How Long to Keep Business Records in Canada, and What the CRA Expects

In Canada, the general rule is to keep your business records and supporting documents for six years from the end of the last tax year they relate to. Some situations make that period longer, such as a late-filed return or an objection, and some records need to be kept for as long as you own the business. You also need permission from the CRA to destroy records early.

This guide covers what the CRA expects you to keep, for how long, how scanned receipts fit in, and what a receipt has to show before you can claim the GST/HST on it. Every rule below links to the CRA page it comes from.

What counts as a record

The CRA describes records as your organized accounting and financial documents, together with the supporting documents behind them. On its page about what records are and who has to keep them, it lists examples including:

• ledgers, journals and financial statements
• income tax and GST/HST returns
• sales invoices and purchase receipts
• bank statements and cancelled cheques
• cash register slips and credit card receipts
• work orders and delivery slips
• emails and other correspondence that support your transactions

The last item surprises people. If an email is what shows a customer agreed to a price, or explains why a payment was made, it is part of your records.

Who has to keep them

The same CRA page says the requirement applies to, among others, anyone who must file a tax return, anyone carrying on a business or commercial activity, anyone who has to collect or pay amounts such as payroll deductions, and GST/HST registrants. An inactive holding company still has to keep records.

Why it matters beyond the rules

The CRA’s own reasons are practical. Good records help you find every deductible expense and input tax credit you are entitled to, and they support your position if you are audited. Without them, the CRA says auditors have to use other methods to work out your income, and claims that are not supported by records could be disallowed.

In plain terms: an expense you cannot back up is an expense you may lose.

How long to keep business records

The CRA’s page on where to keep records and for how long sets the general rule: keep all required records and supporting documents for six years from the end of the last tax year they relate to.

The tax year is your fiscal period if you are a corporation, and the calendar year if you are an individual, which includes most sole proprietors. The CRA notes that similar rules apply under the GST/HST and payroll legislation it administers, not just income tax.

Here is how that works in practice. A receipt for a purchase in a sole proprietor’s 2026 calendar year relates to the 2026 tax year, so the six years start counting from December 31, 2026.

When you need to keep records longer

The same CRA page lists exceptions. The ones most small businesses run into are:

• Late-filed returns. If you file a return late, keep the records that support it for six years from the date you file it.
• Objections and appeals. If you have filed an objection or appeal, keep the records until the matter is resolved and the time for any further appeal has passed, or until the six-year period ends, whichever is later.
• Long-term records. Records about long-term property, share registries, and historical records that affect the sale, liquidation or wind-up of the business are kept indefinitely.
• The CRA asks for longer. If the CRA needs you to keep records beyond six years, it tells you in person or by registered mail.

When the business ends

For an unincorporated business that has ended, the CRA says records are kept for six years from the end of the tax year in which it ended. A dissolved corporation keeps its records for two years after the date of dissolution. If you are closing or winding up a company, talk to your accountant about which records to keep and who will hold them.

You cannot shred early without permission

If you want to destroy records before the retention period is up, the CRA says you need its written permission first, either by completing Form T137, Request for Destruction of Records, or by writing to your tax services office. The CRA warns that destroying records without permission may lead to prosecution.

That permission only covers records required under the laws the CRA administers. Other federal, provincial or municipal rules may ask you to keep some records longer.

Where your records have to be kept

The CRA says records must be kept in Canada, at your place of business or residence, unless it has given you written permission to keep them somewhere else. One detail matters for anyone using cloud software: records kept outside Canada that you simply access electronically from Canada are not considered to be kept in Canada.

If your accounting software or receipt app stores data on servers outside Canada, the CRA says it may accept copies of electronic records kept abroad, provided they are true copies, readable by its software, and detailed enough to support your returns. If you are unsure about your setup, ask your accountant, or ask the CRA for written permission.

Electronic records and scanned receipts

The CRA’s page on acceptable formats and imaging paper documents accepts records kept on paper, records kept on paper and converted to a readable electronic format, and records kept entirely electronically.

Two rules are worth knowing.

