Guidelines
Guidance for government employees to help them manage records.
Going digital
LAC's policy position for transfers of archival records from government institutions
- Born-digital records of archival value created after April 1, 2017, are to be transferred to LAC digitally.
- Paper records of archival value digitized by departments in the course of business are to be transferred digitally. Please note that paper records of archival value must be digitized in accordance with the Disposition Authorization (DA) for the Destruction of Source Records Following Digitization (2018/013).
- Paper and other non-digital records created prior to April 1, 2017 and identified as archival will continue to be accepted by LAC; paper and other non-digital records created after April 1, 2017 will continue to be accepted if they are the official records being used by the department. There is no obligation on departments to digitize all archival records.
- In exceptional cases, certain non-digital records of archival value, such as signed treaties and maps, have intrinsic value in their original state, so—even if digitized—are to be transferred to LAC in the original paper format. These records will be identified in a department's Disposition Authorization.
Guidelines doormats
Procedures for the transfer of government records
These procedures outline the requirements for preparing archival government records for transfer to Library and Archives Canada
Guidelines on File Formats for Transfer
These Guidelines provide advice on the digital file formats to be used when transferring digital material to Library and Archives Canada
Guidelines for Access to Personnel Files of Former Federal Public Servants
These guidelines provide the necessary direction for requesting files from the Central Canada Regional Service Centre of Library and Archives Canada
Managing Documentary Art Records in the Government of Canada
Documentary art records are drawings, paintings, prints, medals, seals, heraldic devices, posters, reproductions or caricatures that document Canadian history, government and social development. Documentary art records also include objects considered as ephemera, such as trading cards, postcards, greeting cards, flyers, buttons and lapel pins
Guidelines on Managing Records in a Minister's Office (2020)
This tool, which includes the most recent information on recordkeeping, provides advice for ministers and their staff to help them manage the records that they create and retain
Operational Standard for Digital Archival Records’ Metadata
The Operational Standard outlines the baseline of metadata that is mandatory to create and maintain with digital archival records under the control of government institutions. Additional supplementary guidance pieces are available to assist with implementation
Documented Disposition of Records
This guidance provides advice to departmental officials on establishing and implementing disposition processes for all records in respect of the Directive on Service and Digital and to comply with the Library and Archives of Canada Act.
Operational Standard for the Protection of Digital Archival Records
What departments need to do to protect digital records and metadata until their transfer to LAC. It ensures that digital records are compatible with LAC’s rules for transfer.