91³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏÍø

The Records Retention Schedule (RRS) is “A listing of types of official records that defines the period for which they must be retained and the action of all records of that type at the end of their lifecycle.” 

RRS is also known as: 

• ‘Records Retention and Disposition Schedule’
• ‘Retention Schedule’
• Previous documents at the University that have defined retention and disposition requirements have been called ‘Scope Notes’ or ‘Classification Schemes’
• A ‘Disposition Authority’

Using the RRS 

While the RRS can be used as a preliminary classification scheme for the filing of records both physically and electronically, it will not line up perfectly with all existing filing practices. 

To determine what record type a document or filing category should be treated as, follow these steps. 

1. Determine the scope of the filing code or classification
2. Search the Records Retention Schedule 
3. Analyze the classification according to the RRS definition and scope 
4. Apply the retention and disposition rules of the correct RRS category 

Records Retention Schedule (RRS) Definitions

Disposition Code - A code used in automated systems to define the disposition process.

Record Category - A descriptive title for the grouping of records that share similar functions and identical legal, retention and disposition requirements. 

Description - A broad description of the records that fit within the record category. 

Scope Notes - Specific examples of types of documents that are included or excluded from a record category. Detail in this field assists with searchability of the RRS. 

Inactive Trigger - Criteria that dictates when the record is no longer considered in its active phase. Criteria can be the end of the Current Year (CY), the end of the Fiscal Year (FY), and Event Trigger (ET) which is further defined in the RRS, or Lifetime of either the related asset or the University. 

Inactive Retention - Period of time that the record must be stored in its inactive phase for business or legal obligations. 

Final Disposition - Action to be taken on the record type at the end of its lifecycle. This will be Destroy, Archive, or Transfer. 

Office of Primary Responsibility - Office that is expected to have the official copy of the record. This is often, but not always, the original copy. 

Authority Review - Citations relevant to the retention period and disposition action for the records series. 

Security Classification - The likely security classification for a record category. Note that documents can be more sensitive than their recommended category, but caution should be taken when classifying a record as less sensitive than its recommended classification. 

Vital Record - Flag which denotes records that must be accessible within 48 hours of an emergency in order for the University to continue its operations. Vital records may require additional security requirements or duplication/access requirements. 

While not included in the public RRS, Justifications are also recorded for each Record Category. These are the reasons that a category has been determined to be unique, the reasons for its scope, any precedents to be noted regarding the scope or retention, legal advice, and business need for the record category.

---

The Records and Information Management Team is able to help identify which record types should be applied to different classifications in your current filing scheme, and assist in creating reference resources to assist in its adoption and use. 

Please email records@ualberta.ca with the subject line ‘Classification Translation Request’ to book a meeting.