Storage period for contracts in organizations in 2021 and 2021

How long should contracts be kept in organizations - at least 5 years after their expiration or termination of obligations under them. The storage period for various types of contracts is specified in Rosakhriv order No. 236 dated December 20, 2019.

The storage periods for an organization’s documentation, including contractual ones, are specified in the legislation (Order of Rosakhriv No. 236 of December 20, 2019), as they are important for the control of its activities by the state. But laws do not always contain an exact answer to the question of how many years contracts with counterparties for specific types of relationships must be kept. In this case, it is recommended to proceed from the general rules.

What changed

New terms for storing contracts from 02/18/2020 are prescribed in various paragraphs of the mentioned order of the Federal Archive.

First, let's summarize the main changes.

DOCUMENT TYPE	CHANGE OF SHELF LIFE FROM 02/18/2020
Agreement of donation of real estate and movable property	Now - until the liquidation of the organization instead of permanent storage
Leasing agreement	5 years after expiration or redemption of the property. If there is a disagreement, the agreement must be kept until a decision is made on the case. As before, the list had to be kept constantly. Similar changes affected all leasing documents - lists of property objects, acts, calculations of deductions from profits, correspondence (Article 97 of the new list) Read also: Deadlines for payment of maternity benefits in 2021: what a woman needs to know
Real estate pledge documents	10 years instead of permanent storage. As for leasing, the period is calculated from the moment the contract expires or the property is purchased. In case of a dispute, documents are kept until a decision is made on the case.
Real estate exchange agreement	Until the liquidation of the organization, not 5 years. It is clarified that they are counted not only from the expiration of the agreement, but from the termination of obligations under the agreement.
Agency agreement	15 or 10 years depending on the type of property instead of 5 years
Credit or loan agreement with the condition of pledging property	10 years Also applies to documents confirming the provision of funds and the fulfillment of obligations by the debtor (this is an exception to the general rule of 5-year storage of loan agreements).
Transaction passports	15 years, not permanently. Does not apply to credit organizations: for them it is still 15 years

If any agreement/agreement/contract, document (acts, protocols of disagreements thereto) is not specified in individual articles of the order of the Federal Archive, the general rule applies: it is stored for 5 years with the right to then be taken into permanent storage. But only after its expiration or termination of obligations under it.

Basically, the organization's contracts are related to personnel or the management and disposal of property. In the latter case, this is regulated by clause 1.3.1 of the order of the Federal Archive. Here are some important points from it:

