Document Appraisal and the Establishment and Operation of Expert Commissions in Companies
The appraisal of document value and the establishment and operation of expert commissions in state authorities, local self-government bodies, enterprises, institutions, organizations, and any other legal entities regardless of ownership form, including companies (hereinafter referred to as “the company”), are carried out in accordance with the Procedure for the Establishment and Operation of Commissions for Document Appraisal, approved by the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 1004 dated August 8, 2007
Document appraisal in a company is conducted:
- in current records management – during the preparation of file classification schemes, the formation of documents into files, verification of correct classification, and preparation of files for archival storage;
- in the company archive – during the acceptance of files into the archive and preparation for permanent storage.
During the appraisal process, four categories of files are identified:
- Permanent storage;
- Long-term storage (over 10 years);
- Temporary storage (up to and including 10 years);
- Subject to destruction due to expiration of retention periods.
According to legislation, documents may not be destroyed without prior appraisal of their value.
LEGISLATIVE REGULATION OF DOCUMENT PRESERVATION IN COMPANIES
According to Article 32 of the Law of Ukraine “On the National Archival Fund and Archival Institutions” No. 3814-XII dated December 24, 1993, companies established under private ownership must:
- ensure the preservation of documents accumulated during their activities until their value is appraised;
- within one year from the date of state registration, coordinate their file classification scheme with a state archival institution or the city council’s archival department.
Minimum retention periods for archival documents are determined by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, unless otherwise provided by law.
In the event of company liquidation, the liquidation commission must:
- ensure the arrangement and preservation of documents, including personnel records, accounting registers, financial reports, and other documents related to tax payments and salary calculations;
- in coordination with the central executive authority responsible for archival policy or its authorized archival institution, determine the location for further storage of the company’s archival documents.
According to Article 6, Part 5 of the Law on the National Archival Fund, companies that possess archival documents over 50 years old or intend to alienate or export them outside Ukraine must notify the relevant state archival institution in their jurisdiction to initiate a value appraisal. Alienation or export without such notification is prohibited.
ESTABLISHMENT OF AN EXPERT COMMISSION IN A COMPANY
The Company Expert Commission (CEC) is a permanent advisory body established by order of the company’s head to organize and conduct the appraisal of paper and electronic documents accumulated in the company’s records management. The CEC submits the results to the Expert Review Commission (ERC) of the state archive or the expert commission of the district or city council archival department in the jurisdiction where the company is registered.
The CEC operates under:
- the Constitution and laws of Ukraine;
- presidential decrees and parliamentary resolutions;
- acts of the Cabinet of Ministers;
- regulations of the Ministry of Justice;
- and its own internal regulations.
CEC membership includes:
- the head of the records management service (or responsible person);
- the head of the archival unit (or responsible person);
- employees from other departments (e.g., accounting, HR, legal);
- a representative of the ERC of the relevant state archive (by consent).
The CEC chairperson is usually the deputy head of the company, and the secretary is the head of the archival unit or the person responsible for the archive. The chairperson may appoint a deputy from among the commission members.
The Regulations on the CEC of a state or municipal company must be developed based on the Model Regulations on the Expert Commission, approved by the Order of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine No. 1227/5 dated June 19, 2013
The Model Regulations define:
- the procedure for establishing the CEC;
- applicable legislation and regulations;
- membership requirements;
- tasks and rights of the CEC;
- procedures for meetings and decision-making;
- planning, reporting, and documentation requirements.
The company’s internal CEC regulations must reflect all these elements in the appropriate order.
Amendments introduced in 2023 to the Model Regulations include:
- Documents approved by the CEC must be submitted to the ERC in both paper and electronic formats with a cover letter;
- The CEC chairperson may decide to hold meetings via video conference using appropriate software (online meetings), with participation from both permanent and invited members.
For private companies, the Methodological Guidelines for Preparing CEC Regulations (approved by the State Archival Service of Ukraine, Order No. 65 dated July 29, 2019) should be used.
ACTIVITIES OF THE COMPANY’S EXPERT COMMISSION
According to the requirements of the Rules for Records Management and Archival Storage of Documents in State Authorities, Local Self-Government Bodies, Enterprises, Institutions, and Organizations, approved by the Order of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine No. 1000/5 dated June 18, 2015 (rada.gov.ua) (hereinafter referred to as Rules No. 1000/5), the Expert Commission of a company (hereinafter – EC) that generates documents of the National Archival Fund (NAF) shall make decisions regarding:
- Approval and submission to the Expert Review Commission (ERC) of the state archive (or the expert commission of the district administration or city council) of the following draft documents:
- inventories of files for permanent storage;
- inventories of audiovisual (film, video, photo, audio) documents for permanent storage included in the NAF;
- inventories of personnel-related files;
- the company’s file classification scheme;
- records management instructions;
- regulations on the records management service (office, records department, etc.);
- regulations on the archival unit (archive);
- regulations on the EC itself;
- annotated lists of unique NAF documents;
- acts for the disposal of documents not included in the NAF;
- acts for the removal of documents from the NAF;
- acts on irreparable damage to NAF documents.
