Icologiq Knowledge · Concept
Data Retention
The rules and controls that determine how long records or data are kept, how they remain accessible and protected, and when they are disposed of.
Also known as:
record retention, records retention, retention period, data retention policy
At a glance
Type
Concept
Topic
Enterprise IT
Applies to
Cross-industry
Current version
Status
Last reviewed
September 29, 2026
Definition
Data retention is the controlled practice of defining how long records or data must be kept, where and in what form they are retained, who can access them, how integrity is protected and when they may be securely disposed of. Retention periods can be driven by legal, regulatory, contractual, quality, operational and evidentiary requirements and therefore differ by record type and jurisdiction.
Why it matters
For Quality, compliance and IT teams, retention rules directly affect auditability and system selection. An eQMS must support records for the required period without losing context, approvals, audit history or accessibility. Retention also matters when data is migrated, archived or exported during a supplier change, making it closely connected with data exit strategy and long-term evidence management.
A documented approach defining how an organization can retrieve, transfer and appropriately remove its data and dependencies when ending a software relationship.
Data Exit Strategy
Commercial/IT
· Enterprise IT
The organized management of documents throughout their lifecycle, including creation, review, approval, publication, retrieval, revision and retirement.
Document Management
Process
· Document Control
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