Keeping and disposing of body corporate records

A body corporate must keep certain records. There are rules about how these records must be kept and when they can be disposed of.

Most of the information on this page is for schemes registered under the:

• Standard Module
• Accommodation Module
• Commercial Module
• Small Schemes Module.

Jump to the Specified Two-lot Schemes Module information.

Keeping records

A body corporate must keep:

• accounting and financial records, including accounts, bank statements and invoices
• orders and notices from a court, tribunal, council or other authority
• insurance policies and any associated defect assessment reports for the body corporate
• correspondence to and from the body corporate
• meeting minutes and meeting material from general and committee meetings
• notices and responses for motions passed outside a committee meeting
• contracts with a body corporate manager or service contractor, and letting agent authorisations
• any authority for a service contractor or letting agent to occupy common property
• agreements made under an exclusive use by-law
• reports given by a body corporate manager acting for the committee.

The body corporate must also keep rolls and registers.

These are:

• a roll with the name, address and other details of each lot and lot owner
• registers of things like
  • assets
  • exclusive use allocations
  • issues reserved to be decided at a general meeting.

A body corporate can choose to keep any other records.

Records from the original owner

At the first annual general meeting, the original owner (i.e. developer) must give the following to the body corporate.

Building and assets

• Register of assets
• Copy of development approval, if applicable
• All plans, diagrams or drawings of buildings as built, showing
  • water pipes
  • electrical wiring
  • drainage
  • ventilation ducts
  • air conditioning systems
  • other utility infrastructure
• Contracts for developmental building work
• Contracts for the supply of utility services
• Warranty documents for
  • buildings or improvements
  • common property plant or equipment
  • assets

Safety documents

• Fire and evacuation plan, if required under fire safety laws
• Fire safety certificates

Financial and insurance documents

• Administrative and sinking fund budget for first financial year
• Estimate of sinking fund expenditure for the first 10 financial years, including repainting
• All policies of insurance taken out by the original owner  and copies of any claims made against these policies
• Independent insurance valuation

Representative documents

• Any proxy form for the original owner to act for a lot owner
• Copy of any document showing the original owner’s ability to be representative of a lot owner

Administration documents

• Body corporate seal
• Current community management statement
• Certificates of classification
• Documents such as
  • body corporate roll
  • accounts
  • meeting minutes
  • registers
  • contracts or authorisations
  • correspondence or tenders

Disposing of records

You can dispose of some records after 6 years (unless they are still current). They are:

• statements of account
• meeting notices and papers
• records about major repairs and installations to common property or defect assessment reports
• orders and notices from a court, tribunal, council or other authority
• contracts the body corporate is a party to
• reports given by a body corporate manager acting for the committee.

Some records can be disposed of after 2 years (unless they are still current). They are:

• committee and general meeting material
• correspondence that is not important or no longer of interest
• financial statements, including bank statements and invoices.

The Australian Tax Office may require some records to be kept for longer.

Specified Two-lot Schemes Module records

A body corporate in a Specified Two-lot Schemes Module must keep:

• all lot owner agreements
• written requests to enter into a lot owner agreement
• orders and notices from a court, tribunal, council or other authority
• insurance policies, and other records about insurance, including any defect assessment report
• correspondence to and from the body corporate
• contracts with a body corporate manager or service contractor
• agreements made under an exclusive use by-law
• documents about owner representation
• bank statements and accounting records
• contribution notices
• documents about work done for the body corporate
• a person’s resignation as a record keeper.

You can dispose of some records after 6 years (unless they are still current). They are:

• accounts
• documents about work done for the body corporate
• orders and notices from a court, tribunal, council or other authority
• written agreements the body corporate is a party to.

These records can be disposed of after 2 years (unless they are still current):

• correspondence that is not important or no longer of interest
• financial statements, including bank statements and invoices
• documents about owner representation (i.e. power of attorney).

The Australian Tax Office may require that some records to be kept for longer.