The digital transformation is having a profound impact on business life, not least on the way companies store their accounting records. This article looks at the legal requirements in Switzerland regarding the retention of accounting records and highlights the differences between different types of records.
Legal framework
The retention of accounting records in Switzerland, regulated by Art. 958f CO, is a central element of business activity. A ten-year retention obligation (after the end of the financial year) for accounting books, accounting vouchers, annual reports and audit reports ensures the traceability and integrity of financial records. This is crucial for tax audits, legal disputes and company administration, and underlines the need for careful and accurate financial records.
Differentiation of the retention obligation
Legal requirements in Switzerland differentiate between the retention of business and audit reports on paper and the more flexible handling of accounting books and accounting vouchers.
According to Art. 958f para. 2 CO, annual and audit reports must be kept in writing and signed by the responsible persons.
Pursuant to Art. 958f para. 3 CO, account books and accounting vouchers may be stored on paper, electronically or in a comparable manner.
Digital storage
However, the digital storage of account books has certain requirements. According to Art. 3 GeBüV, it must be ensured that no changes can be made without this being verifiable. It is therefore not sufficient to simply store an invoice as a Word document.
Information carriers
According to the law, the following unalterable and alterable information carriers are required for storage:
Unalterable information carriers: These include paper, image carriers and unalterable data carriers
Changeable information carriers: Information carriers are considered changeable and therefore inadmissible if the information stored on them can be changed or deleted without the change or deletion being verifiable on the data carrier.
The information carriers are nevertheless admissible if the following points apply:
1. technical procedures that ensure the integrity of the stored information
2. the time at which the information was stored can be verified without falsification, for example by means of a time stamp
3. the other regulations on the use of the technical procedures in question in place at the time of storage are complied with
4. the processes and procedures for their use are defined and documented and the corresponding auxiliary information (such as protocols and log files) is also stored
Conclusion
In conclusion, it can be stated that the archiving of accounting documents is also affected by digitization.
Business and audit reports must still be archived in writing. Business books and receipts can be stored electronically, but we recommend discussing this with a digital partner in order to comply with legal requirements.
