Documents to Keep in Business

February 26, 2019

How long do I keep that?

Since many common business documents must be retained in accordance with federal law, here is a list of how long common documents must be kept.

2 Years

  • General Correspondence
  • Bank Reconciliations

3 Years

  • Employee Applications
  • Purchase orders
  • Requisitions
  • Sales Contracts
  • Sales Invoices

4 Years

  • Expired Policies (All types)
  • Settled Insurance Claims
  • Export Declarations
  • Freight Bills
  • Manifests
  • Waybills
  • Bills of Lading

5 Years

  • Benefits
  • Safety Reports

6 Years

  • Internal Audit Reports
  • Accident Reports
  • File Inspection Reports
  • Insurance Polices

7 Years

  • AP/AR Ledger
  • Expense Reports
  • Petty Cash Records
  • Accident Reports (HR)
  • Attendance
  • Personal Files – After Termination
  • Time Reports
  • Routine Correspondence

8 Years

  • Salary Hours
  • Group Disability Reports
  • Safety Reports

10 years

  • Payroll records after termination
  • Claims – After Settlement

Permanently

  • Cash Disbursements / Receipts
  • Chart od Accounts
  • Depreciations Schedule
  • Financial Statements
  • General Ledger
  • Inventory Records
  • Journal Entries
  • Tax Returns
  • Personal Files- Current Employees
  • Articles of Incorporation
  • Audit Reports – External
  • Contracts
  • Copyrights, Trademarks, Patents
  • Correspondence – Legal/Tax
  • Mortgages, Licenses, Deeds
  • Organizational Charts
  • Partnership Agreements

This list is not a full listing of everything. If you are unsure about how long to keep a document. Ask your tax advisor.

If you do not have a tax advisor. Capital Advisory Group, Inc. is here to answer your questions.

Need to know what to keep personally- see our How Long Do I keep That?

Posted in Tax, Tax Strategy