Guide to information published by the Scottish Government

Guide to information: records management and disposal policy

The Scottish Government has in place Record Retention and Disposition Schedules in respect of all documents that it creates and holds. These Schedules set out the lengths of time for which all types of records must be held.

This means that whilst FOISA is retrospective, it is only possible to provide copies of records that are still in existence. The current Scottish Government policy and procedures in relation to records management are set out in the Scottish Government's Record Management Manual.

Some Scottish Government records are selected to be permanently preserved at the National Records of Scotland. The Schedules referred to above set out what types of records will normally be preserved. Once transferred to the National Records of Scotland, these records are made publicly available and are listed on the National Records of Scotland online catalogue.