When are shares considered to be allotted?

Shares are considered to be allotted when a person gains an unconditional right to be on the register of members. This means that once shares are allotted, they are no longer merely promised or conditional; the recipient has a formal and legal entitlement to those shares. The process of allotment is distinct from other stages such as sale or listing.

When shares are sold to the public, this does not automatically confer the right to be included on the register until the allotment is officially recognized. Listing shares on a stock exchange refers to a separate process of making them available for trading, which also does not imply that allotment has occurred. Furthermore, the condition of shares being fully paid for pertains to the financial aspect of share acquisition, not the legal status of allotment itself. Thus, the key aspect of allotment lies in the establishment of an unconditional right, allowing the shareholder to be formally recognized in the company's register of members.