Authorized, issued and paid-up capital
In one sentenceThree levels of capital: the maximum permitted by the bylaws, the shares actually issued, and the portion of them paid by shareholders.
Simply put
Authorized capital is a ceiling up to which the company can issue without amending its bylaws, issued capital is the value of shares actually allotted to shareholders, and paid-up capital is what has been paid of the issued shares' value.
Authorized but unissued capital is not part of equity. IAS 1 requires disclosure of the number of shares authorized, issued and fully paid, and issued but not fully paid.
Worked example
A joint stock company's bylaws permit capital of 10,000,000 SAR. It issued 600,000 shares of it at a nominal value of 10 SAR, and shareholders paid 75% of their value (hypothetical figures for illustration).
Authorized capital10,000,000 SAR
Issued capital: 600,000 × 106,000,000 SAR
Paid-up capital: 6,000,000 × 75%4,500,000 SAR
Unpaid portion: 6,000,000 − 4,500,0001,500,000 SAR
Available to issue without amending the bylaws: 10,000,000 − 6,000,0004,000,000 SAR
Don't confuse it with
Share capitalCapital is the line item in equity; these three levels detail how much of it was authorized, how much was issued, and how much was paid.