The Federal Archive Agency (ROSARCHIVE) has adopted new storage periods for archive documents

Pepeliaev Group advises that from 18 February 2020 new timeframes have been adopted for companies to store in an archive documents that are formed as such companies carry out their activity.

Thus, from this date a new list of standard management archive documents has been adopted and the storage periods for such documents have been specified[1]. Order No. 558[2] of the Russian Ministry of Culture dated 25 August 2010 which was previously in force has now been repealed[3].

With a view to clarifying the rules for applying the list, Rosarchive has adopted the relevant instruction[4], which came into force on 25 February 2020.

The archive storage periods for documents are of material practical value for companies that are operators of personal data. Such periods serve as a basis for determining which documents need to be destroyed and when; this is checked by the Russian Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology and Mass Media (Roskomnadzor) (with regard to the storage periods for personal data).

The storage periods for certain types of documents have been extended or reduced. Emphasis should be placed on the reduced storage periods because the legislation limits the storage of documents containing personal data, and the storage of such documents for longer than the set periods may be treated as a violation.

Thus, the archive storage period for the employees’ consents to the processing of personal data is now three years after the consent expires or is withdrawn unless a federal law or a contract provides otherwise. Previously the archive storage period for such consents was 75 years.

In view of the reduction of the storage periods for some documents, we do not rule out that Roskomnadzor may raise claims, particularly if it discovers consent forms of dismissed employees that have been stored for more than three years (if the storage time in such documents depended on the term of an employment agreement).

What to think about and what to do

We advise companies to carry out a compliance audit with regard to the requirements of Russian legislation on the archive storage of documents including those containing personal data, and, as part of such audit, to do as follows:

• to take into account the provisions of the new legal acts;
• to take necessary measures to update the company’s internal regulations setting out the procedure and the timeframes for storing documents, including those containing personal data;
• to carry out an inventory of the documents stored, in particular with a view to identifying expired documents.

Help from your adviser

Pepeliaev Group’s experts have extensive experience of handling issues relating to compliance with personal data legislation. They are ready to provide comprehensive legal support and technical assistance in checking compliance with the requirements for the storage of personal data and in eliminating any violations identified. They also represent a company and its employees when administrative authorities exercise regulatory control and in disputes with such authorities.