Record-keeping ordinance
The ordinance on books of account governs how books and documents are kept and preserved: ten years, legible at any time, complete and traceable — electronic form permitted where integrity and availability are assured.
Definition
It does not demand a particular system but properties: the records must stay legible until the retention period expires, the link between document and entry must be recognisable, and changes must be either impossible or provable. A filing system alone does not achieve that.
For alterable media — that is, practically every hard disk — the ordinance requires additional measures such as logging and signatures. That is why «audit-proof» means more for an archive system than «cannot be overwritten».
The wording
The books of account and the accounting vouchers may be kept on paper, electronically or in a comparable manner, provided that correspondence with the underlying business transactions and circumstances is guaranteed and that they can be made legible again at any time.
The numbers
- 10 years
- retention period for books of account and documents Art. 958f CO
Where to read it
- Ordinance on the Keeping and Preservation of Books of Account (SR 221.431)
- Swiss Code of Obligations (SR 220)
What the software must be able to do
Three checks: unalterable filing or a change log, legibility over ten years independent of the program — that is, a complete export — and the link between document and entry in both directions.
Checked Aug 2026
More terms under Bookkeeping and retention: Accrual principle Accrued liabilities Annual accounts Association accounting Balance sheet Balance sheet total Book value Break-even point Business assets Business expenses Cash book Cash flow statement Cash receipts Contribution margin Cost centre Current assets Debit and credit Depreciation Double-entry bookkeeping Duty to keep accounts EBIT EBITDA Equity Equity ratio Financial year Fixed assets Fixed costs Foreign currency General ledger Gross profit Hidden reserves Income statement Inventory count Journal Journal entry Liabilities Liquidity Loss carry-forward Membership dues Net profit Opening balance sheet Overheads Pass-through item Prepaid expenses Provision Reserves Retained profit Simple accounts Swiss SME chart of accounts Tamper resistance Turnover Value adjustment Variable costs Volunteer-run structure Voucher Year-end closing modules