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Tax & Compliance · Definition

Retention Policy

Rules for how long records are kept before archiving or deletion.

A retention policy sets a defined lifespan for each class of record, balancing statutory minimums — tax records, employment files, contract documents — against data-protection requirements not to keep personal data indefinitely.

It only works if disposal is as deliberate as retention. Keeping everything forever is not caution; it is unmanaged risk, and it makes any subject-access or discovery request far more expensive.

Also called

  • records retention schedule
  • data retention

Related terms

Data Protection Compliance

Handling personal data lawfully, with a defined basis, purpose and retention.

Audit Trail

A tamper-evident record of who did what, when, and to which record.

ISO Standards

International standards for management systems, quality and information security.

Internal Control

A process designed to prevent or detect error and fraud.

More in Tax & Compliance

Anti-Bribery Compliance E-Invoicing eTIMS KRA PIN Non-Conformance Report (NCR) Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) Sanctions Screening Segregation of Duties (SoD)

Retention Policy is not just a definition here

Tax & Compliance runs on this vocabulary every day in AWRA OpsHub — 17 of our 257 glossary terms describe things the platform actually does.

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