,397
Other fees not included in revenue split (specify)	0
Aggregate fees/compensation for securities lending activities	81,377
Net income from securities lending activities	$3,624

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FIRST TRUST JAPAN ALPHADEX® FUND
Gross income from securities lending activities	$556,993
Fees and/or compensation for securities lending activities and related services
Fees paid to securities lending agent from a revenue split	1,262
Fees paid for any cash collateral management service (including fees deducted from a  pooled cash collateral reinvestment vehicle) that are not included in the revenue split	525,384
Administrative fees not included in revenue split	0
Indemnification fee not included in revenue split	0
Rebate (paid to borrower)	18,774
Other fees not included in revenue split (specify)	0
Aggregate fees/compensation for securities lending activities	545,420
Net income from securities lending activities	$11,573

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. and The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (together, the “Securities Lending Agents”) serve as securities lending agents for the First Trust Fund Complex (as defined in this SAI). The services provided by the Securities Lending Agents include: the coordination and selection of securities to be loaned to approved borrowers; negotiating the terms of the loan; monitoring the value of securities loaned and corresponding collateral, marking to market daily; coordinating the investment of cash collateral in the Funds’ approved cash collateral reinvestment vehicle; monitoring dividends relating to loaned securities; and transferring, recalling and arranging the return of loaned securities to the Funds upon termination of the loan.

Sublicense Agreements

The Trust, on behalf of each Fund, has entered into a sublicense agreement (each a “Sublicense Agreement”) with First Trust, First Trust Portfolios and an Index Provider that grants each Fund and First Trust a non-exclusive and non-transferable sublicense to use certain intellectual property of the Index Provider in connection with the issuance, distribution, marketing and/or promotion of the applicable Fund. Pursuant to each Sublicense Agreement, each Fund and First Trust have agreed to be bound by certain provisions of the product license agreement by and between an Index Provider and First Trust Portfolios (each a “Product License Agreement”).

Investment Risks

The following risk disclosure supplements the discussion of each Fund’s investment risks that appears in the Prospectus.

Overview

An investment in a Fund should be made with an understanding of the risks that an investment in a Fund's shares entails, including the risk that the financial condition of the issuers of the securities held by a Fund or the general condition of the securities market may worsen and the value of the securities and therefore the value of a Fund may decline. A Fund may not be an appropriate investment for those who are unable or unwilling to assume the risks involved generally with such an investment. The past market and earnings performance of any of the securities included in a Fund is not predictive of their future performance.

Additional Market Disruption Risk

In February 2022, Russia commenced a military attack on Ukraine. In response, various countries, including the United States, issued broad-ranging sanctions on Russia and certain Russian companies and individuals. The hostilities between the two countries may escalate and any existing or future sanctions could have a severe adverse effect on Russia’s economy, currency, companies and region as well as negatively impact other regional and global economic markets of the world (including Europe and the United States), companies in such countries and various sectors, industries and markets for securities and commodities globally, such as oil and natural gas. Accordingly, the hostilities and sanctions may have a negative effect on a Fund’s investments and performance beyond any direct exposure to Russian issuers or those of adjoining geographic regions. Russia may also take retaliatory actions or countermeasures, such as cyberattacks and espionage, which may negatively impact the countries and companies in which a Fund may invest. The extent and duration of the military action or future escalation of such hostilities; the extent and impact of existing and any future sanctions, market disruptions and volatility; and the result of any diplomatic

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negotiations cannot be predicted. These and any related events could have a significant negative impact on certain of a Fund’s investments as well as a Fund’s performance, and the value or liquidity of certain securities held by a Fund may decline significantly.

Common Stock Risk

Common stocks are especially susceptible to general market movements and to volatile increases and decreases of value as market confidence in and perceptions of the issuers change. These perceptions are based on unpredictable factors including expectations regarding government, economic, monetary and fiscal policies, inflation and interest rates, economic expansion or contraction, and global or regional political, economic or banking crises. First Trust cannot predict the direction or scope of any of these factors. Shareholders of common stocks have rights to receive payments from the issuers of those common stocks that are generally subordinate to those of creditors of, or holders of debt obligations or preferred stocks of, such issuers.

Shareholders of common stocks of the type held by the Funds have a right to receive dividends only when and if, and in the amounts, declared by the issuer’s board of directors and have a right to participate in amounts available for distribution by the issuer only after all other claims on the issuer have been paid or otherwise been settled. Common stocks do not represent an obligation of the issuer and, therefore, do not offer any assurance of income or provide the same degree of protection of capital as do debt securities. The issuance of additional debt securities or preferred stock will create prior claims for payment of principal, interest and dividends which could adversely affect the ability and inclination of the issuer to declare or pay dividends on its common stock or the rights of holders of common stock with respect to assets of the issuer upon liquidation or bankruptcy. The value of common stocks is subject to market fluctuations for as long as the common stocks remain outstanding, and thus the value of the equity securities in the Funds will fluctuate over the life of the Funds and may be more or less than the price at which they were purchased by the Funds. The equity securities held in the Funds may appreciate or depreciate in value (or pay dividends) depending on the full range of economic and market influences affecting these securities, including the impact of a Fund’s purchase and sale of the equity securities and other factors.

Holders of common stocks incur more risk than holders of preferred stocks and debt obligations because common stockholders, as owners of the entity, have generally inferior rights to receive payments from the issuer in comparison with the rights of creditors of, or holders of debt obligations or preferred stocks issued by, the issuer. Cumulative preferred stock dividends must be paid before common stock dividends and any cumulative preferred stock dividend omitted is added to future dividends payable to the holders of cumulative preferred stock. Preferred stockholders are also generally entitled to rights on liquidation which are senior to those of common stockholders.

Currency Risk

Changes in currency exchange rates may affect a Fund's net asset value, the value of dividends and interest earned, and gains and losses realized on the sale of securities in which a Fund invests.

Depositary Receipts Risk

Depositary Receipts may not necessarily be denominated in the same currency as the underlying securities into which they may be converted. ADRs are receipts typically issued by a U.S. bank or trust company that evidence ownership of underlying securities issued by a foreign corporation. EDRs are receipts issued by a European bank or trust company evidencing ownership of securities issued by a foreign corporation. New York shares are typically issued by a company incorporated in the Netherlands and represent a direct interest in the company. Unlike traditional depositary receipts, New York share programs do not involve custody of the Dutch shares of the company. GDRs are receipts issued throughout the world that evidence a similar arrangement. ADRs, EDRs and GDRs may trade in foreign currencies that differ from the currency the underlying security for each ADR, EDR or GDR principally trades in. Global shares are the actual (ordinary) shares of a non-U.S. company which trade both in the home market and the United States. Generally, ADRs and New York shares, in registered form, are designed for use in the U.S. securities markets. EDRs, in registered form, are used to access European markets. GDRs, in registered form, are tradable both in the United States and in Europe and are designed for use throughout the world. Global shares are represented by the same share certificate in the United States and the home market, and separate registrars in the United States and the home country are maintained. In most cases, purchases occurring on a U.S. exchange would be reflected on the U.S. registrar. Global shares may also be eligible to list on exchanges in addition to the United States and the home country. The Funds may hold unsponsored Depositary Receipts. The issuers of unsponsored Depositary Receipts are not obligated to disclose material information in the United States; therefore, there may be less information available regarding such issuers and there may not be a correlation between such information and the market value of the Depositary Receipts.

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Dividends Risk

Shareholders of common stocks have rights to receive payments from the issuers of those common stocks that are generally subordinate to those of creditors of, or holders of debt obligations or preferred stocks of, such issuers. Shareholders of common stocks of the type held by the Funds have a right to receive dividends only when and if, and in the amounts, declared by the issuer’s board of directors and have a right to participate in amounts available for distribution by the issuer only after all other claims on the issuer have been paid or have otherwise been settled. Common stocks do not represent an obligation of the issuer and, therefore, do not offer any assurance of income or provide the same degree of protection of capital as do debt securities. The issuance of additional debt securities or preferred stock will create prior claims for payment of principal, interest and dividends which could adversely affect the ability and inclination of the issuer to declare or pay dividends on its common stock or the rights of holders of common stock with respect to assets of the issuer upon liquidation or bankruptcy. Cumulative preferred stock dividends must be paid before common stock dividends, and any cumulative preferred stock dividend omitted is added to future dividends payable to the holders of cumulative preferred stock. Preferred stockholders are also generally entitled to rights on liquidation that are senior to those of common stockholders.

Liquidity Risk

Whether or not the equity securities held by the Funds are listed on a securities exchange, the principal trading market for certain of the equity securities in the Funds may be in the over-the-counter (“OTC”) market. As a result, the existence of a liquid trading market for such equity securities may depend on whether dealers will make a market in the equity securities. There can be no assurance that a market will be made for any of the equity securities, that any market for such equity securities will be maintained or that there will be sufficient liquidity of such equity securities in any markets made. The price at which the equity securities are held by the Funds will be adversely affected if trading markets for such equity securities are limited or absent.

Listing Standards Risk

Each Fund is required to comply with listing requirements adopted by the Exchange. Non-compliance with such requirements may result in a Fund’s shares being delisted by the Exchange. Any resulting liquidation of a Fund could cause the Fund to incur elevated transaction costs and could result in negative tax consequences for its shareholders.

Litigation Risk

At any time litigation may be instituted on a variety of grounds with respect to the common stocks held by the Funds. The Funds are unable to predict whether litigation that has been or will be instituted might have a material adverse effect on the Funds.

Market Risk

Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of a Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of a Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments due to short-term market movements or any longer periods during more prolonged market downturns. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters or other events could have a significant negative impact on a Fund and its investments. Such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Such events could adversely affect the prices and liquidity of a Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of a Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, a Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on a Fund’s shares may widen.

Health crises caused by the outbreak of infectious diseases or other public health issues, may exacerbate other pre-existing political, social, economic, market and financial risks. The impact of any such events, could negatively affect the global economy, as well as the economies of individual countries or regions, the financial performance of individual companies, sectors and industries, and the markets in general in significant and unforeseen ways. Any such impact could adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the securities and other instruments in which a Fund invests and negatively impact a Fund’s investment return. For example, an outbreak of a respiratory disease designated as COVID-19 was first detected in China in December 2019 and subsequently spread internationally. The ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease.

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The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic may be short term or may last for an extended period of time, and in either case could result in a substantial economic downturn or recession.

In addition, the operations of a Fund, the Advisor and a Fund’s other service providers may be significantly impacted, or even temporarily or permanently halted, as a result of government quarantine measures, voluntary and precautionary restrictions on travel or meetings and other factors related to a public health emergency, including its potential adverse impact on the health of any such entity’s personnel.

Non-U.S. Securities Risk

An investment in non-U.S. securities involves risks in addition to the usual risks inherent in domestic investments, including currency risk. The value of a non-U.S. security in U.S. dollars tends to decrease when the value of the U.S. dollar rises against the non-U.S. currency in which the security is denominated and tends to increase when the value of the U.S. dollar falls against such currency. Non-U.S. securities are affected by the fact that in many countries there is less publicly available information about issuers than is available in the reports and ratings published about companies in the United States and companies may not be subject to uniform accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards. Other risks inherent in non-U.S. investments may include expropriation; confiscatory taxation; withholding taxes on dividends and interest; less extensive regulation of non-U.S. brokers, securities markets and issuers; diplomatic developments; and political or social instability. Non-U.S. economies may differ favorably or unfavorably from the U.S. economy in various respects, and many non-U.S. securities are less liquid and their prices tend to be more volatile than comparable U.S. securities. From time to time, non-U.S. securities may be difficult to liquidate rapidly without adverse price effects.

Authorization, Custody and Settlement Risk for Non-U.S. Securities

Approval of governmental authorities may be required prior to investing in the securities of companies based in certain frontier countries. Delays in obtaining such an approval would delay investments in the particular country.

Rules adopted under the 1940 Act permit a fund to maintain its non-U.S. securities and cash in the custody of certain eligible non-U.S. banks and securities depositories. Certain banks in foreign countries that are eligible foreign sub-custodians may be recently organized or otherwise lack extensive operating experience. In addition, in certain countries there may be legal restrictions or limitations on the ability of a Fund to recover assets held in custody by a foreign sub-custodian in the event of the bankruptcy of the sub-custodian. Settlement systems in emerging markets may be less well organized than in developed markets. Thus there may be a risk that settlement may be delayed and that cash or securities of a Fund may be in jeopardy because of failures of or defects in the systems. Under the laws of certain countries in which a Fund may invest, a Fund may be required to release local shares before receiving cash payment or may be required to make cash payment prior to receiving local shares.

Certain countries in which a Fund may invest utilize share blocking schemes. Share blocking refers to a practice, in certain foreign markets, where voting rights related to an issuer’s securities are predicated on these securities being blocked from trading at the custodian or sub-custodian level, for a period of time around a shareholder meeting. These restrictions have the effect of prohibiting securities to potentially be voted (or having been voted), from trading within a specified number of days before, and in certain instances, after the shareholder meeting.

Share blocking may prevent a Fund from buying or selling securities for a period of time. During the time that shares are blocked, trades in such securities will not settle. The specific practices may vary by market and the blocking period can last from a day to several weeks, typically terminating on a date established at the discretion of the issuer.

Once blocked, the only manner in which to remove this block would be to withdraw a previously cast vote, or to abstain from voting altogether. The process for having a blocking restriction lifted can be quite onerous, with the particular requirements varying widely by country. In addition, in certain countries, the block cannot be removed.

Share blocking may present operational challenges for a Fund and Authorized Participants, including the effect that an imposed block would have on pending trades. Pending trades may be caused to fail and could potentially remain unsettled for an extended period of time. Fails may also expose the transfer agent and a Fund to “Buy In” situations in which, if unable to deliver shares after a certain period of time, a counterparty has the right to go to market, purchase a security at the current market price and have any additional expense borne by a Fund or transfer agent.

As a result, the Advisor, on behalf of a Fund, reserves the right to abstain from voting proxies in share blocking proxy markets.

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Passive Foreign Investment Companies Risk

A Fund may invest in companies that are considered to be “passive foreign investment companies” (“PFICs”), which are generally certain non-U.S. corporations that receive at least 75% of their annual gross income from passive sources (such as interest, dividends, certain rents and royalties or capital gains) or that hold at least 50% of their assets in investments producing such passive income. Therefore, the Funds could be subject to U.S. federal income tax and additional interest charges on gains and certain distributions with respect to those equity interests, even if all the income or gain is distributed to its shareholders in a timely manner. A Fund will not be able to pass through to its shareholders any credit or deduction for such taxes.

Securities Lending Risk

Securities lending involves exposure to certain risks, including counterparty risk, collateral risk and operational risk. Counterparty risk is the risk that the borrower may fail to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. As a result, a First Trust Fund engaged in securities lending transactions may suffer a loss and there may be a delay in recovering the lent securities. Any delay in the return of securities on loan may restrict the ability of a Fund to meet delivery or payment obligations. Collateral risk is the risk that the collateral received may be realized at a value lower than the value of the securities lent, whether due to inaccurate pricing of the collateral, adverse market movements in the value of the collateral, intra-day increases in the value of the securities lent, a deterioration in the credit rating of the collateral issuer, or the illiquidity of the market in which the collateral is traded. Securities lending also entails operational risks, such as settlement failures or delays in the settlement of instructions. Such failures or delays may restrict the ability of a Fund to meet delivery or payment obligations. Lastly, securities lending activities may result in adverse tax consequences for a Fund and its shareholders. For instance, substitute payments for dividends received by a Fund for securities loaned out by the Fund will not be considered qualified dividend income. A Fund could lose money if its short-term investment of the collateral declines in value over the period of the loan.

Small and Mid Capitalization Companies Risk

Certain of the equity securities in certain Funds may be small and/or mid capitalization company stocks. While historically such company stocks have outperformed the stocks of large companies, the former have customarily involved more investment risk as well. Small and mid capitalization companies may have limited product lines, markets or financial resources; may lack management depth or experience; and may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments than large companies. Some of these companies may distribute, sell or produce products which have recently been brought to market and may be dependent on key personnel.

The prices of small and mid capitalization company securities are often more volatile than prices associated with large company issues, and can display abrupt or erratic movements at times, due to limited trading volumes and less publicly available information. Also, because small and mid capitalization companies normally have fewer shares outstanding and these shares trade less frequently than large companies, it may be more difficult for a Fund which contains these equity securities to buy and sell significant amounts of such shares without an unfavorable impact on prevailing market prices. The securities of small and mid capitalization companies are often traded OTC and may not be traded in the volumes typical of a national securities exchange.

Variable Interest Entities Risk

In order to gain exposure to certain Chinese companies that are included in a Fund’s Index but are unavailable to direct investment by foreign investors, certain funds invest significantly in non-Chinese shell companies that have created structures known as variable interest entities (“VIEs”) in order to gain exposure to such Chinese companies. In China, direct ownership of companies in certain sectors by foreign individuals and entities is prohibited. In order to allow for foreign investment in these businesses, many Chinese companies have created VIE structures to enable indirect foreign ownership. In such an arrangement, a Chinese operating company typically establishes an offshore shell company in another jurisdiction, such as the Cayman Islands. That shell company enters into service and other contracts with the Chinese issuer or operating company to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese company, then issues shares on an exchange outside of mainland China, and U.S. investors hold stock in the non-Chinese shell company rather than directly in the Chinese issuer or operating company. This arrangement allows U.S. investors, such as the Fund, to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese issuer or operating company through contractual means rather than through formal equity ownership. Because neither the shell company nor the Fund owns actual equity interests in the Chinese operating company, they do not have the voting rights or other types of control that an equity holder would expect to benefit from. Although VIEs are a longstanding industry practice and well known to officials and regulators in China, VIEs are not formally recognized under Chinese law. Intervention by the Chinese government with respect to VIEs could significantly affect the Chinese company’s performance and the enforceability of the VIE’s contractual arrangements that establish the links between the Chinese company and the shell company in which the Fund invests. This could considerably impact the

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financial condition of the shell company in which the Fund invests by limiting its ability to consolidate the financial results of the Chinese operating company into its own financial statements, as well as make the value of the shares held by the Fund effectively worthless. Further, if Chinese officials prohibit the existence of VIEs, the market value of the Fund’s associated holdings would likely suffer significant, and possibly permanent effects, which could negatively impact the Fund’s net asset value and could result in substantial losses. Further, it is uncertain whether any new laws, rules or regulations relating to VIE structures will be adopted or, if adopted, what impact they would have on the value of the Fund’s shares.

VIEs are also subject to the investment risks associated with the underlying Chinese issuer or operating company. Chinese companies are not subject to the same degree of regulatory requirements or accounting standards and oversight as companies in more developed countries. As a result, information about the Chinese securities and VIEs in which the Fund invests may be less reliable and incomplete. There also may be significant obstacles to obtaining information necessary for investigations into or litigation against Chinese companies and VIEs, and shareholders may have limited legal remedies, which could negatively impact the Fund. Additionally, U.S.-listed VIEs may be delisted if they do not meet U.S. accounting standards and auditor oversight requirements. Delisting would significantly decrease the liquidity and value of the securities, decrease the ability of the Fund to invest in such securities and may increase the cost of the Fund if required to seek alternative markets in which to invest in such securities.

Management of the Funds

Trustees and Officers

The general supervision of the duties performed for the Funds under the investment management agreement is the responsibility of the Board of Trustees. There are six Trustees of the Trust, one of whom is an “interested person” (as the term is defined in the 1940 Act) and five of whom are Trustees who are not officers or employees of First Trust or any of its affiliates (“Independent Trustees”). The Trustees set broad policies for the Funds, choose the Trust’s officers and hire the Trust’s investment advisor. The officers of the Trust manage its day-to-day operations and are responsible to the Board of Trustees. The following is a list of the Trustees and executive officers of the Trust and a statement of their present positions and principal occupations during the past five years, the number of portfolios each Trustee oversees and the other directorships they have held during the past five years, if applicable. Each Trustee has been elected for an indefinite term. The officers of the Trust serve indefinite terms. Each Trustee, except for James A. Bowen, is an Independent Trustee. Mr. Bowen is deemed an “interested person” (as that term is defined in the 1940 Act) (“Interested Trustee”) of the Trust due to his position as Chief Executive Officer of First Trust, investment advisor to the Funds. The following table identifies the Trustees and Officers of the Trust. Unless otherwise indicated, the address of all persons below is c/o First Trust Advisors L.P., 120 East Liberty Drive, Suite 400, Wheaton, IL 60187. 

Name and Year of Birth	Position and Offices with Trust	Term of Office and Year First Elected or Appointed	Principal Occupations During Past 5 Years	Number of Portfolios in the First Trust Fund Complex Overseen by Trustee	Other Trusteeships or Directorships Held by Trustee During the Past 5 Years
TRUSTEE WHO IS AN INTERESTED PERSON OF THE TRUST
James A. Bowen (1) 1955	Chairman of the Board and Trustee	•Indefinite term •Since inception	Chief Executive Officer, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.; Chairman of the Board of Directors, BondWave LLC (Software Development Company) and Stonebridge Advisors LLC (Investment Advisor)	230 Portfolios	None
INDEPENDENT TRUSTEES
Richard E. Erickson 1951	Trustee	•Indefinite term •Since inception	Physician, Edward-Elmhurst Medical Group; Physician and Officer, Wheaton Orthopedics (1990 to 2021)	230 Portfolios	None

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Name and Year of Birth	Position and Offices with Trust	Term of Office and Year First Elected or Appointed	Principal Occupations During Past 5 Years	Number of Portfolios in the First Trust Fund Complex Overseen by Trustee	Other Trusteeships or Directorships Held by Trustee During the Past 5 Years
INDEPENDENT TRUSTEES
Thomas R. Kadlec 1957	Trustee	•Indefinite term •Since inception	Retired; President, ADM Investor Services, Inc. (Futures Commission Merchant) (2010 to July 2022)	230 Portfolios	Director, National Futures Association; formerly, Director of ADM Investor Services, Inc., ADM Investor Services International, ADMIS Hong Kong Ltd., ADMIS Singapore Ltd. and Futures Industry Association
Denise M. Keefe 1964	Trustee	•Indefinite term •Since 2021	Executive Vice President, Advocate Aurora Health and President, Advocate Aurora Continuing Health Division (Integrated Healthcare System)	230 Portfolios	Director and Board Chair of Advocate Home Health Services, Advocate Home Care Products and Advocate Hospice; Director and Board Chair of Aurora At Home (since 2018); Director of Advocate Physician Partners Accountable Care Organization; Director and Board Chair of RML Long Term Acute Care Hospitals; and Director of Senior Helpers (since 2021)
Robert F. Keith 1956	Trustee	•Indefinite term •Since inception	President, Hibs Enterprises (Financial and Management Consulting)	230 Portfolios	Formerly, Director of Trust Company of Illinois
Niel B. Nielson 1954	Trustee	•Indefinite term •Since inception	Senior Advisor (2018 to present), Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer (2015 to 2018), Pelita Harapan Educational Foundation (Educational Products and Services)	230 Portfolios	None

 

Name and Year of Birth	Position and Offices with Trust	Term of Office and Length of Service	Principal Occupations During Past 5 Years
OFFICERS OF THE TRUST
James M. Dykas 1966	President and Chief Executive Officer	•Indefinite term •Since 2016	Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.; Chief Financial Officer, BondWave LLC (Software Development Company) and Stonebridge Advisors LLC (Investment Advisor)
W. Scott Jardine 1960	Secretary and Chief Legal Officer	•Indefinite term •Since inception	General Counsel, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.; Secretary and General Counsel, BondWave LLC; and Secretary, Stonebridge Advisors LLC
Daniel J. Lindquist 1970	Vice President	•Indefinite term •Since inception	Managing Director, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.

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Name and Year of Birth	Position and Offices with Trust	Term of Office and Length of Service	Principal Occupations During Past 5 Years
Kristi A. Maher 1966	Chief Compliance Officer and Assistant Secretary	•Indefinite term •Chief Compliance Officer since January 2011 •Assistant Secretary since inception	Deputy General Counsel, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.
Donald P. Swade 1972	Treasurer, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer	•Indefinite term •Since 2016	Senior Vice President, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.
Roger F. Testin 1966	Vice President	•Indefinite term •Since inception	Senior Vice President, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.
Stan Ueland 1970	Vice President	•Indefinite term •Since inception	Senior Vice President, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.

(1)

Mr. Bowen is deemed an “interested person” of the Trust due to his position as Chief Executive Officer of First Trust, investment advisor of the Funds.

Unitary Board Leadership Structure

Each Trustee serves as a trustee of all open-end and closed-end funds in the First Trust Fund Complex (as defined below), which is known as a “unitary” board leadership structure. Each Trustee currently serves as a trustee of First Trust Series Fund and First Trust Variable Insurance Trust, open-end funds with nine portfolios advised by First Trust; First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II, Macquarie/First Trust Global Infrastructure/Utilities Dividend & Income Fund, First Trust Energy Income and Growth Fund, First Trust Enhanced Equity Income Fund, First Trust/Aberdeen Global Opportunity Income Fund, First Trust Mortgage Income Fund, First Trust Specialty Finance and Financial Opportunities Fund, First Trust High Income Long/Short Fund, First Trust Energy Infrastructure Fund, First Trust MLP and Energy Income Fund, First Trust Intermediate Duration Preferred & Income Fund, First Trust Dynamic Europe Equity Income Fund, First Trust New Opportunities MLP & Energy Fund and First Trust High Yield Opportunities 2027 Term Fund, closed-end funds advised by First Trust; and First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund II, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund III, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund IV, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund V, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund VI, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund VII, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund VIII, First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund and First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II, exchange-traded funds with 207 portfolios advised by First Trust (each a “First Trust Fund” and collectively, the “First Trust Fund Complex”). None of the Independent Trustees, nor any of their immediate family members, has ever been a director, officer or employee of, or consultant to, First Trust, First Trust Portfolios L.P. or their affiliates.

The management of the Funds, including general supervision of the duties performed for the Funds under the investment management agreement between the Trust, on behalf of the Funds, and the Advisor, is the responsibility of the Board of Trustees. The Trustees set broad policies for the Funds, choose the Trust’s officers and hire the Funds' investment advisor and other service providers. The officers of the Trust manage the day-to-day operations and are responsible to the Board. The Board is composed of five Independent Trustees and one Interested Trustee. The Interested Trustee, James A. Bowen, serves as the Chairman of the Board for each fund in the First Trust Fund Complex.

The same six persons serve as Trustees on the Board and on the Boards of all other First Trust Funds. The unitary board structure was adopted for the First Trust Funds because of the efficiencies it achieves with respect to the governance and oversight of the First Trust Funds. Each First Trust Fund is subject to the rules and regulations of the 1940 Act (and other applicable securities laws), which means that many of the First Trust Funds face similar issues with respect to certain of their fundamental activities, including risk management, portfolio liquidity, portfolio valuation and financial reporting. Because of the similar and often overlapping issues facing the First Trust Funds, including among the First Trust exchange-traded funds, the Board of the First Trust Funds believes that maintaining a unitary board structure promotes efficiency and consistency in the governance and oversight of all First Trust Funds and reduces the costs, administrative burdens and possible conflicts that may result from having multiple boards. In adopting a unitary board structure, the Trustees seek to provide effective governance through establishing a board the overall composition of which will, as a body, possess the appropriate skills, diversity, independence and experience to oversee the Funds' business.

Annually, the Board reviews its governance structure and the committee structures, their performance and functions, and it reviews any processes that would enhance Board governance over the Funds' business. The Board has determined that its leadership structure, including the unitary board and committee structure, is appropriate based on the characteristics of the funds it serves and the characteristics of the First Trust Fund Complex as a whole.

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In order to streamline communication between the Advisor and the Independent Trustees and create certain efficiencies, the Board has a Lead Independent Trustee who is responsible for: (i) coordinating activities of the Independent Trustees; (ii) working with the Advisor, Fund counsel and the independent legal counsel to the Independent Trustees to determine the agenda for Board meetings; (iii) serving as the principal contact for and facilitating communication between the Independent Trustees and the Funds' service providers, particularly the Advisor; and (iv) any other duties that the Independent Trustees may delegate to the Lead Independent Trustee. The Lead Independent Trustee is selected by the Independent Trustees and serves a three-year term or until his or her successor is selected.

The Board has established five standing committees (as described below) and has delegated certain of its responsibilities to those committees. The Board and its committees meet frequently throughout the year to oversee the Funds' activities, review contractual arrangements with and performance of service providers, oversee compliance with regulatory requirements and review Fund performance. The Independent Trustees are represented by independent legal counsel at all Board and committee meetings (other than meetings of the Dividend Committee). Generally, the Board acts by majority vote of all the Trustees, including a majority vote of the Independent Trustees if required by applicable law.

The four Committee Chairs and the Lead Independent Trustee rotate every three years in serving as Chair of the Audit Committee, the Nominating and Governance Committee, the Valuation Committee or the Dividend Committee, or as Lead Independent Trustee. The Lead Independent Trustee and immediately preceding Lead Independent Trustee also serve on the Executive Committee with the Interested Trustee.

The five standing committees of the First Trust Fund Complex are: the Executive Committee, the Nominating and Governance Committee, the Valuation Committee, the Audit Committee and the Dividend Committee. The Executive Committee, which meets between Board meetings, is authorized to exercise all powers of and to act in the place of the Board of Trustees to the extent permitted by the Trust’s Declaration of Trust and By Laws. Mr. Nielson, Mr. Bowen and Mr. Keith are members of the Executive Committee. During the last fiscal year, the Executive Committee did not hold any meetings.

The Nominating and Governance Committee is responsible for appointing and nominating non-interested persons to the Board of Trustees. Messrs. Erickson, Kadlec, Keith, Nielson and Ms. Keefe are members of the Nominating and Governance Committee. If there is no vacancy on the Board of Trustees, the Board will not actively seek recommendations from other parties, including shareholders. The Board of Trustees adopted a mandatory retirement age of 75 for Trustees, beyond which age Trustees are ineligible to serve. The Committee will not consider new trustee candidates who are 72 years of age or older or will turn 72 years old during the initial term. When a vacancy on the Board of Trustees occurs or is anticipated to occur and nominations are sought to fill such vacancy, the Nominating and Governance Committee may seek nominations from those sources it deems appropriate in its discretion, including shareholders of the Funds. To submit a recommendation for nomination as a candidate for a position on the Board of Trustees, shareholders of the Funds should mail such recommendation to W. Scott Jardine, Secretary, at the Trust’s address, 120 East Liberty Drive, Suite 400, Wheaton, Illinois 60187. Such recommendation shall include the following information: (i) evidence of Fund ownership of the person or entity recommending the candidate (if a Fund shareholder); (ii) a full description of the proposed candidate’s background, including education, experience, current employment and date of birth; (iii) names and addresses of at least three professional references for the candidate; (iv) information as to whether the candidate is an “interested person” in relation to the Funds, as such term is defined in the 1940 Act, and such other information that may be considered to impair the candidate’s independence; and (v) any other information that may be helpful to the Committee in evaluating the candidate. If a recommendation is received with satisfactorily completed information regarding a candidate during a time when a vacancy exists on the Board or during such other time as the Nominating and Governance Committee is accepting recommendations, the recommendation will be forwarded to the Chair of the Nominating and Governance Committee and to counsel to the Independent Trustees. During the last fiscal year, the Nominating and Governance Committee held four meetings.

The Valuation Committee is responsible for the oversight of the Advisor as the "Valuation Designee" under Rule 2a-5 of the 1940 Act and its implementation of the valuation of the securities held in the Funds' portfolios. Messrs. Erickson, Kadlec, Keith, Nielson and Ms. Keefe are members of the Valuation Committee. During the last fiscal year, the Valuation Committee held four meetings.

The Audit Committee is responsible for overseeing each Fund’s accounting and financial reporting process, the system of internal controls and audit process and for evaluating and appointing independent auditors (subject also to Board approval). Messrs. Erickson, Kadlec, Keith, Nielson and Ms. Keefe serve on the Audit Committee. During the last fiscal year, the Audit Committee held eight meetings.

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The Dividend Committee is responsible for assisting the Board in, or assuming the authority and power of the Board with respect to, the declaration and setting of each Fund's dividends. Messrs. Erickson, Keith and Nielson serve on the Dividend Committee. During the last fiscal year, the Dividend Committee did not hold any meetings.

Executive Officers

The executive officers of the Trust hold the same positions with each fund in the First Trust Fund Complex (representing 230 portfolios) as they hold with the Trust, except Mr. Ueland who is an executive officer of only the ETFs advised by First Trust and Mr. Testin who is an executive officer of only the ETFs and open-end funds advised by First Trust.

Risk Oversight

As part of the general oversight of the Funds, the Board is involved in the risk oversight of the Funds. The Board has adopted and periodically reviews policies and procedures designed to address each Fund’s risks. Oversight of investment and compliance risk is performed primarily at the Board level in conjunction with the Advisor’s investment oversight group and the Trust’s Chief Compliance Officer (“CCO”). Oversight of other risks also occurs at the committee level. The Advisor’s investment oversight group reports to the Board at quarterly meetings regarding, among other things, Fund performance and the various drivers of such performance. The Board reviews reports on the Funds' and the service providers’ compliance policies and procedures at each quarterly Board meeting and receives an annual report from the CCO regarding the operations of the Funds' and the service providers’ compliance programs. In addition, the Independent Trustees meet privately each quarter with the CCO. The Audit Committee reviews, with the Advisor and the Funds' independent auditors, each Fund’s major financial risk exposures and the steps the Advisor has taken to monitor and control these exposures, including each Fund’s risk assessment and risk management policies and guidelines. The Audit Committee also, as appropriate, reviews in a general manner the processes other Board committees have in place with respect to risk assessment and risk management. The Nominating and Governance Committee monitors all matters related to the corporate governance of the Trust. The Valuation Committee monitors valuation risk and oversees the Advisor's performance as Valuation Designee.

Not all risks that may affect the Funds can be identified nor can controls be developed to eliminate or mitigate their occurrence or effects. It may not be practical or cost effective to eliminate or mitigate certain risks, the processes and controls employed to address certain risks may be limited in their effectiveness, and some risks are simply beyond the reasonable control of the Funds or the Advisor or other service providers. For instance, as the use of Internet technology has become more prevalent, the Funds and their service providers have become more susceptible to potential operational risks through breaches in cyber security (generally, intentional and unintentional events that may cause a Fund or a service provider to lose proprietary information, suffer data corruption or lose operational capacity). There can be no guarantee that any risk management systems established by the Funds, their service providers, or issuers of the securities in which the Funds invest to reduce cyber security risks will succeed, and the Funds cannot control such systems put in place by service providers, issuers or other third parties whose operations may affect the Funds and/or their shareholders. Moreover, it is necessary to bear certain risks (such as investment-related risks) to achieve a Fund's goals. As a result of the foregoing and other factors, a Fund's ability to manage risk is subject to substantial limitations.

Board Diversification and Trustee Qualifications

As described above, the Nominating and Governance Committee of the Board oversees matters related to the selection and nomination of Trustees. The Nominating and Governance Committee seeks to establish an effective Board with an appropriate range of skills and diversity, including, as appropriate, differences in background, professional experience, education, vocation, and other individual characteristics and traits in the aggregate. Each Trustee must meet certain basic requirements, including relevant skills and experience, time availability and, if qualifying as an Independent Trustee, independence from the Advisor, underwriters or other service providers, including any affiliates of these entities.

Listed below for each current Trustee are the experiences, qualifications and attributes that led to the conclusion, as of the date of this SAI, that each current Trustee should serve as a Trustee in light of the Trust’s business and structure.

Richard E. Erickson, M.D., is an orthopedic surgeon with Edward-Elmhurst Medical Group. He was previously President of Wheaton Orthopedics, a co-owner and director of a fitness center and a limited partner of two real estate companies. Dr. Erickson has served as a Trustee of each First Trust Fund since its inception and of the First Trust Funds since 1999. Dr. Erickson has also served as the Lead Independent Trustee (2008–2009 and 2017–2019) and on the Executive Committee (2008–2009 and 2017–2022), Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee (2003–2007 and 2014–2016), Chairman of the Audit Committee (2012–2013) and Chairman of the Valuation Committee (June 2006–2007; 2010–2011 and

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2020–2022) of the First Trust Funds. He currently serves as Chairman of the Audit Committee (since January 1, 2023) of the First Trust Funds.

