How long does the IRS keep records?

Question

I may need to obtain my records from many years ago. How for can I go back?

Answer 1

forever

Answer 2

Wage and income documents are kept on the computer system for six years.  Some older ones are on microfilm.  Paper records are held by the National Archive Service and are generally destroyed after six or seven years.

Answer 3

Why?

The SSA can give you a detailed earnings history for your entire wage life.

Answer 4

It depends on what you need. You can obtain a photocopy including attachments for $39 for each of the past 7 years. You can obtain a free transcript of the tax return for the current year and three prior years. You can obtain an account transcript--which is a record of all the activity on the account but does not include line-by-line information from the return--for many earlier years. Wage and income documents are usually only available for 10 years.

Answer 5

?????

untill you die???