Tax Paperwork – Recordkeeping Guidelines

The April 15 tax deadline happens to fall right in the middle of spring cleaning, and with spring cleaning comes the temptation to toss all of the paperwork flooding your filing cabinets. Before tossing your records though, you should ensure that you’re not disposing of documents potentially needed in the case of an IRS audit.

In general, records supporting individual tax returns should be retained for three years following the return due date or the date filed, whichever is later. However, there are exceptions to the standard for both individual and businesses.

While record retention may vary from case to case, there are some basic guidelines that individuals and businesses can follow. This Weaver e-newsletter article provides recordkeeping guidelines for both.