Tax Time: what to toss, what to save
ATLANTA - If you're prepping for taxes, you are wading through a lot of old paperwork you probably don't need anymore. Let’s look at what to save, what to toss. Get into that big drawer or box that you stuff your paperwork and let’s clean it out.
Some documents need a seven-year file. For others, a year will do it.
FOREVER file: Some of this seems obvious to me. But just in case it’s not to you, here’s the list.
- Birth certificate
- Social Security card
- Military discharge papers
- Marriage license
- Divorce decree
LONGER THAN A YEAR file: Keep docs anywhere from a year to seven years for this pile.
- Loan documents – dump a year after pay off
- Car title – keep it until you sell it
- Investment paperwork - keep this, too, until it’s sold
- Income receipts – keep for seven years; government has six years to collect taxes on it or to start legal proceedings
ONE YEAR IS FINE file: After a year, shred it.
- ATM receipts
- Bank records
- Credit card receipts