Good record keeping practices

Starting your business with a good record keeping system can help you track your business performance, meet reporting responsibilities and access financial history with ease. Since different rules apply to different types of documents, the length of time that a business needs to retain documents depends on what the documents are. Some businesses may need to keep documents indefinitely. The seven year principle is recommended as a base due to the fact that seven years is sufficient time for defending tax audits, lawsuits and potential claims. Government departments and organisations, such as the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) and The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO), require company and employee records to be kept for seven years. Owners should note that there are some circumstances where it may be required to keep documents for more than seven years. For example, documents..