How long to keep bank statements, under the IRS and CRA rules, worked out to real dates.
For U.S. taxes, the IRS says keep records that support a return for 3 years, or 6 to 7 years in some cases. In Canada, the CRA says six years from the end of the last tax year they relate to. A business keeping bank statements 7 years covers most cases. ZeraBooks AI bookkeeping shows which months you’re missing.
How long does the IRS say to keep bank statements?
The IRS doesn’t name bank statements specifically. It sets periods for records that support a tax return, and bank statements are among them. From the IRS page How long should I keep records?, last reviewed June 30, 2026, checked October 2026:
Situation
Keep records for
Northbank Bike Repair, 2026 return filed April 15, 2027
None of the cases below apply
3 years
Until April 15, 2030
You file a claim for a credit or refund after filing
3 years from filing, or 2 years from paying the tax, whichever is later
Depends on the claim
You leave out income that is more than 25% of the gross income shown
6 years
Until April 15, 2033
You claim a loss from worthless securities or a bad debt deduction
7 years
Until April 15, 2034, if the 2026 return claimed a bad debt
Employment tax records
At least 4 years after the tax is due or paid, whichever is later
Tax due and paid January 31, 2027: until at least January 31, 2031
You don’t file a return, or file a fraudulent one
Indefinitely
Indefinitely
Records about property
Until the limitations period ends for the year you dispose of it
Usually 3 years after the return for the year it is sold
Northbank Bike Repair is a fictional bike shop. The IRS also notes that insurers or creditors may want records kept longer than it does, so check a loan agreement or lease before you shred anything.
We set you up and catch up your past months for free. Then ZeraBooks keeps your books done.
How long does the CRA say to keep bank statements?
The CRA counts from the end of the last tax year a record relates to, not from when you filed. From its page on keeping records, dated August 3, 2026, checked October 2026, applied to Kestrel Cafe Ltd., a fictional cafe with a December 31 year end:
Record
CRA rule
Keep until
2026 bank statements
Six years from the end of the last tax year they relate to
December 31, 2032
Card statement closing January 18, 2027, holding late-2026 and early-2027 charges
Same rule; the last tax year it relates to is 2027
December 31, 2033
2026 records when the return was filed late on September 30, 2028
Six years from the date the late return is filed
September 30, 2034
Statement showing a 2026 equipment purchase
Records of long-term acquisitions and disposals of property: indefinitely
Indefinitely
Records for a year under objection or appeal
Until the matter is resolved and appeal time has run out, if that is later than six years
Later of the two
To destroy records before the period ends you need the CRA’s written permission, using Form T137 or a written request, and the CRA warns that destroying them without it can lead to prosecution. Records generally have to be kept in Canada unless the CRA permits otherwise. Running a Canadian business? See bookkeeping services in Canada.
THE PRACTICAL RULE
Can I shred bank statements older than 7 years?
Usually, once every reason to keep a given statement has run out. Ask four questions about each year before it goes:
Has the tax period ended?
Seven years after filing in the U.S. covers nearly every IRS case except no return, fraud and property; six years after the year end covers the CRA’s general rule. Count from the right date: filing for the IRS, year end for the CRA.
Does it show something you still own?
A statement that proves what you paid for equipment, a building or shares is part of that asset’s record. Keep it until the asset is sold and the period for that year has run out, or indefinitely under the CRA rule.
Does anyone else need it?
Lenders, landlords, insurers, partners and buyers of the business may ask for longer histories. So can a divorce, an estate or a lawsuit. Their rules sit on top of the tax rules.
Is the year still open?
If a return is under audit, objection or appeal, or you never filed one, nothing from that year goes yet.
PAPER OR PDF
Is it OK to keep bank statements digitally?
Yes, with conditions. IRS Publication 583 (revised December 2024) accepts electronic storage and says paper originals may be destroyed once the storage system has been tested to show it reproduces records that meet IRS requirements. The PDF your bank issues is already the original for most accounts, so keeping it unaltered is the simplest way to meet that.
