HR Record Retention Requirements

Hungary

DOCUMENTS

RETENTION PERIOD
(minimum and/or maximum)

BEGINNING OF  RETENTION PERIOD

LEGAL REFERENCE

EMPLOYMENT RECORDS

Contracts (new hire agreements, severance, etc.)

Best practice minimum 3 years (statute of limitation for labour law claims); or, minimum 5 years (general statute of limitations for criminal claims).

From termination

Labour Code (2012) Section 286

Time records (work hours, rest periods, vacation/sick/holiday, etc.)

Best practice minimum 3 years (statute of limitation for labour law claims); or, minimum 5 years (general statute of limitations for criminal claims).

From creation of record

Labour Code (2012) Section 286

Performance records (performance reviews, promotions/demotions, licenses/certifications, investigations, disciplinary actions, etc.)

Best practice minimum 3 years (statute of limitation for labour law claims); or, minimum 5 years (general statute of limitations for criminal claims).

Under Whistle-blowing Act, data must be deleted within 60 days from completion of internal investigation if it revealed no incident. If incident is revealed, data may be processed until a final decision is made in the official proceedings.

From creation of record;

Whistle-blowing investigations: completion of investigation

Labour Code (2012) Section 286;
Whistle-blowing Act (2013) Section 16

Data and personnel files

Best practice minimum 3 years (statute of limitation for labour law claims); or, minimum 5 years (general statute of limitations for criminal claims).

From creation of record

Labour Code (2012) Section 286

Government verification records (work papers, immigration, eligibility to work, etc.)

No specific maximum retention period,
general rules apply.

Minimum: duration
of employment.

From the commencement of employment

Section 71 of Act II of 2007 on the Admission;
Right of Residence of Third-Country Nationals

Collective bargaining/union

Best practice minimum 3 years (statute of limitation for labour law claims); or, minimum 5 years (general statute of limitations for criminal claims).

From termination

Labour Code (2012) Section 286

Background checks and drug tests

Where allowed, retain only as long as necessary to complete hiring process.

Per DPA's practice, the use of drug tests should be avoided. Background checks may be carried out from public sources (note: applicant must be informed).

From creation

Best practice based on GDPR

Acknowledgements, policy agreements and required notices

Best practice minimum 3 years (statute of limitation for labour law claims); or, minimum 5 years (general statute of limitations for criminal claims).

From creation of record

Labour Code (2012) Section 286

Recruitment (interview notes, resumes/CVs, reference checks, etc.)

Rejected applicants: delete after process is completed. If informed consent is obtained after rejection, the CV may be processed for an additional few months so applicant can be contacted if there's a vacancy.

Successful applicants: Once purpose of processing has been achieved, the CV should be deleted (for the purposes of the hiring process). Note: some data on applicant will likely need to be retained, for example, necessary data included in the employment agreement.

From creation of record

Best practice based on GDPR

Tracking/recordings (biometric, geo-location, online tracking, camera recordings, etc.)

Biometric data, geo-location  and online-tracking should generally be avoided.

Internet use: If monitored, a specific policy has to be prepared along with a balancing test.

CCTV: If used, a specific policy has to be prepared along with a balancing test.

Maximum: General rule is 3 business days. If employee violates the internal policy, data may be kept as long as required for disciplinary/legal procedure.

From creation of record

Online tracking: no specific law;

CCTV: Act on the Protection of Persons and Assets and the Rules on Private Detectives (Section 31).

BENEFIT/PENSION/EQUITY RECORDS

Benefits (plan documents, enrollment records)

Accounting related data: Minimum 8 years

Taxation related records: Minimum 5 years

Accounting related data: from creation

Taxation related records: from end of tax year in which tax is to be paid or declared

Act on Accounting;
Act on Taxation

Pension records

Data which is necessary for pension purposes is to be kept without any time limit.

From creation of record

No specific law

Equity records

Accounting related records: Minimum 8 years

Taxation related records: Minimum 5 years

Accounting related records: from creation

Taxation related records: from end of tax year in which tax is to be paid or declared

Act on Accounting;
Act on Taxation

PAYROLL/WAGE/TAX RECORDS

Payroll and wage data (payslips, etc.)

Minimum: 5 years (until Tax Authority claims have elapsed)

Note: Pension related payroll records are to be kept without any time limit. Payroll records necessary for accounting purposes must be kept for minimum of 8 years.

Last day of calendar year in which taxes should have been declared, reported or paid

Section 47 of the General Taxes Act;
Section 10 of the Personal Income Tax Act

Tax records

Minimum: 5 years (until Tax Authority claims have elapsed)

Note: Pension related payroll records are to be kept without any time limit. Tax records necessary for accounting purposes must be kept for minimum of 8 years.

Last day of calendar year in which taxes should have been declared, reported or paid

Section 47 of the General Taxes Act;
Section 10 of the Personal Income Tax Act

MEDICAL/SAFETY/LEAVE RECORDS

Leave (family, medical, etc.)

Pension related leave records: As long as necessary for pension purposes, data is to be kept without limitation in time.

Accounting related leave records: As long as necessary for accounting purposes, minimum 8 years.

Tax related leave records: As long as necessary for tax purposes, minimum 5 years.

Accounting records: from creation

Tax records: from end of the tax year in which the tax is to be paid or declared

Act on Accounting;

Act on Taxation;

Act no. XLVII of 1997 on the Processing of Health Data contains varying retention periods. However, it's not straightforward if periods (30, 50 and 10 years) also apply to employers

Injury and illness incident reports

Minutes of work accidents must be kept for 5 years.

Note: Act no. XLVII of 1997 on the Processing of Health Data contains varying retention periods. However, it's not straightforward if periods (30, 50 and 10 years) also apply to employers.

In case of work accidents: from the preparation of minutes due upon the occurrence of the accident

Act no. XCIII of 1993 on Work Protection and Decree of the Labour Minister no. 5/1993 on the Execution of the Work Protection Act.

Act no. XLVII of 1997 on the Processing of Health Data

Medical records

Employers should generally not process medical records (excluding certificates issued by physicians to comply with certain pension/tax obligations).

Note: Act no. XLVII of 1997 on the Processing of Health Data contains varying retention periods. However, it's not straightforward if periods (30, 50 and 10 years) also apply to employers.

From creation of record

Act no. XLVII of 1997 on the Processing of Health Data;

Act on Taxation

Hazardous material and other exposure records

Minutes of work accidents: Minimum 5 years

Risk assessment concerning hazardous materials and exposure to the same: Minimum 5 years

From creation of record

Act no. XCIII of 1993 on Work Protection