The baseline rule is three years from the date you filed the return or the due date, whichever is later. That covers most situations and is the standard statute of limitations for the IRS to audit your return. But three years is the minimum, not always the answer.

Keep records for six years if there’s any chance you underreported income by more than 25%. The IRS gets an extended window in those cases. If you claimed a deduction for worthless securities or bad debt, keep those records for seven years. And if you never filed a return or filed a fraudulent one, there’s no statute of limitations at all, so the records need to stick around indefinitely.

For employment records including payroll tax filings, W-4s, and timesheets, keep everything for at least four years after the tax was due or paid. If you pay contractors, hold onto those 1099s and supporting documentation for the same period.

Property and asset records are a category people often get wrong. You need to keep records related to any asset (equipment, vehicles, real estate) for as long as you own it plus the retention period after you dispose of it. That’s because depreciation, basis calculations, and gain or loss on sale all depend on your original purchase records. Sell a piece of equipment in year eight and you still need the receipt from when you bought it.

Here’s what you should actually be keeping:

Bank and credit card statements, deposit slips, and canceled checks. These prove money moved. Receipts, invoices, and bills that show what the money was for. Contracts with vendors, clients, and subcontractors. Mileage logs if you’re claiming vehicle deductions. Payroll reports and tax filings. Loan documents and interest statements. Prior year tax returns with all schedules and supporting worksheets.

Beyond tax records, keep entity formation documents like articles of incorporation, EIN letters, operating agreements, and business licenses permanently. These don’t have a retention period because they’re foundational to your business identity and may be needed at any point.

The practical side matters just as much as knowing the timelines. Digital storage is the way to go. Scan paper documents and organize them by year and category. Cloud storage means you won’t lose everything to a flood, a fire, or a hard drive failure. If you use QuickBooks or similar software, your transaction history lives there, but make sure you’re also keeping the source documents that back up those entries.

A common mistake is assuming that having the transactions in your accounting software is enough. It’s not. The IRS wants to see the underlying documentation, not just a categorized list of expenses. A bank statement showing a $400 charge at a supply store doesn’t prove it was a business purchase without a receipt or invoice showing what was bought.

If you’re working with a small business tax and bookkeeping partner, they should be helping you build systems for organizing records throughout the year rather than scrambling when something comes up. Good recordkeeping is a habit, not a year-end project.

If you do get an audit notice, having organized records makes the process far less stressful. Tax audit support starts with preparation, and the single best preparation is having your documentation in order before anyone asks for it. The businesses that struggle most in audits aren’t the ones who did something wrong. They’re the ones who can’t find the paperwork to prove they did things right.