Thomas R. Kadlec was previously President of ADM Investor Services Inc. (“ADMIS”), a futures commission merchant and wholly-owned subsidiary of the Archer Daniels Midland Company (“ADM”) from 2010 to July 2022. Mr. Kadlec was employed by ADMIS and its affiliates since 1990 in various accounting, financial, operations and risk management capacities. Mr. Kadlec served on the boards of several international affiliates of ADMIS until July 2022 and served as a member of ADM’s Integrated Risk Committee from 2008–2018, which was tasked with the duty of implementing and communicating enterprise-wide risk management. From 2014 to 2022, Mr. Kadlec was on the board of the Futures Industry Association. In 2017, Mr. Kadlec was elected to the board of the National Futures Association. Mr. Kadlec has served as a Trustee of each First Trust Fund since its inception. Mr. Kadlec also served on the Executive Committee from the organization of the first First Trust closed-end fund in 2003 through 2005 (and 2014–2019) until he was elected as the first Lead Independent Trustee in December 2005, serving as such through 2007 (and 2014–2016). He also served as Chairman of the Valuation Committee (2008–2009 and 2017–2019), Chairman of the Audit Committee (2010–2011 and 2020–2022) and Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee (2012–2013). He currently serves as Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee (since January 1, 2023) of the First Trust Funds.

Denise M. Keefe is Executive Vice President of Advocate Aurora Health and President of Advocate Aurora Continuing Health Division (together, “Advocate”), one of the largest integrated healthcare systems in the U.S. serving Illinois and Wisconsin. Ms. Keefe has been employed by Advocate since 1993 and is responsible for the Continuing Health Division’s strategic direction, fiscal management, business development, revenue enhancement, operational efficiencies, and human resource management of 4,000 employees. Ms. Keefe also currently serves on the boards of several organizations within the Advocate Aurora Continuing Health Division and other health care organizations, including RML Long Term Acute Care Hospitals (since 2014) and Senior Helpers (since 2021). Prior thereto, Ms. Keefe was Corporate Vice President, Marketing and Business Development for the Visiting Nurse Association of Chicago (1989–1992) and a former Board Member of Sherman West Court Skilled Nursing Facility. Ms. Keefe has served as a Trustee of the First Trust Funds and on the Audit Committee, Nominating and Governance Committee and Valuation Committee of the First Trust Funds since November 1, 2021.

Robert F. Keith is President of Hibs Enterprises, a financial and management consulting firm. Mr. Keith has been with Hibs Enterprises since 2003. Prior thereto, Mr. Keith spent 18 years with ServiceMaster and Aramark, including three years as President and COO of ServiceMaster Consumer Services, where he led the initial expansion of certain products overseas; five years as President and COO of ServiceMaster Management Services; and two years as President of Aramark ServiceMaster Management Services. Mr. Keith is a certified public accountant and also has held the positions of Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer of ServiceMaster, at which time he oversaw the financial aspects of ServiceMaster’s expansion of its Management Services division into Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Mr. Keith has served as a Trustee of the First Trust Funds since 2006. Mr. Keith has also served as the Chairman of the Audit Committee (2008–2009 and 2017–2019), Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee (2010–2011 and 2020–2022) and Chairman of the Valuation Committee (2014–2016) of the First Trust Funds. He served as Lead Independent Trustee and on the Executive Committee (2012–2016). He currently serves as Lead Independent Trustee and on the Executive Committee (since January 1, 2023) and as Chairman of the Dividend Committee (since January 1, 2023) of the First Trust Funds.

Niel B. Nielson, Ph.D., has been the Senior Advisor of Pelita Harapan Educational Foundation, a global provider of educational products and services since 2018. Prior thereto, Mr. Nielson served as the Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer of Pelita Harapan Educational Foundation for three years. Mr. Nielson formerly served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Dew Learning LLC from 2012 through 2014. Mr. Nielson formerly served as President of Covenant College (2002–2012), and as a partner and trader (of options and futures contracts for hedging options) for Ritchie Capital Markets Group (1996–1997), where he held an administrative management position at this proprietary derivatives trading company. He also held prior positions in new business development for ServiceMaster Management Services Company and in personnel and human resources for NationsBank of North Carolina, N.A. and Chicago Research and Trading Group, Ltd. (“CRT”). His international experience includes serving as a director of CRT Europe, Inc. for two years, directing out of London all aspects of business conducted by the U.K. and European subsidiary of CRT. Prior to that, Mr. Nielson was a trader and manager at CRT in Chicago. Mr. Nielson has served as a Trustee of each First Trust Fund since its inception and of the First Trust Funds since 1999. Mr. Nielson has also served as the Chairman of the Audit Committee (2003–2006 and 2014–2016), Chairman of the Valuation Committee (2007–2008), Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee (2008–2009 and 2017–2019), Chairman of the Dividend Committee (2020–2022) and Lead Independent Trustee and a member of the Executive Committee (2010–2011 and 2020–2022). He currently serves on the Executive Committee (since January 1, 2020) and as Chairman of the Valuation Committee (since January 1, 2023) of the First Trust Funds.

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James A. Bowen is Chief Executive Officer of First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P. Mr. Bowen is involved in the day-to-day management of the First Trust Funds and serves on the Executive Committee. He has over 35 years of experience in the investment company business in sales, sales management and executive management. Mr. Bowen has served as a Trustee of each First Trust Fund since its inception and of the First Trust Funds since 1999.

Effective January 1, 2023, the fixed annual retainer paid to the Independent Trustees is $275,000 per year and an annual per fund fee of $2,500 for each closed-end fund and actively managed fund, $750 for each target outcome fund and $250 for each index fund. The fixed annual retainer is allocated equally among each fund in the First Trust Fund Complex rather than being allocated pro rata based on each fund’s net assets. Additionally, the Lead Independent Trustee is paid $30,000 annually, the Chairman of the Audit Committee is paid $25,000 annually, the Chairman of the Valuation Committee is paid $20,000 annually and the Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee is paid $20,000 annually to serve in such capacities with compensation allocated pro rata among each fund in the First Trust Fund Complex based on its net assets.

The following table sets forth the total compensation (including reimbursement for travel and out-of-pocket expenses) paid by the Funds and the First Trust Fund Complex to each of the Independent Trustees for the fiscal year and the calendar year ended December 31, 2022, respectively. The Trust has no retirement or pension plans. The officers and Trustee who are “interested persons” as designated above serve without any compensation from the Trust. The Trust has no employees. Its officers are compensated by First Trust. 

Name of Trustee	Total Compensation from the Funds (1)	Total Compensation from the First Trust Fund Complex (2)
Richard E. Erickson	$21,525	$523,750
Thomas R. Kadlec	$21,530	$524,280
Denise M. Keefe	$21,302	$504,158
Robert F. Keith	$21,416	$514,231
Niel B. Nielson	$21,639	$533,750

(1)

The compensation paid by the Funds to the Independent Trustees for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 for services to the Funds.

(2)

The total compensation paid to the Independent Trustees for the calendar year ended December 31, 2022 for services to the 225 portfolios existing in 2022, which consisted of 9 open-end mutual funds, 15 closed-end funds and 201 exchange-traded funds.

The following table sets forth the dollar range of equity securities beneficially owned by the Trustees in the Funds and in other funds overseen by the Trustees in the First Trust Fund Complex as of December 31, 2022: 

	Interested Trustee	Independent Trustees
	James A. Bowen	Richard E. Erickson	Thomas R. Kadlec	Denise M. Keefe	Robert F. Keith	Niel B. Nielson
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund	None	None	None	None	$10,001– $50,000	$10,001– $50,000
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund	None	None	None	None	$10,001– $50,000	None
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund	Over $100,000	None	None	None	None	None
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	None	None	None	None	$10,001– $50,000	None

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	Interested Trustee	Independent Trustees
	James A. Bowen	Richard E. Erickson	Thomas R. Kadlec	Denise M. Keefe	Robert F. Keith	Niel B. Nielson
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	Over $100,000	None	None	None	None	$10,001– $50,000
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund	Over $100,000	None	None	None	None	None
Aggregate Dollar Range of Equity Securities in All Registered Investment Companies Overseen by Trustee in First Trust Fund Complex	Over $100,000	Over $100,000	Over $100,000	Over $100,000	Over $100,000	Over $100,000

As of March 31, 2023, the Independent Trustees of the Trust and their immediate family members did not own beneficially or of record any class of securities of an investment advisor or principal underwriter of the Funds or any person directly or indirectly controlling, controlled by or under common control with an investment advisor or principal underwriter of the Funds.

As of March 31, 2023, the officers and Trustees, in the aggregate, owned less than 1% of the shares of each Fund.

The table set forth in Exhibit A shows the percentage ownership of each shareholder or “group” (as that term is used in Section 13(d) of the 1934 Act who, based on the securities position listing reports as of March 31, 2023, owned of record, or is known by the Trust to have owned of record or beneficially, 5% or more of the shares of a Fund (the “Principal Holders”). A control person is one who owns, either directly or indirectly, more than 25% of the voting securities of a Fund or acknowledges the existence of control. A party that controls a Fund may be able to significantly influence the outcome of any item presented to shareholders for approval. The Funds do not have any knowledge of who the ultimate beneficiaries are of the shares.

Investment Advisor. First Trust, 120 East Liberty Drive, Suite 400, Wheaton, Illinois 60187, is the investment advisor to the Funds. First Trust is a limited partnership with one limited partner, Grace Partners of DuPage L.P., and one general partner, The Charger Corporation. Grace Partners of DuPage L.P. is a limited partnership with one general partner, The Charger Corporation, and a number of limited partners. The Charger Corporation is an Illinois corporation controlled by James A. Bowen, the Chief Executive Officer of First Trust. First Trust discharges its responsibilities to the Funds subject to the policies of the Funds.

First Trust provides investment tools and portfolios for advisors and investors. First Trust is committed to theoretically sound portfolio construction and empirically verifiable investment management approaches. Its asset management philosophy and investment discipline are deeply rooted in the application of intuitive factor analysis and model implementation to enhance investment decisions.

First Trust acts as investment advisor for and manages the investment and reinvestment of the assets of the Funds. First Trust also administers the Trust’s business affairs, provides office facilities and equipment and certain clerical, bookkeeping and administrative services, and permits any of its officers or employees to serve without compensation as Trustees or officers of the Trust if elected to such positions.

Pursuant to the investment management agreements between First Trust and the Trust, on behalf of each Fund (the "Investment Management Agreements"), First Trust manages the investment of each Fund’s assets and is responsible for paying all expenses of each Fund, excluding the fee payments under the Investment Management Agreements, interest, taxes, brokerage commissions, acquired fund fees and expenses, if any, and other expenses connected with the execution of portfolio transactions, distribution and service fees payable pursuant to a Rule 12b-1 plan, if any, and extraordinary expenses. Each Fund has agreed

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to pay First Trust an annual unitary management fee equal to 0.80% of its average daily net assets. First Trust provides fund reporting services to the Funds for a flat annual fee in the amount of $9,250 per Fund, which is included in the annual unitary management fee.

Under the Investment Management Agreements, First Trust shall not be liable for any loss sustained by reason of the purchase, sale or retention of any security, whether or not such purchase, sale or retention shall have been based upon the investigation and research made by any other individual, firm or corporation, if such recommendation shall have been selected with due care and in good faith, except loss resulting from willful misfeasance, bad faith, or gross negligence on the part of First Trust in the performance of its obligations and duties, or by reason of its reckless disregard of its obligations and duties. The Investment Management Agreements terminate automatically upon assignment and is terminable at any time without penalty as to a Fund by the Board of Trustees, including a majority of the Independent Trustees, or by vote of the holders of a majority of the Fund’s outstanding voting securities on 60 days’ written notice to First Trust, or by First Trust on 60 days’ written notice to First Trust, or by First Trust on 60 days’ written notice to the Fund.

As approved by the Trust’s Board of Trustees, the management fee paid to the Advisor will be reduced at certain levels of Fund net assets (“breakpoints”) and calculated pursuant to the schedule below: 

Management Fee	Breakpoints
0.80%	Fund net assets up to and including $2.5 billion
0.78%	Fund net assets greater than $2.5 billion up to and including $5 billion
0.76%	Fund net assets greater than $5 billion up to and including $7.5 billion
0.74%	Fund net assets greater than $7.5 billion up to and including $10 billion
0.72%	Fund net assets greater than $10 billion

The following table sets forth the unitary management fee paid by each Fund to First Trust for the specified periods. 

Amount of Unitary Fees
Fund	Fiscal Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	$111,106	$183,949	$124,480
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund	$118,659	$72,413	$255,428
First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund	$69,152	$102,453	$341,425
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund	$3,293,493	$3,163,490	$3,483,472
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	$76,373	$79,547	$58,121
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund	$2,895,068	$4,027,452	$3,720,701
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	$1,028,448	$1,223,011	$1,135,468
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund	$2,960,737	$4,113,844	$3,060,443
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF	$273,844	$316,385	$271,849
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund	$265,577	$846,732	$738,801
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF	$426,173	$436,653	$24,534
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	$276,995	$307,982	$400,670
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund	$310,932	$82,617	$295,395
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund	$521,452	$856,048	$742,386
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund	$508,271	$396,030	$126,666

Investment Committee. The Investment Committee of First Trust (the “Investment Committee”) is jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Funds. There are currently seven members of the Investment Committee, as follows: 

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Name	Position with First Trust	Length of Service with First Trust	Principal Occupation During Past Five Years
Daniel J. Lindquist	Chairman of the Investment Committee and Managing Director	Since 2004	Managing Director, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.
David G. McGarel	Chief Operating Officer Chief Investment Officer and Managing Director	Since 1997	Chief Operating Officer (2016 to present), Chief Investment Officer, Managing Director, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.
Jon C. Erickson	Senior Vice President	Since 1994	Senior Vice President, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.
Roger F. Testin	Senior Vice President	Since 2001	Senior Vice President, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.
Stan Ueland	Senior Vice President	Since 2005	Senior Vice President, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.
Chris A. Peterson	Senior Vice President	Since 2000	Senior Vice President, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.
Erik Russo	Vice President	Since 2010	Vice President, First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P.

Daniel J. Lindquist: Mr. Lindquist is Chairman of the Investment Committee and presides over Investment Committee meetings. Mr. Lindquist is also responsible for overseeing the implementation of the Funds' investment strategies.

David G. McGarel: As First Trust's Chief Investment Officer, Mr. McGarel consults with the Investment Committee on market conditions and First Trust's general investment philosophy. As Chief Operating Officer, Mr. McGarel is responsible for First Trust and FTP operations, including information systems, trust administration and First Trust administration.

Jon C. Erickson: As the head of First Trust’s Equity Research Group, Mr. Erickson is responsible for determining the securities to be purchased and sold by funds that do not utilize quantitative investment strategies.

Roger F. Testin: As head of First Trust’s Portfolio Management Group, Mr. Testin is responsible for executing the instructions of the Strategy Research Group and Equity Research Group.

Stan Ueland: Mr. Ueland is a Senior Vice President and is responsible for executing the investment strategies of the Funds.

Chris A. Peterson: Mr. Peterson is a Senior Vice President and head of the strategy research group at First Trust. Mr. Peterson is responsible for developing and implementing quantitative equity investment strategies.

Erik Russo:  Mr. Russo is a Vice President of First Trust. He is responsible for implementing the investment strategies of each portfolio of exchange-traded funds advised by First Trust in his role as a portfolio manager.

The following table sets forth the dollar range of equity securities of the Funds beneficially owned by the members of the Investment Committee as of December 31, 2022:

Dollar Range of Equity Securities in the Funds 

	Investment Committee
Fund	Dan Lindquist	Jon C. Erickson	David G. McGarel	Roger F. Testin	Stan Ueland	Chris A. Peterson	Erik D. Russo
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	N/A	N/A	$1 - $10,000	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund	$1 - $10,001	N/A	$50,001 - $100,000	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

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	Investment Committee
Fund	Dan Lindquist	Jon C. Erickson	David G. McGarel	Roger F. Testin	Stan Ueland	Chris A. Peterson	Erik D. Russo
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund	$1 - $10,000	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	N/A	N/A	$50,001 - $100,000	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund	N/A	N/A	Over $100,000	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund	N/A	N/A	$50,001 - $100,000	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Compensation. The compensation structure for each member of the Investment Committee is based upon a fixed salary as well as a discretionary bonus determined by the management of First Trust. Salaries are determined by management and are based upon an individual’s position and overall value to the firm. Bonuses are also determined by management and are based upon an individual’s overall contribution to the success of the firm and the profitability of the firm. Salaries and bonuses for members of the Investment Committee are not based upon criteria such as performance of the Funds or the value of assets included in the Funds’ portfolios. In addition, Mr. Erickson, Mr. Lindquist, Mr. McGarel, Mr. Peterson and Mr. Ueland also have an indirect ownership stake in the firm and will therefore receive their allocable share of ownership-related distributions.

Accounts Managed by Investment Committee

The Investment Committee manages the investment vehicles (other than the Funds) with the number of accounts and assets, as of the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, set forth in the table below: 

Investment Committee Member	Registered Investment Companies Number of Accounts ($ Assets)	Other Pooled Investment Vehicles Number of Accounts ($ Assets)	Other Accounts Number of Accounts ($ Assets)
Daniel J. Lindquist	104 ($80,186,404,962)	41 ($1,689,828,876)	1,230 ($414,730,725)
David G. McGarel	105 ($80,189,232,562)	41 ($1,689,828,876)	1,230 ($414,730,725)
Jon C. Erickson	102 ($80,170,800,974)	41 ($1,689,828,876)	1,230 ($414,730,725)
Roger F. Testin	102 ($80,170,800,974)	41 ($1,689,828,876)	1,230 ($414,730,725)
Stan Ueland	97 ($79,132,693,391)	35 ($1,574,456,428)	N/A
Chris A. Peterson	105 ($80,189,232,562)	41 ($1,689,828,876)	1,230 ($414,730,725)
Erik Russo	97 ($79,132,693,391)	35 ($1,574,456,428)	N/A

Conflicts. None of the accounts managed by the Investment Committee pay an advisory fee that is based upon the performance of the account. In addition, First Trust believes that there are no material conflicts of interest that may arise in connection with the Investment Committee's management of the Funds' investments and the investments of the other accounts managed by the Investment Committee. However, because the investment strategy of the Funds and the investment strategies of many of the other accounts managed by the Investment Committee are based on fairly mechanical investment processes, the Investment Committee may recommend that certain clients sell and other clients buy a given security at the same time. In addition, because the investment strategies of the Funds and other accounts managed by the Investment Committee generally result in the clients investing in readily available securities, First Trust believes that there should not be material conflicts in the allocation of investment opportunities between the Funds and other accounts managed by the Investment Committee.

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Brokerage Allocations

First Trust is responsible for decisions to buy and sell securities for the Funds and for the placement of the Funds' securities business, the negotiation of the commissions to be paid on brokered transactions, the prices for principal trades in securities, and the allocation of portfolio brokerage and principal business. It is the policy of First Trust to seek the best execution at the best security price available with respect to each transaction, and with respect to brokered transactions in light of the overall quality of brokerage and research services provided to First Trust and its clients. The best price to a Fund means the best net price without regard to the mix between purchase or sale price and commission, if any. Purchases may be made from underwriters, dealers and, on occasion, the issuers. Commissions will be paid on a Fund's futures and options transactions, if any. The purchase price of portfolio securities purchased from an underwriter or dealer may include underwriting commissions and dealer spreads. The Funds may pay markups on principal transactions. In selecting broker-dealers and in negotiating commissions, First Trust considers, among other things, the firm’s reliability, the quality of its execution services on a continuing basis and its financial condition. Fund portfolio transactions may be effected with broker-dealers who have assisted investors in the purchase of shares.

Section 28(e) of the 1934 Act permits an investment advisor, under certain circumstances, to cause an account to pay a broker or dealer who supplies brokerage and research services a commission for effecting a transaction in excess of the amount of commission another broker or dealer would have charged for effecting the transaction. Brokerage and research services include (a) furnishing advice as to the value of securities, the advisability of investing, purchasing or selling securities, and the availability of securities or purchasers or sellers of securities; (b) furnishing analyses and reports concerning issuers, industries, securities, economic factors and trends, portfolio strategy and the performance of accounts; and (c) effecting securities transactions and performing functions incidental thereto (such as clearance, settlement and custody). Such brokerage and research services are often referred to as “soft dollars.” First Trust has advised the Board of Trustees that it does not currently intend to use soft dollars.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, in selecting brokers, First Trust may in the future consider investment and market information and other research, such as economic, securities and performance measurement research, provided by such brokers, and the quality and reliability of brokerage services, including execution capability, performance and financial responsibility. Accordingly, the commissions charged by any such broker may be greater than the amount another firm might charge if First Trust determines in good faith that the amount of such commissions is reasonable in relation to the value of the research information and brokerage services provided by such broker to First Trust or the Trust. In addition, First Trust must determine that the research information received in this manner provides the Funds with benefits by supplementing the research otherwise available to the Funds. The Investment Management Agreement provides that such higher commissions will not be paid by the Funds unless the Advisor determines in good faith that the amount is reasonable in relation to the services provided. The investment advisory fees paid by the Funds to First Trust under the Investment Management Agreement would not be reduced as a result of receipt by First Trust of research services.

First Trust places portfolio transactions for other advisory accounts advised by it, and research services furnished by firms through which the Funds effect their securities transactions may be used by First Trust in servicing all of its accounts; not all of such services may be used by First Trust in connection with the Funds. First Trust believes it is not possible to measure separately the benefits from research services to each of the accounts (including the Funds) advised by it. Because the volume and nature of the trading activities of the accounts are not uniform, the amount of commissions in excess of those charged by another broker paid by each account for brokerage and research services will vary. However, First Trust believes such costs to the Funds will not be disproportionate to the benefits received by the Funds on a continuing basis. First Trust seeks to allocate portfolio transactions equitably whenever concurrent decisions are made to purchase or sell securities by the Funds and another advisory account. In some cases, this procedure could have an adverse effect on the price or the amount of securities available to the Funds. In making such allocations between the Funds and other advisory accounts, the main factors considered by First Trust are the respective investment objectives, the relative size of portfolio holding of the same or comparable securities, the availability of cash for investment and the size of investment commitments generally held.

Brokerage Commissions

The following table sets forth the aggregate amount of brokerage commissions paid by each Fund for the specified periods. Significant variations in the amount a Fund paid in brokerage commissions from year-to-year are generally the result of fluctuations in the size of a Fund or changes to a Fund's portfolio holdings. 

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Aggregate Amount of Brokerage Commissions
Fund	Fiscal Year Ended December 31,
	2022	2021	2020
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	$14,139	$25,923	$16,522
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund	$50,280	$33,787	$138,321
First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund	$10,860	$23,597	$66,313
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund	$396,950	$442,597	$523,768
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	$10,750	$12,455	$9,466
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund	$674,615	$918,436	$809,044
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	$324,304	$368,385	$320,927
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund	$324,651	$525,208	$422,641
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF	$19,776	$23,737	$31,998
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund	$53,114	$82,703	$98,424
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF	$62,731	$57,870	$2,358
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	$28,593	$47,568	$68,738
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund	$109,053	$16,611	$65,937
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund	$42,032	$69,076	$78,412
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund	$63,397	$22,619	$17,282

During the last fiscal year, the First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund held securities of UBS Securities LLC, a regular broker or dealer of the Fund as defined in Rule 10b-1 under the 1940 Act. As of December 31, 2022, the Fund's investment in UBS Securities LLC was 0.00% of the Fund's net assets.

During the last fiscal year, the First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund held securities of UBS Securities LLC, a regular broker or dealer of the Fund as defined in Rule 10b-1 under the 1940 Act. As of December 31, 2022, the Fund's investment in UBS Securities LLC was 0.00% of the Fund's net assets.

Administrator, Fund Accounting Agent, Transfer Agent, Custodian, Distributor,
Index Provider and Exchanges

Administrator, Fund Accounting Agent and Transfer Agent. The Trust has appointed Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. (“BBH”), located at 50 Post Office Square, Boston, Massachusetts 02110, to serve as the Funds' administrator, fund accounting agent and transfer agent pursuant to an administrative agency agreement (the “Administrative Agency Agreement”). As administrator, BBH provides various administrative services set forth in the Administrative Agency Agreement. As the fund accounting agent, BBH provides transaction processing and review, custodial reconciliation, securities pricing and investment accounting. As the Funds' transfer agent, BBH is responsible for processing the issuance and redemption of Creation Unit Aggregations, the recording of such issuances and redemptions and other services related to the monitoring of cash collateral.

Custodian. The Trust has also appointed BBH to serve as the Funds' custodian pursuant to a custodian agreement (the “Custodian Agreement”). Pursuant to the terms of the Custodian Agreement, BBH is generally responsible for the safekeeping of the Funds' assets and performing various other administrative duties set forth in the Custodian Agreement.

As set forth in the Administrative Agency Agreement and Custodian Agreement, the Trust, on behalf of the Funds, has agreed to indemnify BBH against, and hold it harmless from, certain losses, claims, liabilities and expenses arising out of BBH’s performance of its obligations and duties under the Administrative Agency Agreement and Custodian Agreement, provided that such losses, claims, liabilities and expenses did not result from BBH’s willful malfeasance, bad faith or negligence in the performance of such obligations and duties.

As compensation for the services provided by BBH under the Administrative Agency Agreement and Custodian Agreement, the Trust, on behalf of the Funds, has agreed to pay to BBH such compensation as is mutually agreed upon from time to time and reimburse BBH for out-of-pocket expenses which are a normal incident of the services provided under the agreements. This fee is subject to reduction for assets over $1 billion and $2 billion. Pursuant to the terms of the Investment Management

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Agreement, the Funds do not directly pay BBH for these services, as First Trust has assumed responsibility for the payment of these expenses out of the unitary management fee it receives from the Funds.

Distributor. First Trust Portfolios L.P., an affiliate of First Trust, is the distributor (“FTP” or the “Distributor”) and principal underwriter of the shares of the Funds. Its principal address is 120 East Liberty Drive, Suite 400, Wheaton, Illinois 60187. The Distributor has entered into a Distribution Agreement with the Trust pursuant to which it distributes Fund shares. Shares are continuously offered for sale by the Funds through the Distributor only in Creation Unit Aggregations, as described in the Prospectus under the heading "Other Information - Continuous Offering."

For the fiscal years ended December 31, 2020, December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2022, there were no underwriting commissions with respect to the sale of Fund shares and FTP did not receive compensation on redemptions for the Funds for those periods.

12b-1 Plan. The Trust has adopted a Plan of Distribution pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act (the “Plan”) pursuant to which the Funds may reimburse the Distributor up to a maximum annual rate of 0.25% of their average daily net assets.

Under the Plan and as required by Rule 12b-1, the Trustees will receive and review after the end of each calendar quarter a written report provided by the Distributor of the amounts expended under the Plan and the purpose for which such expenditures were made. With the exception of the Distributor and its affiliates, no “interested person” of the Trust (as that term is defined in the 1940 Act) and no Trustee of the Trust has a direct or indirect financial interest in the operation of the Plan or any related agreement.

No fee is currently paid by a Fund under the Plan and, pursuant to a contractual agreement, the Funds will not pay 12b-1 fees any time before April 30, 2024.

Aggregations. Fund shares in less than Creation Unit Aggregations are not distributed by the Distributor. The Distributor will deliver the Prospectus and, upon request, this SAI to persons purchasing Creation Unit Aggregations and will maintain records of both orders placed with it and confirmations of acceptance furnished by it. The Distributor is a broker-dealer registered under the 1934 Act and a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”).

The Distribution Agreement provides that it may be terminated at any time, without the payment of any penalty, on at least 60 days’ written notice by the Trust to the Distributor (i) by vote of a majority of the Independent Trustees or (ii) by vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Funds. The Distribution Agreement will terminate automatically in the event of its assignment (as defined in the 1940 Act).

The Distributor has entered into agreements with securities dealers ("Soliciting Dealers") who will solicit purchases of Creation Unit Aggregations of Fund shares. Such Soliciting Dealers may also be Participating Parties (as defined in "Procedures for Creation of Creation Unit Aggregations" below) and DTC Participants (as defined in "DTC Acts as Securities Depository for Fund Shares" below).

Index Providers. The Indices are compiled by the Index Providers. First Trust does not guarantee the accuracy and/or the completeness of the Indices or any data included therein, and First Trust shall have no liability for any errors, omissions or interruptions therein. First Trust makes no warranty, express or implied, as to results to be obtained by the Funds, owners of the shares of the Funds or any other person or entity from the use of the Indices or any data included therein. First Trust makes no express or implied warranties, and expressly disclaims all warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose or use with respect to the Indices or any data included therein. Without limiting any of the foregoing, in no event shall First Trust have any liability for any special, punitive, direct, indirect or consequential damages (including lost profits) arising out of matters relating to the use of the Indices, even if notified of the possibility of such damages.

First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF, First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund, First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund and First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund

"AlphaDEX®" is a registered trademark of FTP. The Trust and First Trust, on behalf of the Nasdaq Funds, have been granted the right by FTP to use the name “AlphaDEX®” for certain purposes.

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FTP has licensed to Nasdaq, Inc., free of charge, the right to use certain intellectual property owned by First Trust Portfolios, including the AlphaDEX® trademark and the AlphaDEX® stock selection method, in connection with the Nasdaq, Inc.’s calculation of the Nasdaq Indices.

Notwithstanding such license, Nasdaq, Inc. is solely responsible for the calculating and maintaining of the Nasdaq Indices and has the exclusive right to determine the stocks included in the Nasdaq Indices and the Nasdaq Indices’ methodologies.

The Nasdaq Funds are not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by Nasdaq, Inc. or its affiliates (Nasdaq, with its affiliates, are referred to as the “Corporations”). The Corporations have not passed on the legality or suitability of, or the accuracy or adequacy of descriptions and disclosures relating to, the Nasdaq Funds. The Corporations make no representation or warranty, express or implied to the owners of the Nasdaq Funds or any member of the public regarding the advisability of investing in securities generally or in the Nasdaq Funds particularly, or the ability of the Nasdaq Indices to track general stock market performance. The Corporations’ only relationship to First Trust is in the licensing of Nasdaq and the Nasdaq Indices’ registered trademarks, trade names and service marks of the Corporations and the use of the Nasdaq Indices which is determined, composed and calculated by Nasdaq, Inc. without regard to First Trust or the Nasdaq Funds. Nasdaq, Inc. has no obligation to take the needs of First Trust or the owners of the Nasdaq Funds into consideration in determining, composing or calculating the Nasdaq Indices. The Corporations are not responsible for and have not participated in the determination of the timing of, prices at, or quantities of the Nasdaq Funds to be issued or in the determination or calculation of the equation by which a Nasdaq Fund is to be converted into cash. The Corporations are not responsible for and have not reviewed any of the Nasdaq Funds nor any associated literature or publications and makes no representation or warranty express or implied as to their accuracy or completeness, or otherwise. The Corporations have no liability in connection with the administration, marketing or trading of the Nasdaq Funds.

THE CORPORATIONS DO NOT GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY AND/OR UNINTERRUPTED CALCULATION OF THE NASDAQ INDICES OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. THE CORPORATIONS MAKE NO WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED BY FIRST TRUST, OWNERS OF THE NASDAQ FUNDS, OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY FROM THE USE OF THE NASDAQ INDICES OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. THE CORPORATIONS MAKE NO EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE WITH RESPECT TO THE NASDAQ INDICES OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. WITHOUT LIMITING ANY OF THE FOREGOING, IN NO EVENT SHALL THE CORPORATIONS HAVE ANY LIABILITY FOR ANY LOST PROFITS OR SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, INDIRECT, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, EVEN IF NOTIFIED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF

First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by NSE INDICES LIMITED (formerly known as India Index Services & Products Ltd. (“IISL”). NSE INDICES LIMITED does not make any representation or warranty, express or implied, to the owners of the Fund or any member of the public regarding the advisability of investing in securities generally or in the Fund particularly or the ability of the NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index to track general stock market performance in India. The relationship of NSE INDICES LIMITED to the Issuer is only in respect of the licensing of the Indices and certain trademarks and trade names associated with such Indices which is determined, composed and calculated by NSE INDICES LIMITED without regard to the Issuer or the Fund. NSE INDICES LIMITED does not have any obligation to take the needs of the Issuer or the owners of the Fund into consideration in determining, composing or calculating NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index. NSE INDICES LIMITED is not responsible for or has not participated in the determination of the timing of, prices at, or quantities of the Fund to be issued or in the determination or calculation of the equation by which the Fund is to be converted into cash. NSE INDICES LIMITED has no obligation or liability in connection with the administration, marketing or trading of the Fund.

NSE INDICES LIMITED do not guarantee the accuracy and/or the completeness of the NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index or any data included therein and NSE INDICES LIMITED shall not have any responsibility or liability for any errors, omissions, or interruptions therein. NSE INDICES LIMITED does not make any warranty, express or implied, as to results to be obtained by the Issuer, owners of the Fund, or any other person or entity from the use of the NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index or any data included therein. NSE INDICES LIMITED makes no express or implied warranties, and expressly disclaim all warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose or use with respect to the Index or any data included therein. Without limiting any of the foregoing, NSE INDICES LIMITED expressly disclaim any and all liability for any claims, damages or losses arising out of or related to the Fund, including any and all direct, special, punitive, indirect or consequential damages (including lost profits), even if notified of the possibility of such damages.

An investor, by subscribing or purchasing an interest in the Fund, will be regarded as having acknowledged, understood and accepted the disclaimer referred to in the Clauses above and will be bound by it.

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Exchanges. The only relationship that the Exchange has with First Trust or the Distributor of the Funds in connection with the Funds is that the Exchange lists the shares of the applicable Fund(s) pursuant to its listing agreement with the Trust. The Exchange is not responsible for and has not participated in the determination of pricing or the timing of the issuance or sale of the shares of the Funds or in the determination or calculation of the net asset value of the Funds. The Exchange has no obligation or liability in connection with the administration, marketing or trading of the Funds.

Additional Payments to Financial Intermediaries

First Trust or its affiliates may from time to time make payments, out of their own resources, to certain broker-dealers, registered investment advisers, banks or other intermediaries (collectively, “intermediaries”) that sell shares of First Trust mutual funds and ETFs (“First Trust Funds”) to promote the sales and retention of Fund shares by those firms and their customers. The amounts of these payments vary by intermediary. The level of payments that First Trust is willing to provide to a particular intermediary may be affected by, among other factors, (i) the firm’s total assets or Fund shares held in and recent net investments into First Trust Funds, (ii) the value of the assets invested in the First Trust Funds by the intermediary’s customers, (iii) redemption rates, (iv) its ability to attract and retain assets, (v) the intermediary’s reputation in the industry, (vi) the level and/or type of marketing assistance and educational activities provided by the intermediary, (vii) the firm’s level of participation in First Trust Funds’ sales and marketing programs, (viii) the firm’s compensation program for its registered representatives who sell Fund shares and provide services to Fund shareholders, and (ix) the asset class of the First Trust Funds for which these payments are provided. Such payments are generally asset-based but also may include the payment of a lump sum.

First Trust may also make payments to certain intermediaries for certain administrative services and shareholder processing services, including record keeping and sub-accounting of shareholder accounts pursuant to a sub-transfer agency, omnibus account service or sub-accounting agreement. All fees payable by First Trust under this category of services may be charged back to a Fund, subject to approval by the Board.

First Trust and/or its affiliates may make payments, out of its own assets, to those firms as compensation and/or reimbursement for marketing support and/or program servicing to selected intermediaries that are registered as holders or dealers of record for accounts invested in one or more of the First Trust Funds or that make First Trust Fund shares available through certain selected Fund no-transaction fee institutional platforms and fee-based wrap programs at certain financial intermediaries. Program servicing payments typically apply to employee benefit plans, such as retirement plans, or fee-based advisory programs but may apply to retail sales and assets in certain situations. The payments are based on such factors as the type and nature of services or support furnished by the intermediary and are generally asset-based. Services for which an intermediary receives marketing support payments may include, but are not limited to, business planning assistance, advertising, educating the intermediary’s personnel about First Trust Funds in connection with shareholder financial planning needs, placement on the intermediary’s preferred or recommended fund list, and access to sales meetings, sales representatives and management representatives of the intermediary. In addition, intermediaries may be compensated for enabling representatives of First Trust and/or its affiliates to participate in and/or present at conferences or seminars, sales or training programs for invited registered representatives and other employees, client and investor events and other events sponsored by the intermediary. Services for which an intermediary receives program servicing payments typically include, but are not limited to, record keeping, reporting or transaction processing and shareholder communications and other account administration services, but may also include services rendered in connection with Fund/investment selection and monitoring, employee enrollment and education, plan balance rollover or separation, or other similar services. An intermediary may perform program services itself or may arrange with a third party to perform program services. These payments, if any, are in addition to the service fee and any applicable omnibus sub-accounting fees paid to these firms with respect to these services by the First Trust Funds out of Fund assets.