- Approval of:
- inventories of files for long-term storage (over 10 years);
- acts on irreparable damage to long-term storage documents and personnel-related documents;
- file classification schemes and inventories of long-term storage documents of enterprises, institutions, and organizations under the company’s management that do not generate NAF documents.
For companies that do not generate NAF documents, the EC shall make decisions regarding:
- Approval and submission to the ERC of the following draft documents:
- inventories of personnel-related files;
- acts for the disposal of documents not included in the NAF.
- Approval of:
- records management instructions;
- the company’s file classification scheme;
- regulations on the records management service, archive, and EC;
- inventories of long-term storage documents;
- acts on irreparable damage to long-term storage documents and personnel-related documents;
- file classification schemes and inventories of long-term storage documents of enterprises, institutions, and organizations under the company’s management that do not generate NAF documents.
According to Clause 6, Chapter 1, Section V of Rules No. 1000/5, the EC must simultaneously review:
- inventories of files;
- acts for the disposal of documents not included in the NAF;
- acts for the removal of documents from the NAF;
- acts on irreparable damage to NAF documents (if available).
POWERS OF THE EXPERT COMMISSION
To fulfill its responsibilities, the EC is granted the following powers:
- Monitor compliance by company departments and responsible staff with legal requirements regarding the development of file classification schemes, file formation, document appraisal, and document arrangement and formatting;
- Request missing NAF documents, long-term storage documents, including personnel-related documents, and written explanations in case of document loss;
- Receive information and proposals from company departments necessary for document appraisal;
- Determine retention periods for documents not covered by standard or sectoral lists and coordinate these periods with the ERC of the relevant state archive or the EC of a higher-level authority (for companies not generating NAF documents);
- Hear reports from department heads on the preparation of documents for archival storage and reasons for document loss;
- Invite specialists from company departments and, if necessary, staff from the relevant state archive or archival department of the district administration or city council to EC meetings;
- Inform company management on matters within the EC’s competence.
MEETINGS AND DECISION-MAKING
The EC must meet at least once a year. A meeting is considered valid if at least two-thirds of its members are present.
Decisions are made by a majority vote of attending members and are documented in a protocol, signed by the chairperson (or deputy in their absence) and the secretary. The decision becomes effective upon approval of the protocol by the company’s head.
We have prepared a sample protocol of an Expert Commission meeting for you.
Please fill out the form, and we will send it to you
LISTS OF DOCUMENT TYPES AS A METHODOLOGICAL BASIS FOR DOCUMENT APPRAISAL
During the document appraisal process, the company’s Expert Commission must be guided by the standard and, where applicable, sectoral lists of document types with legally established retention periods, approved in accordance with legislation.
The Standard List refers to the List of Typical Documents Created During the Activities of State Authorities, Local Self-Government Bodies, and Other Legal Entities Indicating Retention Periods, approved by the Order of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine No. 578/5 dated April 12, 2012 (rada.gov.ua).
The Standard List includes:
- documents created during the documentation of uniform (common to all) administrative functions performed by any company, regardless of its functional purpose, level, scale of activity, or ownership form;
- documents created as a result of production and scientific-technical activities of companies.
Sectoral Lists are regulatory lists that define retention periods for specific types of industry-related documentation.
A sectoral list contains the names and retention periods of documents specific to a particular industry or field in which the company operates. For example, for companies under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, the applicable sectoral list is the List of Documents Created in the Activities of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine and the Armed Forces of Ukraine Indicating Retention Periods, approved by the Order of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine No. 474 dated August 28, 2019 (mod.gov.ua).
If neither the standard nor the sectoral list provides retention periods for certain types of documentation (especially new types), the company’s Expert Commission has the right to determine such periods. However, these retention periods must be approved by the ERC of the relevant state archive or the EC of a higher-level authority (for companies that do not generate NAF documents).
SPECIFICS OF ELECTRONIC DOCUMENT APPRAISAL
In general, the appraisal of electronic documents is conducted according to the same principles, criteria, and procedures established by law as for paper documents.
However, there are some specific features:
- If, at the time of appraisal, certified paper copies of electronic documents have already been created, the appraisal of both the electronic and paper versions is conducted simultaneously. If not, the appraisal may proceed without certified paper copies.
- The appraisal of electronic documents involves certain checks using technical and software tools:
- extraction and reproduction of all data related to electronic documents from the company’s Information Automated System (IAS);
- verification of the existence and proper formatting of electronic documents;
- comparison of certified paper copies of electronic documents (electronic files) with the contents of the electronic files.
Any deficiencies identified during the verification of electronic documents must be corrected by the person responsible for records management in the relevant structural unit of the company. In small, non-structured companies, this is done by the person responsible for records management in the company.
If the registration-monitoring card (RMC) contains documents that were mistakenly registered or created/registered with technical errors or system failures in the IAS, the RMC may be removed or deleted in accordance with the company’s records management instructions.
Note: Electronic files must also be included in the Act on the Disposal of Documents Not Included in the NAF, prepared in accordance with current legislation. The presence of electronic files is indicated in the “Remarks” column of the act with the note “ED” (electronic document) next to the relevant file title.