DOCUMENT TYPE	STORAGE LIFE	NOTE
Agreements on determining shares in property rights and documents (lists of property, acts) to them	Before the liquidation of the organization	–
Correspondence about the division of shared joint property of legal entities	5 years	–
Documents (acts, balance sheets, conclusions, decisions) to confirm the succession of property rights and obligations during the reorganization of legal entities	Before the liquidation of the organization	–
Correspondence regarding the establishment of rights to movable and immovable property	5 years	–
Documents (applications, contracts, certificates, resolutions, orders, plans, passports, extracts) for registration of land plots as property	Before the liquidation of the organization	–
Correspondence on land issues	5 years	–
Contracts for the purchase and sale of land plots, buildings, structures, structures, premises and documents (acts, examination documents, title documents, construction permits (1) and commissioning) to them	Before the liquidation of the organization	(1) In bodies and organizations issuing construction permits - 15 years after the commissioning of the facility
Purchase and sale agreements for the property complex and documents thereto (decisions, protocols, acts, audit reports, registers of all obligations, balance sheets, notifications)	Before the liquidation of the organization	–
Documents (applications, appraisal reports, correspondence) for the sale of movable property	10 years (1)	(1) After sales
Agreements for trust management of property, including securities	10 years (1)	(1) After the expiration of the contract; after termination of obligations under the contract
Acts on the transfer of property into trust management	10 years (1)	(1) After the expiration of the contract; after termination of obligations under the contract
Documents (acts, decisions) on the transfer by the owner of property to operational management, economic management of the organization	Before the liquidation of the organization	–
Agreements (contracts) for lease (sublease), gratuitous use of property; documents (title documents, acceptance certificates, technical passports, plans, cadastral plans, diagrams, calculations) for them:	(1) After the expiration of the contract; after termination of obligations under the contract (2) Under lease (sublease) agreements (contracts), gratuitous use of state and municipal property - 15 years EPC (can be taken away for permanent storage) (3) Cultural heritage sites - Permanently (4) Nature protection zones – Permanently
a) real estate;		10 years (1) (2) (3) (4)
b) movable property		5 years (1) (3)
Notices of termination of lease (sublease) agreements (contracts), gratuitous use of buildings, structures, structures, premises, land plots and other property	10 years	–
Pledge agreements; documents (applications, title documents on pledged items, cost calculations, conclusions, acts, correspondence) to them	10 years (1)	(1) Upon expiration of the contract or redemption of the property; if disputes arise, disagreements remain until a decision is made on the case
Exchange contracts:	(1) After the expiration of the contract; after termination of obligations under the contract
a) real estate;		Before the liquidation of the organization
b) movable property		5 years (1)
Rental agreements	5 years (1)	(1) After the expiration of the contract; after termination of obligations under the contract
Agency agreements:	(1) If disputes arise, disagreements remain until a decision is made on the case
a) on real estate;		15 years (1)
b) on movable property		10 years (1)
Agreements for representing the interests of the state in the management bodies of joint-stock companies, the shares of which are state-owned	5 years EPC (1)	(1) After the expiration of the contract; after termination of obligations under the contract
Directives on the voting procedure for the representative of the interests of the Russian Federation in the management bodies of joint-stock companies whose shares are state-owned	Constantly	–
Voting instructions for representatives of joint stock companies in the management bodies of subsidiaries and affiliates	5 years (1)	(1) After the sale of shares of subsidiaries and affiliates or their liquidation
Powers of attorney (copies of powers of attorney) for participation in the general meeting of securities owners, participants (founders), shareholders	Constantly	–
Powers of attorney for participation in management bodies (boards of directors, annual and extraordinary meetings of shareholders) of joint-stock companies, the shares of which are in state and municipal ownership	5 years (1)	(1) Upon expiration or revocation
Agreements for the purchase and sale of securities, shares, shares	Before the liquidation of the organization	–
Documents (certificates, transfer deeds, securities account statements, registrar statements) confirming the transfer of ownership rights to securities	Before the liquidation of the organization	–
Documents (voluntary offer, mandatory offer, competing offer, notice, demand, bank guarantees, copies of the appraiser's report, recommendations, information, statements, reports on acceptance of the offer, decisions, requirements, instructions) relating to the acquisition of more than 30 percent of the shares of the joint-stock company	5 years (1)	(1) For transactions with shares and other securities in state and municipal ownership - Constantly
Documents (decisions, statements, reviews, notifications, reports, lists of security holders, messages, demands, information, conclusions) relating to the acquisition and repurchase of placed securities by their issuer	5 years	–
Documents (applications, orders, certificates, schedules, acts) on payment, exchange, acceptance and transfer of bills	5 years	–
Documents (signature sheets, applications for the purchase of shares, confirmation sheets, shareholder income cards) for corporatization	5 years EPC	–