From time to time, First Trust and/or its affiliates, at its expense, may provide other compensation to intermediaries that sell or arrange for the sale of shares of the First Trust Funds, which may be in addition to marketing support and program servicing payments described above. For example, First Trust and/or its affiliates may: (i) compensate intermediaries for National Securities Clearing Corporation networking system services (e.g., shareholder communication, account statements, trade confirmations and tax reporting) on an asset-based or per-account basis; (ii) compensate intermediaries for providing Fund shareholder trading information; (iii) make one-time or periodic payments to reimburse selected intermediaries for items such as ticket charges (i.e., fees that an intermediary charges its representatives for effecting transactions in Fund shares) or exchange order, operational charges (e.g., fees that an intermediary charges for establishing a Fund on its trading system), and literature printing and/or distribution costs; (iv) at the direction of a retirement plan’s sponsor, reimburse or pay direct expenses of an employee benefit plan that would otherwise be payable by the plan; (v) provide payments to broker-dealers to help defray

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their technology or infrastructure costs; and (vi) make payments for expenses associated with intermediaries’ use of First Trust Funds including, but not limited to, the use of First Trust Funds in model portfolios.

When not provided for in a marketing support or program servicing agreement, First Trust and/ or its affiliates may also pay intermediaries for enabling First Trust and/or its affiliates to participate in and/or present at conferences or seminars, sales or training programs for invited registered representatives and other intermediary employees, client and investor events and other intermediary-sponsored events, and for travel expenses, including lodging incurred by registered representatives and other employees in connection with prospecting, asset retention and due diligence trips. These payments may vary depending upon the nature of the event. First Trust and/or its affiliates make payments for such events as it deems appropriate, subject to its internal guidelines and applicable law.

First Trust and/or its affiliates occasionally sponsor due diligence meetings for registered representatives during which they receive updates on various First Trust Funds and are afforded the opportunity to speak with portfolio managers. Although invitations to these meetings are not conditioned on selling a specific number of shares, those who have shown an interest in First Trust Funds are more likely to be considered. To the extent permitted by their firm’s policies and procedures, all or a portion of registered representatives’ expenses in attending these meetings may be covered by First Trust and/or its affiliates.

The amounts of payments referenced above made by First Trust and/or its affiliates could be significant and may create an incentive for an intermediary or its representatives to recommend or offer shares of the First Trust Funds to its customers. The intermediary may elevate the prominence or profile of the First Trust Funds within the intermediary’s organization by, for example, placing the First Trust Funds on a list of preferred or recommended funds and/or granting First Trust and/or its affiliates preferential or enhanced opportunities to promote the First Trust Funds in various ways within the intermediary’s organization. These payments are made pursuant to negotiated agreements with intermediaries. The payments do not change the price paid by investors for the purchase of a share or the amount a Fund will receive as proceeds from such sales. Furthermore, many of these payments are not reflected in the fees and expenses listed in the fee table section of a Fund's Prospectus because they are not paid by a Fund. The types of payments described herein are not mutually exclusive, and a single intermediary may receive some or all types of payments as described.

Other compensation may be offered to the extent not prohibited by state laws or any self-regulatory agency, such as FINRA. Investors can ask their intermediaries for information about any payments they receive from First Trust and/or its affiliates and the services it provides for those payments. Investors may wish to take intermediary payment arrangements into account when considering and evaluating any recommendations relating to Fund shares.

Payments to intermediaries, in certain circumstances, may also be made in connection with the distribution of model portfolios developed by First Trust, such as the inclusion of such model portfolios on an intermediary’s platform, as well as in connection with the marketing and sale of, and/or product training regarding such model portfolios, or servicing of accounts tracking such model portfolios. Such payments may be variable or fixed fee payments for platform support, or other payments in the form of a variable or fixed fee or a per position fee, or may relate to the amount of assets an intermediary’s clients have invested in the First Trust Funds in such models developed by First Trust, the management fee, the total expense ratio, or sales of the First Trust Funds in such models developed by First Trust. Some intermediaries also provide related data regarding transactions in specific model portfolios, First Trust Funds and investment strategies to First Trust in exchange for a fee.

First Trust and/or its affiliates may enter into arrangements with third parties, such as a software provider, whereby First Trust may license certain technology or other services from such entity in exchange for licensing or other fees which may be, in whole or in part, dependent on the value of First Trust mutual funds or ETFs held through such software or other service. Such third party may also offer price concessions to broker dealers, investment advisers or other financial intermediaries that license technology or other services that may be dependent, in whole or in part, on the value of First Trust mutual funds or ETFs held through such software or other service.

Additional Information

Book Entry Only System. The following information supplements and should be read in conjunction with the Prospectus.

DTC Acts as Securities Depository for Fund Shares. Shares of the Funds are represented by securities registered in the name of The Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) or its nominee, Cede & Co., and deposited with, or on behalf of, DTC.

DTC, a limited-purpose trust company, was created to hold securities of its participants (the “DTC Participants”) and to facilitate the clearance and settlement of securities transactions among the DTC Participants in such securities through

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electronic book-entry changes in accounts of the DTC Participants, thereby eliminating the need for physical movement of securities certificates. DTC Participants include securities brokers and dealers, banks, trust companies, clearing corporations and certain other organizations, some of whom (and/or their representatives) own DTC. More specifically, DTC is owned by a number of its DTC Participants and by the NYSE and FINRA. Access to the DTC system is also available to others such as banks, brokers, dealers and trust companies that clear through or maintain a custodial relationship with a DTC Participant, either directly or indirectly (the “Indirect Participants”).

Beneficial ownership of shares is limited to DTC Participants, Indirect Participants and persons holding interests through DTC Participants and Indirect Participants. Ownership of beneficial interests in shares (owners of such beneficial interests are referred to herein as “Beneficial Owners”) is shown on, and the transfer of ownership is effected only through, records maintained by DTC (with respect to DTC Participants) and on the records of DTC Participants (with respect to Indirect Participants and Beneficial Owners that are not DTC Participants). Beneficial Owners will receive from or through the DTC Participant a written confirmation relating to their purchase and sale of shares.

Conveyance of all notices, statements and other communications to Beneficial Owners is effected as follows. Pursuant to a letter agreement between DTC and the Trust, DTC is required to make available to the Trust upon request and for a fee to be charged to the Trust a listing of the shares of the Funds held by each DTC Participant. The Trust shall inquire of each such DTC Participant as to the number of Beneficial Owners holding shares, directly or indirectly, through such DTC Participant. The Trust shall provide each such DTC Participant with copies of such notice, statement or other communication, in such form, number and at such place as such DTC Participant may reasonably request, in order that such notice, statement or communication may be transmitted by such DTC Participant, directly or indirectly, to such Beneficial Owners. In addition, the Trust shall pay to each such DTC Participants a fair and reasonable amount as reimbursement for the expenses attendant to such transmittal, all subject to applicable statutory and regulatory requirements.

Fund distributions shall be made to DTC or its nominee, as the registered holder of all Fund shares. DTC or its nominee, upon receipt of any such distributions, shall immediately credit DTC Participants’ accounts with payments in amounts proportionate to their respective beneficial interests in shares of the Funds as shown on the records of DTC or its nominee. Payments by DTC Participants to Indirect Participants and Beneficial Owners of shares held through such DTC Participants will be governed by standing instructions and customary practices, as is now the case with securities held for the accounts of customers in bearer form or registered in a “street name,” and will be the responsibility of such DTC Participants.

The Trust has no responsibility or liability for any aspect of the records relating to or notices to Beneficial Owners, or payments made on account of beneficial ownership interests in such shares, or for maintaining, supervising or reviewing any records relating to such beneficial ownership interests, or for any other aspect of the relationship between DTC and the DTC Participants or the relationship between such DTC Participants and the Indirect Participants and Beneficial Owners owning through such DTC Participants.

DTC may decide to discontinue providing its service with respect to shares at any time by giving reasonable notice to the Trust and discharging its responsibilities with respect thereto under applicable law. Under such circumstances, the Trust shall take action to find a replacement for DTC to perform its functions at a comparable cost.

Policy Regarding Investment in Other Investment Companies. The Funds will not rely on Sections 12(d)(1)(F) or 12(d)(1)(G) of the 1940 Act to invest in other investment companies.

INFORMATION FOR INVESTORS IN THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AREA (“EEA”) ONLY

The following disclosures are included in this SAI solely for the purposes of compliance with the applicable EEA law and regulation resulting from, of and as a consequence of, the Funds’ registration or notification under the EU Directive on Alternative Investment Fund Managers (Directive (2011/61/EU)) (the “AIFM Directive”) national private placement regimes in certain European Union (“EU”) and EEA jurisdictions. The following disclosures are not intended for, and should not be relied on by, any investor other than an investor in the relevant EU and/or EEA jurisdictions because the rules, regulations and requirements applicable to the Funds in those jurisdictions as a result of their registration or notification differ from the rules, regulations and requirements applicable to the Funds under the Investment Company Act.

European Union’s Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation

While First Trust Advisors L.P. (the “Advisor”) is not itself generally subject to Regulation 2019/2088 of the European Parliament and of the Council on sustainability-related disclosures in the financial sector (“SFDR”), by virtue of the Funds’ registration or notification under the AIFMD national private placement regimes in certain EU and EEA jurisdictions, some limited disclosures

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under the SFDR must be made in respect of the Funds and the following section is intended to satisfy certain of such requirements. The SFDR requires the Advisor to determine, on a product-by-product basis, whether “sustainability risks” are relevant to the Advisor’s in-scope financial products, including the Funds.

For the purposes of SFDR, “sustainability risk” means an environmental, social or governance (“ESG”) event or condition that, if it occurs, could cause an actual or a potential material negative impact on the value of an investment.

Solely for the purposes of SFDR, the Advisor has determined that sustainability risks are not relevant to the Fund(s) on the basis that the Fund invests principally in investments or asset classes which, in the opinion of the Advisor, are not ordinarily subject to sustainability risk as a material negative impact on the value of those investments, as such terms are interpreted and applied under SFDR.

Consequently, the Advisor does not integrate sustainability risks into its investment decision making for the Funds and the Advisor has not assessed the likely impacts of sustainability risks on the returns of the Funds, as such terms are interpreted and applied under SFDR.

The Advisor will keep its assessment that sustainability risks are not relevant to the Funds under regular review.

SFDR requires the Advisor to disclose whether, and if so how, it considers the principal adverse impacts (“PAIs”) of its investment decisions on sustainability factors, in accordance with a specific regime outlined in SFDR, in relation to the Funds. The Advisor does not consider the principal adverse impacts of its investment decisions on sustainability factors (either generally or in relation to the Funds).

In addition, the Advisor considers that its primary investment strategies and client relationships do not support adoption of the PAI regime within SFDR.

Information for Investors in the EEA Regarding Offering of the Funds

In relation to each Member State of the EEA which has implemented the AIFM Directive, the Prospectus, and any summary Prospectus or SAI relating to the Funds, may only be distributed and shares may only be offered or placed in a Member State to the extent that: (1) the Funds are permitted to be marketed to professional investors in the relevant member state in accordance with the AIFM Directive (as implemented into the local law/regulations of the relevant Member State); or otherwise (2) the Prospectus and SAI may be lawfully distributed and the shares may lawfully be offered or placed in that Member State (including at the initiative of the investor).

In relation to each Member State of the EEA which, at the date of this SAI, has not implemented the AIFM Directive, the Prospectus and the SAI may only be distributed and shares may only be offered or placed to the extent that this SAI may be lawfully distributed and the shares may lawfully be offered or placed in that Member State (including at the initiative of the investor).

In addition, the following restrictions apply to the distribution of the Prospectus and SAI in the following Member States:

Information for Investors in the United Kingdom

Subject always to the foregoing notice in respect of the EEA, this SAI is being issued in the United Kingdom by First Trust Global Portfolios Limited (which is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (the “FCA”)) only to and/or is directed only at persons who are professional clients or eligible counterparties for the purposes of the FCA’s Conduct of Business Sourcebook. The opportunity to invest in the Funds is only available to such persons in the United Kingdom, and the Prospectus and SAI must not be relied on or acted upon by any other persons in the United Kingdom.

Information for Investors in Ireland

The distribution of this Prospectus and SAI in Ireland and the offering or purchase of shares is restricted to the individual to whom it is addressed. Accordingly, it may not be reproduced in whole or in part, nor may its contents be distributed in writing or orally to any third party and it may be read solely by the person to whom it is addressed and his/her professional advisers. Shares in the Funds will not be offered or sold by any person:

(a)

otherwise than in conformity with the provisions of the European Communities (Markets in Financial Instruments) Regulations 2007 and the European Union (Alternative Investment Fund Managers) Regulations 2013, each as amended; or

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(b)

in any way which would require the publication of a prospectus under the Companies Act 2014 or any regulations made thereunder; or

(c)

in Ireland except in all circumstances that will result in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations in Ireland

AIFM Directive Disclosures

Background. The AIFM Directive is an EU directive which regulates the management and marketing of funds within the EEA. The AIFM Directive distinguishes between EU and non-EU funds and EU and non-EU fund managers and different obligations apply under the AIFM Directive depending on where the fund is based and where the manager is based. Certain disclosure, transparency and reporting obligations are imposed on non-EU fund managers wishing to market funds to investors in the EEA. There are additional requirements imposed on EU fund managers, which do not currently apply to First Trust.

To the extent not already disclosed to you prior to your investment in the Funds, the purpose of this section of the SAI is to satisfy the disclosures which are required to be provided to you under the AIFM Directive.

Overview of the Funds and the Service Providers. The Funds are non-EU AIFs (“AIF” means an alternative investment fund for the purposes of the AIFM Directive).

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust”) is the AIFM of the Funds (“AIFM” means an alternative investment fund manager for the purposes of the AIFM Directive). First Trust is a non-EU AIFM.

The Trust has entered into agreements with various service providers including First Trust (as the Investment Advisor), the Custodian, Distributor, Transfer Agent, Administrator, index providers and the exchange where each Fund is listed in respect of the Funds. Further details regarding the duties and roles of such service providers can be found in the Prospectus and SAI for the Funds.

In addition to the parties listed above, the Trust has appointed (i) Chapman and Cutler LLP as its legal counsel which advises it on US legal matters; (ii) Deloitte & Touche LLP as the Funds’ auditors who undertake to audit the Funds’ financial statements in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) (United States); and (iii) CT Corporation System as the Funds’ registered agent.

First Trust is not required to ensure that the Funds appoint, and the Funds have not appointed, a depositary for purposes of the AIFM Directive (a depositary in the context of the AIFM Directive, has a specific role and function. The appointment of such depositary is not required for non-EU AIFs with non-EU AIFMs). As such investors in the Funds have no rights as against any person in respect of the duties or liabilities of a depositary under the AIFM Directive.

Investors’ Contractual Rights. In respect of each of the service providers to the Funds, investors who purchase shares in the Funds in the secondary market have no direct rights of action against the service providers, as a matter of contract law or under the establishment documents of the Trust. The proper plaintiff in an action in respect of which a wrongdoing is alleged to have been committed against the Funds or the Trust by a service provider is, prima facie, the Trust itself. An investor may bring a derivative or similar action or proceeding (“Derivative Action”) against the Trust or a Fund to recover a judgment in its favor in accordance with the provisions of the Declaration. Accordingly, investors would have no direct contractual right against the relevant service provider for breach of the agreement governing its appointment by the Trust. The foregoing disclosure is without prejudice to such other rights of action (for example, under the securities laws, tort law or in respect of breach of fiduciary duty) which might in certain situations be separately available to investors.

Investment in the Funds. Investors will buy shares in the Funds in secondary market transactions through brokers and will not subscribe for shares from the Trust directly. As such, there is no direct contractual relationship between the Funds and the investor in connection with the purchase or sale of shares. While the Funds are established under Massachusetts law and Massachusetts law does facilitate the enforcement of judgments obtained in foreign jurisdictions, investors who buy shares on the secondary market will have no direct contractual right of action against the Funds. Investors should refer to “How to Buy and Sell Shares” in the main body of the Prospectus for more detail. The foregoing disclosure is without prejudice to such other rights of action (for example, under the securities laws, tort law or in respect of breach of fiduciary duty) which might in certain situations be separately available to investors.

Redemption from the Funds. Non-US investors will sell shares in secondary market transactions through brokers and will not redeem shares from the Funds directly. Shares can be sold throughout the trading day like other publicly traded shares. Investors should refer to “How to Buy and Sell Shares” in the main body of the Prospectus for more detail.

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Liquidity Risk Management. Investors should note that while First Trust is not required to implement liquidity management arrangements in accordance with the AIFM Directive in respect of the Funds, the Funds are subject to the liquidity limitations established by the SEC. The Trustees have delegated to First Trust the day-to-day determination of illiquidity of equity and fixed income securities as described under “Illiquid Investments” in this SAI.

Treatment of Investors. The Trust and the AIFM do not offer any investors preferential treatment or the right to obtain preferential treatment. Whilst the Trust does not take specific steps to ensure the fair treatment of investors, under the 1940 Act the Trustees are required to monitor how a Fund operates and oversee matters where the interests of the Fund and its shareholders may differ from those of its investment adviser.

First Trust is registered as an investment adviser with the SEC, and is subject to regulation and oversight designed to protect shareholders. Under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, First Trust is a fiduciary to its clients, including the Funds, and is therefore required to act in the best interests of clients and to place the interests of clients before its own.

Information Regarding the use of Leverage and Collateral. The AIFM Directive requires disclosure of certain information relating to leverage, collateral and asset re-use arrangements. The Funds may obtain leverage through the use of derivatives and other non-fully funded investments such as reverse repurchase agreements, firm commitment agreements and standby commitment agreements if, and to the extent that, such transactions are (i) disclosed in the Funds’ Prospectus and SAI and (ii) deemed appropriate investments by First Trust. These leveraged trading practices generally have not been prohibited by the SEC, though the SEC has published guidance on the manner in which the Funds may cover their leveraged trading practices to limit leverage and avoid the need to address the leverage concerns in Section 18 of the 1940 Act, which severely restricts how the Funds may use leverage. All arrangements entered into by First Trust on behalf of the Funds which result in leverage follow the parameter of the guidance published by the SEC.

As a non-EU AIFM, First Trust is not obliged to set a maximum permitted level of leverage which it may employ in its management of the Funds. The total amount of leverage employed by the Funds is provided at www.ftglobalportfolios.com.

Investors should refer to the “Investment Objectives and Policies” and “Investment Strategies” section of this SAI for more details on the use and risk of leverage by the Funds.

Shareholder Voting Rights. The Declaration requires a shareholder vote only on those matters where the 1940 Act requires a vote of shareholders and otherwise permits the Trustees to take actions without seeking the consent of shareholders. The Funds’ fundamental policies, as described in the “Investment Objectives and Policies” section of this SAI, may not be changed without approval of the holders of a majority of the outstanding voting securities (as such term is defined in the 1940 Act) of a Fund. The 1940 Act defines a majority vote as the vote of the lesser of (i) 67% or more of the voting securities represented at a meeting at which more than 50% of the outstanding securities are represented; or (ii)more than 50% of the outstanding voting securities.

Net Asset Value. The latest NAV of the Funds, and the latest NAV per share of each class of share of the Funds, is available online at: www.ftglobalportfolios.com and online stock quote services. Generally investors will buy and sell shares of the Funds in secondary market transactions through brokers. Shares of the Funds will therefore be available at the relevant market price rather than NAV.

The historical performance of the Funds since inception is available online at: www.ftglobalportfolios.com.

Accounts. Under the AIFM Directive, First Trust is required to make available the annual report of the Funds that it markets in the EEA. This must be prepared by no later than 6 months following the end of the financial year and contain certain specific content requirements set out in the AIFM Directive. Once the annual report has been produced, it will be made available to investors in the manner as set out in the Prospectus.

Professional Liability Requirements/Delegation by the AIFM/Valuation. As a non-EU AIFM, First Trust is not subject to certain EU requirements relating to (i) the cover of professional liability risk by holding either additional of its own funds or appropriate professional liability insurance; (ii) permitted delegation and the management and disclosure of conflicts of interest relating to any such delegation; and (iii) valuation as set out in Article 19 of the AIFM Directive. As such, no disclosures for the purposes of the AIFM Directive have been made. Notwithstanding this, First Trust and the Funds continue to comply with their requirements under US law.

Periodic Disclosure Obligations. The following information will be disclosed to Fund shareholders on a periodic basis by way of a posting being made on www.ftglobalportfolios.com:

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•

the percentage of the Funds’ assets, if any, that are subject to special arrangements arising from their illiquid nature (including, but not limited to, deferrals of redemptions and suspensions);

•

the current risk profile of each Fund and the risk management systems employed by the AIFM to manage those risks; and

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the total amount of leverage employed by each Fund, if any.

Whenever any new arrangements for managing the liquidity of the Funds are introduced including, but not limited to, any material changes to the liquidity management systems and procedures employed by First Trust, a disclosure to this effect will be uploaded on the Funds’ website. The Funds will ensure that a notice is uploaded on an expedited basis whenever deferrals or other similar special arrangements are activated or where redemptions of shares are suspended.

A notice will be posted without undue delay whenever there is a change to a maximum level of leverage which may be employed on behalf of a Fund; and any changes are made to the right of re-use of collateral or any changes to any guarantee granted under any leveraging arrangement.

INFORMATION FOR INVESTORS IN HONG KONG ONLY

The Fund is a collective investment scheme but is not authorized under Section 104 of the Securities and Futures Ordinance of Hong Kong by the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong. Accordingly, the distribution of the Prospectus, and the placement of Fund shares in Hong Kong, is restricted. The Prospectus may only be distributed, circulated or issued to persons who are professional investors under the Securities and Futures Ordinance and any rules made under that Ordinance or as otherwise permitted by the Securities and Futures Ordinance.

INFORMATION FOR INVESTORS IN SINGAPORE ONLY

The Prospectus has not been registered as a Prospectus with the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Accordingly, the Prospectus and any other document or material in connection with the offer or sale, or invitation for subscription or purchase, of Fund shares may not be circulated or distributed, nor may Fund shares be offered or sold, or be made the subject of an invitation for subscription or purchase, whether directly or indirectly, to persons in Singapore other than (i) to an institutional investor pursuant to Section 304 of the Securities and Futures Act, Chapter 289 of Singapore (the “SFA”)) or (ii) otherwise pursuant to, and in accordance with the conditions of, any other applicable provision of the SFA.

INFORMATION FOR INVESTORS IN TAIWAN ONLY

Fund shares are being made available in the Republic of China (“R.O.C.”) on a private placement basis only to banks, bills houses, trust enterprises, financial holding companies and other qualified entities or institutions (collectively, “Qualified Institutions”) and other entities and individuals meeting specific criteria (“Other Qualified Investors”) pursuant to the private placement provisions of the R.O.C. Rules Governing Offshore Funds. No other offer or sale of the shares of the Fund in the R.O.C. is permitted. R.O.C. purchasers of Fund shares may not sell or otherwise dispose of their holdings except by redemption, transfer to a Qualified Institution or Other Qualified Investor, transfer by operation of law or other means approved by the R.O.C. Financial Supervisory Commission.

Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures

The Trust has adopted a proxy voting policy that seeks to ensure that proxies for securities held by the Funds are voted consistently with the best interests of the Funds.

The Board has delegated to First Trust the proxy voting responsibilities for the Funds and has directed First Trust to vote proxies consistent with the Funds' best interests. The First Trust Proxy Voting Guidelines are attached hereto as Exhibit B. First Trust has engaged the services of Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (“ISS”) to make recommendations to First Trust on the voting of proxies relating to securities held by the Funds. If First Trust manages the assets of a company or its pension plan and any of First Trust’s clients hold any securities of that company, First Trust will generally vote proxies relating to such company’s securities in accordance with the ISS recommendations to avoid any conflict of interest.

First Trust has adopted the ISS Proxy Voting Guidelines. While these guidelines are not intended to be all-inclusive, they do provide guidance on First Trust’s general voting policies. First Trust’s use of the ISS Proxy Voting Guidelines is not intended to constrain First Trust’s consideration of any proxy proposal, and there are times when First Trust deviates from

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the ISS Proxy Voting Guidelines. This includes when required by Rule 12d1-4 under the 1940 Act or when agreed to by the Fund and certain acquired funds as permitted under Rule 12d1-4 under the 1940 Act, if applicable. Generally, First Trust will not rely on ISS Proxy Voting Guidelines to withhold votes or vote against directors solely based on quota criteria or the exclusion of certain climate-related disclosures, which may or may not relate to the company’s core business or may not materially impact shareholder value. First Trust will consider such proxy voting decisions in light of merit-based considerations which it believes may impact shareholder value. First Trust retains final authority and fiduciary responsibility for proxy voting.

Information regarding how the Funds voted proxies (if any) relating to portfolio securities during the most recent 12-month period ended June 30 is available upon request and without charge on the Funds' website at www.ftportfolios.com, by calling (800) 621-1675 or by accessing the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.

Portfolio Schedule. Each Fund files portfolio holdings information for each month in a fiscal quarter within 60 days after the end of the relevant fiscal quarter on Form N-PORT. Portfolio holdings information for the third month of each fiscal quarter will be publicly available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Each Fund’s complete schedule of portfolio holdings for the second and fourth quarters of each fiscal year is included in the semi-annual and annual reports to shareholders, respectively, and is filed with the SEC on Form N-CSR. A semi-annual or annual report for each Fund will become available to investors within 60 days after the period to which it relates. Each Fund’s Forms N-PORT and Forms N-CSR are available on the SEC’s website listed above.

Policy Regarding Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings. The Trust has adopted a policy regarding the disclosure of information about each Fund’s portfolio holdings. The Board of Trustees must approve all material amendments to this policy. Each Fund’s portfolio holdings are publicly disseminated each day the Fund is open for business through financial reporting and news services, including publicly accessible Internet websites. In addition, a basket composition file, which includes the security names and share quantities to deliver in exchange for Fund shares, together with estimates and actual cash components, is publicly disseminated each day the NYSE is open for trading via the National Securities Clearing Corporation (“NSCC”). Pursuant to Rule 6c-11 under the 1940 Act, information regarding each Fund’s current portfolio holdings will be available on a daily basis at https://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/etf/home.aspx. The Trust, First Trust, FTP and BBH will not disseminate non-public information concerning the Trust.

Codes of Ethics. In order to mitigate the possibility that the Funds will be adversely affected by personal trading, the Trust, First Trust and the Distributor have adopted Codes of Ethics under Rule 17j-1 of the 1940 Act. These Codes of Ethics contain policies restricting securities trading in personal accounts of the officers, Trustees and others who normally come into possession of information on portfolio transactions. Personnel subject to the Codes of Ethics may invest in securities that may be purchased or held by the Funds; however, the Codes of Ethics require that each transaction in such securities be reviewed by the CCO or his or her designee. These Codes of Ethics are on public file with, and are available from, the SEC.

Creation and Redemption of Creation Units

General.  ETFs, such as the Funds, generally issue and redeem their shares in primary market transactions through a creation and redemption mechanism and do not sell or redeem individual shares. Instead, financial entities known as “Authorized Participants” have contractual arrangements with an ETF or one of the ETF’s service providers to purchase and redeem ETF shares directly with the ETF in large blocks of shares known as “Creation Units.” Prior to the start of trading on every business day, an ETF publishes through the National Securities Clearing Corporation (“NSCC”) the “basket” of securities, cash or other assets that it will accept in exchange for a Creation Unit of the ETF’s shares. An Authorized Participant that wishes to effectuate a creation of an ETF’s shares deposits with the ETF the “basket” of securities, cash or other assets identified by the ETF that day, and then receives the Creation Unit of the ETF’s shares in return for those assets. After purchasing a Creation Unit, the Authorized Participant may continue to hold the ETF’s shares or sell them in the secondary market. The redemption process is the reverse of the purchase process: the authorized participant redeems a Creation Unit of ETF shares for a basket of securities, cash or other assets. The combination of the creation and redemption process with secondary market trading in ETF shares and underlying securities provides arbitrage opportunities that are designed to help keep the market price of ETF shares at or close to the NAV per share of the ETF.

Authorized Participants.  An “Authorized Participant” is a member or participant of a clearing agency registered with the SEC that has a written agreement with a Fund or one of its service providers that allows the Authorized Participant to place orders for the purchase or redemption of Creation Units (a “Participant Agreement”). Orders to purchase Creation Units must be delivered through an Authorized Participant that has executed a Participant Agreement and must comply with the applicable provisions of such Participant Agreement. Investors wishing to purchase or sell shares generally do so on an exchange.

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Institutional investors other than Authorized Participants are responsible for making arrangements for a redemption request to be made through an Authorized Participant.

Business Day.  A “Business Day” is generally any day on which the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”), the Exchange and the Trust are open for business. As of the date of this SAI, the NYSE observes the following holidays: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents’ Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. The Business Day on which an order to purchase or redeem Creation Units is received in proper form is referred to as the “Transmittal Date.”

Basket Composition.  Rule 6c-11(c)(3) under of the 1940 Act requires an ETF relying on the exemptions offered by Rule 6c-11 to adopt and implement written policies and procedures governing the construction of baskets and the process that the ETF will use for the acceptance of baskets. In general, in connection with the construction and acceptance of baskets, the Advisor may consider various factors, including, but not limited to: (1) whether the securities, assets and other positions comprising a basket are consistent with the ETF’s investment objective(s), policies and disclosure; (2) whether the securities, assets and other positions can legally and readily be acquired, transferred and held by the ETF and/or Authorized Participant(s), as applicable; (3) whether to utilize cash, either in lieu of securities or other instruments or as a cash balancing amount; and (4) in the case of an ETF that tracks an index, whether the securities, assets and other positions aid index tracking.

Each Fund may utilize a pro rata basket or a custom basket in reliance on Rule 6c-11. A “pro rata basket” is a basket that is a pro rata representation of the ETF’s portfolio holdings, except for minor deviations when it is not operationally feasible to include a particular instrument within the basket, except to the extent that the Fund utilized different baskets in transactions on the same Business Day.

Rule 6c-11 defines “custom baskets” to include two categories of baskets. First, a basket containing a non-representative selection of the ETF’s portfolio holdings would constitute a custom basket. These types of custom baskets include, but are not limited to, baskets that do not reflect: (i) a pro rata representation of the Fund’s portfolio holdings; (ii) a representative sampling of an ETF’s portfolio holdings; or (iii) changes due to a rebalancing or reconstitution of an ETF’s securities market index, if applicable. Second, if different baskets are used in transactions on the same Business Day, each basket after the initial basket would constitute a custom basket. For example, if an ETF exchanges a basket with either the same or another Authorized Participant that reflects a representative sampling that differs from the initial basket, that basket (and any such subsequent baskets) would be a custom basket. Similarly, if an ETF substitutes cash in lieu of a portion of basket assets for a single Authorized Participant, that basket would be a custom basket. The Advisor’s Rule 6c-11 Committee defines any deviation from a pro rata basket to be a “custom basket.” Rebalancing and reconstitution baskets do not constitute custom baskets. All cash baskets that are the initial basket on a Business Day also do not constitute custom baskets.

Under a variety of circumstances, an ETF and its shareholders may benefit from the flexibility afforded by custom baskets. In general terms, the use of custom baskets may reduce costs, increase efficiency and improve trading. Because utilizing custom baskets provides a way for an ETF to add, remove and re-weight portfolio securities without transacting in the market, it may help the ETF to avoid transaction costs and adverse tax consequences. Rule 6c-11 provides an ETF with flexibility to use “custom baskets” if the ETF has adopted written policies and procedures that: (1) set forth detailed parameters for the construction and acceptance of custom baskets that are in the best interests of the ETF and its shareholders, including the process for any revisions to, or deviations from, those parameters; and (2) specify the titles or roles of employees of the ETF’s investment advisor who are required to review each custom basket for compliance with those parameters.

The use of baskets that do not correspond pro rata to an ETF’s portfolio holdings has historically created concern that an Authorized Participant could take advantage of its relationship with an ETF and pressure the ETF to construct a basket that favors an Authorized Participant to the detriment of the ETF’s shareholders. For example, because ETFs rely on Authorized Participants to maintain the secondary market by promoting an effective arbitrage mechanism, an Authorized Participant holding less liquid or less desirable securities potentially could pressure an ETF into accepting those securities in its basket in exchange for liquid ETF shares (i.e., dumping). An Authorized Participant also could pressure the ETF into including in its basket certain desirable securities in exchange for ETF shares tendered for redemption (i.e., cherry-picking). In either case, the ETF’s other investors would be disadvantaged and would be left holding shares of an ETF with a less liquid or less desirable portfolio of securities. The Advisor has adopted policies and procedures designed to mitigate these concerns but there is ultimately no guarantee that such policies and procedures will be effective.

Basket Dissemination.  Basket files are published for consumption through the NSCC, a subsidiary of Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation, and can be utilized for pricing, creations, redemptions, rebalancing and custom scenarios. In most instances, pro rata baskets are calculated and supplied by the ETF’s custodial bank based on ETF holdings, whereas non-pro

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rata, custom and forward-looking pro rata baskets are calculated by the Fund’s investment advisor and disseminated by the ETF’s custodial bank through the NSCC process.

Placement of Creation or Redemption Orders.  All orders to purchase or redeem Creation Units are to be governed according to the applicable Participant Agreement that each Authorized Participant has executed. In general, all orders to purchase or redeem Creation Units must be received by the transfer agent in the proper form required by the Participant Agreement no later than the closing time of the regular trading session of the NYSE (ordinarily 4:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time) on each day the NYSE is open for business (the “Closing Time”) in order for the purchase or redemption of Creation Units to be effected based on the NAV of shares of a Fund as next determined on such date after receipt of the order in proper form. However, at its discretion, the Fund may require an Authorized Participant to submit orders to purchase or redeem Creation Units be placed earlier in the day (such as instances where an applicable market for a security comprising a creation or redemption basket closes earlier than usual).

Delivery of Redemption Proceeds.  Deliveries of securities to Authorized Participants in connection with redemption orders are generally expected to be made within two Business Days. Due to the schedule of holidays in certain countries, however, the delivery of in-kind redemption proceeds for a Fund may take longer than two Business Days after the day on which the redemption request is received in proper form. Section 22(e) of the 1940 Act generally prohibits a registered open-end management investment company from postponing the date of satisfaction of redemption requests for more than seven days after the tender of a security for redemption. This prohibition can cause operational difficulties for ETFs that hold foreign investments and exchange in-kind baskets for Creation Units. For example, local market delivery cycles for transferring foreign investments to redeeming investors, together with local market holiday schedules, can sometimes require a delivery process in excess of seven days. However, Rule 6c-11 grants relief from Section 22(e) to permit an ETF to delay satisfaction of a redemption request for more than seven days if a local market holiday, or series of consecutive holidays, or the extended delivery cycles for transferring foreign investments to redeeming Authorized Participants, or the combination thereof prevents timely delivery of the foreign investment included in the ETF’s basket. Under this exemption, an ETF must deliver foreign investments as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 15 days after the tender to the ETF. The exemption therefore will permit a delay only to the extent that additional time for settlement is actually required, when a local market holiday, or series of consecutive holidays, or the extended delivery cycles for transferring foreign investments to redeeming authorized participants prevents timely delivery of the foreign investment included in the ETF’s basket. If a foreign investment settles in less than 15 days, Rule 6c-11 requires an ETF to deliver it pursuant to the standard settlement time of the local market where the investment trades. Rule 6c-11 defines “foreign investment” as any security, asset or other position of the ETF issued by a foreign issuer (as defined by Rule 3b-4 under the 1934 Act), and that is traded on a trading market outside of the United States. This definition is not limited to “foreign securities,” but also includes other investments that may not be considered securities. Although these other investments may not be securities, they may present the same challenges for timely settlement as foreign securities if they are transferred in kind.

