Who decides whether a permanent record gets transferred to an archives or kept in the agency?

The short answer is that no single person decides on the spot. The decision is made in advance through a formal, shared process: the agency that creates the records and the national or governing archival authority agree on the record’s fate when its retention schedule is written and approved. By the time a permanent record is ready to move, the question of whether and when it transfers has usually already been settled.

Appraisal Sets the Outcome

Whether a record is “permanent” at all is determined through appraisal — the evaluation of records to decide which have enduring value. In the U.S. federal system, agencies propose how long their records should be kept, but the National Archives (NARA) reviews and approves that judgment. Records deemed permanent are slated for eventual transfer to the archives; records deemed temporary are destroyed after their retention period.

This shared authority matters: the agency knows its own business and the records’ operational use, while the archives applies a broader, long-term view of historical, legal, and research value.

The Records Schedule Is the Decision

The actual instrument that records the decision is the records retention schedule. A schedule states whether each record series is temporary or permanent and, for permanent records, when it should transfer to the archives — often after the records are no longer needed for active agency business.

Two kinds of schedules apply:

• General schedules cover common, government-wide record types and set standard dispositions.
• Agency-specific schedules cover records unique to that organization’s mission.

Once a schedule is approved, it is the governing authority. Staff do not improvise — they follow what the schedule directs.

When Records Stay With the Agency

Permanent records frequently remain in the agency’s custody for a defined period before transfer, so the records stay accessible while they are still operationally useful. The archives typically takes legal and physical custody only after that point, and may accept earlier transfer in special circumstances such as preservation risk.

Who to Ask in Practice

Inside an organization, the records management officer administers the schedules and coordinates transfers with the archives. So the practical answer is: appraisal decides value, the approved schedule sets the disposition, and the agency and archives carry it out together.

Explore related guidance in the archives and preservation hub.