What documents should a company keep?

What documents should a company keep?

Assets, liabilities, income and expenditure – If your business is a limited company, you need to keep all of your accounting and business records, including bank statements, paying-in slips, account books, purchases and sales information, to prove the financial position of your business and comply with the Companies …

How long must you keep company paperwork?

In general, company records must be retained for around six years from the end of the accounting period. But some documentation needs to be kept for 10 years, including: The company’s statutory books (company registers need to be retained for the time the company is in business)

What business records should be kept permanently?

Ownership Records, such as business formation documents, annual meeting minutes, by-laws, stock ledgers and property deeds, should be retained permanently. Accounting Services Records should be retained for a minimum of seven years.

What financial documents should a business keep?

Here’s why these five financial documents are essential to small businesses. The five key documents include profit and loss statements, balance sheets, cash-flow statements, tax returns and aging reports.

Do companies need to keep paper records?

Share this article on: Many small business owners are concerned about whether they are able to keep their business records electronically, or whether they are required by law to keep paper records. On the whole, the law requires businesses to keep complete and accurate records for accounting and tax purposes.

What financial documents do I need to keep and for how long?

Knowing that, a good rule of thumb is to save any document that verifies information on your tax return—including Forms W–2 and 1099, bank and brokerage statements, tuition payments and charitable donation receipts—for three to seven years.

How do small businesses keep records?

Best Practices for Small Business Record-Keeping

1. Implement a document management system.
2. Check for record retention mandates.
3. Choose accounting and payroll software that generate records.
4. Match records to transactions during bank reconciliations.
5. Back up and secure your records.

What documents should I shred?

Documents that should be shredded include:

• Financial Statements.
• Medical Records.
• Legal Documents.
• Receipts & Invoices.
• Payroll Records.
• Bank Statements.
• Tax Records.
• Contracts.

What papers to save and what to throw away?

What Documents Can I Throw Away—and When?

• Tax Returns. Old tax documents are probably the number one category of documents we’re asked about.
• Bank Statements.
• Explanation of Benefits (EOB) Forms.
• Medical Bills.
• Utility Bills.
• Paycheck Stubs.
• Credit Card Statements.
• Wills and Estate Planning Documents.

How many years of bank statements should you keep?

Most bank statements should be kept accessible in hard copy or electronic form for one year, after which they can be shredded. Anything tax-related such as proof of charitable donations should be kept for at least three years.

What kind of documents should I keep in my business?

From business plans and financial projections to permits and tax records, the list of essential papers seems to grow on a daily basis. The mounting stack can become overwhelming to manage and leaves many business owners trying to figure out which ones can be discarded and which ones are worth keeping longer.

When do you need to keep employee documents?

Federal laws require businesses to keep employee documents for varying minimum time periods. If a complaint is filed against your business, the record keeping requirements extend until the claim is resolved.

How long do business documents need to stay in force?

Your business should retain all licenses, contract agreements, and other legal documentation as long as they remain in force and for a reasonable period thereafter. The Uniform Preservation of Private Business Records Act (UPPBRA), enacted by many states, provides a baseline of three years unless a more specific retention period is specified.

What are founding documents for a small business?

Founding documents are permanent company records that you should store for the life of your business. This online guide from the U.S. Small Business Administration is a great starting point for developing a document management system for your small business.