Retention periods, you really need to know!

Retention periods, you really need to know!

The retention periods for data protection are often based on laws such as the HGB and the AO.

All business data must be kept for a specified period of time and in such a way that it is complete and correct even after several months and years.

For whom do these deadlines apply

Traders who achieve a turnover of €600,000 in a calendar year or a profit of €60,000 in a financial year. Also, certain professions or activities, such as the guarding trade, are bound to certain accounting and record-keeping obligations.

What to keep

Since a company accumulates a large number and variety of documents, receipts or records, different deadlines also apply.

In the AO §147 Abs. 1 you can look up duration of the custody. The documents to be kept include, for example, invoices, contracts or company books.

Email retention

Information from e-mails may only be stored as long as it is necessary. Deletion should be carried out thoroughly after the retention period, as with documents that are not stored in digital form.

Since there are many ways to store data, deleting the information can be a challenge and nothing should be overlooked.