Creation Transaction Fees.  Each Fund imposes fees in connection with the purchase of Creation Units. These fees may vary based upon various facts-based circumstances, including, but not limited to, the composition of the securities included in the Creation Unit or the countries in which the transactions are settled. The price for each Creation Unit will equal the daily NAV per share of a Fund times the number of shares in a Creation Unit, plus the fees described above and, if applicable, any operational processing and brokerage costs, transfer fees, stamp taxes and part or all of the spread between the expected bid and offer side of the market related to the securities comprising the creation basket.

Redemption Transaction Fees.  Each Fund also imposes fees in connection with the redemption of Creation Units. These fees may vary based upon various facts-based circumstances, including, but not limited to, the composition of the securities included in the Creation Unit or the countries in which the transactions are settled. The price received for each Creation Unit will equal the daily NAV per share of a Fund times the number of shares in a Creation Unit, minus the fees described above and, if applicable, any operational processing and brokerage costs, transfer fees, stamp taxes and part or all of the spread between the expected bid and offer side of the market related to the securities comprising the redemption basket. Investors who use the services of a broker or other such intermediary in addition to an Authorized Participant to effect a redemption of a Creation Unit may also be assessed an amount to cover the cost of such services. The redemption fee charged by a Fund will comply with Rule 22c-2 of the 1940 Act which limits redemption fees to no more than 2% of the value of the shares redeemed.

Suspension of Creations.  The SEC has stated its position that an ETF generally may suspend the issuance of Creation Units only for a limited time and only due to extraordinary circumstances, such as when the markets on which the ETF’s portfolio holdings are traded are closed for a limited period of time. The SEC has also stated that an ETF could not set transaction fees

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so high as to effectively suspend the issuance of Creation Units. Circumstances in which a Fund may suspend creations include, but are not limited to: (i) the order is not in proper form; (ii) the purchaser or group of related purchasers, upon obtaining the Creation Units of Fund shares ordered, would own 80% or more of the currently outstanding shares of a Fund; (iii) the required consideration is not delivered; (iv) the acceptance of the basket would, in the opinion of a Fund, be unlawful; or (v) there exist circumstances outside the control of a Fund that make it impossible to process purchases of Creation Units for all practical purposes. Examples of such circumstances include: acts of God or public service or utility problems such as fires, floods, extreme weather conditions and power outages resulting in telephone, telecopy and computer failures; market conditions or activities causing trading halts; systems failures involving computer or other information systems affecting a Fund, First Trust, the Distributor, DTC, NSCC, the transfer agent, the custodian, any sub-custodian or any other participant in the purchase process; and similar extraordinary events. Each Fund reserves the right to reject a creation order transmitted to it provided that such action does not result in a suspension of sales of creation units in contravention of 6c-11 and the SEC’s positions thereunder. The Transfer Agent shall notify a prospective creator of a Creation Unit and/or the Authorized Participant acting on behalf of such prospective creator of the rejection of the order of such person. The Trust, a Fund, the Transfer Agent, the custodian, any sub-custodian and the Distributor are under no duty, however, to give notification of any defects or irregularities in the delivery of baskets, nor shall any of them incur any liability for the failure to give any such notification.

Suspension of Redemptions.  An ETF may suspend the redemption of Creation Units only in accordance with Section 22(e) of the 1940 Act. Section 22(e) stipulates that no registered investment company shall suspend the right of redemption, or postpone the date of payment or satisfaction upon redemption of any redeemable security in accordance with its terms for more than seven days after the tender of such security to the company or its agent designated for that purpose for redemption, except (1) for any period (A) during which the NYSE is closed other than customary week-end and holiday closings or (B) during which trading on the NYSE is restricted; (2) for any period during which an emergency exists as a result of which (A) disposal by the investment company of securities owned by it is not reasonably practicable or (B) it is not reasonably practicable for such company fairly to determine the value of its net assets; or (3) for such other periods as the SEC may by order permit for the protection of security holders of the investment company.

Exceptions to Use of Creation Units.  Under Rule 6c-11 of the 1940 Act, ETFs are permitted to sell or redeem individual shares on the day of consummation of a reorganization, merger, conversion, or liquidation. In these limited circumstances, an ETF may need to issue or redeem individual shares and may need to transact without utilizing Authorized Participants.

Federal Tax Matters

This section summarizes some of the main U.S. federal income tax consequences of owning shares of a Fund. This section is current as of the date of the SAI. Tax laws and interpretations change frequently, and these summaries do not describe all of the tax consequences to all taxpayers. For example, these summaries generally do not describe your situation if you are a corporation, a non-U.S. person, a broker-dealer or other investor with special circumstances. In addition, this section does not describe your state, local or foreign tax consequences.

This federal income tax summary is based in part on the advice of counsel to the Funds. The Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) could disagree with any conclusions set forth in this section. The following disclosure may not be sufficient for prospective investors to use for the purpose of avoiding penalties under federal tax law.

As with any investment, prospective investors should seek advice based on their individual circumstances from their own tax advisor.

Each Fund intends to qualify annually and to elect to be treated as a regulated investment company (a “RIC”) under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”).

To qualify for the favorable U.S. federal income tax treatment generally accorded to RICs, a Fund must, among other things, (i) derive in each taxable year at least 90% of its gross income from dividends, interest, payments with respect to securities loans and gains from the sale or other disposition of stock, securities or foreign currencies or other income derived with respect to its business of investing in such stock, securities or currencies, or net income derived from interests in certain publicly traded partnerships; (ii) diversify its holdings so that, at the end of each quarter of the taxable year, (a) at least 50% of the market value of a Fund's assets is represented by cash and cash items (including receivables), U.S. government securities, the securities of other RICs and other securities, with such other securities of any one issuer generally limited for the purposes of this calculation to an amount not greater than 5% of the value of a Fund's total assets and not greater than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of such issuer, and (b) not more than 25% of the value of its total assets is invested in the securities (other than U.S. government securities or the securities of other RICs) of any one issuer, or two or more issuers which a Fund

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controls which are engaged in the same, similar or related trades or businesses, or the securities of one or more of certain publicly traded partnerships; and (iii) distribute at least 90% of its investment company taxable income (which includes, among other items, dividends, interest and net short-term capital gains in excess of net long-term capital losses) and at least 90% of its net tax-exempt interest income each taxable year. There are certain exceptions for failure to qualify if the failure is for reasonable cause or is de minimis, and certain corrective action is taken and certain tax payments are made by the Fund.

As a RIC, a Fund generally will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax on its investment company taxable income (as that term is defined in the Code, but without regard to the deduction for dividends paid) and net capital gain (the excess of net long-term capital gain over net short-term capital loss), if any, that it distributes to shareholders. Each Fund intends to distribute to its shareholders, at least annually, substantially all of its investment company taxable income and net capital gain. If a Fund retains any net capital gain or investment company taxable income, it will generally be subject to federal income tax at regular corporate rates on the amount retained. In addition, amounts not distributed on a timely basis in accordance with a calendar year distribution requirement are subject to a nondeductible 4% excise tax unless, generally, the Fund distributes during each calendar year an amount equal to the sum of (1) at least 98% of its ordinary income (not taking into account any capital gains or losses) for the calendar year, (2) at least 98.2% of its capital gains in excess of its capital losses (adjusted for certain ordinary losses) for the one-year period ending October 31 of the calendar year, and (3) any ordinary income and capital gains for previous years that were not distributed during those years. In order to prevent application of the excise tax, each Fund intends to make its distributions in accordance with the calendar year distribution requirement. A distribution will be treated as paid on December 31 of the current calendar year if it is declared by a Fund in October, November or December with a record date in such a month and paid by the Fund during January of the following calendar year. Such distributions will be taxable to shareholders in the calendar year in which the distributions are declared, rather than the calendar year in which the distributions are received.

Subject to certain reasonable cause and de minimis exceptions, if a Fund fails to qualify as a RIC or fails to satisfy the 90% distribution requirement in any taxable year, the Fund would be taxed as an ordinary corporation on its taxable income (even if such income were distributed to its shareholders) and all distributions out of earnings and profits would be taxed to shareholders as ordinary income.

Distributions

Dividends paid out of the Funds' investment company taxable income are generally taxable to a shareholder as ordinary income to the extent of the Fund’s earnings and profits, whether paid in cash or reinvested in additional shares. However, certain ordinary income distributions received from a Fund may be taxed at capital gains tax rates. In particular, ordinary income dividends received by an individual shareholder from RICs such as each of the Funds are generally taxed at the same rates that apply to net capital gain, provided that certain holding period requirements are satisfied and provided the dividends are attributable to qualifying dividends received by a Fund itself.  Dividends received by a Fund from REITs and foreign corporations are qualifying dividends eligible for this lower tax rate only in certain circumstances. A Fund will provide notice to its shareholders of the amount of any distributions that may be taken into account as a dividend which is eligible for the capital gains tax rates. A Fund cannot make any guarantees as to the amount of any distribution which will be regarded as a qualifying dividend. Some portion of the ordinary income distributions that are attributable to dividends received by a Fund from shares in certain real estate investment trusts may be designated by the Fund as eligible for a deduction for qualified business income, provided certain holding period requirements are satisfied.

Income from a Fund may also be subject to a 3.8% “Medicare tax.” This tax generally applies to net investment income if the taxpayer’s adjusted gross income exceeds certain threshold amounts, which are $250,000 in the case of married couples filing joint returns and $200,000 in the case of single individuals.

A corporation that owns shares generally will not be entitled to the dividends received deduction with respect to many dividends received from a Fund because the dividends received deduction is generally not available for distributions from RICs. However, certain ordinary income dividends on shares that are attributable to qualifying dividends received by a Fund from certain domestic corporations may be reported by a Fund as being eligible for the dividends received deduction.

Distributions of net capital gain (the excess of net long-term capital gain over net short-term capital loss), if any, properly reported as capital gain dividends are taxable to a shareholder as long-term capital gains, regardless of how long the shareholder has held Fund shares. An election may be available to you to defer recognition of the gain attributable to a capital gain dividend if you make certain qualifying investments within a limited time.  You should talk to your tax advisor about the availability of this deferral election and its requirements. Shareholders receiving distributions in the form of additional shares, rather than cash, generally will have a tax basis in each such share equal to the value of a share of a Fund on the reinvestment date. A

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distribution of an amount in excess of a Fund's current and accumulated earnings and profits will be treated by a shareholder as a return of capital which is applied against and reduces the shareholder’s basis in his or her shares. To the extent that the amount of any such distribution exceeds the shareholder’s basis in his or her shares, the excess will be treated by the shareholder as gain from a sale or exchange of the shares.

Shareholders will be notified annually as to the U.S. federal income tax status of distributions and shareholders receiving distributions in the form of additional shares will receive a report as to the value of those shares.

Sale or Exchange of Fund Shares

Upon the sale or other disposition of shares of a Fund, which a shareholder holds as a capital asset, such a shareholder may realize a capital gain or loss which will be long-term or short-term, depending upon the shareholder’s holding period for the shares. Generally, a shareholder’s gain or loss will be a long-term gain or loss if the shares have been held for more than one year. An election may be available to you to defer recognition of capital gain if you make certain qualifying investments within a limited time.  You should talk to your tax advisor about the availability of this deferral election and its requirements.

Any loss realized on a sale or exchange will be disallowed to the extent that shares disposed of are replaced (including through reinvestment of dividends) within a period of 61 days beginning 30 days before and ending 30 days after disposition of shares or to the extent that the shareholder, during such period, acquires or enters into an option or contract to acquire, substantially identical stock or securities. In such a case, the basis of the shares acquired will be adjusted to reflect the disallowed loss. Any loss realized by a shareholder on a disposition of Fund shares held by the shareholder for six months or less will be treated as a long-term capital loss to the extent of any distributions of long-term capital gain received by the shareholder with respect to such shares.

Taxes on Purchase and Redemption of Creation Units

If a shareholder exchanges securities for Creation Units, the shareholder will generally recognize a gain or a loss. The gain or loss will be equal to the difference between the market value of the Creation Units at the time and the shareholder’s aggregate basis in the securities surrendered and the Cash Component paid. If a shareholder exchanges Creation Units for securities, then the shareholder will generally recognize a gain or loss equal to the difference between the shareholder’s basis in the Creation Units and the aggregate market value of the securities received and the Cash Redemption Amount. The Internal Revenue Service, however, may assert that a loss realized upon an exchange of securities for Creation Units or Creation Units for securities cannot be deducted currently under the rules governing “wash sales,” or on the basis that there has been no significant change in economic position.

Nature of Fund Investments

Certain of the Funds' investment practices are subject to special and complex federal income tax provisions that may, among other things, (i) disallow, suspend or otherwise limit the allowance of certain losses or deductions; (ii) convert lower taxed long-term capital gain into higher taxed short-term capital gain or ordinary income; (iii) convert an ordinary loss or a deduction into a capital loss (the deductibility of which is more limited); (iv) cause a Fund to recognize income or gain without a corresponding receipt of cash; (v) adversely affect the time as to when a purchase or sale of stock or securities is deemed to occur; and (vi) adversely alter the characterization of certain complex financial transactions.

Futures Contracts and Options

The Funds' transactions in futures contracts and options will be subject to special provisions of the Code that, among other things, may affect the character of gains and losses realized by a Fund (i.e., may affect whether gains or losses are ordinary or capital, or short-term or long-term), may accelerate recognition of income to a Fund and may defer Fund losses. These rules could, therefore, affect the character, amount and timing of distributions to shareholders. These provisions also (i) will require a Fund to mark-to-market certain types of the positions in their portfolio (i.e., treat them as if they were closed out); and (ii) may cause a Fund to recognize income without receiving cash with which to make distributions in amounts necessary to satisfy the 90% distribution requirement for qualifying to be taxed as a RIC and the distribution requirements for avoiding excise taxes.

45

Investments in Certain Foreign Corporations

If a Fund holds an equity interest in any “passive foreign investment companies” (“PFICs”), which are generally certain foreign corporations that receive at least 75% of their annual gross income from passive sources (such as interest, dividends, certain rents and royalties or capital gains) or that hold at least 50% of their assets in investments producing such passive income, the Fund could be subject to U.S. federal income tax and additional interest charges on gains and certain distributions with respect to those equity interests, even if all the income or gain is timely distributed to its shareholders. A Fund will not be able to pass through to its shareholders any credit or deduction for such taxes. A Fund may be able to make an election that could ameliorate these adverse tax consequences. In this case, a Fund would recognize as ordinary income any increase in the value of such PFIC shares, and as ordinary loss any decrease in such value to the extent it did not exceed prior increases included in income. Under this election, a Fund might be required to recognize in a year income in excess of its distributions from PFICs and its proceeds from dispositions of PFIC stock during that year, and such income would nevertheless be subject to the distribution requirement and would be taken into account for purposes of the 4% excise tax (described above). Dividends paid by PFICs are not treated as qualified dividend income.

Backup Withholding

A Fund may be required to withhold U.S. federal income tax from all taxable distributions and sale proceeds payable to shareholders who fail to provide the Fund with their correct taxpayer identification number or fail to make required certifications, or who have been notified by the IRS that they are subject to backup withholding. Corporate shareholders and certain other shareholders specified in the Code generally are exempt from such backup withholding. This withholding is not an additional tax. Any amounts withheld may be credited against the shareholder’s U.S. federal income tax liability.

Non-U.S. Shareholders

U.S. taxation of a shareholder who, as to the United States, is a nonresident alien individual, a foreign trust or estate, a foreign corporation or foreign partnership (“non-U.S. shareholder”) depends on whether the income of a Fund is “effectively connected” with a U.S. trade or business carried on by the shareholder.

In addition to the rules described in this section concerning the potential imposition of withholding on distributions to non-U.S. persons, distributions to non-U.S. persons that are “financial institutions” may be subject to a withholding tax of 30% unless an agreement is in place between the financial institution and the U.S. Treasury to collect and disclose information about accounts, equity investments or debt interests in the financial institution held by one or more U.S. persons or the institution is resident in a jurisdiction that has entered into such an agreement with the U.S. Treasury. For these purposes, a “financial institution” means any entity that (i) accepts deposits in the ordinary course of a banking or similar business; (ii) holds financial assets for the account of others as a substantial portion of its business; or (iii) is engaged (or holds itself out as being engaged) primarily in the business of investing, reinvesting or trading in securities, partnership interests, commodities or any interest (including a futures contract or option) in such securities, partnership interests or commodities. This withholding tax is also currently scheduled to apply to the gross proceeds from the disposition of securities that produce U.S. source interest ordividends.  However, proposed regulations may eliminate the requirement to withhold on payments of gross proceeds from dispositions.

Distributions to non-financial non-U.S. entities (other than publicly traded foreign entities, entities owned by residents of U.S. possessions, foreign governments, international organizations or foreign central banks) will also be subject to a withholding tax of 30% if the entity does not certify that the entity does not have any substantial U.S. owners or provide the name, address and TIN of each substantial U.S. owner. This withholding tax is also currently scheduled to apply to the gross proceeds from the disposition of securities that produce U.S. source interest or dividends.  However, proposed regulations may eliminate the requirement to withhold on payments of gross proceeds from dispositions.

Income Not Effectively Connected. If the income from a Fund is not “effectively connected” with a U.S. trade or business carried on by the non-U.S. shareholder, distributions of investment company taxable income will generally be subject to a U.S. tax of 30% (or lower treaty rate), which tax is generally withheld from such distributions.

Distributions of capital gain dividends and any amounts retained by a Fund which are properly reported by the Fund as undistributed capital gains will not be subject to U.S. tax at the rate of 30% (or lower treaty rate) unless the non-U.S. shareholder is a nonresident alien individual and is physically present in the United States for more than 182 days during the taxable year and meets certain other requirements. However, this 30% tax on capital gains of nonresident alien individuals who are physically present in the United States for more than the 182 day period only applies in exceptional cases because any individual present in the United States for more than 182 days during the taxable year is generally treated as a resident for U.S. income tax purposes;

46

in that case, he or she would be subject to U.S. income tax on his or her worldwide income at the graduated rates applicable to U.S. citizens, rather than the 30% U.S. tax. In the case of a non-U.S. shareholder who is a nonresident alien individual, a Fund may be required to withhold U.S. income tax from distributions of net capital gain unless the non-U.S. shareholder certifies his or her non-U.S. status under penalties of perjury or otherwise establishes an exemption. If a non-U.S. shareholder is a nonresident alien individual, any gain such shareholder realizes upon the sale or exchange of such shareholder’s shares of a Fund in the United States will ordinarily be exempt from U.S. tax unless the gain is U.S. source income and such shareholder is physically present in the United States for more than 182 days during the taxable year and meets certain other requirements.

Distributions from a Fund that are properly reported by the Fund as an interest-related dividend attributable to certain interest income received by the Fund or as a short-term capital gain dividend attributable to certain net short-term capital gain income received by the Fund may not be subject to U.S. federal income taxes, including withholding taxes when received by certain non-U.S. shareholders, provided that the Fund makes certain elections and certain other conditions are met. For tax years after December 31, 2022, amounts paid to or recognized by a non-U.S. affiliate that are excluded from tax under the portfolio interest, capital gain dividends, short-term capital gains or tax-exempt interest dividend exceptions or applicable treaties, may be taken into consideration in determining whether a corporation is an “applicable corporation” subject to a 15% minimum tax on adjusted financial statement income.

In addition, capital gain distributions attributable to gains from U.S. real property interests (including certain U.S. real property holding corporations) will generally be subject to United States withholding tax and will give rise to an obligation on the part of the non-U.S. shareholder to file a United States tax return.

Income Effectively Connected. If the income from a Fund is “effectively connected” with a U.S. trade or business carried on by a non-U.S. shareholder, then distributions of investment company taxable income and capital gain dividends, any amounts retained by the Fund which are properly reported by the Fund as undistributed capital gains and any gains realized upon the sale or exchange of shares of the Fund will be subject to U.S. income tax at the graduated rates applicable to U.S. citizens, residents and domestic corporations. Non-U.S. corporate shareholders may also be subject to the branch profits tax imposed by the Code. The tax consequences to a non-U.S. shareholder entitled to claim the benefits of an applicable tax treaty may differ from those described herein. Non-U.S. shareholders are advised to consult their own tax advisors with respect to the particular tax consequences to them of an investment in a Fund.

Capital Loss Carry-forward

Under the Regulated Investment Company Modernization Act of 2010, net capital losses of a Fund incurred in taxable years beginning after December 22, 2010 may be carried forward indefinitely, and their character is retained as short-term and/or long-term losses. To the extent that these loss carry-forwards are used to offset future capital gains, it is probable that the capital gains so offset will not be distributed to Fund shareholders. The Funds intend to utilize provisions of the federal income tax laws, which allow the Funds to carry a realized capital loss forward indefinitely following the year of the loss and offset such loss against any future realized capital gains. As of December 31, 2022, the Funds had non-expiring capital loss carry-forwards for federal income tax purposes as shown in the table below. The Funds are subject to certain limitations, under U.S. tax rules, on the use of capital loss carry-forwards and net unrealized built-in losses. These limitations generally apply when there has been a 50% change in ownership. 

Fund	Total Non-Expiring Capital Loss Available
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	$15,930,099
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund	27,521,574
First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund	7,303,369
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund	351,864,237
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	5,545,476
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund	213,255,786
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	44,354,948
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund	255,822,778
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF	22,211,805

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Fund	Total Non-Expiring Capital Loss Available
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund	30,493,437
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF	—
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	55,011,790
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund	43,566,993
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund	29,942,722
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund	51,874,536

Other Taxation

Fund shareholders may be subject to state, local and foreign taxes on their Fund distributions. Shareholders are advised to consult their own tax advisors with respect to the particular tax consequences to them of an investment in the Funds.

First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF - Indian Tax Matters

The following discussion is a summary only and is not intended as a substitute for careful tax planning. Purchasers of shares should consult their own tax advisors as to the tax consequences of investing in such shares, including under federal, state, local and other tax laws. Finally, the discussion is based on applicable provisions of the Code, regulations, judicial authority and administrative interpretations in effect on the date hereof, all of which are subject to change, which change may be retroactive. Changes in applicable authority could materially affect the conclusions discussed herein, and such changes often occur.

India Tax Considerations

Please note that the tax implications in this section are based on the current provisions of the Indian Income Tax Act, 1961(the “ITA”), and the regulations thereunder, and the judicial and administrative interpretations thereof, which are subject to change or modification by subsequent legislative, regulatory, administrative or judicial decisions. Any such changes could have different tax implications. This Indian tax summary is of a general nature only pertaining to taxation of the Fund if the Proposal is approved and is not intended to be, nor should it be construed to be, legal or tax advice to any investor, and no representations concerning the tax consequences to any particular investor are made. No assurance can be given that the terms of the ITA will not be subject to change or renegotiation in the future, nor that any change would not have a material adverse effect on the Fund. In addition, there can be no assurance that the ITA will continue in full force and effect for the duration of the existence of the Fund. There can be no assurance that the Indian tax authorities and/or regulators will not take a position contrary to the views expressed herein. If the Indian tax authorities and/or regulators take a position contrary to the views expressed herein, adverse unpredictable consequences may follow. Accordingly, you should consult with your own tax advisor(s) with respect to Indian tax matters.

General

The basis of charge of Indian income tax depends upon the residential status of the taxpayer during a tax year, as well as the nature of the income earned. The Indian tax year runs from April 1 until March 31. A person who is an Indian tax resident is liable to taxation in India on worldwide income, subject to certain tax exemptions, which are afforded under the provisions of the ITA. A person who is treated as non-resident for Indian income tax purposes generally is subject to tax in India only on such person's Indian sourced income. A person will be subject to taxation in India only if it is a resident of India or if it is a non-resident that either has an Indian sourced income or is in receipt of its income in India (whether Indian or foreign sourced).

Subject to the application of Indirect Transfer Provisions pertaining to transfer of shares of the Fund and income distribution by the Fund (discussed below) and the General Anti-Avoidance Rules (“GAAR”), a shareholder of the Fund should not be subject to taxation in India unless the shareholder of the Fund is a resident of India or, as a nonresident, has an Indian sourced income or is in receipt of its income in India (whether Indian or foreign sourced).

The Fund is registered in India as a Foreign Portfolio Investor (“FPI”). The income of the Fund from the sale or other transfer of securities will be classified as capital gains and will be subject to tax in India. If the securities sold or transferred

48

are listed securities that have been held by the Fund for more than one year, the income will be classified as long-term capital gains and would currently be exempt from capital gains tax provided the shares were sold on the stock exchange and subjected to the Securities Transaction Tax (“STT”). The aforesaid exemption from long term capital gains tax would be available with respect to shares acquired between October 1, 2004 and on or before March 31, 2018 only if on such acquisition STT was chargeable. Certain exceptions in this regard, such as acquisition of shares in a public offer, bonus, rights issue, etc. for which the condition of chargeability of STT on acquisition is not applicable, have been notified.

With effect from April 1, 2018, long-term capital gains on the sale of listed shares in excess of INR 0.1 million is taxable at the rate of 10% (plus applicable surcharge and cess (which is a type of tax)) subject to satisfaction of certain conditions. However, as a grandfathering measure, the cost of acquisition of such a long-term capital asset, which has been acquired by the Fund before February 1, 2018, shall be deemed to be the higher of following: (a) The actual cost of acquisition of such asset; or (b) lower of the FMV of such asset as on January 31, 2018 or full value of consideration as received on its transfer/ disposal.

In the case of the sale of listed shares held by the Fund for one year or less, the income would be classified as short-term capital gains and would be taxable at 15% (plus applicable surcharge and cess) provided the shares are sold on the stock exchange and subjected to STT.

For above purposes, the applicable rate of surcharge is 2% or 5% (depending on the level of income of the Fund). Whereas, the applicable rate of cess (which is imposed on the sum total of tax and surcharge) is 4% (3% prior to April 1, 2018).

Dividends. Until March 31, 2020, dividends received by the Fund from Indian companies were exempt from tax in India because Indian companies were required to pay dividend distribution tax. The Indian Finance Act, 2020 has amended the dividend taxation framework effective April 1, 2020 and accordingly dividends would now be taxable in the hands of the shareholders at 20%, plus applicable surcharge and cess. Subsequent to the Indian Finance Act, 2020, “The Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Bill, 2020” (“the Bill”) was enacted into law and is effective retroactively to April 1, 2020. The Bill caps the maximum surcharge at 15% of the tax on dividend income earned by the Fund. The highest effective tax rate proposed for non-corporate entities on dividends will be 23.92%. Note the Fund will not obtain relief under the US-India tax treaty as the treaty rate of 25% is higher than the domestic rate. Any excess taxes withheld can be off-set against capital gains tax liability during the year or claimed as a refund in the annual tax return.

The income derived by the Fund from investment in Offshore Derivative Instruments should not be subject to tax in India under the provisions of the ITA subject to Indirect Transfer Provisions (defined below).

An Indian tax resident is subject to taxation in India on its worldwide income. A person is not considered an Indian tax resident if control and management of its affairs is situated wholly outside India during the year. As the control and management of the Fund's affairs will be situated wholly outside India, the Fund expects that it will not be considered an Indian resident for tax purposes.

Indian tax authorities have been examining claims of tax exemptions available under tax treaties, and they often challenge such claims for various reasons (for example, lack of substance in the relevant entity).

Indirect Transfer Provisions

The Indian Finance Act, 2012 introduced certain provisions (“Indirect Transfer Provisions”) for the levy of capital gains tax on income arising through the transfer of shares/interest in a company/entity organized outside India which derives, directly or indirectly, its value substantially from the assets located in India. Redemption of shares by the Fund generally will be treated as transfer of shares by the shareholders.

Gains arising on a transfer of the shares by the Fund (which would include the redemption of its shares by the Fund) will be taxable in India under the ITA if the shares of the Fund derive their value, directly or indirectly, substantially from assets located in India. In such a case, the payer would be required to withhold the applicable taxes. As per the amendments made by the Finance Act, 2015, applicable with effect from tax years beginning on or after April 1, 2015, the transfer of a share or interest in an offshore entity (like the Fund) shall be taxable in India if on the specified date, the fair market value of Indian assets exceeds the amount of INR 100 million and represents at least 50% of the value of all the assets owned by such offshore entity. The Indirect Transfer Provisions would be subject to the rules prescribed by the government with respect to certain specific aspects. Further, specific exemptions are provided to small shareholders who do not hold the right of management or control of the Fund and do not own 5% or more of the voting power or shares or interest in the Fund and in cases of offshore mergers and demergers subject to certain conditions.

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The Indirect Transfer Provisions shall not apply to any asset or capital asset (including shares) being investment held by non-resident shareholders, directly or indirectly, in a FPI registered as Category-I or Category-II with the Securities and Exchange Board of India. The said exemption is available to the shareholders of the Fund and not the Fund itself. For this purpose, an FII should qualify as an FPI under the Indian regulations. There are certain other exemptions also provided in the law for the shareholders of the Fund (on fulfilment of certain conditions).

Securities Transaction Tax

The exemption for long term capital gains and the reduction of the rate on short-term capital gains (as discussed above) are applicable only if the sale or transfer of the equity shares takes place on a recognized stock exchange in India and the STT, is collected by the respective stock exchanges at the applicable rates on the transaction value. The Fund will be liable to pay STT on purchase and sale of equity shares and units of a Business Trust, and on sale of units of equity oriented funds, where such transactions are entered on a recognized stock exchange in India, on the sale of options, on the sale of futures, on the sale of unlisted shares and units of a Business Trust under an offer for sale and on the sale of units of equity-oriented funds to the mutual fund. The applicable rates of STT are as follows:

(i)

0.1% on the value of transactions of delivery-based purchase of an equity share in a company or a unit of a Business Trust entered in a recognized stock exchange. STT is to be paid by the buyer;

(ii)

No STT is payable on the delivery-based purchase of a unit of an equity oriented mutual fund entered in a recognized stock exchange by the buyer;

(iii)

0.1% on the value of transactions of delivery-based sale of an equity share in a company or a unit of a Business Trust entered in a recognized stock exchange. STT is to be paid by the seller;

(iv)

0.001% on the value of transactions of delivery-based sale of a unit of an equity oriented mutual fund entered in a recognized stock exchange by the seller;

(v)

0.025% on the value of transactions of non-delivery-based sale of an equity share in a company or a unit of an equity oriented mutual fund or a unit of a Business Trust, entered in a recognized stock exchange. STT is to be paid by the seller;

(vi)

0.05% on the value of transactions of derivatives being options, entered in a recognized stock exchange. STT is to be paid by the seller;

(vii)

0.01% on the value of transactions of derivatives being futures, entered in a recognized stock exchange. STT is to be paid by the seller;

(viii)

0.001% on the value of transactions of sale of units of an equity-oriented fund to the Mutual Fund. STT is to be paid by the seller;

(ix)

0.125% on the value of transactions of sale of derivatives being options, where the option is exercised, entered in a recognized stock exchange. STT is to be paid by the buyer;

(x)

0.2% on the value of transaction of sale of unlisted shares by existing shareholders of a company under an offer for sale to the public included in an initial public offer and where such shares are subsequently listed on a recognized stock exchange. STT is to be paid by the seller.

(xi)

0.2% on the value of transaction of sale of unlisted units of a Business Trust by any holder of such units which were acquired in exchange of shares of a special purpose vehicle, under an offer for sale to the public included in an initial offer and where such shares are subsequently listed on a recognized stock exchange. STT is to be paid by the seller.

STT is not allowable as a deduction in computation of capital gains.

GAAR

General anti avoidance rules (“GAAR”) have been implemented in India with respect to income arising on or after April 1, 2017, and gains from investments made on or after this date are subject to GAAR. Under GAAR, the Indian tax authorities have been given the power to re characterize or disregard any arrangement which qualifies as an “impermissible avoidance

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arrangement” (“IAA”). IAA means an arrangement whose main purpose is to obtain a “tax benefit” (e.g., a reduction or avoidance of tax that would be payable under the ITA) and involves any of the following elements: non-arm's length dealings, misuse or abuse of the provisions of the ITA, lack of commercial substance or non-bona fide purposes. If any arrangement is determined by the Indian tax authorities to be an IAA, any benefits from a tax perspective available under the ITA may be eliminated, which may have a material adverse effect on the Fund's business and financial conditions and results of operations.

Determination of Net Asset Value

The following information supplements and should be read in conjunction with the section in the Prospectus entitled “Net Asset Value.”

The per share net asset value of a Fund is determined by dividing the total value of the securities and other assets, less liabilities, by the total number of shares outstanding. Under normal circumstances, daily calculation of the net asset value will utilize the last closing sale price of each security held by a Fund at the close of the market on which such security is principally listed. In determining net asset value, portfolio securities for a Fund for which accurate market quotations are readily available will be valued as follows:

(1)

Common stocks and other equity securities listed on any national or foreign exchange other than Nasdaq and the London Stock Exchange Alternative Investment Market (“AIM”) will be valued at the last sale price on the exchange on which they are principally traded, or the official closing price for Nasdaq and AIM securities. Portfolio securities traded on more than one securities exchange are valued at the last sale price or official closing price, as applicable, on the Business Day as of which such value is being determined at the close of the exchange representing the primary exchange for such securities.

(2)

Shares of open-end funds are valued at NAV per share.

(3)

Securities traded in the OTC market are valued at the mean of their most recent bid and asked price, if available, and otherwise at their last trade price.

(4)

Exchange-traded options and futures contracts are valued at the closing price in the market where such contracts are principally traded. If no closing price is available, they will be valued at the mean of their most recent bid and asked price, if available, and otherwise at their closing bid price. OTC options and futures contracts are valued at the mean of their most recent bid and asked price, if available, and otherwise at their last trade price.

(5)

Forward foreign currency contracts are valued at the current day’s interpolated foreign exchange rate, as calculated using the current day’s spot rate, and the 30-, 60-, 90- and 180- day forward rates provided by an independent pricing service or by certain independent dealers in such contracts.

In addition, the following types of securities will be fair valued as follows:

(1)

Fixed-income securities, convertible securities, preferred and hybrid securities, interest rate swaps, credit default swaps, total return swaps, currency swaps, swaptions, currency-linked notes, credit-linked notes, asset-backed securities, commercial mortgage-backed securities, residential mortgage-backed securities or private label collateralized mortgage obligations, collateralized debt obligations, collateralized loan obligations, senior loans and other similar instruments will be fair valued using a pricing service.

(2)

Commercial paper, fixed-income and other debt securities having a remaining maturity of 60 days or less when purchased are fair valued at cost adjusted for amortization of premiums and accretion of discounts (amortized cost), provided the Advisor has determined that the use of amortized cost is an appropriate reflection of fair value given market and issuer specific conditions existing at the time of the determination. Factors that may be considered in determining the appropriateness of the use of amortized cost include, but are not limited to, the following:

(i)

the credit conditions in the relevant market and changes thereto;

(ii)

the liquidity conditions in the relevant market and changes thereto;

(iii)

the interest rate conditions in the relevant market and changes thereto (such as significant changes in interest rates);

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(iv)

issuer-specific conditions (such as significant credit deterioration); and

(v)

any other market-based data the Advisor considers relevant. In this regard, the Advisor may use last-obtained market-based data to assist it when valuing portfolio securities using amortized cost.

(3)

Repurchase agreements will be valued as follows. Overnight repurchase agreements will be valued at cost when it represents the most appropriate reflection of fair market value. Term repurchase agreements (i.e., those whose maturity exceeds seven days) will be fair valued by the Advisor at the average of the bid quotations obtained.

If the Advisor has reason to question the accuracy or reliability of a price supplied or the use of the amortized cost methodology, the Advisor shall determine if “it needs to fair value” such portfolio security pursuant to established valuation procedures.  From time to time, the Advisor, Fund accounting agent, or relevant portfolio management team may submit price challenges to a pricing service, pursuant to a process described in the Fund's Valuation Procedures.

Certain securities may not be able to be priced by pre-established pricing methods. Such securities will be valued at fair value. These securities generally include, but are not limited to, restricted securities (securities that may not be publicly sold without registration under the 1933 Act) for which a pricing service is unable to provide a market price; securities whose trading has been formally suspended; a security whose market or fair value price is not available from a pre-established pricing source; a security with respect to which an event has occurred that is likely to materially affect the value of the security after the market has closed but before the calculation of Fund net asset value (as may be the case in foreign markets on which the security is primarily traded) or is likely to make it difficult or impossible to obtain a reliable market quotation; and a security whose price, as provided by the pricing service, does not, in the opinion of the Advisor, reflect the security’s fair value. Fair value prices represent any prices not considered market value prices and are either obtained from a pricing service or are determined by the Advisor.  Market value prices represent last sale or official closing prices from a national or foreign exchange (i.e., a regulated market) and are primarily obtained from pricing services.  If no market price or official close price is available from either a pricing service or no quotations are available from one or more brokers or if the Advisor has reason to question the reliability or accuracy of a price supplied or the use of amortized cost, the value of any portfolio security held by the Fund for which reliable market prices/quotations are not readily available will be determined by the Advisor in a manner that most appropriately reflects fair market value of the security on the valuation date, based on a consideration of all available information.  When fair value prices are used, generally they will differ from market quotations or official closing prices on the applicable exchange.

