Document
Retention Period
Beginning of Retention Period
Legal Reference
EMPLOYMENT RECORDS
Contracts (new hire agreements, severance, etc.)
Minimum 3 years
From employee termination and from last date paid
Labour Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1971, Part IV, Sec. 75 CAP L1 LFN 2004; National Minimum Wage Act, 2019 Sec. 10(1)
Time records (work hours, rest periods, vacation/sick/holiday, etc.)
Minimum 3 years
From the time period to which they refer
Labour Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1971, Part IV, Sec. 75 CAP L1 LFN 2004; National Minimum Wage Act, 2019 Sec. 10(1)
Performance records (performance reviews, promotions/demotions, licenses/certifications, investigations, disciplinary actions, etc.)
Minimum 3 years
From the time period to which they refer
Labour Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1971, Part IV, Sec. 75 CAP L1 LFN 2004
Data and personnel files
Wages and conditions of employment: Minimum 3 years; Personnel files (including employee's: name, address, town or place of origin, date of birth, name/address of next of kin, date/place of work, National Provident Fund number, date of termination): Minimum 3 years
From the time period to which they refer
Labour Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1971, Part IV, Sec. 75 CAP L1 LFN 2004; National Minimum Wage Act, 2019 Sec. 10(1)
Government verification records (work papers, immigration, eligibility to work, etc.)
Minimum 3 years
From the time period to which they refer
Labour Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1971, Part IV, Sec. 75 CAP L1 LFN 2004
Collective bargaining/union
Minimum 3 years
From the time period to which they refer
Labour Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1971, Part IV, Sec. 75 CAP L1 LFN 2004
Background checks and drug tests
Minimum 3 years
From the time period to which they refer
Labour Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1971, Part IV, Sec. 75 CAP L1 LFN 2004
Acknowledgements, policy agreements and required notices
Minimum 3 years
From the time period to which they refer
Labour Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1971, Part IV, Sec. 75 CAP L1 LFN 2004
Recruitment (interview notes, resumes/CVs, reference checks, etc.)
Minimum 3 years
From the time period to which they refer
Labour Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1971, Part IV, Sec. 75 CAP L1 LFN 2004
Tracking/recordings (biometric, geo-location, online tracking, camera recordings, etc.)
Minimum 3 years
From the time period to which they refer
Labour Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1971, Part IV, Sec. 75 CAP L1 LFN 2004
BENEFIT/PENSION/EQUITY RECORDS
Benefits (plan documents, enrollment records)
Minimum 3 years
From the time period to which they refer
Labour Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1971, Part IV, Sec. 75 CAP L1 LFN 2004
Pension and retirement records
Minimum 3 years
From the time period to which they refer
Labour Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1971, Part IV, Sec. 75 CAP L1 LFN 2004
Equity records
Minimum 3 years
From the time period to which they refer
Labour Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1971, Part IV, Sec. 75 CAP L1 LFN 2004
PAYROLL/WAGE/TAX RECORDS
Payroll and wage data (payslips, etc.)
Minimum 3 years
From the time period to which they refer
Labour Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1971, Part IV, Sec. 75 CAP L1 LFN 2004; National Minimum Wage Act, 2019, Sec. 10
Tax records
Minimum 6 years
Within the year of assessment or, within six years after the expiration
Personal Income Tax Act, 1993 S55 LFN 2004; Companies Income Tax Act 1977 S66 C 21 LFN 2004
MEDICAL/SAFETY/LEAVE RECORDS
Leave (family, medical, etc.)
Minimum 3 years
From the time period to which they refer
Labour Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1990, Part IV, Sec. 75
Injury and illness incident reports
Factory related reports and accident records: General minimum 7 years
From date of last entry in record
Factories Act, 2004, Part 8, Sec. 59, Preservation of registers and records
Medical records
Minimum 3 years
From the time period to which they refer
Labour Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1990, Part IV, Sec. 75
Hazardous material and other exposure records
Records of hazardous waste received and managed on‐site and the method and date of treatment/ storage/disposal
Up to date of inspection
Federal Environmental Protection Agency Act 1988 LFN 2004 Sec. 39
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.
