Accounting record retention in Morocco: paper and digital

What to retain for ten years, in which format, with which access, backups and response when records are lost.

By BelloCommerce

·

September 1, 2026

Archiving does not mean filling boxes or dropping PDFs into a folder called ‘accounts’. A retained document must remain complete, readable, accessible, linked to its operation and protected from untracked deletion or alteration throughout its useful retention period.

Moroccan records owner organising paper and digital archives.

The base rule

Retain listed tax books, evidence and data for ten years.
Keep electronic accounting documents electronically.
File by period and cycle under stable references.
Regularly test restoration, readability and access rights.
Report loss promptly under CGI article 211.

1. Define the ten-year scope

CGI article 211 requires ten-year retention at the taxed location of evidence for purchases, expenses and investments; sales-invoice copies or tickets; books, general ledger, inventory book and journal; customer and supplier files; and other documents needed for audit.

Cycle	Evidence to connect
Sales	invoice/ticket, credit, payment, delivery
Purchases	order, receipt, invoice, settlement
Till	opening, movements, close, variance
Bank	statement, deposit, reconciliation
Close	inventory, estimates, balances, decisions

The precise starting point and other periods may depend on document and another law. A prudent policy identifies the longest applicable rule before destruction.

2. Paper and digital: preserve useful form

When accounting is kept electronically, the accounting documents must be retained electronically. A printed export is not a sufficient backup of structured data or its history.

Retain the native file and a durable readable format.
Keep attachments and index with the data.
Document software, version and export method.
Protect journals from silent alteration.
Do not discard an original solely because of an ordinary scan.

Digitisation improves access. It does not automatically create universal legal equivalence for every original.

3. Build a filing system you can restore

Use a stable tree by financial year, cycle and period, then a unique reference present in file, entry and exception log. Add an index for larger volumes.

Name YYYY-MM-DD-type-party-number.
Separate draft, validated and cancelled.
Limit and review access rights.
Encrypt sensitive media.
Keep at least one copy outside the main system.
Run a complete timed restore test.

A backup nobody has restored remains a hypothesis. Record test date, scope, duration, errors and owner.

Do not schedule deletion at year nine

Ten tax years are not the only possible horizon. Litigation, an open audit, commercial/social law, personal data or contract may require separate analysis.

4. Respond to loss

When records are lost, article 211 requires notice to the inspector by registered letter with acknowledgement within fifteen days of discovering the loss; the period is thirty days for force majeure. Do not wait until reconstruction is complete before reporting.

Contain: block access and preserve traces
Inventory: identify periods, types and volume
Notify: meet deadline and retain dispatch proof
Restore: use copies, third parties and exports
Document: cause, gaps and new controls

BelloPOS exports may help reconstruct recorded sales, payments and movements, but they do not replace supplier invoices, bank statements or accounting books.

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