How does Library and Archives Canada decide whether a digitised government record can replace its paper original?

Library and Archives Canada (LAC) does not treat scanning as automatic permission to destroy a paper record. The question it asks is whether the digitized copy can stand in for the original as a trustworthy, authoritative record over time. That decision rests on demonstrating that the digital version is complete, faithful, and reliable enough to serve every purpose the paper once served, including legal and evidentiary ones.

Why a scan is not automatically a “record”

A digital image only replaces a paper original when an institution can show the imaging process produced a copy that preserves the record’s content, context, and structure. The same principles appear in international guidance such as ISO 15489: a record must remain authentic (it is what it claims to be), reliable (it accurately reflects the activity it documents), complete, and usable for as long as it is needed.

What the institution must establish

Before paper can be disposed of, the institution generally needs to demonstrate:

• A controlled, documented process — consistent capture procedures, equipment, image quality, and quality-assurance checks so the copy is verifiably accurate.
• Integrity safeguards — metadata, audit trails, and controls showing the image has not been altered after capture.
• Faithful reproduction — resolution, color, and completeness sufficient that nothing of evidentiary or informational value is lost (the goals reflected in widely used capture standards such as FADGI).
• Long-term usability — file formats and preservation arrangements that keep the record accessible for its full retention period.
• Disposition authority — confirmation that destroying the paper is actually permitted, since records cannot be disposed of without proper authorization regardless of whether a digital copy exists.

Disposition follows authority, not convenience

Even a high-quality scan does not give an institution the right to destroy the source. Federal records remain subject to retention and disposition rules, and source documents may only be destroyed once the institution confirms the digital copy meets the trusted-digitization criteria and that disposal is authorized. Records of enduring or archival value may still need to be transferred to LAC rather than destroyed.

In short, LAC’s standard is evidentiary: a digitized record can replace its paper original only when the institution can prove the copy is authentic, complete, and reliable, and that destroying the source is properly authorized.

For related concepts, see the digitization and imaging hub.