Help centre / Your account, billing and support
Delete old records on time, or keep them
Confirm records that are due to be deleted, set how long each kind is kept, and stop deletion with a legal hold.
Data protection law says you keep personal data no longer than you need it.
More detail
Some records have their own limits, such as right-to-work copies 2 years after someone leaves. See UK GDPR, Article 5.
Deal with records that are due
-
Step 1: Go to Settings, People and records, then Retention and legal holds.
-
Step 2: Records due to be deleted show as Needs you.
-
Step 3: Press Confirm, then Delete records, to delete them for good.
-
Step 4: Or press Keep, say Why must the records be kept?, and press Place a legal hold.
More detail
To change how long a kind of record is kept, open it under How long is each kind of record kept?, set Kept for (days), say Why, and press Save.
Place a legal hold on one person
-
Step 1: Open the person's record, and choose Legal hold from its menu.
-
Step 2: Say Why must the records be kept?, such as a tribunal claim.
-
Step 3: Press Place a legal hold.
More detail
Nothing about them is deleted while it is on.
-
Step 4: When it can end, say Why can it end? and press Release the hold.
Stuck?
It says a legal hold stops every deletion for this person
Release the hold first, if the reason for it has ended.
It says these records are not due yet
They can only be deleted on the date shown. Once they are due, whoever looks after retention hears about it each week.
It says I can't do this for this employer
You can only look after records for the employers your role covers. Ask an account owner.
What has been deleted only shows numbers
That is on purpose. We keep what kind of record, how many and when, never whose.
Thanks. That helps us make the guides better.
Not legal advice. Checked against the law on 1 November 2026; we check it again by 1 May 2027, and sooner if the law changes.