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Payroll, tax and superCommonwealthMinimum retention

PAYG withholding records

How long should Australian businesses keep pAYG withholding records, and when does the clock start?

Keep for5 years
Clock startsEnd of the financial yearVoluntary agreements: after the last payment covered
Applies toPayers who withhold tax

General information, not legal advice or permission to destroy a record. Coverage may be incomplete or out of date. Check the official text, other applicable obligations and any investigations, disputes or legal holds before disposal. Get advice for your situation. Terms of use.

Under the Taxation Administration Act 1953, payers who withhold tax must keep pAYG withholding records for at least 5 years. Clock starts: end of the financial year.

Copies of payment summaries, and voluntary agreements to withhold tax from payments to contractors.

2 provisions of the Taxation Administration Act 1953 apply to these records. Each one is set out below.

The terms

s 18-100(1)Taxation Administration Act 1953
5 years
after the end of that financial year
s 12-55(2)Taxation Administration Act 1953
5 years
5 years after the making of the last payment covered by the agreement

Conditions and exceptions Caution

The Commissioner can set a shorter period for an entity, or for a class of entities by legislative instrument.

From the provisions:

  • May be shortened by a written determination of the Commissioner for the entity
  • May be shortened by a legislative instrument determination for a class of entities

The law

Taxation Administration Act 1953, s 18-100(1) · Obligation to keep payment summaryOfficial text ↗
must retain the copy for: (a) 5 years after the end of that financial year; or (b) a shorter period determined by the Commissioner in writing for the entity; or (c) a shorter period determined by the Commissioner by legislative instrument for a class of entities that includes the entity.
Text as at 27 August 2026
Taxation Administration Act 1953, s 12-55(2) · Voluntary agreement to withholdOfficial text ↗
Each party must keep a copy of the voluntary agreement from when it is made until 5 years after the making of the last payment covered by the agreement.
Text as at 27 August 2026
Taxation Administration Act 1953s 18-100(1), s 12-55(2) · Federal Register of Legislation
Legislation ↗
Australian Taxation OfficeOfficial guidance
Guidance ↗

Other terms that apply to these records

This page covers payg withholding records on their own. The same file is often caught by other laws as well, with different periods and start dates. See why a legal term is not a schedule.

3 records. 3 sets of rules. They don't agree.

One business file can hold all of these at once.

PAYG withholding records5yTaxation Administration Act 1953, s 18-100(1), s 12-55(2) · end of the financial year
Employee pay records7yFair Work Act 2009, s 535(1) · not stated in the Act
Business tax records5yIncome Tax Assessment Act 1936, s 262A(1), (4) · later of preparation or the transaction

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