Period for disposal of company documents

We completed the winding up proceedings of our company a few weeks ago. For purposes of certainty and strict compliance with the law, we consulted with the Registrar of Companies to seek guidance regarding disposal of the wound-up company documents. To our surprise we have been told that the Registrar requires us to retain the documents of the wound up company for a period of 10 years. Our management is concerned with this requirement for it will expose us to unnecessary costs. We are requesting your guidance regarding the legal basis of the Registrar’s directive.
MF, Dar

We note that you have raised this concern at the right time as recently the Companies (Retention and Disposal of Company Documents) Regulations, 2023 (the Regulations) were issued. The said Regulations oblige companies to ensure maintenance and availability of all original documents for the periods as specified in the First Schedule to the Regulations which provide for a period of up to 10 years. It should be noted that the retention periods begin to run from the date the document is no longer in use (in your case, from the date the company was wound up).

You must also note that the document retention periods provided under the law, the Regulations also empower the Registrar, by giving reasons in a written notification, to direct any company to retain any documents beyond the prescribed period.

Based on the above, the Registrar has acted within the limits of the law, and is justified to do so.