Sources · mirrored document
Guide RC188 — Keeping Records
10 things to know before citing this
No HST rate box, rate table or per-province rate list appears anywhere in RC188, so there is no stale Nova Scotia 15% figure and no stale GST 7% figure to correct. The document is rate-neutral.
No references to 'Revenue Canada'. The text says 'the CRA' throughout.
Nothing in RC188 is described as PROPOSED or as not yet law.
No ARCHIVED or CANCELLED banner on the document page. The publication record page (.../publications/rc188.html) was also checked and carries no archive, cancellation or replacement banner — it lists RC188 as live with a single HTML format and 'Last update: 2009-10-23'.
RC188 is a one-page fact sheet, not a full guide. It is old (2009–2011 metadata) and thin. CRA's own 'References' section points readers to Guide RC4409 Keeping Records for the detailed rules. For anything beyond the bare six-year rule, anchor to RC4409 rather than RC188.
CRA metadata error on the document page: dcterms.description and meta-description on this URL read 'Information for the general public about cash payments and the consequences of cheating in failing to report all income earned, to report and remit GST/HST, to file required returns or in claiming personal expenditures', and the keywords list cites RC4406. That description belongs to a different underground-economy publication, not to Keeping Records. The visible body text is genuinely about record keeping; only the metadata is wrong.
The six-year retention rule in RC188 is stated in a single sentence with no breakdown by taxpayer type, no definition of 'last tax year' for corporations versus individuals, and no treatment of objections, appeals or unfiled returns. RC188 alone is not sufficient to support a nuanced retention claim.
RC188 states records must be kept 'at your Canadian residence or place of business, unless you have permission from the CRA to keep them somewhere else'. It does NOT discuss cloud storage, servers located outside Canada, or the electronic-records conditions. Do not use RC188 to anchor any claim about offshore or cloud hosting of books and records — it neither permits nor prohibits it beyond requiring CRA permission.
Contact details are stale in form: the document links to 'cra.gc.ca/forms' and 'cra.gc.ca' (legacy domain, now redirected to canada.ca) and gives 1-800-959-5525 as the business enquiries line.
Referenced publications may themselves have been superseded since 2011 — IC05-1 Electronic Record Keeping, IC78-10 Books and Records Retention/Destruction, IC77-9, and GST/HST Memoranda 15-1 and 15-2. Verify each before citing.
Anchors that cite this: REC-01
Keeping Records
This information applies to: income taxes, GST/HST, payroll, trusts, registered charities, registered Canadian amateur athletic associations, municipal corporations, hospitals, schools, colleges, universities, and non-profit organizations.
What are records?
Records are anything that contains financial information such as ledgers, journals, financial statements, returns, correspondence, charts, and tables.
It is important to keep records created by computerized business systems such as accounting systems, point of sale systems, Internet based systems, electronic purchasing and restocking systems, and tax return preparation software, as well as your traditional paper records.
Your records must provide enough detail for the CRA to determine your tax obligations and entitlements. You may need to keep some source documents to provide details that support your records.
How long do you need to keep records?
Keep your records for six years from the end of the last tax year they relate to, unless you have permission from the CRA to destroy them earlier.
For additional information about keeping the records of dissolved corporations, deceased taxpayers, trusts, registered charities and athletic organizations, refer to the "References" area below.
Where should records be kept?
Keep your records at your Canadian residence or place of business, unless you have permission from the CRA to keep them somewhere else.
What if you use a third party to handle your record keeping?
You are responsible for making sure adequate records are kept even if a bookkeeper, accountant, Internet transaction manager, or application service provider keeps your business records for you.
Making records available to the CRA
You must make all your records available to the CRA on request, including computerized accounting records and records held by third parties.
The CRA has the authority to examine, audit, and review record-keeping systems as well as third party records to confirm that they meet our record-keeping requirements.
Business owners, employees, and third party officials may be asked to provide the CRA with information relating to business activities and records. CRA officials are authorized to make copies or have copies made of any records including electronic records.
References
Additional information can be found in the following publications, which are available at cra.gc.ca/forms
Guides
- RC4409 Keeping Records
GST/HST Memoranda Series
- 15-1 General Requirements for Books and Records
- 15-2 Computerized Records
Information Circulars
- IC05-1 Electronic Record Keeping
- IC78-10 Books and Records Retention/Destruction
- IC77-9 Books, Records and Other Requirements for Taxpayers Having Foreign Affiliates
For more information visit cra.gc.ca or call 1-800-959-5525
Page details
2021-09-28