How long to keep employee records

How long to keep employee records depends on the record. Personnel and hiring records are kept at least 1 year, age-discrimination payroll records and FMLA records at least 3 years, and benefit plan documents for the life of the plan plus 1 year. A discrimination charge or lawsuit puts the relevant records on hold.

Coverage differs by law. The EEOC says most employers with at least 15 employees are covered by the laws it enforces, and 20 employees in age discrimination cases. The FMLA covers private-sector employers with 50 or more employees in 20 or more workweeks in the current or previous calendar year, and public agencies and schools whatever their size. Check coverage before you rely on a row.

How long to keep employee records by type

As of November 2026, these are the federal periods. Each row was checked on 2026-11-03.

Two rows give a period and no start date: HR-04 and HR-07. We do not fill the gap. The ADEA is the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.

The personnel file in practice

The EEOC rules require employers to keep personnel and employment records for 1 year. If an employee is involuntarily terminated, the personnel records are kept for 1 year from the date of termination.

Payroll records for age-discrimination purposes are kept 3 years, longer than the rest of the personnel file. Written plan documents are kept for the life of the plan plus 1 year.

FMLA records are kept no less than 3 years. Keep medical certifications, recertifications and medical histories created for FMLA in separate confidential files. The regulation says to keep them apart from the usual personnel files (29 CFR 825.500(g)).

USCIS recommends keeping Form I-9 apart from personnel records too. Form I-9 follows its own rule, covered by the I-9 retention calculator. In practice that gives you a personnel file, a payroll file, a Form I-9 file and a confidential medical file, each with its own clock.

Hiring records and applicants you did not hire

The 1-year periods reach people who never joined. HR-01 covers applications and other hiring records. HR-05 covers job applications and resumes, including records of refusals to hire, along with job orders to agencies or unions, applicant test papers, physical exam results considered in a personnel action, and job advertisements and notices.

Count 1 year from the personnel action the record relates to, or from the date the record was made if that is later. A charge puts these records on hold, including the records of other applicants for the position (HR-03).

A charge or lawsuit puts records on hold

HR-03 overrides the 1-year rows. Once a charge of discrimination is filed or an enforcement action is brought, the employer keeps the personnel records relevant to it until final disposition. That includes records of similar employees and of other applicants for the position.

Final disposition is when the time to sue runs out or, if suit is brought, when the litigation ends, appeals included. Do not run a routine purge while that is open.

What FMLA records include

The FMLA recordkeeping regulation lists what a covered employer keeps:

• Basic payroll and identifying data, including hours worked, rate of pay, additions to or deductions from wages and total compensation.
• The dates leave is taken, with the leave designated in the records as FMLA leave.
• The hours of leave when it is taken in increments of less than a full day.
• Copies of written leave notices the employer received or gave.
• Documents that describe employee benefits and the employer’s leave policies and practices.
• Premium payments of employee benefits.
• Records of any dispute about designating leave as FMLA leave.

Keep the set for no less than 3 years. The regulation does not say when the 3 years start, so count from the latest date on the record, which is our recommendation.

If GINA or the ADA also applies, FMLA records that hold family medical history, genetic information or other medical information follow the confidentiality rules of those laws (29 CFR 825.500(g)).

After termination: which clocks start when

Three rows have a clock tied to the end of employment.

Example: an employee hired on 2023-03-06 is involuntarily terminated on 2026-08-14. Personnel records are kept at least until 2027-08-14. For the Form I-9, 3 years after hire is 2026-03-06 and 1 year after termination is 2027-08-14. The later date, 2027-08-14, applies.

The “7 years” question

A common search is which employee records need to be kept for 7 years. None of the federal employee-record rules we checked sets 7 years. The only 7-year federal period in our schedule is the IRS period for a bad debt or worthless securities claim, and it is not an employee-record rule.

If a guide says 7 years, ask which rule it relies on. A state rule, a contract or a company policy may be the source. See the payroll records guide for the federal payroll periods, which are 2 to 4 years.

Benefit plan records

Three rows apply to benefit plans. HR-06 covers the written plan itself and any written seniority or merit system. ERISA reports are kept with their supporting records for not less than 6 years after the filing date (BN-01). Records that show the benefits due to each employee have no fixed number of years in the statute (BN-02), so ask the plan administrator or your counsel how long to keep them.

Format and storage

The FMLA regulation says no particular order or form of records is required. Records may be kept on microfilm or in a computer, as long as they are clear, identifiable by date or pay period, and can be made available for inspection, copying and transcription on request. ERISA records can be kept on electronic media if the conditions in 29 CFR 2520.107-1 are met. USCIS allows Form I-9 on paper, electronically, or on microfilm or microfiche.

Records covered elsewhere

Exposure and medical records for employees exposed to toxic substances or harmful physical agents have periods of 30 years or more. They apply only to those employees, and the OSHA 300 log requirements page explains the scope.

State law can be longer

This page covers US federal rules only. State law can set longer periods for personnel files and for records after termination. Check your state agency or ask your lawyer.

The page also leaves out record types that sit outside the rows in our schedule, such as background checks, drug test results and workers’ compensation files. Add them to your own schedule with your adviser’s help.

Next steps

The record retention schedule lists every federal period with its source, and the business records guide shows how the groups fit together. Put each row you need into your schedule, then write the schedule down. The document retention policy guide shows how.