00:01Don't make tax season harder for yourself by ditching old tax documents before you should.
00:06But just how long should you be holding on to them?
00:09The IRS says to keep records for at least three years from the filing date.
00:13Hold on to things like W-2s and 1099s, anything that supports income and deductions and credits.
00:19If you have investments or property, keep records for at least that long after you sell.
00:24The three-year rule is because the IRS has that long to audit you after you file.
00:28It's also the amount of time you have to amend a return, but there are exceptions.
00:33It can go back six years when more than 25% of income wasn't included on a tax return.
00:39Kiplinger says this applies to self-employed people who may have several 1099s reporting income from different sources and can
00:46easily miss one.
00:48Keep them for seven years if you file a claim for worthless securities or bad debt deduction losses.
00:53And hold on to them indefinitely if you did not file a return or filed a fraudulent one.
00:58Bottom line, if your taxes are pretty straightforward, go by the three-year rule.
01:02But the IRS says to also make sure you don't need the records for anyone else like insurance companies or
01:08creditors.
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