Disposal advice for record managers

Minimum retention periods are based on administrative, legal and fiscal requirements and consideration of the historical and community value of records. A record's value may be identified as:

• Transitory and short term
• Limited and low
• Moderate
• High
• Permanent and enduring

Queensland State Archives' Appraisal Statement (PDF, 367.9 KB) outlines the criteria used to appraise permanent archival or enduring archival value public records—for example, public records that document the primary functions of government or public records that document Queensland society and culture.

Other permanent value factors

• Aesthetic or artistic quality
• Artefactual quality
• Complementary value
• Rarity and uniqueness

In retention and disposal schedules, some public records may be described as significant or major to separate the permanent value records from other public records of the same type that only need to be retained temporarily.

Public records with intrinsic value will have many similar characteristics as enduring value but may have either a permanent or temporary retention period.

Request a special appraisal decision

You can request a special appraisal decision if you think that a temporary retention period in an approved retention and disposal schedule does not apply to the public records you are sentencing, either because it is incorrect or because different circumstances apply to the public records.

How to apply

Review the appraisal log and Appraisal Statement (PDF, 367.9 KB).

If the public records meet one or more of the appraisal statement criteria:

• Complete Special circumstances appraisal form 
• Email it to rkqueries@archives.qld.gov.au.

Your application will be assessed, and written notification of the next steps will be provided.

Loss and/or disposal of damaged public records before their minimum retention period may be unlawful under the Public Records Act 2023.

Forms for records management details information you need to know in these circumstances.

Disposal of public records is managed through approved disposal authorisations issued by the State Archivist. Disposal authorisations may be issued individually or within a retention and disposal schedule.

Retention and disposal schedule

Retention and disposal schedules are issued to a specific public authority or group of public authorities. The most common ones are:

• General retention and disposal schedule (GRDS) and GRDS Lite—covers administrative, transitory and short-term public records common to most public authorities
• Core business retention and disposal schedules—cover public records unique to the functions and business activities of a specific public authority
• Sector retention and disposal schedules—cover public records where similar public authorities perform the same functions, such as local government councils or universities.

All retention and disposal schedules are format-neutral, meaning they apply to all record types, and will provide you with information on the minimum retention period, disposal trigger and disposal authorisation number for your public records.

You might also want to seek assistance from your IT area to upload the retention and disposal schedule into your business system or recordkeeping application.  This will assist you to:

• manually sentence public records and determine how long the records need to be kept
• map retention and disposal schedules to your business classification scheme so that when a file is created it will automatically be sentenced
• have the system calculate disposal dates
• run reports to identify when public records may be due for disposal.

Remember, public records should be sentenced at the file or container level, not at the document or individual record level. This will prevent valuable contextual information being lost.

Adding or updating disposal authorisations

Forms for records management details information you need to know in these circumstances.

Sentencing public records requires you to:

• identify the applicable retention and disposal schedule, and
• locate the appropriate disposal authorisation in the retention and disposal schedule, and
• apply the disposal action for the relevant disposal authorisation.

Public records can be sentenced when they are first made by your public authority, or at any other point as required.

Apply a sentence

The following steps will help you apply the correct sentence to your public records:

• To reduce the risk of losing valuable contextual information, always sentence at the file or container level and not at the individual document/record level
• Know your business and the public records made and received by your public authority, including those you've inherited through machinery-of-government changes – this information will help you determine what public records are valuable and which ones are routine for your public authority
• Know which business areas to talk to if you need more information about a public record or file
• Decide which retention and disposal schedule covers your public records
• Ensure you apply the current version of the relevant retention and disposal schedule to your public records, especially if sentencing has been undertaken using an earlier version of the retention and disposal schedule
• Work out the function and activity your public records fall under in the retention and disposal schedule
• Identify which disposal authorisation applies to your public records. If more than one disposal authorisation could apply, use the longest applicable minimum retention period
• Calculate the destruction date by using the disposal trigger in the retention and disposal schedule. This may not be possible if a business outcome is not yet known. If in doubt, flag the public records for later review.

