Record retention

Record retention refers to the practices of maintaining personal financial records, particularly tax related documents. This article focuses on tax related documents which must be kept for a period of six years from the end of the last tax year to which they relate,Canada Revenue Agency, RC188 Keeping Records, viewed October 26, 2021. but also includes information for other types of documents. 
The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) allows for electronic record keepingIC05-1R1 Electronic Record Keeping, viewed October 26, 2021. provided that the records are maintained in a electronically readable format. If you maintain the electronic records yourself you should be aware of the media's likely lifetime.Canadian Conservation Institute, Electronic Media Collections Care for Small Museums and Archives, viewed October 26, 2021.
Many financial institutions, utilities and communications companies have fees for sending paper statements, with the fee waived if the statements are received electronically. When providing electronic statements, the general trend is for organizations to commit to allowing access for a seven year periodeStatements - RBC Royal Bank, viewed October 26, 2021. as long as the relationship is maintained. When an account is closed, generally access to the electronic statements is lost. 
==What to retain and for how long==
What to retain 	When to dispose
Sales slips and receipts 	When reconciled with bank statement or credit card statement. For valuable items with a warranty, keep at least until warranty period ends.
Paystubs 	When reconciled with T4 Statement of Remuneration Paid (slip)
Monthly bank and credit card statements 	One yearHow Long to Keep Records in Canada, Black Tulip Inc., viewed October 26, 2021.
Utility, phone, internet bills 	One year
Tax slips (T3, T4, T5 etc.) and tax-related related-information	Keep with tax return for 6 years from the end of the last tax year to which they relate
Annual mortgage statements 	6 years
Insurance policy information 	Keep as long as the policy is valid
Birth certificate and similar 	Never
==How to dispose==
Care must be taken when disposing of records that contain personal information as identity theft and fraud is a significant and growing problem.Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, Protect yourself from scams and fraud, viewed October 26, 2021.
Buy a cross-cut shredder. Scan incoming paper statements to Portable Document Format (PDF) files, then shred them. Back up the PDFs on several devices, e.g. HD -> external HD -> USB drive. If you're really paranoid, store the PDFs in password-protected and/or encrypted directories.
==Business owners==
If you formally employ a domestic worker as a nanny, you should be aware of the reporting and record retention required by the provincial (or territorial) and federal governments.
For business owners, the details of record retention or record keeping is beyond the scope of this article.
==See also==
*Budgeting
==References==
==Further reading==
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==External links==
*Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), IC78-10R5 Books and Records Retention/Destruction
*The Blunt Bean Counter: How Long Do I Have To Keep My Income Tax Records
*Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre
Category:Financial planning
Category:Personal finance