You must keep a number of records about your company or LLP, including statutory records and registers about the business itself; as well as financial and accounting records to complete tax returns and work out tax payments.
You can take care of these record-keeping and accounting requirements yourself, but it can be somewhat time-consuming and complex, so you may prefer to hire an accountant to assist with your book-keeping and tax affairs. When you set up a limited company or limited liability partnership, you will be required by law to keep where applicable the following statutory records and make them available for public inspection at your registered office or SAIL address :.
You may keep all or some of these records at your registered office, or you may choose an alternative location a SAIL address to keep some or all of these records and make them available for inspection; however, all records of a similar type must be kept together in the same location and you must tell HMRC which records are at which address. Statutory registers should be kept for the life of your company or LLP.
Minutes of meetings and copies of resolutions must be kept for a minimum of 10 years from the dates they are produced.
Every company and LLP must keep accurate financial and accounting records, regardless of whether the business is actively trading or dormant. These records should include, where applicable:. As a general rule, however, you should keep all financial statements, accounting records and tax returns for at least 6 years. The law does not state how you must keep the majority of business and accounting records, but you will have to keep some original documents that show that tax has been deducted, for example: form P60 End of Year Certificates for PAYE.
It is good practice to keep all original documents you receive. CIS vouchers, dividend vouchers and bank interest certificates must be kept in their original format. Chosen Date. Please enter your name. Please enter your email. Please enter a phone number. If your company is financially distressed, we also offer the below services:.
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Bradford based Alatas Engineering bought out of administration. Latest News. View all News. Topics: IRS , accounting regulations , financial management. Many businesses aren't sure how long records must be saved in the paperless era. Record-keeping is a boring, but important business activity, and if you make the wrong choices, you risk litigation, succession planning problems and the wrath of the tax man. Understanding how long should you keep business records will help you avoid these problems.
The Internal Revenue Service has established some basic record-keeping rules for tax documents. Outside the tax arena, there's remarkably little guidance about how long you should keep business paperwork.
Most lawyers, accountants and bookkeeping services recommend keeping original documents for at least seven years. As a rule of thumb, seven years is sufficient time for defending tax audits, lawsuits and potential claims.
These periods are not offered as final authority, but as a guide. Your CPA, outsourced accounting service or tax attorney may recommend a different approach based on the rules of your industry and the specific needs of your business.
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