Another financial year has come and passed, and with it brings the necessity to begin storing and retaining important documents. Whether these are financial records for tax purposes, GST records, company documents, client documents or personnel files, we will provide you with a summary breakdown of the mandatory minimum document retention requirements for you.
Document retention may not be the most exciting component of conducting business, however, it is of significant importance in order to ensure that a business is not reprimanded or sued for mishandling or destroying mandatory documents.
Implementing a document retention plan/policy that involves outsourcing document storage is recommended because it helps companies save money on storage, reduces litigation risks by following Government rules and regulations and ensures security by preventing unauthorised access.
Here is our quick guide to document retention regulation in NSW:
Please note: This is intended as a guide only. For comprehensive information regarding document retention requirements, contact the regulatory body responsible for your industry and head to the ASIC and Australian Government: Business websites for more information.
You can see from the table provided that there is a vast array of documents that require storage in order to satisfy legal retention requirements. A company may consider keeping files indefinitely to ensure they cover all bases, however, the logistics and cost of doing this would be a substantial burden. For a company to manage their document retention internally is not only expensive but can occupy a huge amount of floor space. There may be the consideration to scan and electronically store document files, but this is certainly not the most cost-effective solution available – as noted in our previous post Document File Storage Cost vs Scanning Cost.
Outsourcing document file storage to a Records Management, Business and Document Storage provider such as CostSmart can free up valuable space in a company’s own premises and gain greater control over inventory. CostSmart offers streamlined document storage and records management for efficient processing and access for our customers. CostSmart can provide three different services relating to document file storage: physical document storage, scanning and ‘Scan on Demand’. CostSmart can also manage your destruction rates, which means one less logistic your company has to think about.
To find out more, get in touch with our team at [email protected] or by calling 1300 100 461 for further information. Our team would be happy to discuss a personalised approach for your business