As an employer, you may keep in the personnel file only the data you need for the employment relationship and for your statutory obligations. Health information is the main exception to watch: you may record that an employee is absent and what he or she can still do, but never the diagnosis or the nature of the illness. Those two rules, together with fixed retention periods, determine what goes into the file, what stays out and how long it may stay.
What may you keep in the personnel file?
You may keep data that are necessary to perform the employment contract and to meet your legal obligations. The GDPR (in Dutch: AVG) requires that personal data are not kept longer, or in greater volume, than that purpose requires.
In practice, that covers:
- name and address details and date of birth;
- the citizen service number (burgerservicenummer, BSN);
- a copy of the identity document you verified at the start of employment;
- the employment contract and any amendments;
- salary and payroll data;
- appraisals and correspondence about performance;
- training records and absence dates;
- records of warnings or disciplinary measures.
The citizen service number and the copy of the identity document are in the file because tax and social security legislation requires them. That same legal obligation is what makes keeping them lawful. You may not ask for a copy of an identity document for any other purpose.
Which data may you not keep?
You may not record the nature or cause of an illness, the diagnosis, the treatment or medication. This applies even when the employee tells you about it voluntarily, and even with the employee’s consent.
The Dutch Data Protection Authority (Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens, AP) lists in its policy rules on sick employees what you may record when an employee reports sick. That is, in short: a telephone number and the address where the employee is staying, the expected duration of the absence, current appointments and work, whether a safety-net provision (vangnetregeling) applies, whether the absence is linked to an accident at work, and whether a traffic accident with a liable third party is involved.
From the company doctor (bedrijfsarts) or occupational health service, you may also receive and record which work the employee can and cannot do, the expected duration of the absence, the degree of incapacity for work and any recommended adjustments. The medical file itself stays with the company doctor. You have no access to it.
Other data that do not belong in the file:
- special categories of personal data under Article 9 GDPR, such as religion, political opinion, trade union membership, ethnic origin and sexual orientation, unless a specific statutory exception applies;
- notes about the employee’s private life that have no bearing on the work;
- unstructured personal impressions written down by managers. Employees may see these, and they often read very differently in a dispute than they did when written.
How long may you keep personnel data?
The GDPR sets no fixed periods: data may not be kept longer than necessary (Article 5(1)(e) GDPR). The AP uses the following periods, counted from the end of employment.
| Data | Retention period after employment ends |
|---|---|
| Most personnel data (contract, appraisals, correspondence) | generally 2 years |
| Wage tax statement (loonbelastingverklaring) and copy of the identity document | 5 years |
| Certain payroll data required for tax purposes | 7 years |
Data of applicants you do not hire are normally destroyed within four weeks after the application procedure. With the applicant’s consent, you may keep them for up to a year.
A retention schedule that sets these periods per category, and that you actually apply, turns compliance from an intention into evidence.
Which rights does the employee have?
Employees may see their file, have inaccurate data corrected and, in defined circumstances, have data erased. A request for access is a right, not a hostile act. You must answer it without undue delay and at the latest within one month (Article 12(3) GDPR).
Access requests often arrive at the start of an employment dispute. That is a good reason to keep files that you can show without embarrassment at any moment.
How do you keep the personnel file in order?
Work with a fixed structure and a few clear rules. Our practical checklist:
- Keep one file per employee with a defined structure, so it is clear what is in it.
- Restrict access to the people who need it, and record who has access.
- Leave sickness information with the company doctor and out of the personnel file.
- Apply the retention periods on a fixed date each year, rather than case by case.
- Record all of this in your record of processing activities (Article 30 GDPR). The exemption for organisations with fewer than 250 employees rarely helps here, because personnel data are processed regularly. The register is often the first document a supervisory authority asks for.
In summary
- Keep only data you need for the employment contract and your legal obligations.
- Never record a diagnosis or the nature of an illness, not even with the employee’s consent; functional limitations from the company doctor may be recorded.
- Most personnel data go 2 years after employment ends; the wage tax statement and the identity document copy after 5 years; certain payroll data after 7 years.
- Answer an access request within one month.
- Set retention periods per category in a schedule and apply them every year.
Frequently asked questions
May I keep a copy of an employee’s passport?
Yes, for the identification required under tax and social security legislation. Keep it for 5 years after employment ends, and do not use it for any other purpose.
May I note why an employee is sick if the employee tells me?
No. You may not record the nature or cause of the illness, even if the employee volunteers it or consents. You may record the expected duration and what work the employee can still do.
Unsure where you stand? Tell us about your situation. We will let you know your options within one working day.
How Law & More can help you with this is explained on our employment lawyer page.
