Retention
Periods

How long should Europe-based organisations keep emails? See our retention guides for the UK, France, Germany, Poland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and Monaco. Information here is intended as a guideline only – not legal advice. To be certain of exact retention periods, please consult a legal expert, your industry’s regulatory authority, or the relevant government body.

Sep 24, 2024

Monaco: Business Email Retention

Compared with other European countries Monaco's retention rules are relatively simple.Remember that although Monaco is not part of the EU and did not adopt the GDPR (General Data Protection…

Sep 24, 2024

Luxembourg: Business Email Retention

With just a few exceptions, almost all document types need to be kept for 10 years.The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) applies, so you must not keep personal identifiable information, such…

Sep 24, 2024

Belgium: Business Email Retention

Belgium has a range of laws affecting the retention of different document types. For the most part, documents can be divided into groups that must be retained for either 10, seven, five, or three…

Sep 24, 2024

The Netherlands: Business Email Retention

The length of time businesses need to keep most documents ranges from four weeks to permanently.Pay particular attention to employee records and data, as there are various retention periods for…

Sep 24, 2024

Poland: Business Email Retention

The rules in Poland are quite simple. Documents/emails need to be kept for periods ranging from five years to permanently.One change to note, regarding employee records: whereas in the past…

Sep 24, 2024

Germany Business Email Retention

Germany’s regulations are clear and precise about most commercial documents, but are not specific about personnel records (apart from those relevant to tax – see table below). So, for…

Sep 24, 2024

France: Business Email Retention

Depending on the document/email type, retention periods in France range from one to 30 years. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) applies, so you must not keep personal identifiable…