Practice

How do you organise an archive clean-up day at the office?

23 May 2026 · 7 min read · DeSnipperaar

An archive clean-up day is a popular in-house chore and at the same time a notorious moment. Everyone wants to join in, nobody knows what to throw out, chaos arrives within the hour, and at the end of the day there is a heap of boxes with unclear status. Here is how to tackle it differently: structured, efficient, with closing evidence afterwards.

Two weeks before the clean-up day

Step 1: set the scope

• Which departments, which cabinets, which year of files?
• Goal: only archive more than 7 years old, or also working cabinets for current projects?
• Including hardware (HDDs, USB sticks, old phones) or paper only?

Step 2: retention periods on the table

Print the GDPR retention periods cheatsheet and put it up in the working room. For most documents:

• Tax and bookkeeping: 7 years.
• HR file general: 2 years after leaving.
• Payroll administration: 5 years.
• Customer correspondence without tax relevance: 2-3 years.

For sector-specific periods, see the cheatsheet or our sector articles.

Step 3: request a quote

Roughly estimate: number of cabinets, boxes or linear metres. Read how much paper is in a ring-binder cabinet for the conversions. We then settle on actual weight afterwards. The estimate is for the quote.

Step 4: book a date

For mobile destruction, book two weeks ahead. Ideally a Friday or the last day of the month, because then you combine with natural closing moments.

A week before the clean-up day

Step 5: communicate to the team

Send one clear email to those involved:

• What we will tidy up, and what we will not.
• Which retention periods are leading.
• What each employee should do that morning.
• Central collection point for material to be destroyed.
• What does NOT belong in the clean-up: current files, items of unknown status, archive-worthy documents.

Step 6: prepare the collection point

• A working room or corridor with enough floor space.
• Set out removal boxes or sealed boxes (we can deliver these on request).
• Cart or trolley for heavy ring binders.
• Separate bag or box for hardware (USB, HDD, optical).
• Separate bag for batteries.

Step 7: review the doubt pile

Ask employees to set aside documents they are unsure about. One person (archive or compliance lead) reviews that pile the day before the clean-up. Read about the review in audit-ready archive closure.

The clean-up day itself

Step 8: morning (08:30-12:00)

• Each team works on its own cabinets.
• Ring binders are emptied. Paper into the box, binder cover separately.
• Hardware separately in a marked bag or box.
• Close boxes and deliver to the collection point.

Step 9: afternoon (12:00-15:00)

• Mobile truck arrives.
• Operator introduces themselves and shows how the shredder works.
• Boxes are tipped one by one into the hopper, with visual confirmation.
• Hardware stream separately into the E-shredder.

Step 10: finish (15:00-16:00)

• Operator hands over the certificate.
• Short walk around the office to pick up any forgotten boxes.
• Truck leaves with a sealed compactor.

After the clean-up day

Step 11: documentation

• Scan the certificate into the compliance archive.
• Update processing register: retention periods applied on this date.
• Communicate success to the team (final tally: X kg, Y boxes, Z hardware).

Step 12: plan the next one

A one-off clean-up is good. A rhythm is better. Plan the next clean-up 12 months later, after year-end closing. The accountant will have finished their work by then and you can let the oldest year leave without tax risk.

The best-organised organisations have one clean-up day per year in the diary, not once every three years at panic pace.

Common mistakes

1. No scope set in advance. Everyone knows what they are throwing away, nobody knows what the neighbours are throwing away.
2. Too many people in one room at once. Small teams work more efficiently.
3. Hardware mixed with paper. USB sticks then go into the paper shredder where they are not properly processed. Read what does not belong in the paper container.
4. No certificate requested. If you have no evidence, you have no destruction.
5. Archive-worthy material thrown out too quickly. Keep the doubt pile separate.

Tips for large organisations

For 100+ employees a staggered clean-up works better than one big day:

• Per department a morning of its own in the same week.
• Central delivery into a sealed room.
• Mobile truck on the final Friday to clear the week's accumulation.

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Ready to put your archive in order? Email us via desnipperaar.nl with the planned date and rough volume.