Allotment, refunds & listing
How IPO Allotment Works in India
How the registrar decides the basis of allotment, why oversubscribed retail and NII categories use a lottery, and what does and does not change your chances.
By Niva Market Watch Editorial · Published
When an IPO receives more bids than there are shares, someone has to decide who gets what. That decision — the basis of allotment — is made by the registrar to the issue together with the designated stock exchange, following rules set by SEBI. This guide explains those rules by category and clears up the most common myths about improving your chances.
Who decides
After bidding closes, the registrar collects all bids from the exchanges, removes invalid ones (for example duplicates, PAN mismatches or unapproved UPI mandates) and prepares the basis of allotment. The designated stock exchange reviews and approves it. The result is published as a basis of allotment notice, and individual status is made available on the registrar's website. Under the T+3 timeline this happens on the working day after the issue closes.
If the issue is not oversubscribed
If demand in a category is at or below the shares reserved for it, every valid bid at or above the final price receives the shares applied for.
Retail investors: the lottery for one lot
SEBI's rule for retail investors is to allot the minimum bid lot to as many retail applicants as possible.
- The registrar works out how many minimum lots are available in the retail portion.
- If there are fewer lots than valid retail applications, a computerised lottery picks which applications get one lot. Everyone else gets nothing.
- If there are more lots than applications, each applicant gets one lot, and the remaining shares are allotted proportionately to those who applied for more.
What this means in practice: in a heavily oversubscribed issue, an application for one lot and an application for thirteen lots have the same chance of receiving the single lot. Applying for more only blocks more money.
Non-institutional investors (sNII and bNII)
Since 2022, NII allotment follows a similar principle. Each successful NII applicant is allotted at least the minimum NII application size — the smallest application above ₹2 lakh — subject to availability, with a lottery deciding who when the category is oversubscribed. The NII portion is split one-third for sNII (₹2–10 lakh) and two-thirds for bNII (above ₹10 lakh), and each is allotted separately. Any shares left after the minimum allotments are distributed proportionately.
QIBs and anchors
QIBs are allotted proportionately to their bids; a small part of the QIB portion is reserved for mutual funds. Anchor investors are allotted before the issue opens at the lead managers' discretion within SEBI's rules. See investor categories.
Myths about improving your chances
| Claim | Reality |
|---|---|
| “Apply for the maximum lots.” | Does not change retail lottery odds in an oversubscribed issue. |
| “Apply on day 1.” | Timing within the bidding period has no effect on allotment. Applying early does reduce the risk of a missed UPI mandate. |
| “Bid at a higher price.” | Retail bids at cut-off are treated the same as bids at the cap. |
| “Apply several times from one PAN.” | Duplicate applications from one PAN can all be rejected. |
Each separate applicant — with their own PAN, demat account and bank account — is a separate entry in the lottery. That is simply how the rules count applications, not a recommendation to apply.
Reserved categories
Where an issue has an employee or shareholder reservation, eligible applicants can apply in both the reserved category and the general category, subject to the conditions in the RHP. Each category is allotted separately.
After allotment
- Check your status: how to check IPO allotment status.
- Unallotted funds are released: refunds and unblocking.
- Allotted shares list on T+3: how the listing price is determined.
Related guides
How to Check IPO Allotment Status
Where and how to check IPO allotment — registrar websites, exchange status pages, your bank and demat account — and what each status message means.
Allotment, refunds & listingIPO Refunds and Fund Unblocking: What Happens If You Are Not Allotted
How blocked IPO money is released when you are not allotted shares, how long it should take under T+3, and what to do if funds stay blocked.
IPO basicsQIB vs NII (HNI) vs Retail: IPO Investor Categories
Who qualifies as a QIB, NII (small and big) or retail investor in an Indian IPO, how shares are reserved for each, and how allotment differs by category.