Shareholder agreements, agreements on management and disposal of shares	Before the liquidation of the organization	–
The decision on the issue (additional issue) of securities, the securities prospectus (main, additional part), the bond program and the terms of the issue (additional issue) of bonds within the bond program, as well as changes in them; a report on the results of the issue (additional issue) of securities, a notification on the results of the issue (additional issue) of securities, an application for obtaining permission to place and (or) organize the circulation of issue-grade securities of Russian issuers outside the Russian Federation; notifications of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation on state registration (registration) at the stages of issue, on the qualification of financial instruments, notification on the issuance of permission for the placement and (or) circulation of securities outside the Russian Federation, notification on the cancellation of the individual number (code) of an additional issue of issue-grade securities papers	Before the liquidation of the organization	–
Issuer reports:	(1) Reports of the issuer for the 1st quarter sent for information - Until the need has passed. (2) In the absence of a report for the 1st quarter - Constantly
a) for the 1st quarter of the (reporting) year;		Constantly (1)
b) for 2 – 4 quarters of the (reporting) year		5 years (2)
Lists of persons exercising rights under securities and lists of owners of securities compiled for the purpose of fulfilling the obligations provided for by federal laws	Before the liquidation of the organization	–
Lists of affiliates	Before the liquidation of the organization	–
Registers of securities holders (1), extracts from registers of securities holders	Constantly (2) (3)	(1) The composition of information and documents contained in registers is determined by federal laws and other regulatory legal acts of the Russian Federation. (2) They are transferred for permanent storage to state and municipal archives in the event of termination or liquidation of the organization (3) Extracts from the register – 5 years
Agreements for maintaining a register of securities owners, an act of acceptance and transfer of documents and register information	10 years (1)	(1) After the expiration of the contract
Personal accounts of securities holders	5 years (1)	(1) After transfer of ownership of securities
Statements for the payment of dividends (income) on securities and other payments	50/75 years	–
Correspondence about accrual (payment) of dividends (income) on securities and other payments	5 years	–
Statements for the issuance of compensation to citizens for causing damage in the financial and stock markets	5 years (1)	(1) After payment of compensation
Journals, accounting books, issuance of extracts from registers of securities owners	5 years	–
Statements of material facts containing information subject to disclosure on the securities market	5 years (1)	(1) If disputes or disagreements arise, they remain until a decision is made on the case
Lists of insiders	5 years (1)	(1) After replacing with new ones
Documents (requirements, requests) that are the basis for transferring lists of insiders to trade organizers	5 years (1)	(1) From the date of sending or receiving the demand, request of the trade organizer to transfer the list of insiders
Information messages confirming the transfer of lists of insiders to trade organizers	5 years (1)	(1) From the date of transfer of the list of insiders to the trade organizer
Documents (requests, demands, notifications, orders) of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, the organizer of trade on the provision of information by insiders about the transactions they performed	5 years (1)	(1) From the date of sending or receiving a request for insiders to provide information about their transactions
Notifications of insider transactions	5 years (1)	(1) From the date that insiders provide information about their transactions
Local regulations (orders, decisions) establishing the procedure for access to insider information, rules for protecting its confidentiality and monitoring compliance with the requirements of the legislation of the Russian Federation on combating the misuse of insider information and market manipulation, internal control rules for preventing, identifying and suppressing the misuse of insider information information and (or) market manipulation, conditions for transactions with financial instruments by persons included in the list of insiders and persons related to them	5 years EPC (1)	(1) After replacing with new ones
Logs (databases) of notifications about the inclusion of persons in the list of insiders or exclusion from it	5 years	–
Logs (databases) of accounting, registration of notifications, requests and provision of insider information	5 years	–
Agreements on the alienation of the exclusive right to a result of intellectual activity or a means of individualization	5 years EPC (1)	(1) Upon expiration of the exclusive right
Licensing agreements on the transfer of rights to the result of intellectual activity or means of individualization	5 years (1)	(1) After the expiration of the contract
Journals, databases of registration of lease (sublease) agreements (contracts), free use:	(1) Under lease (sublease) agreements (contracts), gratuitous use of state and municipal property - 15 years EPC. (2) Cultural heritage sites - Permanently (3) Nature protection zones – Permanently
a) real estate;		10 years (1) (2) (3)
b) movable property		5 years (1) (3)
Journals, contract registration databases:	–
a) on the alienation (acquisition) of real estate;		Before the liquidation of the organization
b) purchases, sales of movable property		5 years