The CRA accepts electronic copies if they are true copies, readable with its software and detailed enough to support your returns, and it expects records to be available in Canada. For proving a payment, Publication 583 says a statement has to be highly legible and show the amount, the payee and the posting or transaction date, plus the check number for a check. A bank statement proves you paid; a receipt or invoice proves what the payment was for, so keep both.
Don’t rely on the bank as your archive. Most large banks keep up to 7 years online, card issuers often less (Wells Fargo lists 2 years for credit cards), and access can end soon after an account closes. Download each month as it arrives. Getting a full set together for your accountant is covered in year-end bank statement organization.
A SIMPLE POLICY
What is a sensible bank statement retention policy for a small business?
One written policy saves deciding year by year. A typical one for a small business that files in the U.S. or Canada, to check with your accountant:
Record
Keep for
Why
Monthly bank and card statements
7 years after the return is filed (U.S.) or after the year end (Canada)
Covers the 6- and 7-year IRS cases and the CRA six-year rule
Statements showing asset purchases
Until the asset is sold, plus the period for that year; indefinitely in Canada
They prove the cost
Payroll account statements
At least 4 years after the tax is due or paid, inside the 7-year set
IRS employment tax rule
Statements for years with no return filed
Indefinitely
The IRS period never starts
Personal statements with no tax use
Until any dispute period with the bank has passed
No tax rule applies
Write the policy down, keep it with the records, and destroy old years once a year on the same date. That makes it easy to show why a statement is gone.
WITH ZERABOOKS
Make sure the set you keep is complete.
Keeping statements for seven years only helps if no month is missing. That is the part ZeraBooks checks for you.
GENERAL LEDGER
A missing month shows up on the timeline.
ZeraBooks reconciles each uploaded statement against its own printed balances and against the month before. When no statement covers a month that sits between covered months, the timeline marks it with an orange warning triangle and an Upload statement button, so a gap is found the month it happens, not during an audit. ZeraBooks has no bank feed; it works from the statements you download and keep. Prefer someone else do it? Our year-end bookkeeping team closes the year from your statements.
When an auditor or lender asks a question about 2021, a folder of PDFs is slow to search. The ZeraBooks bank statement converter turns statements into Excel or CSV, checked against the printed opening and closing balances to the cent, so you can filter years of transactions in a spreadsheet and keep the PDFs as the originals.
Often less than you need to keep them. Our study of 23 banks found 11 publish no number at all.
How long should I keep business bank statements?+
Seven years is the common safe choice. It covers the IRS 3-, 6- and 7-year periods and the CRA’s six years from the end of the tax year. Keep statements that show asset purchases longer.
How long should I keep personal bank statements?+
If a statement supports something on your tax return, like a deduction or self-employment income, follow the same IRS or CRA periods. If it supports nothing, no tax rule applies; many people keep a year or so, longer if a lender asks.
Does the CRA require 6 or 7 years?+
Six years from the end of the last tax year the record relates to. Because that clock starts at year end, a January 2026 statement is kept until December 31, 2032, almost seven years after it was issued.
Can I throw away paper statements if I have the PDF?+
In most cases. The IRS lets paper originals go once your electronic system reliably reproduces them, and the CRA accepts true electronic copies. For most accounts the bank’s PDF is the original anyway.
What if I already threw away statements I need?+
Ask the bank for copies. Large banks keep up to 7 years online and many will send older copies on request. In Canada, if records were lost in a disaster, the CRA has separate guidance.
Can ZeraBooks keep my books from my statements?+
Yes. Upload each month’s statement and ZeraBooks categorizes, reconciles and flags missing months, from $79 a month billed annually after a 7-day trial. Our bookkeeping team can do it for you from $150 a month (USD).
Damin founded ZeraBooks in 2025 and still talks to the bookkeepers, firms and owners who use it every week. He writes about what he sees in their statements and ledgers, and every page here is checked against the live product before it goes up.
Keep seven years of statements. Know none are missing.
ZeraBooks proves every month against the bank’s printed balances and marks any month without a statement. Try it for 7 days, then $79 a month billed annually. Rather not keep track yourself? Our bookkeeping services team keeps the books and the statements for you.