Records that started electronic stay electronic

If a record was produced electronically, such as a PDF invoice, an emailed receipt, or the data in your accounting software, the CRA says you must keep it in an electronically readable format, even if you also have a paper printout. Printing your QuickBooks Online or Xero reports and closing the account is not enough.

Scanned paper receipts

The CRA says you generally have to keep the paper originals, but you can image them. An image has to reproduce the original accurately, carry the same information, and not lose significant details to poor resolution or colour. The CRA points to the national standard CAN/CGSB 72.34 for how imaged records should be produced, controlled and kept.

If your imaging meets those standards, the CRA says the images become the permanent records and the paper can be destroyed. If your business cannot meet them, keep the originals. The CRA also suggests getting legal advice first if you have any doubt.

In practice, that means a blurry phone photo with the total cut off is not a good substitute for the receipt. A clear, complete capture through a tool like AutoEntry or your accounting software’s receipt app is a much better starting point, but the paper is the safe choice until you are confident your process meets the standard.

Back it up

The CRA recommends keeping backup copies of electronic records, stored away from hazards, and making sure a backup can be restored in a format the CRA can use. If someone else holds your records, such as a cloud provider or a bookkeeper, they still need to be available to the CRA on request.

GST/HST records and input tax credits

If you are a GST/HST registrant, the CRA’s page on GST/HST and payroll records says your records must describe what you bought and sold in enough detail to work out whether GST/HST applies, and to calculate what you owe or can claim back. To claim an input tax credit (ITC), you must keep copies of your purchase invoices or receipts.

What the receipt has to show

The CRA’s input tax credits page sets out what a purchase document must include, and it depends on the size of the sale.

Every purchase, at any amount:

• the supplier’s business or trading name
• the invoice date, or the payment date if there is no invoice
• the total amount paid or payable

Purchases of $100 to $499.99, add:

• an indication of the GST/HST charged, or a statement that the price includes it
• the supplier’s GST/HST registration number
• which items are taxable and which are not, if the invoice mixes them

Purchases of $500 or more, add:

• your name, trading name or authorized agent’s name
• a brief description of what you bought
• the payment terms

A missing GST/HST registration number is easy to overlook on a mid-sized purchase. A credit card slip may not show it, so keep the itemized receipt or invoice, not just the card slip.

How long you have to claim

The same page says that for most registrants, ITCs must be claimed by the due date of the return for the last reporting period that ends within four years after the period in which the credit could first have been claimed. Some larger businesses and financial institutions have a shorter limit. Within that window, credits missed in a messy year may still be claimable, which is one reason a catch-up is worth doing. Our guide on GST/HST registration and filing covers the filing side, and our GST/HST filing service handles it for you.

Payroll records

If you have employees, the CRA’s GST/HST and payroll records page says your records must show the hours each employee worked and the amounts withheld for CPP, EI and income tax. You also keep each employee’s Form TD1, any CRA letters of authority reducing deductions, every information slip you issued and return you filed, and registered pension information.

A simple system that keeps you covered

You do not need anything elaborate. What works for most small businesses:

1. Capture receipts the day you get them. Photograph or forward them into one place, and keep the paper in a monthly envelope until you are sure your scanning meets the CRA standard.
2. Keep electronic originals electronic. Save emailed invoices as PDFs, and do not delete your accounting file when you change software.
3. Reconcile every month. Matching each bank and card transaction to a receipt is what reveals the missing ones while they are still easy to replace.
4. File by tax year. Label each year so you can see at a glance when it passes six years.
5. Check before you shred. Confirm none of the exceptions above apply, and keep long-term records separately.

Our monthly bookkeeping builds this routine in: receipts are matched to transactions as we reconcile, so gaps show up within the month. If you are already behind, or have a shoebox of receipts from a past year, catch-up bookkeeping rebuilds the records first, and our guide on how to catch up on bookkeeping walks through the process.

If the CRA has already asked to see your records, we can organize them and act as your authorized representative through the review or audit. If you are disputing a significant assessment, or one that turns on tax law, bring in your accountant as well.