Besides:

employment contracts, service contracts, agreements on their amendment, termination - must be kept for 50/75 years and then with the right to be taken into permanent storage;
documents (agreements, acts, information) on the reorganization of the organization are stored permanently;
constituent agreements of a company, business partnership - permanently;
contracts, applications, evidentiary materials, declarations for the provision of services for voluntary confirmation of conformity - 5 years after the expiration of the declaration;
agreements on the alienation of the exclusive right to the result of intellectual activity or a means of individualization and licensing agreements on the transfer of rights to their result - 5 years;
agreements (contracts) on non-disclosure of restricted access information – 3 years after the expiration of the non-disclosure period;
contracts, agreements between participants in information interaction - 5 years after the expiration of the contract, agreement, after termination of obligations under them;
contracts (agreements) on procurement by certain types of legal entities - 5 years after the expiration of the contract (agreement), termination of obligations under them.

Look for the remaining positions under the contracts in the order of Rosarkhiv dated December 20, 2019 No. 236.

Types of storage, why is it necessary

There are two types of document storage in an organization:

Current - the agreement remains in operational access while its execution period lasts, and in the event of a dispute, until it is resolved, including in court. The company administration independently determines where contracts should be stored in the organization; as a rule, the responsibility for current storage is assigned to the legal department, accounting department or a unit specially created for this purpose.
Archival - begins from the moment the document is transferred to the archive, that is, after execution on it is completed and all disputes between the parties are resolved, and how long contracts are stored in the archive is determined by order of the Federal Archive No. 236 of December 20, 2019.

The current one is necessary to solve the following tasks:

tracking the stages of contract execution, acceptance of goods and materials and their correct payment;
calculation of taxes and payments;
resolution of disputes with the counterparty, if any arise, since the main document to which the parties refer when justifying their position in the dispute is a written agreement.

Archival information is required in case of inspections by various regulatory authorities (tax service, etc.) and internal inspections by the organization of its economic activities for past periods.

It is not established by law how long to keep contracts with clients and organizations in the current order - this period depends on many factors that cannot be foreseen when developing a general rule, for example, on the period of validity of the contract and the history of interaction between the parties. Therefore, when we talk about established deadlines, we mean only archival storage of agreements.

In order to streamline the handling of documentation, the company administration should issue a special order, which determines who should keep the contracts, approves the procedure for transferring original contracts within the company (from one division to another) and provides a list of persons responsible for storage.

IMPORTANT!

Read more about storing procurement documentation under 44-FZ and 223-FZ

Normative base

The procedure for compiling files and storing documents generated in the process of activity is determined by archival legislation:

Labor Code of the Russian Federation, articles 230, 230.1.
Law “On Archiving in the Russian Federation” No. 125-FZ of October 22, 2004, which obliges the preservation of certain documentation for the period of time established in regulations.
“Basic Rules for the Operation of Organizational Archives”, approved by the decision of the Board of Rosarkhiv dated 02/06/2002 (are of a methodological and informational nature).
Order of the Federal Archive No. 236 dated December 20, 2019, which approved the list of standard archival documents indicating the storage time (List), which defines the obligations for all organizations for various types of documentation, including accounting, tax and personnel.

But do not forget that the listed regulations are advisory in nature, the specific storage periods for documents and the list of cases for 2021 are determined by the internal documents of the organization.

IMPORTANT!

02/18/2020 Order of the Ministry of Culture No. 558 dated 08/25/2010 became invalid. Instead, a list appeared, approved by Order of the Federal Archive No. 236 of December 20, 2019. Please take these changes into account in the LNA.

Product Contents

Quite often, as part of business activities, a storage agreement is drawn up between legal entities. In this case, the agreement may provide for the transfer for temporary storage of a variety of items. Of particular interest, however, is the agreement for the storage of goods. In Article 907, paragraph 1, there is a definition of such an agreement. In accordance with it, one participant undertakes, for a fee, to store the products transferred to him by the legal owner and return them in proper condition. This formulation allows us to identify three main features of such a transaction:

Special item. It is a product. This, in turn, allows agreement to be made regarding individually defined and generic objects. Accordingly, the relationship may be subject to a regular or special (typical for warehousing) regime.
Subject composition. Both a commercial and non-commercial structure can act as a custodian within the framework of a transaction. At the same time, the law makes a reservation for the latter. Non-profit organizations can be custodians if these activities are aimed at achieving the purposes for which they were created. Counterparties are entities for whom the transferred items are products that they sell.
Availability of reward.

