Short answer
Keep business receipts for: UK — 6 years for VAT records and at least 5 years after the 31 January deadline for Self Assessment; US — generally 3 years; Australia — 5 years; Singapore — 5 years; India (GST) — 72 months from the annual return due date; UAE — 5 years after the tax period; Canada — 6 years from the end of the tax year.
Key takeaways
- There is no global rule: the clock length and the date it starts from both differ.
- Longer periods apply for disputes, under-reported income, assets and some property records.
- Digital copies are generally acceptable, so the risk is losing them — keep a backup.
- When two rules apply (e.g. UK VAT and income tax), keep to the longer one.
Retention periods by country
| Country | Period | Starts from | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK — VAT | At least 6 years | — | HMRC[1] |
| UK — Self Assessment | At least 5 years | After the 31 January submission deadline | HMRC[2] |
| US | Generally 3 years (6 or 7 in specific cases) | Filing of the return | IRS[3] |
| India — GST | 72 months | Due date of the annual return | CBIC[4] |
| Australia | 5 years | When the record was prepared/obtained or the transaction completed, whichever is later | ATO[5] |
| Singapore — GST | At least 5 years | — | IRAS[6] |
| UAE — VAT | 5 years (longer for real estate) | End of the tax period | FTA[7] |
| Canada | 6 years | End of the last tax year the records relate to | CRA[8] |
The exceptions that catch people out
- US under-reporting: if you leave out income of more than 25% of the gross shown, the period is 6 years; bad-debt or worthless-securities claims, 7; no return or a fraudulent one, indefinitely.[3]
- India disputes: if you're party to an appeal or under investigation, keep records for one year after final disposal or 72 months, whichever is later.[4]
- UK late returns: HMRC has a separate rule if you file a Self Assessment return very late.[2]
- Assets: records for equipment, vehicles and property support depreciation and gains for as long as you own the asset — and then the normal period runs.
- Two regimes at once: a UK VAT-registered sole trader follows both the VAT and income-tax rules; use the longer.
Making records last that long
Five or six years is longer than the life of most phones and many cloud accounts. Whatever you use, plan for the records to outlive it.
- Capture receipts in NexaLink Scanner as you go — receipts are stored on your phone.
- Each quarter or tax year, export CSV (free) and, on Pro, the PDF expense report.
- Store exports in at least two places you control, named by tax year (e.g. "2026-27 receipts").
- Note the date each year's records can be deleted, using the table above.
- If you stop paying for NexaLink, receipts stay on the phone, searchable and exportable as CSV.
Key facts about NexaLink Scanner
- What it is: NexaLink Scanner is a private receipt and expense organiser for iOS and Android, built for freelancers, sole traders, contractors and small businesses. It is not accounting software and does not file tax returns.
- How it reads receipts: text is read on the phone (on-device OCR) and capture works offline. Merchant, date, total and tax are filled in; any value it is unsure of is flagged, and a low-confidence total cannot be saved until you confirm it.
- Where data lives: receipts are stored on your phone and do not sync to the web. Data leaves only when you export it.
- Free plan: 50 receipts, on-device reading, search, 5 default categories and CSV export. CSV export is free on every plan, always.
- Pro: $4.99 a month or $39.99 a year — unlimited receipts, custom categories, projects and tags, a PDF expense report in the app, tax and multi-currency reports. Image ZIP export and Xero / QuickBooks import files are coming soon.
- Accounting connections (none live yet): Xero — First · V1.1 · QuickBooks Online — Next · V1.2 · FreeAgent — Planned · Sage Accounting — Planned · Zoho Books — Planned · TallyPrime — Import file first. CSV export works with any accounting tool today. Status as of 2026-11-10; see accounting integrations.
Frequently asked questions
How long should I keep receipts in the UK?
At least 6 years for VAT records, and at least 5 years after the 31 January submission deadline for Self Assessment.[1][2]
How long does the IRS require receipts to be kept?
Generally 3 years, but 6 years if you under-report income by more than 25%, and 7 years for bad-debt or worthless-securities deductions.[3]
How long do I keep GST records in India?
72 months from the due date of the annual return for the year they relate to.[4]
How long does the ATO want records kept?
Generally 5 years.[5]
How long in Canada?
Six years from the end of the last tax year the records relate to.[8]
Can I keep receipts digitally for the whole period?
Generally yes, if they are complete and legible, but rules differ — see going paperless with receipts.
Sources
- GOV.UK — Record keeping for VAT (VAT Notice 700/21) — checked on 2026-11-10
- GOV.UK — Business records if you're self-employed: how long to keep your records — checked on 2026-11-10
- IRS — How long should I keep records? — checked on 2026-11-10
- CBIC — CGST Act 2017, section 36 (period of retention of accounts) — checked on 2026-11-10
- ATO — Overview of record-keeping rules for business — checked on 2026-11-10
- IRAS — GST: keeping records — checked on 2026-11-10
- UAE FTA — Get to know your tax obligations (PDF) — checked on 2026-11-10
- CRA — Where to keep your records, for how long — checked on 2026-11-10