Because foreign markets may be open on different days than the days during which a shareholder may buy or sell shares of a Fund, the value of a Fund's investments may change on the days when shareholders are not able to buy or sell shares of the Fund. For foreign securities, if an extraordinary market event occurs between the time the last “current” market quotation is available for a security in a Fund’s portfolio and the time the Fund’s net asset value is determined and calls into doubt whether that earlier market quotation represents fair value at the time the Fund’s net asset value is determined, the Fund accounting agent will immediately notify the Advisor and the Advisor shall determine the fair valuation.  For foreign securities, the Advisor may seek to determine the “fair value” of such securities by retaining a pricing service to determine the value of the securities.

Foreign securities, currencies and other assets denominated in foreign currencies are translated into U.S. dollars at the exchange rate of such currencies against the U.S. dollar as provided by a pricing service.  All assets denominated in foreign currencies will be converted into U.S. dollars using exchange rates in effect at the time of valuation.

Dividends and Distributions

The following information supplements and should be read in conjunction with the section in the Prospectus entitled “Dividends, Distributions and Taxes.”

General Policies. Dividends from net investment income of the Funds, if any, are declared and paid quarterly. Distributions of net realized securities gains, if any, generally are declared and paid once a year, but the Trust may make distributions on a more frequent basis. The Trust reserves the right to declare special distributions if, in its reasonable discretion, such action is necessary or advisable to preserve the status of each Fund as a RIC or to avoid imposition of income or excise taxes on undistributed income.

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Dividends and other distributions of Fund shares are distributed, as described below, on a pro rata basis to Beneficial Owners of such shares. Dividend payments are made through DTC Participants and Indirect Participants to Beneficial Owners then of record with proceeds received from the Funds.

Dividend Reinvestment Service. No reinvestment service is provided by the Trust. Broker-dealers may make available the DTC book-entry Dividend Reinvestment Service for use by Beneficial Owners of the Funds for reinvestment of their dividend distributions. Beneficial Owners should contact their brokers in order to determine the availability and costs of the service and the details of participation therein. Brokers may require Beneficial Owners to adhere to specific procedures and timetables. If this service is available and used, dividend distributions of both income and realized gains will be automatically reinvested in additional whole shares of each Fund purchased in the secondary market.

Miscellaneous Information

Counsel. Chapman and Cutler LLP, 320 S. Canal St., Chicago, Illinois 60606, is counsel to the Trust.

Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm. Deloitte & Touche LLP, 111 South Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60606, serves as the Funds' independent registered public accounting firm. The firm audits each Fund's financial statements and performs other related audit services.

Financial Statements

The audited financial statements and notes thereto for the Funds, contained in the Annual Report to Shareholders dated December 31, 2022, are incorporated by reference into this Statement of Additional Information and have been audited by Deloitte & Touche LLP, independent registered public accounting firm, whose report also appears in the Annual Report and is also incorporated by reference herein. No other parts of the Annual Report are incorporated by reference herein. The Annual Report is available without charge by calling (800) 621-1675 or by visiting the SEC's website at www.sec.gov.

53

Exhibit A—Principal Holders Table 

NAME OF BENEFICIAL OWNER	% OF OUTSTANDING SHARES OWNED
FIRST TRUST ASIA PACIFIC EX-JAPAN ALPHADEX® FUND
TD Ameritrade Clearing, Inc.	24.24%
The Bank of New York Mellon	12.70%
BNP Paribas, New York Branch/Custody/Client Assets	12.41%
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.	10.29%
Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.	6.78%
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC	6.76%
LPL Financial LLC	6.38%
National Financial Services LLC	5.49%
FIRST TRUST BRAZIL ALPHADEX® FUND
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC/JPMC	23.70%
Huntington National Bank	15.38%
Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC	10.38%
National Financial Services LLC	9.55%
TD Ameritrade Clearing, Inc.	7.74%
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.	6.80%
FIRST TRUST CHINA ALPHADEX® FUND
LPL Financial LLC	18.76%
National Financial Services LLC	18.71%
BOFA Securities, Inc.	10.92%
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.	10.86%
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC/JPMC	9.39%
Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.	6.46%
FIRST TRUST DEVELOPED MARKETS EX-US ALPHADEX® FUND
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC	17.75%
TD Ameritrade Clearing, Inc.	11.01%
National Financial Services LLC	10.82%
LPL Financial LLC	9.61%
Pershing LLC	9.34%
Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC	7.13%
Raymond James & Associates, Inc.	5.89%
Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.	5.19%
FIRST TRUST DEVELOPED MARKETS EX-US SMALL CAP ALPHADEX® FUND
Pershing LLC	29.94%
TD Ameritrade Clearing, Inc.	17.68%
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.	17.51%
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC/JPMC	9.51%
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC	7.03%

A-1

NAME OF BENEFICIAL OWNER	% OF OUTSTANDING SHARES OWNED
FIRST TRUST EMERGING MARKETS ALPHADEX® FUND
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC	16.19%
Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC	12.44%
Pershing LLC	8.37%
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.	7.96%
TD Ameritrade Clearing, Inc.	7.44%
LPL Financial LLC	7.16%
National Financial Services LLC	6.40%
Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.	5.90%
Raymond James & Associates, Inc.	5.71%
UBS Financial Services Inc.	5.02%
FIRST TRUST EMERGING MARKETS SMALL CAP ALPHADEX® FUND
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC	15.80%
TD Ameritrade Clearing, Inc.	14.12%
Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC	13.92%
LPL Financial LLC	10.89%
Raymond James & Associates, Inc.	10.69%
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.	7.29%
National Financial Services LLC	6.38%
Pershing LLC	5.96%
FIRST TRUST EUROPE ALPHADEX® FUND
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC	15.77%
National Financial Services LLC	13.21%
Pershing LLC	11.74%
Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC	9.77%
RELIANCE TRUST COMPANY	6.59%
LPL Financial LLC	6.22%
TD Ameritrade Clearing, Inc.	5.23%
FIRST TRUST EUROZONE ALPHADEX® ETF
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC	51.95%
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.	9.42%
The Bank of New York Mellon	5.37%
FIRST TRUST GERMANY ALPHADEX® FUND
CITIBANK	17.22%
Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corporation	10.37%
TD Ameritrade Clearing, Inc.	10.11%
Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC	9.90%
Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC	9.24%
BOFA Securities, Inc.	9.00%
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC	8.24%
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC/JPMC	5.33%

A-2

NAME OF BENEFICIAL OWNER	% OF OUTSTANDING SHARES OWNED
FIRST TRUST JAPAN ALPHADEX® FUND
Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.	58.46%
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.	13.25%
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC	9.18%
National Financial Services LLC	5.54%
FIRST TRUST LATIN AMERICA ALPHADEX® FUND
Brown Brothers Harriman & Co./ETF	77.45%
FIRST TRUST SWITZERLAND ALPHADEX® FUND
Brown Brothers Harriman & Co./ETF	58.09%
Pershing LLC	9.13%
National Financial Services LLC	8.69%
FIRST TRUST INDIA NIFTY 50 EQUAL WEIGHT ETF
Brown Brothers Harriman & Co./ETF	62.96%
FIRST TRUST UNITED KINGDOM ALPHADEX® FUND
National Financial Services LLC	12.92%
The Northern Trust Company	12.26%
Brown Brothers Harriman & Co./ETF	10.74%
Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC	9.26%
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC/JPMC	7.56%
The Bank of New York Mellon	7.38%
Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC	7.31%
Jane Tree Capital LLC	5.64%

BNP Paribas, New York Branch/Custody/Client Assets: 525 Washington Blvd., 9th Floor, Jersey City, New Jersey 07310

BOFA Securities, Inc.: 4804 Deer Lake Dr E, Jacksonville, Florida 32246

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.: 525 Washington Boulevard, Jersey City, New Jersey 07310

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co./ETF: 525 Washington Boulevard, Jersey City, New Jersey 07310

Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.: 2423 East Lincoln Drive, Phoenix, Arizona 85016

CITIBANK: 3801 Citibank Center, B/3Rd Floor/Zone 12, Tampa, Florida 33610

Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC: 30 Hudson Street, Jersey City, New Jersey 07302

Huntington National Bank: 555 Cleveland Ave, Columbus, Ohio 43231

J.P. Morgan Securities LLC/JPMC: 500 Stanton Christiana Road, NCC5, Newark, Delaware 19713

Jane Tree Capital LLC: 250 Vesey Street, New York, New York 10281

LPL Financial LLC: 1055 LPL Way, Fort Mill, South Carolina 29715

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corporation: 1221 Avenue of the Americas, 10th Floor, New York, New York 10020

Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC: 1300 Thames Street 6th Floor, Baltimore, Maryland 21231

National Financial Services LLC: 499 Washington Boulevard, Jersey City, New Jersey 07310

Pershing LLC: One Pershing Plaza, Jersey City, New Jersey 07399

Raymond James & Associates, Inc.: 880 Carillon Parkway, St. Petersburg, Florida 33716

RELIANCE TRUST COMPANY: 1100 Abernathy Road NE Suite 400, Atlanta, Georgia 30328

TD Ameritrade Clearing, Inc.: 200 South 108th Avenue, Omaha, Nebraska 68154

The Bank of New York Mellon: 525 William Penn Place Suite 153-0400, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15259

The Northern Trust Company: 801 S. Canal Street, Chicago, Illinois 60607

UBS Financial Services Inc.: 1000 Harbor Boulevard, Weehawken, New Jersey 07086

Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC: 2801 Market Street H0006-09B, St. Louis, Missouri 63103

A-3

Exhibit B—Proxy Voting Guidelines

FIRST TRUST ADVISORS L.P.
PROXY VOTING GUIDELINES

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“FTA” or the “Adviser”) serves as investment adviser to separately managed accounts, open- and closed-end investment companies, and other collective investments (“Clients”). As part of these services, the Adviser has, in most cases, agreed to or been delegated proxy voting responsibility on such Clients’ behalf (“Proxy Clients”). FTA is required to adopt and implement policies and procedures reasonably designed to ensure proxy voting on behalf of Proxy Clients is conducted in a manner that is in their best interests and addresses how conflicts of interest between FTA interests and Proxy Client interests are managed. FTA has adopted the following policies and procedures to comply with this requirement (the “Policy”).

(1)

It is the Adviser’s policy to seek and to ensure that proxies are voted consistently and in the best economic interests of the Proxy Client. The FTA Investment Committee is responsible for the implementation of the Policy.

(2)

The Adviser engaged Institutional Shareholder Services (“ISS”) to provide proxy research, recommendations, and voting services. ISS provides a password protected website which is accessible to authorized FTA personnel to download upcoming proxy meeting data, including research reports, of companies held in Proxy Client portfolios. The website can be used to view proposed proxy votes, to enter votes for upcoming meetings for Proxy Client portfolio securities.

(3)

FTA will generally follow the ISS Proxy Voting Guidelines (the “Guidelines”) to vote proxies for Proxy Client accounts, so long as such Guidelines are considered to be in the best interests of the Proxy Client, and there are no noted or perceived conflicts of interest. FTA’s use of the Guidelines is not intended to constrain FTA’s consideration of any proxy proposal, and there are times when FTA deviates from the Guidelines. This includes when required by Rule 12d1-4 agreements between Fund Proxy Clients and certain acquired funds, if applicable. Generally, FTA will not rely on ISS Proxy Voting Guidelines to withhold votes or vote against (i) directors solely based on quota criteria or (ii) the exclusion of certain climate-related disclosures, which may or may not relate to the company’s core business or may not materially impact shareholder value. In such cases, FTA will consider such proxy voting decisions in light of merit-based considerations which it believes may impact shareholder value. FTA retains final authority and fiduciary responsibility for proxy voting.

In certain circumstances, where FTA has determined that it is consistent with Proxy Client best interests, FTA will not vote a proxy on behalf of one or more Proxy Clients. Such circumstances include:

(a)

Limited Value. Proxies will not be required to be voted on securities in a Proxy Client account if the value of the Proxy Client’s economic interest in the securities is indeterminable or insignificant (less than $1,000). Proxies will also not be required to be voted for any securities that are no longer held in Proxy Client account(s).

(b)

Securities Lending Program. When securities are out on loan, they are transferred into the borrower’s name and are voted by the borrower, in its discretion. In most cases, FTA will not recall securities on loan in order to vote a proxy. However, where FTA determines that a proxy vote, or other shareholder action, is materially important to the Proxy Client’s account, FTA will make a good faith effort to recall the security for purposes of voting, understanding that in certain cases, the attempt to recall the security may not be effective in time to meet voting deadlines.

(c)

Unjustifiable Costs. In certain circumstances, based on cost-benefit analysis, FTA may choose not to vote when the cost of voting on behalf of a Proxy Client would exceed any anticipated benefits of the proxy proposal to such Proxy Client (e.g. foreign securities).

(d)

International Markets Share Blocking. Share blocking is the “freezing” of shares for trading purposes at the custodian/sub-custodian bank level in order to vote proxies. While shares are frozen, they may not be traded. Therefore, the potential exists for a pending trade to fail if trade settlement falls on a date during the blocking period. In international markets where share blocking applies, FTA typically will not, but reserves the right to, vote proxies due to the liquidity constraints associated with share blocking.

B-1

(4)

On a weekly basis, a member of FTA Portfolio and Product Management reviews ISS Level Classification and Quality Scores for new proxies. For any proxy meeting deemed material1 by this review a copy of the ISS research report will be submitted to FTA Research for review and to determine if they agree with the Guidelines. Research will also review the recommendations of target company management and may review information publicly available about the target company, including original and subsequent amendments to the ISS research report, EDGAR filings and any noted conflicts of interest. FTA Research will communicate its determination to the FTA Investment Committee. All other non-material matters will be further reviewed only at the discretion of the FTA Investment Committee, Portfolio Management or Research.

(5)

FTA may determine voting in accordance with the Guidelines is not in the best interests of a Proxy Client. Whenever a conflict of interest arises between ISS and a target company subject to a proxy vote, the Adviser will consider the recommendation of the company and what the Adviser believes to be in the best interests of the Proxy Client and will vote the proxy without using the Guidelines. If FTA has knowledge of a material conflict of interest between itself and a Proxy Client, the Adviser shall vote the applicable proxy in accordance with the Guidelines to avoid such conflict of interest. If there is a decision to vote against the Guidelines, the FTA Investment Committee will document the reason and instruct ISS to change the vote to reflect this decision.

If there is a conflict of interest between a Fund Proxy Client and FTA or other fund service providers, FTA will vote the proxy based on the Guidelines to avoid such conflict of interest.

(6)

If a Proxy Client requests the Adviser to follow specific voting guidelines or additional guidelines, the Adviser shall review the request and follow such guidelines, unless the Adviser determines that it is unable to do so. In such case, the Adviser shall inform the Proxy Client that it is not able to honor the Proxy Client’s request.

(7)

FTA periodically reviews proxy votes to ensure compliance with this Policy.

(8)

This Policy, the Guidelines and votes cast for Proxy Clients are available upon request and such Proxy Client requests must be forwarded to FTA Compliance for review and response. This Policy is also provided with each advisory contract and described and provided with the Form ADV, Part 2A.

Shareholders of Fund Proxy Clients can review the Policy and a Fund’s voted proxies (if any) during the most recent 12-month period ended June 30 on the First Trust website at www.ftportfolios.com or by accessing EDGAR on the SEC website at www.sec.gov.

(9)

FTA provides reasonable ongoing oversight of ISS and maintains the following records relating to proxy voting:

(a)

a copy of this Policy;

(b)

a copy of each proxy form for which it is responsible to vote;

(c)

a copy of each proxy solicitation, including proxy statements and related materials with regard to each proxy issue it votes;

(d)

documents relating to the identification and resolution of conflicts of interest, if any;

(e)

any documents created by FTA that were material to a proxy voting decision or that memorialized the basis for that decision; and

(f)

a copy of each written request from any Proxy Client for information on how FTA voted proxies on the Proxy Client’s behalf, and a copy of any written response by FTA to any written or oral request for information by a Proxy Client on how FTA voted proxies for that Proxy Client’s account.

(10)

ISS, on FTA’s behalf, maintains the following records relating to FTA proxy voting:

(a)

a copy of each proxy form (as voted);

1

Materiality is generally defined as any proxy with a Classification Level of 4 or higher or a target company’s governance Quality Score of 10. See below for a description of Classification Levels. Quality Score indicates a company’s governance risk (board structure, compensation programs, shareholder rights, and audit and risk oversight). The lowest score of 1 indicates relatively higher quality governance practices and relatively lower governance risk and conversely, the highest score of 10 indicates relatively higher governance risk.

B-2

(b)

a copy of each proxy solicitation, including proxy statements and related materials with regard to each vote;

(c)

documents relating to the identification and resolution of conflicts of interest it identifies, if any; and

(d)

any documents created by ISS that were material to a proxy voting decision or that memorialized the basis for that decision.

These records are either maintained at FTA’s office or are electronically available to FTA through access to the ISS Proxy Exchange portal.

ISS Level Classification Descriptions

Level 1 – Election of directors (except for proxy contests); fix number of directors; ratification of auditors; name change; change in date of time of meeting; adjourn meeting; other business; can include shareholder proposals.

Level 2 – Employee stock purchase plans; increase in stock (except for private placements); reverse stock splits; standard corporate governance provisions (declassifying the board, supermajority votes, etc.); social/environmental/human rights proposals; standard mutual fund proposals (except for advisory agreements, proposals to open-end the fund).

Level 3 – Compensation Plans.

Level 4 – Private Placements; formation of a holding company; anti-takeover proposals (poison pills, fair price provisions, etc.); reincorporation; director and officer liability indemnification; conversion of securities; liquidation of assets; mutual fund advisory agreements.

Level 5 – Mergers; acquisitions; sale of assets; conversion of closed-end fund to open-end; reorganization; restructuring.

Level 6 – Proxy Contests.

Adopted: September 15, 2003
Amended: December 10, 2007
Amended: September 21, 2009
Amended: September 12, 2016
Amended: March 9, 2020
Amended: June 7, 2021
Amended: January 19, 2022
Amended: May 13, 2022
Amended: September 22, 2022

B-3

 

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX^® Fund II

Part C – Other Information

Item 28. Exhibits

Exhibit No. Description

(a) (1) Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust is incorporated by reference to the post-effective Amendment no. 80 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on January 19, 2018.

(2) Amended and Restated Establishment and Designation of Series is incorporated by reference to the post-effective Amendment no. 83 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on April 17, 2018.

(b) By-Laws of the Registrant is incorporated by reference to the initial Registration Statement filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on January 19, 2011.

(c) Not Applicable.

(d) (1) Investment Management Agreement, dated April 8, 2011, is incorporated by reference to the post-effective Amendment no. 10 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on April 30, 2012.

(2) Investment Management Agreement by and between the Registrant and First Trust Advisors L.P., dated October 16, 2014, relating to First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX^® ETF is incorporated by reference to the post-effective Amendment no. 51 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on April 22, 2015.

(e) (1) Distribution Agreement is incorporated by reference to the post-effective Amendment no. 10 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on April 30, 2012.

(2) Exhibit A to Distribution Agreement is incorporated by reference to the post-effective Amendment no. 51 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on April 22, 2015.

(f) Not Applicable.

(g) (1) Custodian Agreement between the Registrant and Brown Brothers Harriman & Co., dated as of April 8, 2011, is incorporated by reference to the post-effective Amendment no. 10 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on April 30, 2012.

(2) Schedule A to Custodian Agreement by and between the Registrant and Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. is incorporated by reference to the post-effective Amendment no. 83 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on April 17, 2018.

(h) (1) Administrative Agency Agreement between the Registrant and Brown Brothers Harriman & Co., dated as of April 8, 2011, is incorporated by reference to the post-effective Amendment no. 10 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on April 30, 2012.

(2) Appendix A to Administrative Agency Agreement between the Registrant and Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. is incorporated by reference to the post-effective Amendment no. 83 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on April 17, 2018.

(3) Form of Subscription Agreement. is incorporated by reference to the pre-effective Amendment no. 1 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on April 8, 2011.

(4) Form of Participant Agreement. is incorporated by reference to the post-effective Amendment no. 10 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on April 30, 2012.

(i) Not Applicable.

(j) Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm is filed herewith.

(k) Not Applicable.

(l) Not Applicable.

(m) (1) 12b-1 Service Plan is incorporated by reference to the pre-effective Amendment no. 1 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on April 8, 2011.

(2) Exhibit A of the 12b-1 Service Plan is incorporated by reference to the post-effective Amendment no. 83 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on April 17, 2018.

(3) 12b-1 Plan Extension Letter Agreement is filed herewith

(n) Not Applicable.

(o) Not Applicable.

(p) (1) First Trust Advisors L.P., First Trust Portfolios L.P. Code of Ethics, amended on July 1, 2013. is incorporated by reference to the post-effective Amendment no. 47 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on October 10, 2014.

(2) First Trust Funds Code of Ethics, amended on October 30, 2013. is incorporated by reference to the post-effective Amendment no. 47 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-171759) for Registrant on October 10, 2014.

(q) (1) Powers of Attorney of Messrs. Bowen, Erickson, Kadlec, Keith and Nielson, dated December 31, 2015, is incorporated by reference to the post-effective Amendment no. 65 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-182308) for Registrant on February 16, 2016.

(2) Powers of Attorney of Ms. Keefe, dated November 1, 2021, is incorporated by reference to the post-effective Amendment no. 92 filed on Form N-1A (File No. 333-182308) for Registrant on April 29, 2022.

Item 29. Persons Controlled By or Under Common Control with Registrant

Not Applicable.

Item 30. Indemnification

Section 9.5 of the Registrant’s Declaration of Trust provides as follows:

Section 9.5. Indemnification and Advancement of Expenses. Subject to the exceptions and limitations contained in this Section 9.5, every person who is, or has been, a Trustee, officer, or employee of the Trust, including persons who serve at the request of the Trust as directors, trustees, officers, employees or agents of another organization in which the Trust has an interest as a shareholder, creditor or otherwise (hereinafter referred to as a "Covered Person"), shall be indemnified by the Trust to the fullest extent permitted by law against liability and against all expenses reasonably incurred or paid by him or in connection with any claim, action, suit or proceeding in which he becomes involved as a party or otherwise by virtue of his being or having been such a Trustee, director, officer, employee or agent and against amounts paid or incurred by him in settlement thereof.

No indemnification shall be provided hereunder to a Covered Person to the extent such indemnification is prohibited by applicable federal law.

The rights of indemnification herein provided may be insured against by policies maintained by the Trust, shall be severable, shall not affect any other rights to which any Covered Person may now or hereafter be entitled, shall continue as to a person who has ceased to be such a Covered Person and shall inure to the benefit of the heirs, executors and administrators of such a person.

Subject to applicable federal law, expenses of preparation and presentation of a defense to any claim, action, suit or proceeding subject to a claim for indemnification under this Section 9.5 shall be advanced by the Trust prior to final disposition thereof upon receipt of an undertaking by or on behalf of the recipient to repay such amount if it is ultimately determined that he is not entitled to indemnification under this Section 9.5.

To the extent that any determination is required to be made as to whether a Covered Person engaged in conduct for which indemnification is not provided as described herein, or as to whether there is reason to believe that a Covered Person ultimately will be found entitled to indemnification, the Person or Persons making the determination shall afford the Covered Person a rebuttable presumption that the Covered Person has not engaged in such conduct and that there is reason to believe that the Covered Person ultimately will be found entitled to indemnification.

As used in this Section 9.5, the words "claim," "action," "suit" or "proceeding" shall apply to all claims, demands, actions, suits, investigations, regulatory inquiries, proceedings or any other occurrence of a similar nature, whether actual or threatened and whether civil, criminal, administrative or other, including appeals, and the words "liability" and "expenses" shall include without limitation, attorneys' fees, costs, judgments, amounts paid in settlement, fines, penalties and other liabilities.

Item 31. Business and Other Connections of the Investment Adviser

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust”), investment adviser to the Registrant, serves as adviser or sub-adviser to various other open-end and closed-end management investment companies and is the portfolio supervisor of certain unit investment trusts. The principal business of certain of First Trust’s principal executive officers involves various activities in connection with the family of unit investment trusts sponsored by First Trust Portfolios L.P. (“FTP”). The principal address for all these investment companies, First Trust, FTP and the persons below is 120 East Liberty Drive, Suite 400, Wheaton, Illinois 60187.

A description of any business, profession, vocation or employment of a substantial nature in which the officers of First Trust who serve as officers or trustees of the Registrant have engaged during the last two years for his or her account or in the capacity of director, officer, employee, partner or trustee appears under “Management of the Fund” in the Statement of Additional Information. Such information for the remaining senior officers of First Trust appears below:

Name and Position with First Trust	Employment During Past Two Years
Andrew S. Roggensack, President	Managing Director and President, First Trust
R. Scott Hall, Managing Director	Managing Director, First Trust
David G. McGarel, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director	Managing Director; Senior Vice President, First Trust
Kelly C. Dehler,  Chief Compliance Officer	Assistant General Counsel, First Trust
Brian Wesbury, Chief Economist and Senior Vice President	Chief Economist and Senior Vice President, First Trust

Item 32. Principal Underwriter

(a) FTP serves as principal underwriter of the shares of the Registrant, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund II, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund III, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund IV, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund V, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund VI, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund VII, First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund VIII, First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Series Fund and First Trust Variable Insurance Trust. FTP serves as principal underwriter and depositor of the following investment companies registered as unit investment trusts: the First Trust Combined Series, FT Series (formerly known as the First Trust Special Situations Trust), the First Trust Insured Corporate Trust, the First Trust of Insured Municipal Bonds, and the First Trust GNMA. The name of each director, officer and partner of FTP is provided below.

(b) Positions and Offices with Underwriter.

Name and Principal Business Address*	Positions and Offices with Underwriter	Positions and Offices with Fund
The Charger Corporation	General Partner	None
Grace Partners of DuPage L.P.	Limited Partner	None
James A. Bowen	Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director	Trustee and Chairman of the Board
James M. Dykas	Chief Financial Officer	President and Chief Executive Officer
Frank L. Fichera	Managing Director	None
R. Scott Hall	Managing Director	None
W. Scott Jardine	General Counsel, Secretary and Managing Director	Secretary
Daniel J. Lindquist	Managing Director	Vice President
David G. McGarel	Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director	None
Richard A. Olson	Managing Director	None
Marisa Bowen	Managing Director	None
Andrew S. Roggensack	President and Managing Director	None
Kristi A. Maher	Deputy General Counsel	Chief Compliance Officer and Assistant Secretary
* All addresses are 120 East Liberty Drive, Wheaton, Illinois 60187.

(c) Not Applicable.

Item 33. Location of Accounts and Records

First Trust, 120 East Liberty Drive, Wheaton, Illinois 60187, maintains the Registrant’s organizational documents, minutes of meetings, contracts of the Registrant and all advisory material of the investment adviser.

Item 34. Management Services

Not Applicable.

Item 35. Undertakings

Not Applicable.

 

Signatures

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Registrant certifies that it meets all of the requirements for effectiveness of this Registration Statement under Rule 485(b) under the Securities Act of 1933 and has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, duly authorized in the City of Wheaton, and State of Illinois, on the 28th day of April, 2023.

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II
By:	/s/ James M. Dykas
	James M. Dykas, President and Chief Executive Officer

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this Registration Statement has been signed below by the following persons in the capacities and on the date indicated: 

Signature	Title		Date
/s/ James M. Dykas	President and Chief Executive Officer		April 28, 2023
James M. Dykas
/s/ Donald P. Swade	Treasurer, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer		April 28, 2023
Donald P. Swade
James A. Bowen*	) Trustee )
	)
Richard E. Erickson*	) Trustee )
	)
Thomas R. Kadlec*	) Trustee )
	)
Denise M. Keefe*	) Trustee )
	)
Robert F. Keith*	) Trustee )
	)	By:	/s/ W. Scott Jardine
Niel B. Nielson *	) Trustee )		W. Scott Jardine Attorney-In-Fact
	)		April 28, 2023

* Original powers of attorney dated December 31, 2015 or November 1, 2021, authorizing James A. Bowen, W. Scott Jardine, James M. Dykas, Eric F. Fess and Kristi A. Maher to execute Registrant's Registration Statement, and Amendments thereto, for each of the trustees of the Registrant on whose behalf this Registration Statement is filed, were previously executed, filed as an exhibit and are incorporated by reference herein.

Index to Exhibits

(j) Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm.

(m)(3) 12b-1 Plan Extension Letter Agreement.

EX-99.J OTHER OPININ

CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

We consent to the incorporation by reference in this Post-Effective Amendment to Registration Statement No. 333-171759 on Form N-1A of our report dated February 23, 2023, relating to the financial statements and financial highlights of First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust China AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Europe AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX^® ETF, First Trust Germany AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF, First Trust Japan AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX^® Fund, First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX^® Fund, and First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX^® Fund, each a series of First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX^® Fund II, appearing in the Annual Report on Form N-CSR for First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX^® Fund II as of and for the year ended December 31, 2022, and to the references to us under the headings “Financial Highlights” in the Prospectus and “Additional Information”, “Miscellaneous Information”, and “Financial Statements” in the Statement of Additional Information, which are part of such Registration Statement.

/s/ DELOITTE & TOUCHE LLP

Chicago, Illinois

April 28, 2023

EX-99.M 12B-1 PLAN

June 13, 2022

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX^® Fund II

120 East Liberty Drive, Suite 400

Wheaton, Illinois 60187

Re: 12b-1 Plan Extension Letter for First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX^® Fund II (the “Trust”).

Ladies and Gentlemen:

It is hereby acknowledged that First Trust Portfolios L.P. serves as the distributor of the shares of each series of the Trust. The Trust is an open-end management investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), comprised of various exchange-traded funds (each, a “Fund,” and, collectively, the “Funds”) set forth on Exhibit A attached hereto, which may be supplemented to add new Funds.

It is further acknowledged that the Trust has adopted a Distribution and Service Plan (the “Plan”) pursuant to Rule l2b-1 under the 1940 Act with respect to the shares of beneficial interest (“Shares”) of the Funds. Pursuant to the Plan, each Fund may bear a fee not to exceed 0.25% per annum of such Fund’s average daily net assets.

The purpose of this letter agreement is to agree and acknowledge that the Funds shall not pay, and we shall not collect, any fees pursuant to the Plan any time before the date set forth on Exhibit A attached hereto for each Fund.

Very Truly Yours,

First Trust Portfolios L.P.