Registration procedure

Like any other agreement, a storage agreement is concluded at the mutual desire of both participants. In some cases, the transaction is subject to the regime of public acts. In the Civil Code, only three types of agreement are referred to as such. The first is a warehousing agreement. The provisions governing its execution are present in Article 908 of the Code. In addition, the agreement for storing items in a pawnshop and specialized premises of transport enterprises (stations, airports) is considered public. The establishment of an appropriate regime requires, first of all, the subject receiving the object to formalize the agreement. Refusal to conclude a contract can occur, as Article 426 of the Civil Code indicates, only if it is impossible to provide the necessary service. According to paragraph 37 of the Rules governing the transportation of baggage, cargo, passengers by rail, it is not allowed to accept hand luggage, cash, documents and other valuables in the absence of a specialized room for their maintenance. In other situations, evading the execution of an agreement allows the consumer to file an appeal in court.

How to determine how much to store

Instructions on how to determine the shelf life of contracts in an organization consist of the following steps:

Study the document in relation to which the question arose and determine what type of agreement it relates to.
Open the order of Rosarkhiv No. 236 dated December 20, 2019 and the index of the types of documents in it.
Find the section on agreements and the required type there.
Find the item in the list of standard documents that corresponds to the document you are looking for, and look at the deadline.

Agreement form

Article 887 of the Civil Code contains a reference to 161 norms of the Code. Its provisions apply to the extent that they do not contradict the special rules of Art. 887. In addition, the legislation allows for the addition of 161 provisions with certain conditions. For example, this article contains an indication of the lower limit on the transaction amount, at which a written form of the agreement is required. 887 norm, in turn, reveals the concept in detail. The transaction amount is expressed in the price of the property provided for storage. To determine the binding nature of the documentary form of the agreement, the size of the remuneration and the very condition on the need for its payment do not matter. Accordingly, even a free storage agreement involves determining the transaction amount.

What contracts are recorded in the journal?

All contracts concluded by employees of the organization can be entered into the journal. However, if the enterprise is large enough, then each of its structural divisions may have its own magazine form, and magazines can also be divided by type of agreement (for example, separate ones - by supply agreements, advertising agreements, legal agreements, etc.). This approach allows you to correctly systematize accounting and avoid confusion.

The journal can be kept for a certain period of time (month, quarter, half-year, year), or for an indefinite period - it all depends on what rule regarding this parameter is enshrined in the company’s accounting policy.

General provisions of the agreement

Article 866 of the Civil Code defines what constitutes a custody agreement. According to the norm, under the terms of the agreement, one subject transfers material assets to another. The second party to the transaction undertakes to store them and return them at the end of the agreed period in the same condition in which he accepted them. Simply put, the agreement provides for the transfer of an object into temporary possession with the condition of return. The custody agreement belongs to the real category. The corresponding responsibilities arise for the recipient at the time of receipt of the item. Meanwhile, a contract for storing things can also be consensual. According to its terms, the item can be transferred to the person within a specified period. It should be noted that such a property storage agreement can only be concluded with a professional entity.

Sample contract log book

If you need to create a log of agreements that you have never done before, look at the sample document and read the explanations to it. With their help, you will be able to create the required form without much effort.

First, write the name of the organization, below indicate the person who is responsible for maintaining the journal (his position, surname, first name, patronymic), as well as the date the journal began (after its completion, it would also be useful to make an appropriate note).
Next, move on to the main part, which, as mentioned above, should be presented in the form of a table. The number of columns in it can be arbitrary, but there must be columns about the contract number, the date of its conclusion, the type of document (contract or additional agreement to it), the name of the counterparty, his address. The form also needs to include information about who exactly within the organization concluded and maintains the agreement, the number of copies, and the storage location of each such document (it can be centralized or the agreements can be stored in different departments).
If you consider it necessary, you can supplement the form with other information that is relevant specifically to your situation. For example, about the summary content, the amount of the contract, the period of its validity, the full number of appendices to the contract, a column for the signature of the responsible employee, notes, etc.

