How long must I keep the documents?
Last reviewed 5 October 2026. Source: Regulation (EU) 2019/1009, consolidated text of 1 July 2026.
In simple words
Keep them for 5 years. The 5 years start when the product is placed on the market. Placing on the market means the first time the product is made available in the EU (Article 6(3) and Article 2).
Words in this article
- Technical documentation
- The set of documents that show the product follows the rules. It includes the product description, the materials, the production process, test reports and the label.
- EU declaration of conformity (DoC)
- A signed document in which the manufacturer states that the product follows the rules.
- Placing on the market
- The first time a product is made available in the EU.
- Competent national authority
- A government body in an EU country that checks if products follow the rules. It is also called a market surveillance authority.
- Authorised representative
- A person or company in the EU that the manufacturer appoints in writing to do certain tasks for the manufacturer.
- Importer
- A person or company in the EU that brings a product from a country outside the EU onto the EU market.
Which documents?
The manufacturer keeps the technical documentation and the declaration of conformity. With Module B, the manufacturer also keeps the certificate from the notified body. An authorised representative and an importer keep the declaration for the same period.
How must you store them?
The regulation does not say how or where. It says that you must be able to give the documents to the authority on request. This can be on paper or electronic. The language must be one that the authority understands (Article 6(9)).
RecyFert archiving
Archiving is an option for dossiers on the RecyFert licence. RecyFert stores a copy for the period that the regulation requires. RecyFert can send it to an auditor or an authority within 24 hours. The 24 hours is a RecyFert service level. It is not a rule in the regulation.