THE RETENTION PERIODS FOR ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DOCUMENTS HAVE BEEN UPDATED: MAJOR CHANGES
Order of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine No. 40/5 dated 04.01.2024 (entered into force on 10.02.2024) amended the List of standard documents created in the course of activities of state and local self-government bodies and other legal entities. As you know, this List determines the retention periods for the relevant documents.
After the update, the retention periods for documents specified in this List and regulating the business activities of legal entities are applied by individual entrepreneurs, unless otherwise provided by law or arising from the nature of the relationship (previously, this was voluntary for individual entrepreneurs). At the same time, the retention period for documents and information related to the calculation and payment of taxes and fees for individual entrepreneurs is set in accordance with the TCU and is 3 years (clause 1.4 of the List).
Subsequently, clause 2.10 of the List stipulates that the retention periods for primary documents, accounting registers, financial statements, other documents, information related to the calculation and payment of taxes and fees, contributions, and other mandatory payments are calculated from the date of submission of tax or other reports for which the said documents and/or information are used, and in case of failure to submit such reports - from the deadline for submission of such reports provided for by the TCU.
The retention period for certain specific documents related to financial and business activities has also changed. As a rule, it has increased from 1 or 3 years to 5 years. Moreover, as a rule, such documents are subject to the following reservations
- documents related to the subject matter of a tax audit, inspection (audit) by a state financial control body and/or administrative or judicial appeal of a decision based on its results shall be kept for at least the minimum period established and for one year after the expiration of the statutory period for judicial appeal of such a decision, and in case of such an appeal - for one year from the date of entry into force of the court decision that completed the consideration of the case, and in case of appeal of such a court decision - pr
- documents for which the minimum retention period has expired, relating to reporting periods for which a tax audit, inspection (audit) can no longer be conducted, are subject to destruction (except for those that can be used to document the process of compensation for material damage caused as a result of the armed aggression of the Russian Federation and temporary occupation);
- documents and information subject to the requirements of Articles 39 and 39-2 of the TCU shall be kept for at least 7 years.
