Law Business Essentials

In essence, you need to keep all the records that will support your income tax return when filed. The records must allow you to determine how much tax you owe and the amounts you have collected, withheld, deducted and remitted.

It is beyond the scope of this Module to detail all of the records that you must maintain (see page 21 of the Alberta Learning Information Services publication Employer’s Guide to Employment Rules). You must also maintain employee records including summaries of wages paid and remittances made to the CRA, as well as copies of CRA information returns and all provincial payments, such as WCB (if applicable).

For CRA purposes, all records must be kept in Canada and available on request. When you register for your BN, you will be asked for the address where your business records are to be kept. You must keep all your business records for six years from the end of the last tax year to which they apply. If you become embroiled in an objection or an appeal, be sure to keep all your records until the process is finished.

See the module on File Retention and Disposal in the Law Practice Essentials course for additional requirements of the Law Society of Alberta as to the location of law office records and the period of file retention.