Section 286 — Excise Tax Act: Keeping books and records

Every person that carries on a business or is engaged in a commercial activity in Canada, every person that is required under this Part to file a return and every person that makes an application for a rebate or refund shall keep all records that are necessary to enable the determination of the person’s liabilities and obligations under this Part or the amount of any rebate or refund to which the person is entitled. The Minister may specify the form a record is to take and any information that the record shall contain. Unless otherwise authorized by the Minister, a record shall be kept in Canada in English or in French. Where a person fails to keep adequate records for the purposes of this Part, the Minister may require the person to keep such records as the Minister may specify and the person shall thereafter keep the records so specified. Every person required under this section to keep records shall retain them until the expiration of six years after the end of the year to which they relate or for such other period as may be prescribed. Every person required by this section to keep records who does so electronically shall retain them in an electronically readable format for the retention period set out in subsection (3). The Minister may, on such terms and conditions as are acceptable to the Minister, exempt a person or a class of persons from the requirement in subsection (3.1). Where a person who is required under this section to keep records serves a notice of objection or is a party to an appeal or reference under this Part, the person shall retain, until the objection, appeal or reference and any appeal therefrom is finally disposed of, every record that pertains to the subject-matter of the objection, appeal or reference. Where the Minister is of the opinion that it is necessary for the administration of this Part, the Minister may, by a demand served personally or by registered or certified mail, require any person required under this section to keep records to retain those records for such period as is specified in the demand. A person who is required under this section to keep records may dispose of the records before the expiration of the period in respect of which the records are required to be kept if written permission for their disposal is given by the Minister.