How do I write a records retention schedule from scratch?

A records retention schedule is the backbone of any records program: it lists your organization’s record types and tells you how long to keep each one and what to do when that period ends. Building one from scratch is methodical work, not guesswork. Here is a practical path.

1. Inventory your records

Start by finding out what records you actually have. Survey each department and document the record types they create, where they live (paper, shared drives, email, line-of-business systems), who owns them, and roughly how much exists. You cannot schedule what you have not identified.

2. Group records into series

Rather than scheduling every individual document, organize records into logical groups called “record series” — sets of records that relate to the same activity and can share a single retention rule (for example, invoices, employee files, or board minutes). This keeps the schedule manageable.

3. Determine retention periods

For each series, set a retention period driven by three factors:

• Legal and regulatory requirements — statutes and regulations that mandate minimum keeping periods (tax, employment, safety, and industry-specific rules).
• Operational need — how long the business actually uses the record.
• Historical or archival value — records worth preserving permanently.

Research the requirements that apply to your jurisdiction and sector, and document your sources so each period is defensible. Where no specific law applies, base the period on operational and risk considerations.

4. Decide the final disposition

For every series, specify what happens at the end of retention: secure destruction, transfer to an archive, or permanent preservation. Be explicit so disposition can be applied consistently.

5. Get approval and adopt it

Have legal, compliance, and senior leadership review and formally sign off. Approval turns the schedule from a draft into authoritative policy that staff are expected to follow.

6. Implement and maintain

Train staff, apply the schedule to your systems, and place legal holds when litigation or investigation suspends destruction. Review the schedule regularly — at least annually — because laws, technology, and business activities change.

A well-built schedule reduces storage costs, supports legal defensibility, and ensures records are kept exactly as long as needed: no longer, no shorter.

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