Income tax record keeping: What and how long?

One of your responsibilities as a taxpayer (besides filing your income tax return form) is to keep the documents and records on your income tax assessment. They provide justification and evidence to the self-assessment that you’ve made. They should be kept and filed properly, and organized according to assessment year.

Make sure you can readily produce them if you were to be audited by the LHDNM (IRBM) officers. Failing to do so may get you penalized.

That said, what documents and records should you keep? And how long should you keep them? Here they are:

 

Type of documents and records

Taxpayer is required to keep the following documents:

• EA / EC Form
• Insurance premium statements / receipts
• Original dividend vouchers
• Books purchase receipts
• Medical receipts
• Zakat receipts
• Donation receipts
• Children's birth certificates
• Marriage certificates
• Computer purchase receipts
• Other supporting documents
• Working sheets (if any)

 

Documents and records retention period

A taxpayer is required to keep the records for 7 years -calculated starting from the end of the year in which the ITRF (Income Tax Return Form) is filed.