The input deadline for scanner storage is up to 2 months plus roughly 7 business daysThere is a deadline for scanning paper documents and keeping them
For scanner storage, input must be done within "the business processing cycle period (up to 2 months) plus roughly 7 business days" from receipt of the document. The Q&A (July 2026 (Reiwa 8)) also shows that if you scan within the input period and carry out the equivalence check, you may discard the paper immediately.
- 1. ReceiptYou receive or create the document
- 2. Business processing cycleA period set by each company (up to 2 months)
- 3. Roughly 7 business daysInput promptly after the cycle has passed
- 4. Equivalence checkCheck the paper and the record match (including folds and the like)
- 5. Discarding the paperIf within the input period, you may discard it immediately
Key points
- At most, you need to input within 2 months plus roughly 7 business days from receipt. The 2 months are calendar months; for a document received on April 21, the starting point is June 20.
- For a company with a 2-week business processing cycle, it is 2 weeks plus roughly 7 business days; for a company with a 20-day cycle, it is 20 days plus roughly 7 business days.
- If there is a special reason why input cannot be done within roughly 7 business days, inputting immediately after the reason is resolved is treated as prompt input.
- For documents stored on or after January 1, 2022 (Reiwa 4), unless the input period has passed, you may discard the paper immediately once you have scanned it and done the minimum equivalence check.
What to do in practice
- Decide your business processing cycle (up to 2 months), and tell staff that this period plus roughly 7 business days is the input deadline.
- Make it a routine to carry out the equivalence check after scanning, for example for folds, and to keep a record of it.
When you scan paper receipts and turn them into data, there is a deadline for getting them in promptly after you receive them. If you get them in on time and check that the paper and the data match, you are allowed to throw away the original paper.
- April 21You receive the receipt
- June 20End of the maximum 2-month period
- Roughly 7 business days after June 20Rough deadline to scan and input it
Points
- After you receive it, scan it within roughly 7 business days after the period your company has decided.
- The period a company can decide on is at most 2 months.
- Once you've checked that the paper and the data match, you can throw the paper away.
What the words mean
- Scanner storage (スキャナ保存)
- Reading paper documents with a machine and saving them as data
- Business day (営業日)
- A day the company works, not counting days off
- National Tax Agency (NTA): NTA: Electronic Books Maintenance Act Q&A [Scanner Storage] (July 2026 (Reiwa 8)), Q3, Q22 and Q23
This article summarizes and explains materials published by government agencies and is not advice on any individual case. Rules can change, so for actual procedures and decisions always check the latest original materials and consult professionals such as tax accountants or labor and social security attorneys. English, Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese versions are translations prepared from the Japanese articles for convenience. If anything differs, the Japanese text and the original source take precedence.