   /s/ James M. Dykas            

James M. Dykas

Chief Financial Officer

Agreed and Acknowledged:

First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX® Fund II

   /s/ Donald P. Swade             

Donald P. Swade

Treasurer, Chief Financial Officer and

Chief Accounting Officer

Exhibit A

Funds	Dates
First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX®Fund II
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund	April 30, 2024
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund	April 30, 2024
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	April 30, 2024
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund	April 30, 2024
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund	April 30, 2024
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund	April 30, 2024
First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund	April 30, 2024
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund	April 30, 2024
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund	April 30, 2024
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund	April 30, 2024
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund	April 30, 2024
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	April 30, 2024
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund	April 30, 2024
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF	April 30, 2024
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF	April 30, 2024

XML

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Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Document Type	dei_DocumentType	485BPOS
Period End Date	dei_DocumentPeriodEndDate	Apr. 28, 2023
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
CIK	dei_EntityCentralIndexKey	0001510337
Amendment Flag	dei_AmendmentFlag	false
Document Created Date	dei_DocumentCreationDate	Apr. 28, 2023
Effective Date	dei_DocumentEffectiveDate	May 01, 2023
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
Entity Inv Company Type	dei_EntityInvCompanyType	N-1A

XML

Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	Summary Information
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Investment Objective</span>
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index (the “Index”).
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Fees and Expenses of the Fund</span>
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]	rr_ShareholderFeesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Shareholder Fees</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(fees paid directly from your investment)</span>
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Fund Operating Expenses</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Portfolio Turnover</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock	The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 82% of the average value of its portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	82.00%
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-style:italic;font-weight:bold;">Example</span>
Expense Example, No Redemption Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionNarrativeTextBlock	The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Investment Strategies</span>
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in the Asia Pacific region excluding Japan, as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in the Asia Pacific region excluding Japan, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:1.The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.2.The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; stocks of companies in emerging markets and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.329 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.3.For South Korean stocks currently at their foreign ownership limit, the direct listed security is replaced in the universe with its depositary receipt if available (subject to above liquidity requirements). If none is available, the stock is excluded.4.The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.5.The top 100 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 4 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.6.The Index is subject to sector/country weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector/country percentages of the Base Index. A stock will be moved to a lower-weighted quintile when its weight, added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector/country, is greater than the sector/country weighting constraint. Stocks that fail the sector/country weighting constraints at the lowest quintile will be removed from the Index.The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 101 securities and the Fund had significant investments in materials companies, Australian issuers, South Korean issuers and Asian issuers, although this may change from time to time. In order to gain exposure to certain Chinese companies that are included in the Index but are unavailable to direct investment by foreign investors, the Fund invests significantly in non-Chinese shell companies that have created structures known as variable interest entities (“VIEs”) in order to gain exposure to such Chinese companies. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Risks</span>
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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.ASIA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian issuers. Many Asian economies have experienced rapid growth and industrialization, and there is no assurance that this growth rate will be maintained. Some Asian economies are highly dependent on trade, and economic conditions in other countries within and outside Asia can impact these economies. Certain of these economies may be adversely affected by trade or policy disputes with its major trade partners. There is also a high concentration of market capitalization and trading volume in a small number of issuers representing a limited number of industries, as well as a high concentration of investors and financial intermediaries. Certain Asian countries have experienced and may in the future experience expropriation and nationalization of assets, confiscatory taxation, currency manipulation, political instability, armed conflict and social instability as a result of religious, ethnic, socio-economic and/or political unrest. In particular, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Asian economies. Governments of certain Asian countries have exercised, and continue to exercise, substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector. In certain cases, the government owns or controls many companies, including the largest in the country. Accordingly, government actions could have a significant effect on the issuers of the Fund’s securities or on economic conditions generally. Recent developments in relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on the economy of Asian countries and a commensurately negative impact on the Fund.ASIA-PACIFIC RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian-Pacific issuers. This includes risks associated with the economic, market, regulatory, political, natural disasters and local risks of the Asia-Pacific region, which are heightened as compared to a fund with a more geographically diversified portfolio. The region has historically been highly dependent on global trade with nations taking strong roles in both the importing and exporting of goods. The respective stock markets in the region tend to have a larger prevalence of smaller companies that are inherently more volatile and less liquid than larger companies. Varying levels of accounting and disclosure standards, restrictions on foreign ownership, minority ownership rights and corporate governance standards are also common for the region.AUSTRALIA RISK. Investing in securities of Australian companies may involve additional risks. The Australian economy is heavily dependent on the Asian, European and U.S. markets. Reduced spending by any of these economies on Australian products may adversely affect the Australian market. Additionally, Australia is located in a geographic region that has historically been prone to natural disasters. The occurrence of a natural disaster in the region could negatively impact the Australian economy and affect the value of the securities held by the Fund.AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund will effect some or all of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects all of its creations and redemptions in-kind. Because the Fund may effect redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of portfolio securities may result in capital gains or losses and may also result in higher brokerage costs.CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.MATERIALS COMPANIES RISK. Materials and processing companies are involved in the extraction or processing of raw materials such as metals, ore and forestry products. These companies are sensitive to changes in the business cycle and fluctuations in the supply and demand for raw materials. Further, certain materials and processing companies can be affected by shifts in the housing market, as many produced raw materials are components of construction projects. Rising wage costs can also impact companies that rely on skilled labor. In addition, materials and processing companies may be significantly affected by volatility of commodity prices, import controls, worldwide competition, liability for environmental damage, depletion of resources and mandated expenditures for safety and pollution control devices.NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.SOUTH KOREA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of South Korean issuers. Substantial political tensions exist between North Korea and South Korea. Escalated tensions involving the two nations and the outbreak of hostilities between the two nations, or even the threat of an outbreak of hostilities, could have a severe adverse effect on the South Korean economy. In addition, South Korea’s economic growth potential has recently been on a decline because of a rapidly aging population and structural problems, among other factors. The South Korean economy is heavily reliant on trading exports, especially to other Asian countries and the U.S., and disruptions or decreases in trade activity could lead to further declines. The South Korean economy’s dependence on the economies of Asia and the U.S. means that a reduction in spending by these economies on South Korean products and services or negative changes in any of these economies may cause an adverse impact on the South Korean economy and therefore, on the Fund’s investments. In addition, South Korea is located in a part of the world that has historically been prone to natural disasters such as earthquakes, hurricanes or tsunamis, and is economically sensitive to environmental events. Any such event may adversely impact South Korea’s economy or business operations of companies in South Korea.TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES RISK. In China, direct ownership of companies in certain sectors by foreign individuals and entities is prohibited. In order to allow for foreign investment in these businesses, many Chinese companies have created VIE structures to enable indirect foreign ownership. In such an arrangement, a Chinese operating company typically establishes an offshore shell company in another jurisdiction, such as the Cayman Islands. That shell company enters into service and other contracts with the Chinese issuer or operating company to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese company, then issues shares on an exchange outside of mainland China, and U.S. investors hold stock in the non-Chinese shell company rather than directly in the Chinese issuer or operating company. This arrangement allows U.S. investors, such as the Fund, to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese issuer or operating company through contractual means rather than through formal equity ownership. Because neither the shell company nor the Fund owns actual equity interests in the Chinese operating company, they do not have the voting rights or other types of control that an equity holder would expect to benefit from. Although VIEs are a longstanding industry practice and well known to officials and regulators in China, VIEs are not formally recognized under Chinese law. Intervention by the Chinese government with respect to VIEs could significantly affect the Chinese company’s performance and the enforceability of the VIE’s contractual arrangements that establish the links between the Chinese company and the shell company in which the Fund invests. This could considerably impact the financial condition of the shell company in which the Fund invests by limiting its ability to consolidate the financial results of the Chinese operating company into its own financial statements, as well as make the value of the shares held by the Fund effectively worthless. Further, if Chinese officials prohibit the existence of VIEs, the market value of the Fund’s associated holdings would likely suffer significant, and possibly permanent effects, which could negatively impact the Fund’s net asset value and could result in substantial losses. Further, it is uncertain whether any new laws, rules or regulations relating to VIE structures will be adopted or, if adopted, what impact they would have on the value of the Fund’s shares.VIEs are also subject to the investment risks associated with the underlying Chinese issuer or operating company. Chinese companies are not subject to the same degree of regulatory requirements or accounting standards and oversight as companies in more developed countries. As a result, information about the Chinese securities and VIEs in which the Fund invests may be less reliable and incomplete. There also may be significant obstacles to obtaining information necessary for investigations into or litigation against Chinese companies and VIEs, and shareholders may have limited legal remedies, which could negatively impact the Fund. Additionally, U.S.-listed VIEs may be delisted if they do not meet U.S. accounting standards and auditor oversight requirements. Delisting would significantly decrease the liquidity and value of the securities, decrease the ability of the Fund to invest in such securities and may increase the cost of the Fund if required to seek alternative markets in which to invest in such securities.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Total Return</span>
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.On October 13, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of December 15, 2014, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:7pt;font-weight:bold;position:relative;top:-3.25pt;">®</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;"> Fund</span> <br/><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:0%;">Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31</span>
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the periods shown in the chart above:Best QuarterWorst Quarter24.28%June 30, 2020-30.45%March 31, 2020
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022</span>
Performance Table Narrative	rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX Fund | First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)[ctag:span_t-rule1]	rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice	none
Management Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule]	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule3]	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.80%
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01	$ 82
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03	255
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05	444
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10	$ 990
2013	rr_AnnualReturn2013	3.83%
2014	rr_AnnualReturn2014	4.23%
2015	rr_AnnualReturn2015	0.97%
2016	rr_AnnualReturn2016	0.29%
2017	rr_AnnualReturn2017	35.93%
2018	rr_AnnualReturn2018	(20.71%)
2019	rr_AnnualReturn2019	7.35%
2020	rr_AnnualReturn2020	14.89%
2021	rr_AnnualReturn2021	2.75%
2022	rr_AnnualReturn2022	(15.62%)
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Best Quarter</span>
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Jun. 30, 2020
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	24.28%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Worst Quarter</span>
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Mar. 31, 2020
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(30.45%)
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(15.62%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(3.25%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	2.36%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	1.65%
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Apr. 18, 2011
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions | First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(17.00%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(4.57%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	1.06%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	0.42%
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions and sale of fund shares | First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(9.23%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(2.92%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	1.27%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	0.75%
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(14.51%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(2.24%)	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq DM Asia Pacific Ex-Japan Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(13.59%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	0.83%	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX Fund | MSCI Pacific ex-Japan Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(5.94%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	2.18%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	3.81%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	3.55%

[1] Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

XML

Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	Summary Information
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Investment Objective</span>
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Brazil Index (the “Index”).
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Fees and Expenses of the Fund</span>
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]	rr_ShareholderFeesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Shareholder Fees</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(fees paid directly from your investment)</span>
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Fund Operating Expenses</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Portfolio Turnover</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock	The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 95% of the average value of its portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	95.00%
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-style:italic;font-weight:bold;">Example</span>
Expense Example, No Redemption Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionNarrativeTextBlock	The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Investment Strategies</span>
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in Brazil, as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. Brazil is an emerging market country, as classified by the Index Provider, based on factors such as national income per capita, national market capitalization and national trading volume. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Brazil Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in Brazil, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:1.The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.2.The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.329 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.3.The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.4.The top 50 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.5.The Index is subject to sector weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector percentages of the Base Index. For example, if financial companies comprise 15% of the Base Index, the Index will be comprised of no more than 30% financials. Stocks will fail the sector constraint if the weight assigned to the stock, when added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector, is greater than the sector weighting constraint.The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 50 securities and the Fund had significant investments in financial companies and Brazilian issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Risks</span>
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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.BRAZIL RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Brazilian issuers. Brazil is an emerging market and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in Brazil or for U.S. authorities to pursue. Investing in Brazil may involve a higher degree of risk and special considerations not typically associated with investing in more established economies or securities markets. Investment exposure to Brazil may subject the Fund, to a greater extent than if investments were made in developed countries, to the risks of adverse securities markets, exchange rates and social, political, regulatory, economic, or environmental events and natural disasters which may occur in Brazil. The economy, industries, and securities and currency markets of Brazil may be adversely affected by protectionist trade policies, slow economic activity worldwide, political and social instability and regional and global conflicts. Brazil has experienced security concerns, such as terrorism and strained international relations. Incidents involving the country’s or region’s security may cause uncertainty in Brazilian markets and may adversely affect its economy and the Fund’s investments.CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund will effect some or all of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects all of its creations and redemptions in-kind. Because the Fund may effect redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of portfolio securities may result in capital gains or losses and may also result in higher brokerage costs.CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.EMERGING MARKETS RISK. Investments in securities issued by governments and companies operating in emerging market countries involve additional risks relating to political, economic, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in securities and instruments issued by U.S. companies or by companies operating in other developed market countries. Investments in emerging markets securities are generally considered speculative in nature and are subject to the following heightened risks: smaller market capitalization of securities markets which may suffer periods of relative illiquidity; significant price volatility; restrictions on foreign investment; possible repatriation of investment income and capital; rapid inflation; and currency convertibility issues. Emerging market countries also often have less uniformity in accounting, auditing and reporting requirements, unsettled securities laws, unreliable securities valuation and greater risk associated with custody of securities. Financial and other reporting by companies and government entities also may be less reliable in emerging market countries. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in emerging market countries or for U.S. authorities to pursue. For funds that track an index or are managed based upon a benchmark, the index may not weight the securities in emerging market countries on the basis of investor protection limitations, financial reporting quality or available oversight mechanisms. Furthermore, investors may be required to register the proceeds of sales and future economic or political crises could lead to price controls, forced mergers, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, seizure, nationalization or creation of government monopolies.EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.FINANCIAL COMPANIES RISK. Financial companies, such as retail and commercial banks, insurance companies and financial services companies, are especially subject to the adverse effects of economic recession, currency exchange rates, extensive government regulation, decreases in the availability of capital, volatile interest rates, portfolio concentrations in geographic markets, industries or products (such as commercial and residential real estate loans), competition from new entrants and blurred distinctions in their fields of business.GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.LATIN AMERICA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Latin American issuers. The economies of Latin American countries have in the past experienced considerable difficulties, including high inflation rates, high interest rates, high unemployment, government overspending and political instability. International economic conditions, particularly those in the United States, Europe and Asia, as well as world prices for oil and other commodities may also influence the development of Latin American economies. Many Latin American countries are highly reliant on the exportation of commodities and their economies may be significantly impacted by fluctuations in commodity prices and the global demand for certain commodities. Investments in Latin American countries may be subject to currency risks, such as restrictions on the flow of money in and out of a country, extreme volatility relative to the U.S. dollar, and devaluation, all of which could decrease the value of investments in Latin American companies. Other Latin American investment risks may include inadequate investor protection, less developed regulatory, accounting, auditing and financial standards, unfavorable changes in laws or regulations, natural disasters, corruption and military activity. The governments of many Latin American countries may also exercise substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector, and any such exercise could have a significant effect on companies in which the Fund invests. Securities of companies in Latin America may also be subject to significant price volatility.MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Total Return</span>
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.On July 14, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Brazil Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Brazil Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of May 18, 2015, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Brazil Index.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:7pt;font-weight:bold;position:relative;top:-3.25pt;">®</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;"> Fund</span> <br/><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:0%;">Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31</span>
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the periods shown in the chart above:Best QuarterWorst Quarter28.34%June 30, 2020-49.90%March 31, 2020
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022</span>
Performance Table Narrative	rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX Fund | First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)[ctag:span_t-rule1]	rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice	none
Management Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule]	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule3]	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.80%
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01	$ 82
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03	255
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05	444
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10	$ 990
2013	rr_AnnualReturn2013	(14.72%)
2014	rr_AnnualReturn2014	(16.40%)
2015	rr_AnnualReturn2015	(41.80%)
2016	rr_AnnualReturn2016	59.89%
2017	rr_AnnualReturn2017	25.91%
2018	rr_AnnualReturn2018	(1.17%)
2019	rr_AnnualReturn2019	41.06%
2020	rr_AnnualReturn2020	(19.48%)
2021	rr_AnnualReturn2021	(9.00%)
2022	rr_AnnualReturn2022	1.45%
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Best Quarter</span>
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Jun. 30, 2020
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	28.34%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Worst Quarter</span>
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Mar. 31, 2020
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(49.90%)
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	1.45%
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	0.71%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	(1.43%)
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	(2.77%)
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Apr. 18, 2011
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions | First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(2.44%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(2.34%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	(3.91%)
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	(5.01%)
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions and sale of fund shares | First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	0.78%
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(0.54%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	(2.00%)
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	(2.80%)
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Brazil Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	2.31%	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	2.59%	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq Brazil Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	7.14%	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(2.27%)	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	(2.63%)	[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Brazil AlphaDEX Fund | MSCI Brazil Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	14.15%
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(0.82%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	(1.75%)
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	(3.47%)

[1] Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

XML

Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
First Trust China AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	Summary Information
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Investment Objective</span>
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The First Trust China AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® China Index (the “Index”).
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Fees and Expenses of the Fund</span>
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]	rr_ShareholderFeesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Shareholder Fees</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(fees paid directly from your investment)</span>
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Fund Operating Expenses</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Portfolio Turnover</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock	The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 117% of the average value of its portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	117.00%
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-style:italic;font-weight:bold;">Example</span>
Expense Example, No Redemption Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionNarrativeTextBlock	The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Investment Strategies</span>
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.The Index is composed of B Shares, depositary receipts and U.S.-listed common stock issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in China, as classified by the Index Provider. B Shares are shares of Chinese companies traded on either the Shanghai exchange in U.S. dollars or on the Shenzhen stock exchange in Hong Kong dollars. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. China is an emerging market country, as classified by the Index Provider, based on factors such as national income per capita, national market capitalization and national trading volume. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies.According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq China Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in China, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:1.The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.2.The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.329 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.3.The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.4.The top 50 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.5.The Index is subject to sector weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector percentages of the Base Index. For example, if financial companies comprise 15% of the Base Index, the Index will be comprised of no more than 30% financials. Stocks will fail the sector constraint if the weight assigned to the stock, when added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector, is greater than the sector weighting constraint.The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 50 securities and the Fund had significant investments in Chinese issuers and Asian issuers, although this may change from time to time. In order to gain exposure to certain Chinese companies that are included in the Index but are unavailable to direct investment by foreign investors, the Fund invests significantly in non-Chinese shell companies that have created structures known as variable interest entities (“VIEs”) in order to gain exposure to such Chinese companies. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Risks</span>
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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.ASIA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian issuers. Many Asian economies have experienced rapid growth and industrialization, and there is no assurance that this growth rate will be maintained. Some Asian economies are highly dependent on trade, and economic conditions in other countries within and outside Asia can impact these economies. Certain of these economies may be adversely affected by trade or policy disputes with its major trade partners. There is also a high concentration of market capitalization and trading volume in a small number of issuers representing a limited number of industries, as well as a high concentration of investors and financial intermediaries. Certain Asian countries have experienced and may in the future experience expropriation and nationalization of assets, confiscatory taxation, currency manipulation, political instability, armed conflict and social instability as a result of religious, ethnic, socio-economic and/or political unrest. In particular, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Asian economies. Governments of certain Asian countries have exercised, and continue to exercise, substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector. In certain cases, the government owns or controls many companies, including the largest in the country. Accordingly, government actions could have a significant effect on the issuers of the Fund’s securities or on economic conditions generally. Recent developments in relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on the economy of Asian countries and a commensurately negative impact on the Fund.AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.CHINA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Chinese issuers, including those issuers with securities listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. China is an emerging market and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in China or for U.S. authorities to pursue. The central government has historically exercised substantial control over virtually every sector of the Chinese economy through administrative regulation and/or state ownership and actions of the Chinese central and local government authorities continue to have a substantial effect on economic conditions in China. Export growth continues to be a major driver of China’s rapid economic growth. Reduction in spending on Chinese products and services, institution of tariffs or other trade barriers, or a downturn in any of the economies of China’s key trading partners may have an adverse impact on the Chinese economy. Recent developments in relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on China’s export industry and a commensurately negative impact on a Fund.CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.EMERGING MARKETS RISK. Investments in securities issued by governments and companies operating in emerging market countries involve additional risks relating to political, economic, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in securities and instruments issued by U.S. companies or by companies operating in other developed market countries. Investments in emerging markets securities are generally considered speculative in nature and are subject to the following heightened risks: smaller market capitalization of securities markets which may suffer periods of relative illiquidity; significant price volatility; restrictions on foreign investment; possible repatriation of investment income and capital; rapid inflation; and currency convertibility issues. Emerging market countries also often have less uniformity in accounting, auditing and reporting requirements, unsettled securities laws, unreliable securities valuation and greater risk associated with custody of securities. Financial and other reporting by companies and government entities also may be less reliable in emerging market countries. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in emerging market countries or for U.S. authorities to pursue. For funds that track an index or are managed based upon a benchmark, the index may not weight the securities in emerging market countries on the basis of investor protection limitations, financial reporting quality or available oversight mechanisms. Furthermore, investors may be required to register the proceeds of sales and future economic or political crises could lead to price controls, forced mergers, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, seizure, nationalization or creation of government monopolies.EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally,in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES RISK. In China, direct ownership of companies in certain sectors by foreign individuals and entities is prohibited. In order to allow for foreign investment in these businesses, many Chinese companies have created VIE structures to enable indirect foreign ownership. In such an arrangement, a Chinese operating company typically establishes an offshore shell company in another jurisdiction, such as the Cayman Islands. That shell company enters into service and other contracts with the Chinese issuer or operating company to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese company, then issues shares on an exchange outside of mainland China, and U.S. investors hold stock in the non-Chinese shell company rather than directly in the Chinese issuer or operating company. This arrangement allows U.S. investors, such as the Fund, to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese issuer or operating company through contractual means rather than through formal equity ownership. Because neither the shell company nor the Fund owns actual equity interests in the Chinese operating company, they do not have the voting rights or other types of control that an equity holder would expect to benefit from. Although VIEs are a longstanding industry practice and well known to officials and regulators in China, VIEs are not formally recognized under Chinese law. Intervention by the Chinese government with respect to VIEs could significantly affect the Chinese company’s performance and the enforceability of the VIE’s contractual arrangements that establish the links between the Chinese company and the shell company in which the Fund invests. This could considerably impact the financial condition of the shell company in which the Fund invests by limiting its ability to consolidate the financial results of the Chinese operating company into its own financial statements, as well as make the value of the shares held by the Fund effectively worthless. Further, if Chinese officials prohibit the existence of VIEs, the market value of the Fund’s associated holdings would likely suffer significant, and possibly permanent effects, which could negatively impact the Fund’s net asset value and could result in substantial losses. Further, it is uncertain whether any new laws, rules or regulations relating to VIE structures will be adopted or, if adopted, what impact they would have on the value of the Fund’s shares.VIEs are also subject to the investment risks associated with the underlying Chinese issuer or operating company. Chinese companies are not subject to the same degree of regulatory requirements or accounting standards and oversight as companies in more developed countries. As a result, information about the Chinese securities and VIEs in which the Fund invests may be less reliable and incomplete. There also may be significant obstacles to obtaining information necessary for investigations into or litigation against Chinese companies and VIEs, and shareholders may have limited legal remedies, which could negatively impact the Fund. Additionally, U.S.-listed VIEs may be delisted if they do not meet U.S. accounting standards and auditor oversight requirements. Delisting would significantly decrease the liquidity and value of the securities, decrease the ability of the Fund to invest in such securities and may increase the cost of the Fund if required to seek alternative markets in which to invest in such securities.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Total Return</span>
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two broad based securities market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.On July 14, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined China Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® China Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of May 18, 2015, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined China Index.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">First Trust China AlphaDEX</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:7pt;font-weight:bold;position:relative;top:-3.25pt;">®</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;"> Fund</span> <br/><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:0%;">Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31</span>
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the periods shown in the chart above:Best QuarterWorst Quarter21.60%September 30, 2017-22.64%September 30, 2015
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022</span>
Performance Table Narrative	rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.
First Trust China AlphaDEX Fund | First Trust China AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)[ctag:span_t-rule1]	rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice	none
Management Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule]	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule3]	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.80%
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01	$ 82
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03	255
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05	444
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10	$ 990
2013	rr_AnnualReturn2013	(1.63%)
2014	rr_AnnualReturn2014	(1.68%)
2015	rr_AnnualReturn2015	(4.37%)
2016	rr_AnnualReturn2016	(4.96%)
2017	rr_AnnualReturn2017	58.35%
2018	rr_AnnualReturn2018	(17.87%)
2019	rr_AnnualReturn2019	17.34%
2020	rr_AnnualReturn2020	13.58%
2021	rr_AnnualReturn2021	(1.18%)
2022	rr_AnnualReturn2022	(17.10%)
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Best Quarter</span>
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Sep. 30, 2017
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	21.60%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Worst Quarter</span>
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Sep. 30, 2015
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(22.64%)
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(17.10%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(2.16%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	2.24%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	0.58%
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Apr. 18, 2011
First Trust China AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions | First Trust China AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(18.98%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(3.82%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	0.73%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	(0.80%)
First Trust China AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions and sale of fund shares | First Trust China AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(10.10%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(2.24%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	1.07%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	(0.15%)
First Trust China AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq AlphaDEX® China Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(16.04%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(1.28%)	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust China AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq China Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(20.26%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(5.66%)	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	2.00%	[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust China AlphaDEX Fund | MSCI China Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(21.93%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(4.54%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	2.43%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	1.63%

[1] Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

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Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	Summary Information
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Investment Objective</span>
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Index (the “Index”).
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Fees and Expenses of the Fund</span>
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]	rr_ShareholderFeesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Shareholder Fees</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(fees paid directly from your investment)</span>
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Fund Operating Expenses</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Portfolio Turnover</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock	The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 95% of the average value of its portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	95.00%
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-style:italic;font-weight:bold;">Example</span>
Expense Example, No Redemption Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionNarrativeTextBlock	The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Investment Strategies</span>
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in developed markets excluding the United States, as classified by the Index Provider. The Index Provider classifies a country as “developed” based on a number of criteria, including national income per capita, national market capitalization and national trading volume. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Developed Markets Ex-US Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in developed markets excluding the United States, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:1.The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.2.The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.548 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.3.For South Korean stocks currently at their foreign ownership limit, the direct listed security is replaced in the universe with its depositary receipt if available (subject to above liquidity requirements). If none is available, the stock is excluded.4.The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.5.The top 300 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 4 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.6.The Index is subject to sector/country weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector/country percentages of the Base Index. A stock will be moved to a lower-weighted quintile when its weight, added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector/country, is greater than the sector/country weighting constraint. Stocks that fail the sector/country weighting constraints at the lowest quintile will be removed from the Index.The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 299 securities and the Fund had significant investments in materials companies, Japanese issuers, Asian issuers and European issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Risks</span>
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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.ASIA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian issuers. Many Asian economies have experienced rapid growth and industrialization, and there is no assurance that this growth rate will be maintained. Some Asian economies are highly dependent on trade, and economic conditions in other countries within and outside Asia can impact these economies. Certain of these economies may be adversely affected by trade or policy disputes with its major trade partners. There is also a high concentration of market capitalization and trading volume in a small number of issuers representing a limited number of industries, as well as a high concentration of investors and financial intermediaries. Certain Asian countries have experienced and may in the future experience expropriation and nationalization of assets, confiscatory taxation, currency manipulation, political instability, armed conflict and social instability as a result of religious, ethnic, socio-economic and/or political unrest. In particular, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Asian economies. Governments of certain Asian countries have exercised, and continue to exercise, substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector. In certain cases, the government owns or controls many companies, including the largest in the country. Accordingly, government actions could have a significant effect on the issuers of the Fund’s securities or on economic conditions generally. Recent developments in relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on the economy of Asian countries and a commensurately negative impact on the Fund.AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund will effect some or all of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects all of its creations and redemptions in-kind. Because the Fund may effect redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of portfolio securities may result in capital gains or losses and may also result in higher brokerage costs.CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.EUROPE RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of European issuers. Political or economic disruptions in European countries, even in countries in which the Fund is not invested, may adversely affect security values and thus the Fund’s holdings. A significant number of countries in Europe are member states in the European Union (the “EU”), and the member states no longer control their own monetary policies by directing independent interest rates for their currencies. In these member states, the authority to direct monetary policies, including money supply and official interest rates for the Euro, is exercised by the European Central Bank. In a 2016 referendum, the United Kingdom elected to withdraw from the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. As the second largest economy among EU members, the implications of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal are difficult to gauge and cannot be fully known. Its departure may negatively impact the EU and Europe as a whole by causing volatility within the EU, triggering prolonged economic downturns in certain European countries or sparking additional member states to contemplate departing the EU (thereby perpetuating political instability in the region).GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.JAPAN RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Japanese issuers. The Japanese economy may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability, which could have a negative impact on Japanese securities. Japan’s economy is characterized by government intervention and protectionism, reliance on oil imports, an unstable financial services sector and relatively high unemployment. Since 2000, Japan has experienced relatively low economic growth, and it may remain low in the future. Its economy is heavily dependent on international trade and has been adversely affected by trade tariffs and competition from emerging economies. As such, economic growth is heavily dependent on continued growth in international trade, relatively low commodities prices, government support of the financial services sector and other government policies. Any changes or trends in these economic factors could have a significant impact on Japanese markets overall and may negatively affect the Fund’s investments. Japan’s economy and equity market also share a strong correlation with U.S. markets and the Japanese economy may be affected by economic problems in the U.S. Despite a strengthening in the economic relationship between Japan and China, the countries’ political relationship has at times been strained. Should political tension increase, it could adversely affect the economy and destabilize the region as a whole. Additionally, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Japan’s economy. Japan’s geography also subjects it to an increased risk of natural disasters, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, typhoons and tsunamis, all of which could negatively impact the Fund’s investments.LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.MATERIALS COMPANIES RISK. Materials and processing companies are involved in the extraction or processing of raw materials such as metals, ore and forestry products. These companies are sensitive to changes in the business cycle and fluctuations in the supply and demand for raw materials. Further, certain materials and processing companies can be affected by shifts in the housing market, as many produced raw materials are components of construction projects. Rising wage costs can also impact companies that rely on skilled labor. In addition, materials and processing companies may be significantly affected by volatility of commodity prices, import controls, worldwide competition, liability for environmental damage, depletion of resources and mandated expenditures for safety and pollution control devices.NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Total Return</span>
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two broad based securities market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.On October 13, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Developed Markets Ex-US Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of February 11, 2015, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Developed Markets Ex-US Index.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:7pt;font-weight:bold;position:relative;top:-3.25pt;">®</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;"> Fund</span> <br/><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:0%;">Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31</span>
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the periods shown in the chart above:Best QuarterWorst Quarter18.75%June 30, 2020-28.32%March 31, 2020
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022</span>
Performance Table Narrative	rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund | First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)[ctag:span_t-rule1]	rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice	none
Management Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule]	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule3]	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.80%
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01	$ 82
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03	255
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05	444
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10	$ 990
2013	rr_AnnualReturn2013	18.40%
2014	rr_AnnualReturn2014	(5.98%)
2015	rr_AnnualReturn2015	0.67%
2016	rr_AnnualReturn2016	3.55%
2017	rr_AnnualReturn2017	33.57%
2018	rr_AnnualReturn2018	(19.52%)
2019	rr_AnnualReturn2019	16.56%
2020	rr_AnnualReturn2020	4.61%
2021	rr_AnnualReturn2021	10.70%
2022	rr_AnnualReturn2022	(18.57%)
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Best Quarter</span>
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Jun. 30, 2020
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	18.75%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Worst Quarter</span>
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Mar. 31, 2020
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(28.32%)
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(18.57%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(2.42%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	3.21%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	2.05%
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Apr. 18, 2011
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions | First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(19.32%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(3.47%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	2.26%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	1.15%
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions and sale of fund shares | First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(11.00%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(2.22%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	2.09%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	1.20%
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(18.23%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(1.71%)	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq Developed Markets Ex-US Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(15.51%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	1.23%	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	4.56%	[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund | MSCI World ex USA Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(14.29%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	1.79%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	4.59%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	3.86%

[1] Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

XML

Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	Summary Information
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Investment Objective</span>
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX®Developed Markets Ex-US Small Cap Index (the “Index”).
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Fees and Expenses of the Fund</span>
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]	rr_ShareholderFeesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Shareholder Fees</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(fees paid directly from your investment)</span>
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Fund Operating Expenses</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Portfolio Turnover</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock	The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 109% of the average value of its portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	109.00%
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-style:italic;font-weight:bold;">Example</span>
Expense Example, No Redemption Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionNarrativeTextBlock	The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Investment Strategies</span>
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.The Index is composed of securities issued by small cap companies operating in developed market countries excluding the United States, as classified by the Index Provider. The Index Provider classifies a country as “developed” based on a number of criteria, including national income per capita, national market capitalization and national trading volume. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Developed Markets ex-US Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in developed market countries excluding the United States, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:1.The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.2.The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization greater than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) and less than the small cap breakpoint (90th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.548 billion and the small cap breakpoint was $432 million. The Index Provider may include stocks above the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.3.For South Korean stocks currently at their foreign ownership limit, the direct listed security is replaced in the universe with its depositary receipt if available (subject to above liquidity requirements). If none is available, the stock is excluded.4.The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.5.The top 400 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 4 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.6.The Index is subject to sector/country weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector/country percentages of the Base Index. A stock will be moved to a lower-weighted quintile when its weight, added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector/country, is greater than the sector/country weighting constraint. Stocks that fail the sector/country weighting constraints at the lowest quintile will be removed from the Index.The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 399 securities and the Fund had significant investments in industrials companies, materials companies, Japanese issuers, Asian issuers and European issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023.To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Risks</span>
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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.ASIA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian issuers. Many Asian economies have experienced rapid growth and industrialization, and there is no assurance that this growth rate will be maintained. Some Asian economies are highly dependent on trade, and economic conditions in other countries within and outside Asia can impact these economies. Certain of these economies may be adversely affected by trade or policy disputes with its major trade partners. There is also a high concentration of market capitalization and trading volume in a small number of issuers representing a limited number of industries, as well as a high concentration of investors and financial intermediaries. Certain Asian countries have experienced and may in the future experience expropriation and nationalization of assets, confiscatory taxation, currency manipulation, political instability, armed conflict and social instability as a result of religious, ethnic, socio-economic and/or political unrest. In particular, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Asian economies. Governments of certain Asian countries have exercised, and continue to exercise, substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector. In certain cases, the government owns or controls many companies, including the largest in the country. Accordingly, government actions could have a significant effect on the issuers of the Fund’s securities or on economic conditions generally. Recent developments in relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on the economy of Asian countries and a commensurately negative impact on the Fund.AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund will effect some or all of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects all of its creations and redemptions in-kind. Because the Fund may effect redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of portfolio securities may result in capital gains or losses and may also result in higher brokerage costs.CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.EUROPE RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of European issuers. Political or economic disruptions in European countries, even in countries in which the Fund is not invested, may adversely affect security values and thus the Fund’s holdings. A significant number of countries in Europe are member states in the European Union (the “EU”), and the member states no longer control their own monetary policies by directing independent interest rates for their currencies. In these member states, the authority to direct monetary policies, including money supply and official interest rates for the Euro, is exercised by the European Central Bank. In a 2016 referendum, the United Kingdom elected to withdraw from the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. As the second largest economy among EU members, the implications of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal are difficult to gauge and cannot be fully known. Its departure may negatively impact the EU and Europe as a whole by causing volatility within the EU, triggering prolonged economic downturns in certain European countries or sparking additional member states to contemplate departing the EU (thereby perpetuating political instability in the region).GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.INDUSTRIALS COMPANIES RISK. Industrials companies convert unfinished goods into finished durables used to manufacture other goods or provide services. Examples of industrials companies include companies involved in the production of electrical equipment and components, industrial products, manufactured housing and telecommunications equipment, as well as defense and aerospace companies. General risks of industrials companies include the general state of the economy, exchange rates, commodity prices, intense competition, consolidation, domestic and international politics, government regulation, import controls, excess capacity, consumer demand and spending trends. In addition, industrials companies may also be significantly affected by overall capital spending levels, economic cycles, rapid technological changes, delays in modernization, labor relations, environmental liabilities, governmental and product liability and e-commerce initiatives.INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.JAPAN RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Japanese issuers. The Japanese economy may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability, which could have a negative impact on Japanese securities. Japan’s economy is characterized by government intervention and protectionism, reliance on oil imports, an unstable financial services sector and relatively high unemployment. Since 2000, Japan has experienced relatively low economic growth, and it may remain low in the future. Its economy is heavily dependent on international trade and has been adversely affected by trade tariffs and competition from emerging economies. As such, economic growth is heavily dependent on continued growth in international trade, relatively low commodities prices, government support of the financial services sector and other government policies. Any changes or trends in these economic factors could have a significant impact on Japanese markets overall and may negatively affect the Fund’s investments. Japan’s economy and equity market also share a strong correlation with U.S. markets and the Japanese economy may be affected by economic problems in the U.S. Despite a strengthening in the economic relationship between Japan and China, the countries’ political relationship has at times been strained. Should political tension increase, it could adversely affect the economy and destabilize the region as a whole. Additionally, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Japan’s economy. Japan’s geography also subjects it to an increased risk of natural disasters, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, typhoons and tsunamis, all of which could negatively impact the Fund’s investments.MARKET CAPITALIZATION DEVIATION RISK. There can be no assurance that the securities held by the Fund will stay within the Fund’s intended market capitalization range. As a result, the Fund may be exposed to additional risk or investors may not be given the opportunity to invest fully in a certain market capitalization range.MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.MATERIALS COMPANIES RISK. Materials and processing companies are involved in the extraction or processing of raw materials such as metals, ore and forestry products. These companies are sensitive to changes in the business cycle and fluctuations in the supply and demand for raw materials. Further, certain materials and processing companies can be affected by shifts in the housing market, as many produced raw materials are components of construction projects. Rising wage costs can also impact companies that rely on skilled labor. In addition, materials and processing companies may be significantly affected by volatility of commodity prices, import controls, worldwide competition, liability for environmental damage, depletion of resources and mandated expenditures for safety and pollution control devices.NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Total Return</span>
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index, two market indices and a broad-based market index. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.On October 13, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Small Cap Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of September 8, 2014, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Developed Markets Ex-US Small Cap Index.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:7pt;font-weight:bold;position:relative;top:-3.25pt;">®</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;"> Fund</span> <br/><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:0%;">Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31</span>
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the periods shown in the chart above:Best QuarterWorst Quarter25.82%June 30, 2020-32.51%March 31, 2020
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022</span>
Performance Table Narrative	rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund | First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)[ctag:span_t-rule1]	rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice	none
Management Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule]	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule3]	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.80%
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01	$ 82
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03	255
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05	444
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10	$ 990
2013	rr_AnnualReturn2013	22.56%
2014	rr_AnnualReturn2014	(10.36%)
2015	rr_AnnualReturn2015	5.65%
2016	rr_AnnualReturn2016	2.96%
2017	rr_AnnualReturn2017	36.23%
2018	rr_AnnualReturn2018	(24.03%)
2019	rr_AnnualReturn2019	19.13%
2020	rr_AnnualReturn2020	12.18%
2021	rr_AnnualReturn2021	11.09%
2022	rr_AnnualReturn2022	(15.00%)
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Best Quarter</span>
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Jun. 30, 2020
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	25.82%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Worst Quarter</span>
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Mar. 31, 2020
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(32.51%)
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(15.00%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(0.84%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	4.55%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	4.51%
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Feb. 15, 2012
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions | First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(16.31%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(1.91%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	3.54%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	3.46%
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions and sale of fund shares | First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(8.92%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(1.08%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	3.12%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	3.07%
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Developed Markets Ex-US Small Cap Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(14.80%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(0.08%)	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq Developed Markets Ex-US Small Cap Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(18.14%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(0.81%)	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	4.65%	[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund | MSCI World ex-USA Small Cap Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(20.59%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	0.45%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	5.77%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	5.80%
First Trust Developed Markets ex-US Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund | MSCI World ex-USA Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(14.29%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	1.79%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	4.59%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	4.87%

