Compare record retention requirements for up to four countries on the comparison summary chart page. 🔍
Document
Retention Period
Beginning of Retention Period
Legal Reference
EMPLOYMENT RECORDS
Contracts (new hire agreements, severance, etc.)
Minimum: 7 years Maximum: 30 years (if record contains relevant information for employment certificate)
7 years - From end of calendar year when employment ends 30 years - From end of the employment relationship
Company Law Act (Sec. 190 and 212 ); Federal Fiscal Code (Sec. 132); General Civil Code (Sec. 1478)
Time records (work hours, rest periods, vacation/sick/holiday, etc.)
Minimum: 7 years Maximum: 30 years (if record contains relevant information for employment certificate)
7 years - From end of calendar year when employment ends 30 years - From end of the employment relationship
Company Law Act (Sec. 190 and 212 UGB); Federal Fiscal Code (Sec. 132); General Civil Code (Sec. 1478)
Performance records (performance reviews, promotions/demotions, licenses/certifications, investigations, disciplinary actions, etc.)
Minimum: N/A; Best practice 3 years in case of employee claims; Retain minimum 7 years if records relate to payroll, social security or other contributions Maximum: Only as long as necessary for the purpose
From due date of possible employee claims
General Civil Code (Sec. 1486)
Data and personnel files
Personnel files: No retention requirement Business-related information: Depending on the content of the data (see above and below) *Note that employees are entitled to employment certificates for thirty years after the end of employment. Therefore, it's advisable to keep relevant documents (job description, details on duration of employment) or a copy of an issued or pre-fabricated employment certificate for 30 years.
N/A
N/A
Government verification records (work papers, immigration, eligibility to work, etc.)
Minimum: 1 year (general limitation period); many employers retain for 3 years from due date of remuneration (when prosecution for underpayment is time barred) Maximum: 30 years
From the end of the employment relationship
Austrian Foreign Employment Act; Administrative Criminal Law (Sec. 31, Para. 1); Wage and Social Dumping Act (Sec. 29, Para. 4)
Collective bargaining/union
Usually 7 years (best practice, no minimum or maximum)
From the end of the relevant calendar year
Best practice based on GDPR
Background checks and drug tests
Retain only as long as necessary to complete hiring process
From creation
Best practice based on GDPR
Acknowledgements, policy agreements and required notices
Only retain personal data as long as necessary for purpose
From creation
Best practice based on GDPR
Recruitment (interview notes, resumes/CVs, reference checks, etc.)
Applicants who are not hired: Only retain until conclusion of hiring process. Consider retaining for seven months upon rejection of candidates (when discrimination litigation claims are time-barred). Applicants who are hired: Until end of employment relationship and, afterwards according to the retention periods outlined above and below - usually 7 years (Maximum 30 years if record is relevant for employment certificate)
Applicants who are not hired: From rejection/end of hiring process Applicants who are hired: From end of calendar year when employment ends
Best practice based on GDPR; Equal Treatment Act (Sec. 17, Para. 1, Nr. 1, Sec. 26, Para 1 and Sec. 29, Para. 1); Company Law Act (Sec. 190 and 212); Federal Fiscal Code (Sec. 132); General Civil Code (Sec. 1478)
Tracking/recordings (biometric, geo-location, online tracking, camera recordings, etc.)
Image and audio/visual recordings are not permitted if the purpose is to monitor workers. Online tracking as well as biometric tracking requires prior consent of the respective employee. Usual retention period of camera recordings: 72 hours (generally must be deleted after 74 hours)
From recording
Austrian Data Protection Act (Sec. 12, Para. 4, Nr. 2 and Sec. 13, Para. 3); Art 6 (1) (a) GDPR
Miscellaneous 1
Records and descriptions relating to audits, investigations or reviews conducted by labour authority or social security authority: Minimum: 7 years Maximum only as long as necessary for purpose
From end of calendar year to which records relate
Company Law Act (Sec. 190 and 212); Federal Fiscal Code (Sec. 132);
BENEFIT/PENSION/EQUITY RECORDS
Benefits (plan documents, enrollment records)
Minimum: 7 years Maximum: Only as long as necessary for purpose
From end of calendar year to which records relate
Company Law Act (Sec. 190 and 212); Federal Fiscal Code (Sec. 132)
Pension and retirement records
Minimum: 7 years Maximum: Only as long as necessary for purpose
From end of calendar year to which records relate
Company Law Act (Sec. 190 and 212); Federal Fiscal Code (Sec. 132)
Equity records
Minimum: 7 years Maximum: Only as long as necessary for purpose
From end of calendar year to which records relate
Company Law Act (Sec. 190 and 212); Federal Fiscal Code (Sec. 132)
PAYROLL/WAGE/TAX RECORDS
Payroll and wage data (payslips, etc.)
Minimum: 7 years Maximum: Only as long as necessary for purpose
From end of calendar year to which records relate
Company Law Act (Sec. 190 and 212); Federal Fiscal Code (Sec. 132)
Tax records
Minimum: 7 years Maximum: Only as long as necessary for purpose
From end of calendar year to which records relate
Company Law Act (Sec. 190 and 212); Federal Fiscal Code (Sec. 132)
MEDICAL/SAFETY/LEAVE RECORDS
Leave (family, medical, etc.)
Minimum: 5 years for document related to paying social security obligations
From date contributions are due
General Social Security Act (Sec. 68)
Injury and illness incident reports
Records relating to fatal accident or injury resulting in worker being out for 3 or more days: Minimum 5 years
From date of death or injury
Employee Protection Act (Sec. 16)
Medical records
Maximum: As long as absolutely necessary
N/A
Best practice
Hazardous material and other exposure records
Carcinogenic (hazard 3.6 carcinogenicity), mutagenic (hazard class 3.5 - germ cell mutagenicity), reprotoxic (hazard category 3.7 - reproductive toxicity) or group 3 or 4 biological agents exposure and medical records: minimum: until the end of exposure (at which point records are sent to institution of accident insurance which must keep records for minimum of 40 years)
From exposure
Employee Protection Act (Sec. 47)
Ultimate Software's HR Compliance Assist team relies on a network of internal and external compliance experts and lawyers to provide clients with best practices and recommendations on topics such as HR document retention, employee data privacy, and HR electronic records. HR Compliance Assist also provides local compliance monitoring and alert services in select countries where Ultimate Software's customers have employees. HR Compliance Assist is a service exclusively available to Ultimate Software customers.