Bulk sentencing

Additionally, if you want to sentence a large quantity of public records, you can review a sample rather than each individual public record.

You need to be confident that you can make an accurate and informed decision when using this approach, so the sample size you choose should be based on the quality of information available to you and the level of risk involved.

Sentencing at the file level

Files may contain public records with different minimum retention periods. All files with multiple retention periods must be kept for the longest applicable minimum retention period.

Some files have more than one part to them – especially if they relate to large projects, ongoing activities, or include different formats and types of public records. In these instances, all of the file parts should be retained and sentenced as one file once the longest applicable minimum retention period has been met.

Public records covered by multiple retention and disposal schedules

Generally, if public records have the same minimum retention period, the GRDS takes precedence. If public records have different minimum retention periods, then your core business retention and disposal schedule – if it is current, up-to-date, and reflects the value of your public records – will take precedence over the GRDS.

Public records with no disposal authorisation

At times, you may not be able to find an appropriate disposal authorisation to sentence public records because:

• There is a gap in your retention and disposal schedule
• The scope note of the disposal authorisation does not match
• There is a variation in terms used to describe the public records in the retention and disposal schedule.

Before you decide that you can't sentence your public records:

• Think about the similarities between the public record being sentenced and the disposal authorisations listed in the retention and disposal schedule—think broadly about the original intent of the disposal authorisation
• Check the appraisal log for the retention and disposal schedule in question (if available) – this may provide further background information about each disposal authorisation to help with your sentencing decision
• Talk to relevant business managers—understanding the business process or activity relevant to the public records will help determine which disposal authorisation fits best.

Resentencing

Generally, resentencing will be required if:

• Public records that have been sentenced – but not yet disposed of – under a retention and disposal schedule where the relevant disposal authorisation has been repealed and replaced with a new disposal authorisation
• Circumstances have changed and the public record falls into a new disposal authorisation.

Queensland State Archives collects and manages Queensland public records of enduring value with ongoing usefulness or significance to the state. These public records are then made available in the collection for present and future generations.

Find out more information about transferring public records to Queensland State Archives.

Before you destroy public records, confirm you have:

• Disposal authorisation
• No further business need for the public records including Right to Information requests and as evidence for any current or pending legal action
• Conducted a risk assessment
• Approval from the Chief Executive, or their authorised delegate, for your public authority.

Chief Executive approval

Your Chief Executive approval will need to document details about the public records being destroyed, including:

• Description of the public records
• Disposal authorisation
• Destruction documentation
• Destruction date.

A standing endorsement for approval from your Chief Executive, or their authorised delegate, for the disposal of a specific type of public records sentenced and prepared for disposal during a specific time period (such as a financial year) allows you to destroy those public records without seeking endorsement on each occasion.

Destruction methods

Public records must be destroyed securely and destruction should take place as soon as possible after endorsement is given.

Methods of destruction include:

• Shredding, pulping and burning for physical and paper public records
• Overwriting, purging, degaussing and physical destruction for digital public records and storage media.

Given the nature of most destruction methods, a commercial destruction service may be required to destroy your records.

You will need to ensure public records are securely transported and destroyed, and that you receive evidence confirming this has occurred.

Destruction documentation

You need to document the destruction of all public records, including:

• A description of the public records and date range
• Chief Executive, or their authorised delegate, endorsement
• Evidence of destruction specifying method, location, date, and details of who destroyed the public records.

While legal responsibility for recordkeeping always remains with the Chief Executive of your public authority, they can delegate responsibility to endorse the:

• Destruction of public records
• Transfer of public records to Queensland State Archives.

You do not need to inform Queensland State Archives of these arrangements.

The authorised delegate will be a person or position within your public authority that has the appropriate authority, knowledge and skills.

You should use your internal delegation processes and instruments, similar to how you would manage other delegations such as Finance and Human Resources.

Delegation of functions or powers is found under s27A of the Acts Interpretation Act 1954 and s282 of the Public Sector Act 2022.

Find out more information about delegations for managing restricted access periods and authorised access.