Work documents and how long to keep them
| Document | Minimum period | Starting from |
|---|---|---|
| Payslips, employment contract, certificate of employment (certificat de travail) | Until your pension is settled | — |
| Final pay statement (solde de tout compte) | 5 years | Date of the document |
| Statements of daily sickness and maternity benefits | Until your pension is settled | — |
| France Travail certificate, unemployment benefit records | 5 years | Date of the document |
| Employee savings statement (PEE, Perco or PER) | Until the plan is closed + 5 years | Date the plan was closed |
| Pension payment slip, pension certificate (titre de pension) | Permanent | Keep for good |
| Household employer: copies of payslips and contract of a home employee | 5 years, from the end of the contract for the employment contract | Date of the payslip, or date the contract ended |
| Household employer: social contributions, record of hours, final pay statement given | 3 years | Date of the document |
Source: Service Public. These are minimum periods: nothing stops you from keeping a document longer, and anything related to an ongoing dispute should be kept.
Payslips: until retirement, and after
Payslips, the employment contract and the certificate of employment (certificat de travail) given at the end of a contract are kept until your pension is settled (liquidation de la retraite), that is, until you have claimed your rights with all your pension funds.
Service Public considers it useful to keep payslips after you retire: they are used to calculate an annuity if an occupational disease appears at that point. File them by employer or by year, in a folder you don’t sort before retirement.
End of contract, unemployment, sick leave
- The final pay statement (solde de tout compte) is kept for 5 years. The deadline to dispute the amounts depends on whether or not you signed the receipt.
- The France Travail certificate, formerly Pôle emploi, and records of unemployment benefits are kept for 5 years. Service Public considers it useful to keep them until your pension is settled, to calculate your rights.
- Statements of daily benefits (indemnités journalières) for sickness and maternity are kept until your pension is settled.
Employee savings and pension
The employee savings statement, whether for a PEE, a Perco or a PER, is kept until the plan is closed, then 5 years. Once you’ve retired, the pension payment slip and the pension certificate (titre de pension) are kept for good: they can be used to calculate a survivor’s pension.
You employ someone at home
A nanny, a home help or a cleaner you employ directly: you are then a household employer (particulier employeur), and other papers need keeping.
- Copies of the employee’s payslips, 5 years.
- Their employment contract, 5 years from the end of the contract.
- Documents on social contributions, 3 years, in case of an audit.
- The record of the employee’s hours, 3 years, in case of a dispute.
- The declaration of a work accident to the local health insurance fund (CPAM, caisse primaire d’assurance maladie), 5 years.
- The final pay statement you gave them, 3 years.
If you go through Cesu or Pajemploi, some of these documents are available in your online account: Service Public advises following those sites’ recommendations for keeping them. The proof for the tax credit for employing someone at home has its own period, on the page about tax records.
And if you’re self-employed?
A self-employed person who employs someone for their business keeps copies of payslips and contracts for 5 years, and documents on payroll contributions for 3 years. Their invoices and accounting books are kept for 10 years: all the periods of a business are in the full table.
Frequently asked questions
How long should I keep payslips in France?
Until your pension is settled (liquidation de la retraite), that is, until you have claimed your rights with all your pension funds. These are minimum periods: nothing stops you from keeping them longer.
Should I keep my payslips after I retire?
The minimum period ends when your pension is settled. Service Public still considers it useful to keep them afterwards: they are used to calculate an annuity if an occupational disease appears after you retire.
How long should I keep an employment contract?
Until your pension is settled, like your payslips and the certificate of employment (certificat de travail) given at the end of the contract.
How long should I keep a nanny’s employment contract?
If you employ the nanny directly, 5 years from the end of the contract. Copies of the payslips are kept for 5 years, and documents on social contributions for 3 years.
How long should I keep a France Travail certificate?
5 years. Service Public considers it useful to keep it until your pension is settled, to calculate your rights.
Sources
Checked on October 24, 2026.
- Service Public, “Durée de conservation des papiers”, Travail and Particulier employeur sections (how long to keep documents, in French, reviewed on October 13, 2026)
- Entreprendre Service Public, “Quels sont les délais de conservation des documents pour les entreprises ?” (retention periods for businesses, in French)