What is the difference between temporary and permanent records?

Every record is ultimately classified as either temporary or permanent — a determination made through appraisal — and the distinction decides the record’s final fate.

Temporary records

Temporary records are approved for destruction after a defined retention period, because they don’t have enduring historical value. They are the large majority of all records. “Temporary” doesn’t mean short-lived or unimportant — a temporary record might need to be kept for many years to satisfy legal, fiscal, or operational requirements. It simply means that, eventually, it will be destroyed rather than preserved forever.

Permanent records

Permanent records have been appraised as having enduring value — historical, legal, or evidential significance worth preserving indefinitely. They’re a small fraction of all records (often just a few percent). Rather than being destroyed, they’re preserved permanently. In the U.S. federal government, permanent records are transferred to the National Archives, which takes custody and makes them available to the public.

Who decides, and how

The classification is set during appraisal and recorded in the retention schedule. In the federal government, NARA approves whether records are temporary or permanent. The judgment weighs administrative, legal, fiscal, and historical value — with permanent status reserved for records that document significant functions, decisions, or rights with lasting importance.

Why it matters

The temporary/permanent split drives the end of the lifecycle. Misclassifying a permanent record as temporary risks destroying something of lasting value (and, in government, unlawfully); treating everything as permanent is impossibly expensive. Getting appraisal right is what lets an organization keep the few records that matter forever and dispose of the rest defensibly.