Recommendations

It is worth saying that the clerk or secretary may not know about all the agreements concluded by the enterprise. This is especially true for large companies. In this regard, experts recommend:

Remove from the indexes present in the lists all types of documents listed there.
Create a single list of them.
With a compiled list, go through all divisions of the enterprise that have the authority to conclude contracts.
Pass the list to the heads of departments with a request to note what types of agreements they draw up.

After receiving the necessary information, unmarked contracts can be stored for 5 years.

Specialized common areas

The key feature of such warehouses is that by permit, legislation or other regulatory act, the commercial organizations in whose jurisdiction they are located are obliged to accept products for storage from any owner. The corresponding rule is provided for in Article 908 of the Civil Code in paragraph 1. Agreements that are concluded with everyone who wishes to deposit goods are considered public. In addition to specialized common areas, there are also departmental areas. Their functioning is associated with servicing organizations and enterprises included in the corresponding departmental system. However, if there is free capacity, such warehouses can accept products from third-party companies for storage.

Civil agreements

They can be concluded between enterprises and individuals to attract the latter to perform any work. These agreements are not included in the category of employment contracts. The entities with whom they are concluded are not subject to social guarantees that can be used by employees on staff. Civil law agreements can be stored for 5 years after they lose their relevance.

Grouping

Storage of contracts can be carried out in various ways. For example, agreements can be combined into groups, depending on the nature of legal relations with other parties to the transactions. Accordingly, the enterprise draws up several accounting journals in which agreements are recorded:

With counterparties-suppliers or purchasers of goods. An enterprise can separately register permanent and one-time agreements.
With entities providing services. Such documents are usually accompanied by additional agreements. Particular attention is paid to the procedure for storing contracts related to rental or utility services.
Contract. Such contracts are used during construction.
With employees.

Registration books perform a very important function. Each recorded agreement in the journal has its own number, through which the document can be quickly found in the database.

Consequences of missing deadlines

It is important to know how long contracts are kept in the archive (5, 10 years or more), as this has implications for taxation. According to Art. 120 of the Tax Code, it is possible to bring tax liability for gross violation of the rules for accounting for taxable objects and primary documents. Although a contract usually does not refer to primary documents, in judicial practice there have been cases where it was recognized as confirmation of the fact of a business transaction. Art. 126 of the Tax Code provides for liability for failure to provide documentation for tax control.

The Code of Administrative Offenses lists the offenses: gross violation of accounting requirements (Article 15.11) and violation of the rules for creating archives (Article 13.20). These standards apply if the preservation periods established in the order of the Federal Archive are not observed.

Additional features

Typically, when receiving products, the warehouse must conduct an inspection at its own expense to determine the external condition and quantity of items. The inspection data is entered into the relevant documents. The keeper can independently change the conditions of maintenance of objects, if necessary. The organization is obliged to inform the owner of the product about the measures taken. If, during storage, damage to objects is detected that goes beyond the scope of the contract or normal damage standards, a report is drawn up. On the day of its registration, the owner of the product is notified. One more feature of warehouse storage should be noted. The owner of the product receives a special document from the receiving party. It is worth considering that without its preparation, the written form of the agreement will not be considered complied with. To confirm the acceptance of items for storage, the organization issues a double or simple warehouse certificate or receipt. The difference between them is that the first two documents belong to the category of negotiable securities. The receipt is not like that. Moreover, it is not considered a document of title. It cannot be transferred to third parties. In the case of a consensual agreement, the parties may use the traditional form of the document. At the same time, such an agreement not only fixes the warehouse’s obligation to accept products for temporary maintenance during the period agreed upon by the parties to the transaction, but also specifies the regime for locating facilities and details the conditions for compensation of emergency costs. Additional clauses may also be included in the agreement. For example, a warehouse can offer the product owner additional services (packaging of products or repacking, periodic checking of the condition of objects, etc.).