[1] Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

XML

Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	Summary Information
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Investment Objective</span>
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Index (the “Index”).
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Fees and Expenses of the Fund</span>
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]	rr_ShareholderFeesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Shareholder Fees</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(fees paid directly from your investment)</span>
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Fund Operating Expenses</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Portfolio Turnover</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock	The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 106% of the average value of its portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	106.00%
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-style:italic;font-weight:bold;">Example</span>
Expense Example, No Redemption Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionNarrativeTextBlock	The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Investment Strategies</span>
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in emerging market countries, as classified by the Index Provider. The Index Provider classifies a country as "emerging" based on a number of criteria including national income per capita, national market capitalization and national trading volume. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Emerging Markets Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in emerging market countries, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:1.The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.2.The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.548 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.3.The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.4.The top 150 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.5.The Index is subject to sector/country weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector/country percentages of the Base Index. A stock will be moved to a lower-weighted quintile when its weight, added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector/country, is greater than the sector/country weighting constraint. Stocks that fail the sector/country weighting constraints at the lowest quintile will be removed from the Index.The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 150 securities and the Fund had significant investments in industrials companies and Asian issuers, although this may change from time to time. In order to gain exposure to certain Chinese companies that are included in the Index but are unavailable to direct investment by foreign investors, the Fund invests significantly in non-Chinese shell companies that have created structures known as variable interest entities (“VIEs”) in order to gain exposure to such Chinese companies. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Risks</span>
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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.ASIA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian issuers. Many Asian economies have experienced rapid growth and industrialization, and there is no assurance that this growth rate will be maintained. Some Asian economies are highly dependent on trade, and economic conditions in other countries within and outside Asia can impact these economies. Certain of these economies may be adversely affected by trade or policy disputes with its major trade partners. There is also a high concentration of market capitalization and trading volume in a small number of issuers representing a limited number of industries, as well as a high concentration of investors and financial intermediaries. Certain Asian countries have experienced and may in the future experience expropriation and nationalization of assets, confiscatory taxation, currency manipulation, political instability, armed conflict and social instability as a result of religious, ethnic, socio-economic and/or political unrest. In particular, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Asian economies. Governments of certain Asian countries have exercised, and continue to exercise, substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector. In certain cases, the government owns or controls many companies, including the largest in the country. Accordingly, government actions could have a significant effect on the issuers of the Fund’s securities or on economic conditions generally. Recent developments in relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on the economy of Asian countries and a commensurately negative impact on the Fund.AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund will effect some or all of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects all of its creations and redemptions in-kind. Because the Fund may effect redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of portfolio securities may result in capital gains or losses and may also result in higher brokerage costs.CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.EMERGING MARKETS RISK. Investments in securities issued by governments and companies operating in emerging market countries involve additional risks relating to political, economic, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in securities and instruments issued by U.S. companies or by companies operating in other developed market countries. Investments in emerging markets securities are generally considered speculative in nature and are subject to the following heightened risks: smaller market capitalization of securities markets which may suffer periods of relative illiquidity; significant price volatility; restrictions on foreign investment; possible repatriation of investment income and capital; rapid inflation; and currency convertibility issues. Emerging market countries also often have less uniformity in accounting, auditing and reporting requirements, unsettled securities laws, unreliable securities valuation and greater risk associated with custody of securities. Financial and other reporting by companies and government entities also may be less reliable in emerging market countries. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in emerging market countries or for U.S. authorities to pursue. For funds that track an index or are managed based upon a benchmark, the index may not weight the securities in emerging market countries on the basis of investor protection limitations, financial reporting quality or available oversight mechanisms. Furthermore, investors may be required to register the proceeds of sales and future economic or political crises could lead to price controls, forced mergers, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, seizure, nationalization or creation of government monopolies.EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.INDUSTRIALS COMPANIES RISK. Industrials companies convert unfinished goods into finished durables used to manufacture other goods or provide services. Examples of industrials companies include companies involved in the production of electrical equipment and components, industrial products, manufactured housing and telecommunications equipment, as well as defense and aerospace companies. General risks of industrials companies include the general state of the economy, exchange rates, commodity prices, intense competition, consolidation, domestic and international politics, government regulation, import controls, excess capacity, consumer demand and spending trends. In addition, industrials companies may also be significantly affected by overall capital spending levels, economic cycles, rapid technological changes, delays in modernization, labor relations, environmental liabilities, governmental and product liability and e-commerce initiatives.INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally,in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES RISK. In China, direct ownership of companies in certain sectors by foreign individuals and entities is prohibited. In order to allow for foreign investment in these businesses, many Chinese companies have created VIE structures to enable indirect foreign ownership. In such an arrangement, a Chinese operating company typically establishes an offshore shell company in another jurisdiction, such as the Cayman Islands. That shell company enters into service and other contracts with the Chinese issuer or operating company to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese company, then issues shares on an exchange outside of mainland China, and U.S. investors hold stock in the non-Chinese shell company rather than directly in the Chinese issuer or operating company. This arrangement allows U.S. investors, such as the Fund, to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese issuer or operating company through contractual means rather than through formal equity ownership. Because neither the shell company nor the Fund owns actual equity interests in the Chinese operating company, they do not have the voting rights or other types of control that an equity holder would expect to benefit from. Although VIEs are a longstanding industry practice and well known to officials and regulators in China, VIEs are not formally recognized under Chinese law. Intervention by the Chinese government with respect to VIEs could significantly affect the Chinese company’s performance and the enforceability of the VIE’s contractual arrangements that establish the links between the Chinese company and the shell company in which the Fund invests. This could considerably impact the financial condition of the shell company in which the Fund invests by limiting its ability to consolidate the financial results of the Chinese operating company into its own financial statements, as well as make the value of the shares held by the Fund effectively worthless. Further, if Chinese officials prohibit the existence of VIEs, the market value of the Fund’s associated holdings would likely suffer significant, and possibly permanent effects, which could negatively impact the Fund’s net asset value and could result in substantial losses. Further, it is uncertain whether any new laws, rules or regulations relating to VIE structures will be adopted or, if adopted, what impact they would have on the value of the Fund’s shares.VIEs are also subject to the investment risks associated with the underlying Chinese issuer or operating company. Chinese companies are not subject to the same degree of regulatory requirements or accounting standards and oversight as companies in more developed countries. As a result, information about the Chinese securities and VIEs in which the Fund invests may be less reliable and incomplete. There also may be significant obstacles to obtaining information necessary for investigations into or litigation against Chinese companies and VIEs, and shareholders may have limited legal remedies, which could negatively impact the Fund. Additionally, U.S.-listed VIEs may be delisted if they do not meet U.S. accounting standards and auditor oversight requirements. Delisting would significantly decrease the liquidity and value of the securities, decrease the ability of the Fund to invest in such securities and may increase the cost of the Fund if required to seek alternative markets in which to invest in such securities.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Total Return</span>
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two broad based securities market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.On October 13, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Emerging Markets Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of February 11, 2015, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Emerging Markets Index.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:7pt;font-weight:bold;position:relative;top:-3.25pt;">®</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;"> Fund</span> <br/><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:0%;">Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31</span>
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the periods shown in the chart above:Best QuarterWorst Quarter21.43%June 30, 2020-32.89%March 31, 2020
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022</span>
Performance Table Narrative	rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund | First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)[ctag:span_t-rule1]	rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice	none
Management Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule]	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule3]	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.80%
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01	$ 82
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03	255
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05	444
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10	$ 990
2013	rr_AnnualReturn2013	(3.35%)
2014	rr_AnnualReturn2014	(10.04%)
2015	rr_AnnualReturn2015	(13.11%)
2016	rr_AnnualReturn2016	15.86%
2017	rr_AnnualReturn2017	39.43%
2018	rr_AnnualReturn2018	(15.48%)
2019	rr_AnnualReturn2019	19.81%
2020	rr_AnnualReturn2020	(0.92%)
2021	rr_AnnualReturn2021	7.90%
2022	rr_AnnualReturn2022	(14.33%)
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Best Quarter</span>
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Jun. 30, 2020
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	21.43%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Worst Quarter</span>
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Mar. 31, 2020
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(32.89%)
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(14.33%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(1.49%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	1.25%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	0.43%
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Apr. 18, 2011
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions | First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(16.51%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(3.10%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	(0.16%)
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	(0.86%)
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions and sale of fund shares | First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(8.57%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(1.77%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	0.33%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	(0.24%)
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(14.38%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(0.58%)	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq Emerging Markets Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(15.31%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(0.39%)	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	2.18%	[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund | MSCI Emerging Markets Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(20.09%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(1.40%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	1.44%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	0.79%

[1] Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

XML

Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	Summary Information
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Investment Objective</span>
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Small Cap Index (the “Index”).
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Fees and Expenses of the Fund</span>
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]	rr_ShareholderFeesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Shareholder Fees</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(fees paid directly from your investment)</span>
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Fund Operating Expenses</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Portfolio Turnover</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock	The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 117% of the average value of its portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	117.00%
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-style:italic;font-weight:bold;">Example</span>
Expense Example, No Redemption Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionNarrativeTextBlock	The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Investment Strategies</span>
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.The Index is composed of securities issued by small cap companies operating in emerging market countries, as classified by the Index Provider. The Index Provider classifies a country as "emerging" based on a number of criteria, including national income per capita, national market capitalization and national trading volume. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Emerging Markets Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in emerging market countries, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:1.The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.2.The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization greater than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) and less than the small cap breakpoint (90th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.548 billion and the small cap breakpoint was $432 million. The Index Provider may include stocks above the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.3.The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.4.The top 200 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.5.The Index is subject to sector/country weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector/country percentages of the Base Index. A stock will be moved to a lower-weighted quintile when its weight, added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector/country, is greater than the sector/country weighting constraint. Stocks that fail the sector/country weighting constraints at the lowest quintile will be removed from the Index.The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 200 securities and the Fund had significant investments in Taiwanese issuers, Turkish issuers and Asian issuers, although this may change from time to time. In order to gain exposure to certain Chinese companies that are included in the Index but are unavailable to direct investment by foreign investors, the Fund invests significantly in non-Chinese shell companies that have created structures known as variable interest entities (“VIEs”) in order to gain exposure to such Chinese companies. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Risks</span>
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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.ASIA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian issuers. Many Asian economies have experienced rapid growth and industrialization, and there is no assurance that this growth rate will be maintained. Some Asian economies are highly dependent on trade, and economic conditions in other countries within and outside Asia can impact these economies. Certain of these economies may be adversely affected by trade or policy disputes with its major trade partners. There is also a high concentration of market capitalization and trading volume in a small number of issuers representing a limited number of industries, as well as a high concentration of investors and financial intermediaries. Certain Asian countries have experienced and may in the future experience expropriation and nationalization of assets, confiscatory taxation, currency manipulation, political instability, armed conflict and social instability as a result of religious, ethnic, socio-economic and/or political unrest. In particular, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Asian economies. Governments of certain Asian countries have exercised, and continue to exercise, substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector. In certain cases, the government owns or controls many companies, including the largest in the country. Accordingly, government actions could have a significant effect on the issuers of the Fund’s securities or on economic conditions generally. Recent developments in relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on the economy of Asian countries and a commensurately negative impact on the Fund.AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund will effect some or all of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects all of its creations and redemptions in-kind. Because the Fund may effect redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of portfolio securities may result in capital gains or losses and may also result in higher brokerage costs.CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.EMERGING MARKETS RISK. Investments in securities issued by governments and companies operating in emerging market countries involve additional risks relating to political, economic, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in securities and instruments issued by U.S. companies or by companies operating in other developed market countries. Investments in emerging markets securities are generally considered speculative in nature and are subject to the following heightened risks: smaller market capitalization of securities markets which may suffer periods of relative illiquidity; significant price volatility; restrictions on foreign investment; possible repatriation of investment income and capital; rapid inflation; and currency convertibility issues. Emerging market countries also often have less uniformity in accounting, auditing and reporting requirements, unsettled securities laws, unreliable securities valuation and greater risk associated with custody of securities. Financial and other reporting by companies and government entities also may be less reliable in emerging market countries. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in emerging market countries or for U.S. authorities to pursue. For funds that track an index or are managed based upon a benchmark, the index may not weight the securities in emerging market countries on the basis of investor protection limitations, financial reporting quality or available oversight mechanisms. Furthermore, investors may be required to register the proceeds of sales and future economic or political crises could lead to price controls, forced mergers, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, seizure, nationalization or creation of government monopolies.EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.MARKET CAPITALIZATION DEVIATION RISK. There can be no assurance that the securities held by the Fund will stay within the Fund’s intended market capitalization range. As a result, the Fund may be exposed to additional risk or investors may not be given the opportunity to invest fully in a certain market capitalization range.MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.TAIWAN RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Taiwanese issuers. Taiwan is an emerging market and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in Taiwan or for U.S. authorities to pursue. Taiwan’s geographic proximity and history of political contention with China have resulted in ongoing tensions between the two countries. These tensions may materially affect the Taiwanese economy and its securities market. Taiwan’s economy is export-oriented, so it depends on an open world trade regime and remains vulnerable to fluctuations in the world economy. Rising labor costs and increasing environmental consciousness have led some labor-intensive industries to relocate to countries with cheaper work forces, and continued labor outsourcing may adversely affect the Taiwanese economy.TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.TURKEY RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Turkish issuers. The Turkish economy is heavily dependent on relationships with certain key trading partners, including European Union countries, China and Russia. The Turkish economy has certain significant economic weaknesses, such as its relatively high current account deficit and currency depreciation. Turkey has historically experienced acts of terrorism and strained relations related to border disputes with certain neighboring countries. The continuation of the conflict on the Turkish-Syrian border, for example, could have an adverse impact on the Turkish economy. Turkey is subject to considerable degrees of social and political instability. Unanticipated or sudden political, economic or social developments as well as natural disasters, have caused and may cause further volatility in the Turkish securities markets or currency market and as a result may adversely affect the Fund’s investments.VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES RISK. In China, direct ownership of companies in certain sectors by foreign individuals and entities is prohibited. In order to allow for foreign investment in these businesses, many Chinese companies have created VIE structures to enable indirect foreign ownership. In such an arrangement, a Chinese operating company typically establishes an offshore shell company in another jurisdiction, such as the Cayman Islands. That shell company enters into service and other contracts with the Chinese issuer or operating company to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese company, then issues shares on an exchange outside of mainland China, and U.S. investors hold stock in the non-Chinese shell company rather than directly in the Chinese issuer or operating company. This arrangement allows U.S. investors, such as the Fund, to obtain economic exposure to the Chinese issuer or operating company through contractual means rather than through formal equity ownership. Because neither the shell company nor the Fund owns actual equity interests in the Chinese operating company, they do not have the voting rights or other types of control that an equity holder would expect to benefit from. Although VIEs are a longstanding industry practice and well known to officials and regulators in China, VIEs are not formally recognized under Chinese law. Intervention by the Chinese government with respect to VIEs could significantly affect the Chinese company’s performance and the enforceability of the VIE’s contractual arrangements that establish the links between the Chinese company and the shell company in which the Fund invests. This could considerably impact the financial condition of the shell company in which the Fund invests by limiting its ability to consolidate the financial results of the Chinese operating company into its own financial statements, as well as make the value of the shares held by the Fund effectively worthless. Further, if Chinese officials prohibit the existence of VIEs, the market value of the Fund’s associated holdings would likely suffer significant, and possibly permanent effects, which could negatively impact the Fund’s net asset value and could result in substantial losses. Further, it is uncertain whether any new laws, rules or regulations relating to VIE structures will be adopted or, if adopted, what impact they would have on the value of the Fund’s shares.VIEs are also subject to the investment risks associated with the underlying Chinese issuer or operating company. Chinese companies are not subject to the same degree of regulatory requirements or accounting standards and oversight as companies in more developed countries. As a result, information about the Chinese securities and VIEs in which the Fund invests may be less reliable and incomplete. There also may be significant obstacles to obtaining information necessary for investigations into or litigation against Chinese companies and VIEs, and shareholders may have limited legal remedies, which could negatively impact the Fund. Additionally, U.S.-listed VIEs may be delisted if they do not meet U.S. accounting standards and auditor oversight requirements. Delisting would significantly decrease the liquidity and value of the securities, decrease the ability of the Fund to invest in such securities and may increase the cost of the Fund if required to seek alternative markets in which to invest in such securities.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Total Return</span>
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index, two market indices and a broad-based market index. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.On October 13, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Emerging Markets Small Cap Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Small Cap Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of September 8, 2014, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Emerging Markets Small Cap Index.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:7pt;font-weight:bold;position:relative;top:-3.25pt;">®</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;"> Fund</span> <br/><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:0%;">Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31</span>
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the periods shown in the chart above:Best QuarterWorst Quarter32.17%June 30, 2020-35.53%March 31, 2020
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022</span>
Performance Table Narrative	rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund | First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)[ctag:span_t-rule1]	rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice	none
Management Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule]	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule3]	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.80%
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01	$ 82
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03	255
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05	444
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10	$ 990
2013	rr_AnnualReturn2013	5.65%
2014	rr_AnnualReturn2014	(4.89%)
2015	rr_AnnualReturn2015	(13.39%)
2016	rr_AnnualReturn2016	13.53%
2017	rr_AnnualReturn2017	46.57%
2018	rr_AnnualReturn2018	(21.42%)
2019	rr_AnnualReturn2019	26.90%
2020	rr_AnnualReturn2020	8.73%
2021	rr_AnnualReturn2021	3.68%
2022	rr_AnnualReturn2022	1.36%
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Best Quarter</span>
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Jun. 30, 2020
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	32.17%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Worst Quarter</span>
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Mar. 31, 2020
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(35.53%)
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	1.36%
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	2.64%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	5.14%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	6.11%
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Feb. 15, 2012
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions | First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(0.74%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	0.71%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	3.52%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	4.53%
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions and sale of fund shares | First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	0.63%
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	1.13%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	3.24%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	4.08%
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund | MSCI Emerging Markets Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(20.09%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(1.40%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	1.44%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	17.86%
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Emerging Markets Small Cap Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	2.75%	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	4.16%	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq Emerging Markets Small Cap Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(13.78%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	1.72%	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	4.07%	[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund | MSCI Emerging Markets Small Cap Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(18.02%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	1.06%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	3.21%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	3.23%

[1] Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

XML

Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	Summary Information
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Investment Objective</span>
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The First Trust Europe AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Europe Index (the “Index”).
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Fees and Expenses of the Fund</span>
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]	rr_ShareholderFeesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Shareholder Fees</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(fees paid directly from your investment)</span>
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Fund Operating Expenses</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Portfolio Turnover</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock	The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 88% of the average value of its portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	88.00%
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-style:italic;font-weight:bold;">Example</span>
Expense Example, No Redemption Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionNarrativeTextBlock	The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Investment Strategies</span>
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in Europe, as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. As of December 30, 2022, the Index Provider’s list of European countries included Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Luxembourg, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and United Kingdom. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Europe Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in Europe, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:1.The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.2.The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; stocks of companies in emerging markets and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.548 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.3.The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.4.The top 200 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.5.The Index is subject to sector/country weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector/country percentages of the Base Index. A stock will be moved to a lower-weighted quintile when its weight, added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector/country, is greater than the sector/country weighting constraint. Stocks that fail the sector/country weighting constraints at the lowest quintile will be removed from the Index.The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 199 securities and the Fund had significant investments in issuers in the United Kingdom and European issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Risks</span>
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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.EUROPE RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of European issuers. Political or economic disruptions in European countries, even in countries in which the Fund is not invested, may adversely affect security values and thus the Fund’s holdings. A significant number of countries in Europe are member states in the European Union (the “EU”), and the member states no longer control their own monetary policies by directing independent interest rates for their currencies. In these member states, the authority to direct monetary policies, including money supply and official interest rates for the Euro, is exercised by the European Central Bank. In a 2016 referendum, the United Kingdom elected to withdraw from the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. As the second largest economy among EU members, the implications of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal are difficult to gauge and cannot be fully known. Its departure may negatively impact the EU and Europe as a whole by causing volatility within the EU, triggering prolonged economic downturns in certain European countries or sparking additional member states to contemplate departing the EU (thereby perpetuating political instability in the region).GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.UNITED KINGDOM RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of United Kingdom issuers. Investments in issuers located in the United Kingdom may subject the Fund to regulatory, political, currency, security and economic risk specific to the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom has one of the largest economies in Europe and is heavily dependent on trade with the European Union (“EU”), and to a lesser extent the United States and China. As a result, the economy of the United Kingdom may be impacted by changes to the economic health of EU member counties, the United States and China. In 2016, the United Kingdom voted via referendum to leave the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. The precise impact on the United Kingdom’s economy as a result of its departure from the EU depends to a large degree on its ability to conclude favorable trade deals with the EU and other countries, including the United States, China, India and Japan. While new trade deals may boost economic growth, such growth may not be able to offset the increased costs of trade with the EU resulting from the United Kingdom’s loss of its membership in the EU single market. Certain sectors within the United Kingdom’s economy may be particularly affected by Brexit, including the automotive, chemicals, financial services and professional services.VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Total Return</span>
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two broad based securities market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.On October 13, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Europe Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Europe Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of February 11, 2015, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Europe Index.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">First Trust Europe AlphaDEX</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:7pt;font-weight:bold;position:relative;top:-3.25pt;">®</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;"> Fund</span> <br/><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:0%;">Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31</span>
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the periods shown in the chart above:Best QuarterWorst Quarter22.10%December 31, 2022-31.13%March 31, 2020
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022</span>
Performance Table Narrative	rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX Fund | First Trust Europe AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)[ctag:span_t-rule1]	rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice	none
Management Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule]	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule3]	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.80%
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01	$ 82
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03	255
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05	444
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10	$ 990
2013	rr_AnnualReturn2013	31.33%
2014	rr_AnnualReturn2014	(8.90%)
2015	rr_AnnualReturn2015	2.53%
2016	rr_AnnualReturn2016	1.24%
2017	rr_AnnualReturn2017	35.67%
2018	rr_AnnualReturn2018	(18.67%)
2019	rr_AnnualReturn2019	24.38%
2020	rr_AnnualReturn2020	4.95%
2021	rr_AnnualReturn2021	16.53%
2022	rr_AnnualReturn2022	(22.87%)
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Best Quarter</span>
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Dec. 31, 2022
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	22.10%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Worst Quarter</span>
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Mar. 31, 2020
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(31.13%)
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(22.87%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(0.93%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	4.87%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	3.41%
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Apr. 18, 2011
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions | First Trust Europe AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(23.85%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(2.06%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	3.81%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	2.39%
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions and sale of fund shares | First Trust Europe AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(13.58%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(1.15%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	3.37%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	2.21%
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Europe Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(22.82%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(0.40%)	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq DM Europe Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(16.42%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	1.51%	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Europe AlphaDEX Fund | MSCI Europe Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(15.06%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	1.87%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	4.58%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	3.93%

[1] Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

XML

Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX ETF
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	Summary Information
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Investment Objective</span>
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX® ETF (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an index called the Nasdaq® AlphaDEX® Eurozone Index (the “Index”).
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Fees and Expenses of the Fund</span>
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]	rr_ShareholderFeesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Shareholder Fees</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(fees paid directly from your investment)</span>
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Fund Operating Expenses</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Portfolio Turnover</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock	The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 56% of the average value of its portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	56.00%
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-style:italic;font-weight:bold;">Example</span>
Expense Example, No Redemption Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionNarrativeTextBlock	The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Investment Strategies</span>
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.The Index is composed of securities issued by companies operating in countries in the Eurozone, as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Eurozone is comprised of countries that have adopted the euro as their common currency and sole legal tender, and may include Austria, Belgium, Germany, Spain, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands and Portugal. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Eurozone Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional passive-style indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Index generally includes securities with market capitalizations that are greater than the NYSE mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile). The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of the developed and emerging market countries of the Eurozone as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:1.The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.2.The Index Provider then removes any duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile).3.The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. The five growth factors are 3-, 6- & 12-month price appreciation, sales to price and 1 year sales growth. The three value factors are book value to price, cash flow to price and return on assets. All stocks are ranked on the sum of ranks for the growth factors and, separately, all stocks are ranked on the sum of ranks for the value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.4.The top 150 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.5.The Index is subject to sector and country constraints which are set at 15% above the sector and country percentages of the Base Index. Stocks will fail the country/sector constraint if the weight assigned to the stock, when added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its country/sector, is greater than the country/sector weighting constraint.The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 150 securities and the Fund had significant investments in German issuers and European issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Risks</span>
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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.EUROPE RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of European issuers. Political or economic disruptions in European countries, even in countries in which the Fund is not invested, may adversely affect security values and thus the Fund’s holdings. A significant number of countries in Europe are member states in the European Union (the “EU”), and the member states no longer control their own monetary policies by directing independent interest rates for their currencies. In these member states, the authority to direct monetary policies, including money supply and official interest rates for the Euro, is exercised by the European Central Bank. In a 2016 referendum, the United Kingdom elected to withdraw from the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. As the second largest economy among EU members, the implications of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal are difficult to gauge and cannot be fully known. Its departure may negatively impact the EU and Europe as a whole by causing volatility within the EU, triggering prolonged economic downturns in certain European countries or sparking additional member states to contemplate departing the EU (thereby perpetuating political instability in the region).GERMANY RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of German issuers. The German economy is dependent to a significant extent on the economies of certain key trading partners, including the United States, France, Italy and other European countries. Reduction in spending on German products and services, or changes in any of the economies may have an adverse impact on the German economy. In addition, heavy regulation of labor and product markets in Germany may have an adverse effect on German issuers. Such regulations may negatively impact economic growth or cause prolonged periods of recession. Concerns regarding the economic health of the EU have led to tremendous downward pressure on certain financial institutions, including German financial services companies. Secessionist movements, such as the Catalan movement in Spain, may have an adverse effect on the German economy.GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Total Return</span>
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:7pt;font-weight:bold;position:relative;top:-3.25pt;">®</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;"> ETF</span> <br/><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:0%;">Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31</span>
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the periods shown in the chart above:Best QuarterWorst Quarter23.61%December 31, 2022-29.55%March 31, 2020
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022</span>
Performance Table Narrative	rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX ETF | First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX ETF
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)[ctag:span_t-rule1]	rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice	none
Management Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule]	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule3]	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.80%
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01	$ 82
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03	255
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05	444
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10	$ 990
2015	rr_AnnualReturn2015	3.54%
2016	rr_AnnualReturn2016	5.49%
2017	rr_AnnualReturn2017	36.19%
2018	rr_AnnualReturn2018	(19.82%)
2019	rr_AnnualReturn2019	21.15%
2020	rr_AnnualReturn2020	4.69%
2021	rr_AnnualReturn2021	12.90%
2022	rr_AnnualReturn2022	(19.65%)
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Best Quarter</span>
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Dec. 31, 2022
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	23.61%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Worst Quarter</span>
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Mar. 31, 2020
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(29.55%)
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(19.65%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(1.60%)
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	4.08%
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Oct. 21, 2014
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX ETF | After tax on distributions | First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX ETF
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(20.72%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(2.51%)
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	3.23%
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX ETF | After tax on distributions and sale of fund shares | First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX ETF
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(11.68%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(1.57%)
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	2.82%
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX ETF | Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Eurozone Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(19.54%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(1.14%)
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	4.60%
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX ETF | Nasdaq Eurozone Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(17.95%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	0.35%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	3.67%
First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX ETF | MSCI EMU Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(17.86%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	0.60%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	3.59%

XML

Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	Summary Information
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Investment Objective</span>
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The First Trust Germany AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Germany Index (the “Index”).
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Fees and Expenses of the Fund</span>
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]	rr_ShareholderFeesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Shareholder Fees</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(fees paid directly from your investment)</span>
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Fund Operating Expenses</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Portfolio Turnover</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock	The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 152% of the average value of its portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	152.00%
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-style:italic;font-weight:bold;">Example</span>
Expense Example, No Redemption Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionNarrativeTextBlock	The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Investment Strategies</span>
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in Germany, as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Germany Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in Germany, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:1.The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.2.The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.329 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.3.The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.4.The top 40 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.5.The Index is subject to sector weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector percentages of the Base Index. For example, if financial companies comprise 15% of the Base Index, the Index will be comprised of no more than 30% financials. Stocks will fail the sector constraint if the weight assigned to the stock, when added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector, is greater than the sector weighting constraint.The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 40 securities and the Fund had significant investments in German issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Risks</span>
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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.EUROPE RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of European issuers. Political or economic disruptions in European countries, even in countries in which the Fund is not invested, may adversely affect security values and thus the Fund’s holdings. A significant number of countries in Europe are member states in the European Union (the “EU”), and the member states no longer control their own monetary policies by directing independent interest rates for their currencies. In these member states, the authority to direct monetary policies, including money supply and official interest rates for the Euro, is exercised by the European Central Bank. In a 2016 referendum, the United Kingdom elected to withdraw from the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. As the second largest economy among EU members, the implications of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal are difficult to gauge and cannot be fully known. Its departure may negatively impact the EU and Europe as a whole by causing volatility within the EU, triggering prolonged economic downturns in certain European countries or sparking additional member states to contemplate departing the EU (thereby perpetuating political instability in the region).GERMANY RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of German issuers. The German economy is dependent to a significant extent on the economies of certain key trading partners, including the United States, France, Italy and other European countries. Reduction in spending on German products and services, or changes in any of the economies may have an adverse impact on the German economy. In addition, heavy regulation of labor and product markets in Germany may have an adverse effect on German issuers. Such regulations may negatively impact economic growth or cause prolonged periods of recession. Concerns regarding the economic health of the EU have led to tremendous downward pressure on certain financial institutions, including German financial services companies. Secessionist movements, such as the Catalan movement in Spain, may have an adverse effect on the German economy.GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Total Return</span>
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.On July 14, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Germany Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Germany Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of December 15, 2014, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Germany Index.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">First Trust Germany AlphaDEX</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:7pt;font-weight:bold;position:relative;top:-3.25pt;">®</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;"> Fund</span> <br/><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:0%;">Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31</span>
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the periods shown in the chart above:Best QuarterWorst Quarter30.09%June 30, 2020-29.13%March 31, 2020
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022</span>
Performance Table Narrative	rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX Fund | First Trust Germany AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)[ctag:span_t-rule1]	rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice	none
Management Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule]	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule3]	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.80%
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01	$ 82
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03	255
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05	444
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10	$ 990
2013	rr_AnnualReturn2013	26.61%
2014	rr_AnnualReturn2014	(11.60%)
2015	rr_AnnualReturn2015	1.94%
2016	rr_AnnualReturn2016	1.67%
2017	rr_AnnualReturn2017	43.96%
2018	rr_AnnualReturn2018	(25.40%)
2019	rr_AnnualReturn2019	21.06%
2020	rr_AnnualReturn2020	17.90%
2021	rr_AnnualReturn2021	5.74%
2022	rr_AnnualReturn2022	(30.39%)
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Best Quarter</span>
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Jun. 30, 2020
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	30.09%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Worst Quarter</span>
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Mar. 31, 2020
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(29.13%)
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(30.39%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(4.76%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	2.73%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	3.67%
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Feb. 14, 2012
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions | First Trust Germany AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(31.98%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(5.74%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	1.82%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	2.78%
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions and sale of fund shares | First Trust Germany AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(18.06%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(3.90%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	1.74%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	2.50%
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Germany Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(30.51%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(4.53%)	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq Germany Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(22.28%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(3.41%)	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	2.58%	[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX Fund | MSCI Germany Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(22.34%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(3.02%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	2.66%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	3.64%

[1] Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

XML

Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	Summary Information
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Investment Objective</span>
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index (the “Index”).
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Fees and Expenses of the Fund</span>
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]	rr_ShareholderFeesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Shareholder Fees</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(fees paid directly from your investment)</span>
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Fund Operating Expenses</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Portfolio Turnover</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock	The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 56% of the average value of its portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	56.00%
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-style:italic;font-weight:bold;">Example</span>
Expense Example, No Redemption Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionNarrativeTextBlock	The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Investment Strategies</span>
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by NSE Indices Limited (the “Index Provider”). The Index Provider makes all decisions on additions and deletions of companies comprising the Index.According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to track the performance of the 50 largest and most liquid Indian securities listed on the National Stock Exchange of India (“NSE”) by investing in all of the components of the NIFTY 50 (the “Benchmark Index”). The Benchmark Index measures the equity performance of the top 50 companies (weighted by free float market capitalization) whose equity securities trade in the Indian securities markets, and is designed to reflect the overall conditions of the Indian equity market as well as the Indian economy. The Index includes the same 50 stocks included in the Benchmark Index but gives each an equal weight. According to the Index Provider, while the Index rebalances quarterly and reconstitutes semi-annually, throughout the year, off-cycle rebalancing and reconstitution of the Index may be initiated in case any of the Index constituents ceases to form part of the Benchmark Index due to suspension or delisting. The Index may be composed of emerging market companies, securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies and companies with various market capitalizations.The Index is rebalanced quarterly and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s quarterly rebalance schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. According to the Index Provider, an unscheduled Index reconstitution may be undertaken if an Index constituent becomes subject to a merger, spin-off or delisting; or in specific cases of capital restructuring which may result in a change in the stock price of a constituent company. An unscheduled Index reconstitution may also be undertaken, at the discretion of the Index Provider, due to adverse regulatory findings or actions against a constituent company by the Indian securities markets or other regulatory and/or government agencies. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 50 securities and the Fund had significant investments in financial companies and Indian issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Risks</span>
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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund will effect some or all of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects all of its creations and redemptions in-kind. Because the Fund may effect redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of portfolio securities may result in capital gains or losses and may also result in higher brokerage costs.CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.EMERGING MARKETS RISK. Investments in securities issued by governments and companies operating in emerging market countries involve additional risks relating to political, economic, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in securities and instruments issued by U.S. companies or by companies operating in other developed market countries. Investments in emerging markets securities are generally considered speculative in nature and are subject to the following heightened risks: smaller market capitalization of securities markets which may suffer periods of relative illiquidity; significant price volatility; restrictions on foreign investment; possible repatriation of investment income and capital; rapid inflation; and currency convertibility issues. Emerging market countries also often have less uniformity in accounting, auditing and reporting requirements, unsettled securities laws, unreliable securities valuation and greater risk associated with custody of securities. Financial and other reporting by companies and government entities also may be less reliable in emerging market countries. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in emerging market countries or for U.S. authorities to pursue. For funds that track an index or are managed based upon a benchmark, the index may not weight the securities in emerging market countries on the basis of investor protection limitations, financial reporting quality or available oversight mechanisms. Furthermore, investors may be required to register the proceeds of sales and future economic or political crises could lead to price controls, forced mergers, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, seizure, nationalization or creation of government monopolies.EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.FINANCIAL COMPANIES RISK. Financial companies, such as retail and commercial banks, insurance companies and financial services companies, are especially subject to the adverse effects of economic recession, currency exchange rates, extensive government regulation, decreases in the availability of capital, volatile interest rates, portfolio concentrations in geographic markets, industries or products (such as commercial and residential real estate loans), competition from new entrants and blurred distinctions in their fields of business.INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.INDIA REGULATORY RISK. The Fund is registered in India as a Foreign Portfolio Investor (“FPI”) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (“SEBI”). Only while maintaining FPI registration would the Fund be able to buy, sell or deal in Indian securities. Investment by FPIs in Indian securities are subject to certain limits and restrictions under the applicable law, and the applications of such limits and restrictions could adversely impact the ability of the Fund to make investments in India.INDIA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Indian issuers. India is an emerging market and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in India or for U.S. authorities to pursue. Investment in Indian securities involves risks in addition to those associated with investments in securities of issuers in more developed countries, which may adversely affect the value of the Fund’s assets. Such heightened risks include, among others, political and legal uncertainty, greater government control over the economy, currency fluctuations or blockage and the risk of nationalization or expropriation of assets. In addition, religious and border disputes persist in India. Moreover, India has experienced civil unrest and hostilities with neighboring countries, including Pakistan, and the Indian government has confronted separatist movements in several Indian states. The securities market of India is considered an emerging market that is characterized by a large number of listed companies that have significantly smaller market capitalizations, greater price volatility, greater delays and possibility of disruptions in settlement transactions, greater political uncertainties and greater dependence on international trade or development assistance and substantially less liquidity than companies in more developed markets. These factors, coupled with restrictions on foreign investment and other factors, limit the supply of securities available for investment by the Fund. This will affect the rate at which the Fund is able to invest in the securities of Indian companies, the purchase and sale prices for such securities and the timing of purchases and sales. Certain restrictions on foreign investments may decrease the liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio, subject the Fund to higher transaction costs, or inhibit the Fund’s ability to track the Index. Investments in Indian securities may also be limited or prevented, at times, due to the limits on foreign ownership imposed by the Reserve Bank of India (“RBI”) or the Securities and Exchange Board of India ("SEBI"). In addition, a natural or other disaster could occur in India that could affect the Indian economy or operations of the Fund, causing an adverse impact on the Fund.INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.TAX RISK. The Fund will be subject to tax in India on the purchase and sale of Indian securities held by the Fund, which will reduce the Fund’s returns. For more information regarding the tax implications of investing in Indian securities, please see the section entitled “Federal Tax Matters.”TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Total Return</span>
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.On April 17, 2018 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Taiwan Index to the NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF</span> <br/><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:0%;">Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31</span>
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the periods shown in the chart above:Best QuarterWorst Quarter25.70%December 31, 2020-35.46%March 31, 2020
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022</span>
Performance Table Narrative	rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF | First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)[ctag:span_t-rule1]	rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice	none
Management Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule]	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule3]	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.80%
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01	$ 82
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03	255
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05	444
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10	$ 990
2013	rr_AnnualReturn2013	9.80%
2014	rr_AnnualReturn2014	15.13%
2015	rr_AnnualReturn2015	(17.56%)
2016	rr_AnnualReturn2016	10.31%
2017	rr_AnnualReturn2017	22.54%
2018	rr_AnnualReturn2018	(2.67%)
2019	rr_AnnualReturn2019	0.88%
2020	rr_AnnualReturn2020	10.83%
2021	rr_AnnualReturn2021	26.22%
2022	rr_AnnualReturn2022	(4.45%)
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Best Quarter</span>
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Dec. 31, 2020
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	25.70%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Worst Quarter</span>
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Mar. 31, 2020
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(35.46%)
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(4.45%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	5.50%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	6.30%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	5.84%
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Feb. 14, 2012
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF | After tax on distributions | First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(6.53%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	4.83%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	5.35%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	4.89%
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF | After tax on distributions and sale of fund shares | First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(2.52%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	4.03%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	4.57%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	4.20%
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF | NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(2.86%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05		[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF | NIFTY 50 Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(5.14%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	7.25%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	8.66%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	7.88%
First Trust India NIFTY 50 Equal Weight ETF | MSCI India Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(7.95%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	6.01%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	7.43%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	6.77%

[1] On April 17, 2018, the Fund's underlying index changed from the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Taiwan Index to the NIFTY 50 Equal Weight Index.Therefore, the Fund’s performance and total returns shown for the periods prior to April 17, 2018, are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the current index, would have generated. Since the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of September 29, 2017, it was not in existence for all the periods disclosed.

XML

Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	Summary Information
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Investment Objective</span>
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The First Trust Japan AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Japan Index (the “Index”).
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Fees and Expenses of the Fund</span>
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]	rr_ShareholderFeesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Shareholder Fees</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(fees paid directly from your investment)</span>
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Fund Operating Expenses</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Portfolio Turnover</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock	The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 79% of the average value of its portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	79.00%
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-style:italic;font-weight:bold;">Example</span>
Expense Example, No Redemption Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionNarrativeTextBlock	The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Investment Strategies</span>
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in Japan, as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Japan Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in Japan, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:1.The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.2.The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.329 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.3.The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.4.The top 100 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.5.The Index is subject to sector weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector percentages of the Base Index. For example, if financial companies comprise 15% of the Base Index, the Index will be comprised of no more than 30% financials. Stocks will fail the sector constraint if the weight assigned to the stock, when added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector, is greater than the sector weighting constraint.The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 100 securities and the Fund had significant investments in industrial companies and Japanese issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Risks</span>
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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.ASIA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Asian issuers. Many Asian economies have experienced rapid growth and industrialization, and there is no assurance that this growth rate will be maintained. Some Asian economies are highly dependent on trade, and economic conditions in other countries within and outside Asia can impact these economies. Certain of these economies may be adversely affected by trade or policy disputes with its major trade partners. There is also a high concentration of market capitalization and trading volume in a small number of issuers representing a limited number of industries, as well as a high concentration of investors and financial intermediaries. Certain Asian countries have experienced and may in the future experience expropriation and nationalization of assets, confiscatory taxation, currency manipulation, political instability, armed conflict and social instability as a result of religious, ethnic, socio-economic and/or political unrest. In particular, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Asian economies. Governments of certain Asian countries have exercised, and continue to exercise, substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector. In certain cases, the government owns or controls many companies, including the largest in the country. Accordingly, government actions could have a significant effect on the issuers of the Fund’s securities or on economic conditions generally. Recent developments in relations between the U.S. and China have heightened concerns of increased tariffs and restrictions on trade between the two countries. An increase in tariffs or trade restrictions, or even the threat of such developments, could lead to a significant reduction in international trade, which could have a negative impact on the economy of Asian countries and a commensurately negative impact on the Fund.AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.INDUSTRIALS COMPANIES RISK. Industrials companies convert unfinished goods into finished durables used to manufacture other goods or provide services. Examples of industrials companies include companies involved in the production of electrical equipment and components, industrial products, manufactured housing and telecommunications equipment, as well as defense and aerospace companies. General risks of industrials companies include the general state of the economy, exchange rates, commodity prices, intense competition, consolidation, domestic and international politics, government regulation, import controls, excess capacity, consumer demand and spending trends. In addition, industrials companies may also be significantly affected by overall capital spending levels, economic cycles, rapid technological changes, delays in modernization, labor relations, environmental liabilities, governmental and product liability and e-commerce initiatives.INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.JAPAN RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Japanese issuers. The Japanese economy may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability, which could have a negative impact on Japanese securities. Japan’s economy is characterized by government intervention and protectionism, reliance on oil imports, an unstable financial services sector and relatively high unemployment. Since 2000, Japan has experienced relatively low economic growth, and it may remain low in the future. Its economy is heavily dependent on international trade and has been adversely affected by trade tariffs and competition from emerging economies. As such, economic growth is heavily dependent on continued growth in international trade, relatively low commodities prices, government support of the financial services sector and other government policies. Any changes or trends in these economic factors could have a significant impact on Japanese markets overall and may negatively affect the Fund’s investments. Japan’s economy and equity market also share a strong correlation with U.S. markets and the Japanese economy may be affected by economic problems in the U.S. Despite a strengthening in the economic relationship between Japan and China, the countries’ political relationship has at times been strained. Should political tension increase, it could adversely affect the economy and destabilize the region as a whole. Additionally, escalated tensions involving North Korea and any outbreak of hostilities involving North Korea could have a severe adverse effect on Japan’s economy. Japan’s geography also subjects it to an increased risk of natural disasters, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, typhoons and tsunamis, all of which could negatively impact the Fund’s investments.LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Total Return</span>
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.On July 14, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Japan Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Japan Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of December 15, 2014, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Japan Index.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">First Trust Japan AlphaDEX</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:7pt;font-weight:bold;position:relative;top:-3.25pt;">®</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;"> Fund</span> <br/><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:0%;">Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31</span>
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the periods shown in the chart above:Best QuarterWorst Quarter14.30%December 31, 2022-20.55%March 31, 2020
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022</span>
Performance Table Narrative	rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX Fund | First Trust Japan AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)[ctag:span_t-rule1]	rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice	none
Management Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule]	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule3]	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.80%
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01	$ 82
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03	255
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05	444
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10	$ 990
2013	rr_AnnualReturn2013	30.66%
2014	rr_AnnualReturn2014	(1.22%)
2015	rr_AnnualReturn2015	5.73%
2016	rr_AnnualReturn2016	2.91%
2017	rr_AnnualReturn2017	26.70%
2018	rr_AnnualReturn2018	(17.66%)
2019	rr_AnnualReturn2019	8.27%
2020	rr_AnnualReturn2020	1.71%
2021	rr_AnnualReturn2021	(0.69%)
2022	rr_AnnualReturn2022	(12.04%)
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Best Quarter</span>
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Dec. 31, 2022
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	14.30%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Worst Quarter</span>
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Mar. 31, 2020
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(20.55%)
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(12.04%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(4.56%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	3.49%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	2.14%
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Apr. 18, 2011
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions | First Trust Japan AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(12.84%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(5.32%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	2.83%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	1.52%
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions and sale of fund shares | First Trust Japan AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(7.15%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(3.68%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	2.47%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	1.41%
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Japan Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(12.24%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(4.09%)	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq Japan Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(15.52%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(0.31%)	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	5.59%	[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Japan AlphaDEX Fund | MSCI Japan Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(16.65%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	0.23%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	5.55%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	4.76%

[1] Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

XML

Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	Summary Information
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Investment Objective</span>
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Latin America Index (the “Index”).
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Fees and Expenses of the Fund</span>
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]	rr_ShareholderFeesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Shareholder Fees</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(fees paid directly from your investment)</span>
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Fund Operating Expenses</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Portfolio Turnover</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock	The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 104% of the average value of its portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	104.00%
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-style:italic;font-weight:bold;">Example</span>
Expense Example, No Redemption Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionNarrativeTextBlock	The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Investment Strategies</span>
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in Latin America, as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. Securities issued by companies operating in Brazil, Mexico and other emerging market countries may comprise a significant portion of the Index. The Index may also be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Latin America Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in Latin America, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:1.The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.2.The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.548 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.3.The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.4.The top 50 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.5.The Index is subject to sector/country weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector/country percentages of the Base Index. A stock will be moved to a lower-weighted quintile when its weight, added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector/country, is greater than the sector/country weighting constraint. Stocks that fail the sector/country weighting constraints at the lowest quintile will be removed from the Index.The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 50 securities and the Fund had significant investments in materials companies, Brazilian issuers, Mexican issuers and Latin American issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Risks</span>
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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.BRAZIL RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Brazilian issuers. Brazil is an emerging market and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in Brazil or for U.S. authorities to pursue. Investing in Brazil may involve a higher degree of risk and special considerations not typically associated with investing in more established economies or securities markets. Investment exposure to Brazil may subject the Fund, to a greater extent than if investments were made in developed countries, to the risks of adverse securities markets, exchange rates and social, political, regulatory, economic, or environmental events and natural disasters which may occur in Brazil. The economy, industries, and securities and currency markets of Brazil may be adversely affected by protectionist trade policies, slow economic activity worldwide, political and social instability and regional and global conflicts. Brazil has experienced security concerns, such as terrorism and strained international relations. Incidents involving the country’s or region’s security may cause uncertainty in Brazilian markets and may adversely affect its economy and the Fund’s investments.CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund will effect some or all of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects all of its creations and redemptions in-kind. Because the Fund may effect redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of portfolio securities may result in capital gains or losses and may also result in higher brokerage costs.CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.EMERGING MARKETS RISK. Investments in securities issued by governments and companies operating in emerging market countries involve additional risks relating to political, economic, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in securities and instruments issued by U.S. companies or by companies operating in other developed market countries. Investments in emerging markets securities are generally considered speculative in nature and are subject to the following heightened risks: smaller market capitalization of securities markets which may suffer periods of relative illiquidity; significant price volatility; restrictions on foreign investment; possible repatriation of investment income and capital; rapid inflation; and currency convertibility issues. Emerging market countries also often have less uniformity in accounting, auditing and reporting requirements, unsettled securities laws, unreliable securities valuation and greater risk associated with custody of securities. Financial and other reporting by companies and government entities also may be less reliable in emerging market countries. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in emerging market countries or for U.S. authorities to pursue. For funds that track an index or are managed based upon a benchmark, the index may not weight the securities in emerging market countries on the basis of investor protection limitations, financial reporting quality or available oversight mechanisms. Furthermore, investors may be required to register the proceeds of sales and future economic or political crises could lead to price controls, forced mergers, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, seizure, nationalization or creation of government monopolies.EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.LATIN AMERICA RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Latin American issuers. The economies of Latin American countries have in the past experienced considerable difficulties, including high inflation rates, high interest rates, high unemployment, government overspending and political instability. International economic conditions, particularly those in the United States, Europe and Asia, as well as world prices for oil and other commodities may also influence the development of Latin American economies. Many Latin American countries are highly reliant on the exportation of commodities and their economies may be significantly impacted by fluctuations in commodity prices and the global demand for certain commodities. Investments in Latin American countries may be subject to currency risks, such as restrictions on the flow of money in and out of a country, extreme volatility relative to the U.S. dollar, and devaluation, all of which could decrease the value of investments in Latin American companies. Other Latin American investment risks may include inadequate investor protection, less developed regulatory, accounting, auditing and financial standards, unfavorable changes in laws or regulations, natural disasters, corruption and military activity. The governments of many Latin American countries may also exercise substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector, and any such exercise could have a significant effect on companies in which the Fund invests. Securities of companies in Latin America may also be subject to significant price volatility.MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.MATERIALS COMPANIES RISK. Materials and processing companies are involved in the extraction or processing of raw materials such as metals, ore and forestry products. These companies are sensitive to changes in the business cycle and fluctuations in the supply and demand for raw materials. Further, certain materials and processing companies can be affected by shifts in the housing market, as many produced raw materials are components of construction projects. Rising wage costs can also impact companies that rely on skilled labor. In addition, materials and processing companies may be significantly affected by volatility of commodity prices, import controls, worldwide competition, liability for environmental damage, depletion of resources and mandated expenditures for safety and pollution control devices.MEXICO RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Mexican issuers. The Mexican economy is dependent upon external trade with other economies, specifically with the United States and certain Latin American countries. Mexico is an emerging market and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. Shareholder claims that are available in the U.S., as well as regulatory oversight and authority that is common in the U.S., including for claims based on fraud, may be difficult or impossible for shareholders of securities in Mexico or for U.S. authorities to pursue. As a result, Mexico is dependent on, among other things, the U.S. economy and any change in the price or demand for Mexican exports may have an adverse impact on the Mexican economy. Recent political developments in the United States have raised potential implications for the current trade arrangements between the United States and Mexico, which could negatively affect the value of Mexican securities. Historically, Mexico has experienced substantial economic instability resulting from, among other things, periods of very high inflation, high interest rates, economic volatility, high unemployment rates and significant devaluations of the Mexican currency, the peso, as well as destabilizing events caused by local insurrections, social upheavals, drug related violence and public health crises. Recurrence of these or similar conditions may adversely impact the Mexican economy. Mexico has also experienced adverse economic impacts as a result of earthquakes and hurricanes, as well as outbreaks of violence. Incidents involving Mexico’s security may have an adverse effect on the Mexican economy and cause uncertainty in its financial markets.NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Total Return</span>
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.On October 13, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Latin America Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX®Latin America Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of February 11, 2015, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Latin America Index.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:7pt;font-weight:bold;position:relative;top:-3.25pt;">®</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;"> Fund</span> <br/><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:0%;">Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31</span>
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the periods shown in the chart above:Best QuarterWorst Quarter30.58%December 31, 2020-46.21%March 31, 2020
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022</span>
Performance Table Narrative	rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX Fund | First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)[ctag:span_t-rule1]	rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice	none
Management Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule]	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule3]	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.80%
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01	$ 82
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03	255
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05	444
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10	$ 990
2013	rr_AnnualReturn2013	(10.17%)
2014	rr_AnnualReturn2014	(15.80%)
2015	rr_AnnualReturn2015	(29.08%)
2016	rr_AnnualReturn2016	42.81%
2017	rr_AnnualReturn2017	20.50%
2018	rr_AnnualReturn2018	(7.50%)
2019	rr_AnnualReturn2019	26.26%
2020	rr_AnnualReturn2020	(12.32%)
2021	rr_AnnualReturn2021	(6.66%)
2022	rr_AnnualReturn2022	2.17%
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Best Quarter</span>
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Dec. 31, 2020
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	30.58%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Worst Quarter</span>
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Mar. 31, 2020
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(46.21%)
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	2.17%
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(0.47%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	(1.03%)
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	(1.34%)
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Apr. 18, 2011
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions | First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(0.15%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(1.88%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	(2.51%)
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	(2.76%)
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions and sale of fund shares | First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	1.22%
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(0.95%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	(1.40%)
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	(1.57%)
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Latin America Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	3.05%	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	0.82%	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq Latin America Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	5.49%	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(2.09%)	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	(3.04%)	[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Latin America AlphaDEX Fund | MSCI EM Latin America Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	8.92%
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(1.08%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	(2.15%)
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	(2.77%)

[1] Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

XML

Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	Summary Information
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Investment Objective</span>
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Switzerland Index (the “Index”).
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Fees and Expenses of the Fund</span>
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]	rr_ShareholderFeesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Shareholder Fees</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(fees paid directly from your investment)</span>
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Fund Operating Expenses</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Portfolio Turnover</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock	The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 64% of the average value of its portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	64.00%
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-style:italic;font-weight:bold;">Example</span>
Expense Example, No Redemption Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionNarrativeTextBlock	The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Investment Strategies</span>
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in Switzerland, as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq Switzerland Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in Switzerland, as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:1.The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.2.The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.329 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.3.The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.4.The top 40 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.5.The Index is subject to sector weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector percentages of the Base Index. For example, if financial companies comprise 15% of the Base Index, the Index will be comprised of no more than 30% financials. Stocks will fail the sector constraint if the weight assigned to the stock, when added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector, is greater than the sector weighting constraint.The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 40 securities and the Fund had significant investments in financial companies, industrials companies and Swiss issuers, although this may change from time to time. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Risks</span>
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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.EUROPE RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of European issuers. Political or economic disruptions in European countries, even in countries in which the Fund is not invested, may adversely affect security values and thus the Fund’s holdings. A significant number of countries in Europe are member states in the European Union (the “EU”), and the member states no longer control their own monetary policies by directing independent interest rates for their currencies. In these member states, the authority to direct monetary policies, including money supply and official interest rates for the Euro, is exercised by the European Central Bank. In a 2016 referendum, the United Kingdom elected to withdraw from the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. As the second largest economy among EU members, the implications of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal are difficult to gauge and cannot be fully known. Its departure may negatively impact the EU and Europe as a whole by causing volatility within the EU, triggering prolonged economic downturns in certain European countries or sparking additional member states to contemplate departing the EU (thereby perpetuating political instability in the region).FINANCIAL COMPANIES RISK. Financial companies, such as retail and commercial banks, insurance companies and financial services companies, are especially subject to the adverse effects of economic recession, currency exchange rates, extensive government regulation, decreases in the availability of capital, volatile interest rates, portfolio concentrations in geographic markets, industries or products (such as commercial and residential real estate loans), competition from new entrants and blurred distinctions in their fields of business.GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.INDUSTRIALS COMPANIES RISK. Industrials companies convert unfinished goods into finished durables used to manufacture other goods or provide services. Examples of industrials companies include companies involved in the production of electrical equipment and components, industrial products, manufactured housing and telecommunications equipment, as well as defense and aerospace companies. General risks of industrials companies include the general state of the economy, exchange rates, commodity prices, intense competition, consolidation, domestic and international politics, government regulation, import controls, excess capacity, consumer demand and spending trends. In addition, industrials companies may also be significantly affected by overall capital spending levels, economic cycles, rapid technological changes, delays in modernization, labor relations, environmental liabilities, governmental and product liability and e-commerce initiatives.INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.SWITZERLAND RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of Swiss issuers. Switzerland’s economy is heavily dependent on trading relationships with certain key trading partners, including the United States, United Kingdom, China, France and Germany. Future changes in the price or the demand for Swiss products or services by the United States, United Kingdom, China, France and Germany or changes in these countries’ economies, trade regulations or currency exchange rates could adversely impact the Swiss economy and the issuers to which the Fund has exposure. Switzerland’s economy relies heavily on the banking sector, and in recent years, Switzerland has responded to increasing pressure from neighboring countries and trading partners to reform its banking secrecy laws. Recently, allegations have surfaced that certain Swiss banking institutions marketed and sold offshore tax evasion services to U.S. citizens. Future litigation or settlements arising from these accusations may have a negative impact on certain companies to which the Fund has exposure.TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Total Return</span>
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two broad based securities market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.On July 14, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined Switzerland Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX®Switzerland Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of December 15, 2014, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined Switzerland Index.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:7pt;font-weight:bold;position:relative;top:-3.25pt;">®</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;"> Fund</span> <br/><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:0%;">Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31</span>
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the periods shown in the chart above:Best QuarterWorst Quarter18.16%June 30, 2020-22.08%March 31, 2020
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022</span>
Performance Table Narrative	rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund | First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)[ctag:span_t-rule1]	rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice	none
Management Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule]	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule3]	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.80%
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01	$ 82
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03	255
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05	444
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10	$ 990
2013	rr_AnnualReturn2013	28.89%
2014	rr_AnnualReturn2014	(5.06%)
2015	rr_AnnualReturn2015	6.06%
2016	rr_AnnualReturn2016	4.21%
2017	rr_AnnualReturn2017	31.26%
2018	rr_AnnualReturn2018	(15.11%)
2019	rr_AnnualReturn2019	25.91%
2020	rr_AnnualReturn2020	14.50%
2021	rr_AnnualReturn2021	19.34%
2022	rr_AnnualReturn2022	(20.88%)
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Best Quarter</span>
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Jun. 30, 2020
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	18.16%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Worst Quarter</span>
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Mar. 31, 2020
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(22.08%)
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(20.88%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	2.93%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	7.45%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	7.77%
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Feb. 14, 2012
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions | First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(22.06%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	1.99%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	6.56%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	6.87%
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions and sale of fund shares | First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(12.41%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	1.84%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	5.57%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	5.87%
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq AlphaDEX® Switzerland Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(20.98%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	3.36%	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq Switzerland Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(18.21%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	5.03%	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	6.67%	[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund | MSCI Switzerland Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(18.32%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	5.53%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	6.84%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	7.54%

[1] Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

XML

Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	Summary Information
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Investment Objective</span>
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX® Fund (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the Fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called the Nasdaq AlphaDEX® United Kingdom Index (the “Index”).
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Fees and Expenses of the Fund</span>
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. Investors may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]	rr_ShareholderFeesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Shareholder Fees</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(fees paid directly from your investment)</span>
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Fund Operating Expenses</span> <br/><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;margin-left:0%;">(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Portfolio Turnover</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock	The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 98% of the average value of its portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	98.00%
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-style:italic;font-weight:bold;">Example</span>
Expense Example, No Redemption Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionNarrativeTextBlock	The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then hold or 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. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Investment Strategies</span>
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund will normally invest at least 90% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in the securities that comprise the Index. The Fund, using an indexing investment approach, attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Index. The Index is owned and is developed, maintained and sponsored by Nasdaq, Inc. (the “Index Provider“). The Index Provider may, from time to time, exercise reasonable discretion as it deems appropriate in order to ensure Index integrity.The Index is composed of securities issued by small, mid and large cap companies operating in the United Kingdom (i.e., England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales), as classified by the Index Provider. Companies are classified as operating in a country primarily by their country of incorporation, domicile and primary exchange listing. The Index may be composed of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies. According to the Index Provider, the Index is designed to select stocks from the Nasdaq United Kingdom Index (the “Base Index”) that may generate positive alpha, or risk-adjusted returns, relative to traditional indices through the use of the AlphaDEX® selection methodology. Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark. The Base Index is a comprehensive, rules-based index designed to measure stock market performance of companies in the United Kingdom as determined by the Index Provider. The Index may be composed of, but not limited to, common stocks, depositary receipts, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and preferred securities.According to the Index Provider, security selection for the Index will be conducted in the following manner:1.The selection universe for the Index begins with all stocks in the Base Index.2.The Index Provider then removes any stocks which do not trade on an eligible exchange; duplicate (multiple share classes) stocks; stocks which do not meet the Index Provider’s liquidity screens; and stocks with a market capitalization less than the mid cap breakpoint (50th percentile) as calculated by Nasdaq. As of March 31, 2023, the mid cap breakpoint was $3.329 billion. The Index Provider may include stocks below the mid cap breakpoint in order to reach a predetermined minimum number of eligible stocks.3.The remaining stocks in the universe are then ranked on both growth and value factors. Each stock receives the best style rank from this step as its selection score.4.The top 75 stocks based on the selection score determined in step 3 comprise the “selected stocks.” The selected stocks are then split into quintiles based on their selection score, with higher scoring quintiles receiving a greater weight in the Index.5.The Index is subject to sector weighting constraints which are set at 15% above the sector percentages of the Base Index. For example, if financial companies comprise 15% of the Base Index, the Index will be comprised of no more than 30% financials. Stocks will fail the sector constraint if the weight assigned to the stock, when added to the weight assigned to all higher ranking stocks in its sector, is greater than the sector weighting constraint.The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually and the Fund will make corresponding changes to its portfolio shortly after the Index changes are made public. The Index’s semi-annual rebalance and reconstitution schedule may cause the Fund to experience a higher rate of portfolio turnover. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2023, the Index was composed of 75 securities and the Fund had significant investments in consumer discretionary companies and issuers located in the United Kingdom and European issuers. The Fund’s investments will change as the Index changes and, as a result, the Fund may have significant investments in jurisdictions or investment sectors that it may not have had as of March 31, 2023. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a given jurisdiction or investment sector, the Fund may be exposed to the risks associated with that jurisdiction or investment sector.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Risks</span>
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 objective will be achieved. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.AUTHORIZED PARTICIPANT CONCENTRATION RISK. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. A limited number of institutions act as authorized participants for the Fund. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders and no other authorized participant steps forward to create or redeem, the Fund’s shares may trade at a premium or discount (the difference between the market price of the Fund's shares and the Fund's net asset value) and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread (the difference between the price that someone is willing to pay for shares of the Fund at a specific point in time versus the price at which someone is willing to sell) on the Fund’s shares may widen.CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY COMPANIES RISK. Consumer discretionary companies, such as retailers, media companies and consumer services companies, provide non-essential goods and services. These companies manufacture products and provide discretionary services directly to the consumer, and the success of these companies is tied closely to the performance of the overall domestic and international economy, interest rates, competition and consumer confidence. Success depends heavily on disposable household income and consumer spending. Changes in demographics and consumer tastes can also affect the demand for, and success of, consumer discretionary products in the marketplace.CURRENCY RISK. Changes in currency exchange rates affect the value of investments denominated in a foreign currency, and therefore the value of such investments in the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund’s net asset value could decline if a currency to which the Fund has exposure depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning.CYBER SECURITY RISK. The Fund is susceptible to 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 issuers of securities in which the Fund invests or the Fund’s third-party service providers, such as its administrator, transfer agent, custodian, or sub-advisor, as applicable, can also subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct cyber security breaches. Although the Fund has established risk management systems designed to reduce the risks associated with cyber security, 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.DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts represent equity interests in a foreign company that trade on a local stock exchange. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the equity shares into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the equity shares of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.EQUITY SECURITIES RISK. The value of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate with changes in the value of the equity securities in which it invests. Equity securities prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant equity market, such as market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting an issuer occur. Common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. Equity securities may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur in the equity market as a whole, or they may occur in only a particular country, company, industry or sector of the market.EUROPE RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of European issuers. Political or economic disruptions in European countries, even in countries in which the Fund is not invested, may adversely affect security values and thus the Fund’s holdings. A significant number of countries in Europe are member states in the European Union (the “EU”), and the member states no longer control their own monetary policies by directing independent interest rates for their currencies. In these member states, the authority to direct monetary policies, including money supply and official interest rates for the Euro, is exercised by the European Central Bank. In a 2016 referendum, the United Kingdom elected to withdraw from the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. As the second largest economy among EU members, the implications of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal are difficult to gauge and cannot be fully known. Its departure may negatively impact the EU and Europe as a whole by causing volatility within the EU, triggering prolonged economic downturns in certain European countries or sparking additional member states to contemplate departing the EU (thereby perpetuating political instability in the region).GROWTH STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. Stocks exhibiting growth characteristics tend to be more volatile than certain other types of stocks and their prices usually fluctuate more dramatically than the overall stock market. A stock with growth characteristics can have sharp price declines due to decreases in current or expected earnings and may lack dividend payments that can help cushion its share price during declining markets.INDEX CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund will be concentrated in an industry or a group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. To the extent that the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a single asset class or the securities of issuers within the same country, state, region, industry or sector, an adverse economic, business or political development may affect the value of the Fund’s investments more than if the Fund were more broadly diversified. A significant exposure makes the Fund more susceptible to any single occurrence and may subject the Fund to greater market risk than a fund that is more broadly diversified. There may be instances in which the Index, for a variety of reasons including changes in the prices of individual securities held by the Fund, has a larger exposure to a small number of stocks or a single stock relative to the rest of the stocks in the Index. Under such circumstances, the Fund will not deviate from the Index except in rare circumstances or in an immaterial way and therefore the Fund’s returns would be more greatly influenced by the returns of the stock(s) with the larger exposure.INDEX OR MODEL CONSTITUENT RISK. The Fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or ETF models. As a result, the Fund may be included in one or more index-tracking exchange-traded funds or mutual funds. Being a component security of such a vehicle could greatly affect the trading activity involving the Fund’s shares, the size of the Fund and the market volatility of the Fund. Inclusion in an index could increase demand for the Fund and removal from an index could result in outsized selling activity in a relatively short period of time. As a result, the Fund’s net asset value could be negatively impacted and the Fund’s market price may be below the Fund’s net asset value during certain periods. In addition, index rebalances may potentially result in increased trading activity in the Fund's shares.INDEX PROVIDER RISK. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Index Provider and its agents do not provide any representation or warranty in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Index, and do not guarantee that the Index will be calculated in accordance with its stated methodology. The Advisor’s mandate as described in this prospectus is to manage the Fund consistently with the Index provided by the Index Provider. The Advisor relies upon the Index provider and its agents to accurately compile, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate and disseminate the Index accurately. Therefore, losses or costs associated with any Index Provider or agent errors generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. To correct any such error, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out an unscheduled rebalance of the Index or other modification of Index constituents or weightings. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the Index is less commonly used as a benchmark by funds or advisors. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund tracking the Index would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. The Index Provider and its agents rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor can offer assurances that the Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included issuers. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain, causing the performance and constituents of the Index to vary from those expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index due to unusual market conditions or in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents.INFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the present value of the Fund’s assets and distributions may decline.LARGE CAPITALIZATION COMPANIES RISK. 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.MARKET MAKER RISK. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares due to a limited number of market markers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants 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. The Fund 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 net asset value and the price at which the Fund’s shares are trading on the Exchange, which could result in a decrease in value of the Fund’s shares. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund shares trading at a discount to net asset value and also in greater than normal intraday bid-ask spreads for Fund shares.MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of the Fund in general, may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of the Fund could decline in value or underperform other investments. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. For example, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease. As this global pandemic illustrated, such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. These events also adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets. Any of such circumstances could have a materially negative impact on the value of the Fund’s shares and result in increased market volatility. During any such events, the Fund’s shares may trade at increased premiums or discounts to their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.NON-CORRELATION RISK. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. The Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and may incur costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s portfolio holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index. In addition, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may not exactly replicate the securities included in the Index or the ratios between the securities included in the Index. Additionally, in order to comply with its investment strategies and policies, the Fund portfolio may deviate from the composition of the Index. Accordingly, the Fund's return may underperform the return of the Index.NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, capital controls, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, the imposition of sanctions by foreign governments, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges in foreign countries.OPERATIONAL RISK. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, 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 relies on third-parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and the Fund's investment advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.PASSIVE INVESTMENT RISK. The Fund is not actively managed. The Fund invests in securities included in or representative of the Index regardless of investment merit. The Fund generally will not attempt to take defensive positions in declining markets. In the event that the Index is no longer calculated, the Index license is terminated or the identity or character of the Index is materially changed, the Fund will seek to engage a replacement index.PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RISK. High portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than expected.PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income, subjecting them to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Generally, holders of preferred securities have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company unless preferred dividends have been in arrears for a specified number of periods, at which time the preferred security holders may obtain limited rights. In certain circumstances, an issuer of preferred securities may defer payment on the securities and, in some cases, redeem the securities prior to a specified date. Preferred securities may also be substantially less liquid than other securities, including common stock.PREMIUM/DISCOUNT RISK. The market price of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the Fund’s net asset value as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the Exchange. The Fund’s investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their net asset value because the shares trade on the Exchange at market prices and not at net asset value. Price differences 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, 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. However, given that shares can only be purchased and redeemed in Creation Units, and only to and from broker-dealers and large institutional investors that have entered into participation agreements (unlike shares of closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable discounts from, and sometimes at premiums to, their net asset value), the Fund’s investment advisor believes that large discounts or premiums to the net asset value of shares should not be sustained. During stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the market for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could in turn lead to differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and their net asset value and the bid/ask spread on the Fund’s shares may widen.REIT RISK. REITs typically own and operate income-producing real estate, such as residential or commercial buildings, or real-estate related assets, including mortgages. As a result, investments in REITs are subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate sector. REITs are also subject to the risk that the real estate market may experience an economic downturn generally, which may have a material effect on the real estate in which the REITs invest and their underlying portfolio securities. REITs may have also a relatively small market capitalization which may result in their shares experiencing less market liquidity and greater price volatility than larger companies. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT's future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors' collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund will generally decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.SMALLER COMPANIES RISK. Small and/or mid capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, fewer products or financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies.TRADING ISSUES RISK. Trading in Fund 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 Fund shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. 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. The Fund may have difficulty maintaining its listing on the Exchange in the event the Fund’s assets are small, the Fund does not have enough shareholders, or if the Fund is unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders.UNITED KINGDOM RISK. The Fund is subject to certain risks specifically associated with investments in the securities of United Kingdom issuers. Investments in issuers located in the United Kingdom may subject the Fund to regulatory, political, currency, security and economic risk specific to the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom has one of the largest economies in Europe and is heavily dependent on trade with the European Union (“EU”), and to a lesser extent the United States and China. As a result, the economy of the United Kingdom may be impacted by changes to the economic health of EU member counties, the United States and China. In 2016, the United Kingdom voted via referendum to leave the EU (“Brexit”). After years of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU, a withdrawal agreement was reached whereby the United Kingdom formally left the EU. The precise impact on the United Kingdom’s economy as a result of its departure from the EU depends to a large degree on its ability to conclude favorable trade deals with the EU and other countries, including the United States, China, India and Japan. While new trade deals may boost economic growth, such growth may not be able to offset the increased costs of trade with the EU resulting from the United Kingdom’s loss of its membership in the EU single market. Certain sectors within the United Kingdom’s economy may be particularly affected by Brexit, including the automotive, chemicals, financial services and professional services.VALUE STOCKS INVESTMENT RISK. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Total Return</span>
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The bar chart and table below illustrate the annual calendar year returns of the Fund based on net asset value as well as the average annual Fund and Index returns. The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns based on net asset value compared to those of the Index and two market indices. See “Total Return Information” for additional performance information regarding the Fund. The Fund’s performance information is accessible on the Fund’s website at www.ftportfolios.com.On July 14, 2015 the Fund’s underlying index changed from the Defined United Kingdom Index to the Nasdaq AlphaDEX®United Kingdom Index. Therefore, the Fund’s performance and historical returns shown below are not necessarily indicative of the performance that the Fund, based on the Index, would have generated. Returns for an underlying index are only disclosed for those periods in which the index was in existence for the whole period. Because the Fund’s new underlying index had an inception date of May 18, 2015, it was not in existence for all of the periods disclosed. The new index is substantially similar to the Defined United Kingdom Index.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:7pt;font-weight:bold;position:relative;top:-3.25pt;">®</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;"> Fund</span> <br/><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:0%;">Calendar Year Total Returns as of 12/31</span>
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the periods shown in the chart above:Best QuarterWorst Quarter23.45%December 31, 2022-40.79%March 31, 2020
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.90pt;font-weight:bold;">Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2022</span>
Performance Table Narrative	rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of any state or local tax. Returns after taxes on distributions reflect the taxed return on the payment of dividends and capital gains. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of shares assume you sold your shares at period end, and, therefore, are also adjusted for any capital gains or losses incurred. Returns for the market indices do not include expenses, which are deducted from Fund returns, or taxes.Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or employee-sponsored retirement plans.
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX Fund | First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)[ctag:span_t-rule1]	rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice	none
Management Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.80%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees[ctag:span_t-indent1]	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule]	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses[ctag:span_t-indent1-rule3]	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.80%
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01	$ 82
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03	255
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05	444
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10	$ 990
2013	rr_AnnualReturn2013	28.17%
2014	rr_AnnualReturn2014	(4.53%)
2015	rr_AnnualReturn2015	4.75%
2016	rr_AnnualReturn2016	(16.08%)
2017	rr_AnnualReturn2017	25.53%
2018	rr_AnnualReturn2018	(16.16%)
2019	rr_AnnualReturn2019	32.36%
2020	rr_AnnualReturn2020	(5.25%)
2021	rr_AnnualReturn2021	19.10%
2022	rr_AnnualReturn2022	(23.52%)
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Best Quarter</span>
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Dec. 31, 2022
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	23.45%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:9.00pt;font-weight:bold;">Worst Quarter</span>
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Mar. 31, 2020
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(40.79%)
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(23.52%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(0.86%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	2.61%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	3.81%
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Feb. 14, 2012
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions | First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(25.30%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(2.36%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	1.21%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	2.43%
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX Fund | After tax on distributions and sale of fund shares | First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(14.00%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(1.25%)
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	1.42%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	2.39%
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq AlphaDEX® United Kingdom Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(22.91%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	0.09%	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX Fund | Nasdaq United Kingdom Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(9.02%)	[1]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	0.41%	[1]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	3.18%	[1]
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception		[1]
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX Fund | MSCI United Kingdom Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(4.84%)
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	0.96%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	3.07%
Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	3.54%

[1] Performance data is not available for all the periods shown in the table for the index because performance data does not exist for some of the entire periods.

XML

Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	First Trust Exchange-Traded AlphaDEX Fund II
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2023
Document Creation Date	dei_DocumentCreationDate	Apr. 28, 2023