ASF Institutional Policy Manual · Aligned with PHIG, September 2026
Part of the ASF policy framework, aligned with the equivalent PHIG policy. To raise a concern: see the ASF Complaints and Reporting Channel.
ASF keeps complete records of every grant and gives funders, their auditors and investigators access to them on request. Owner: Operations Liaison.
- Default retention: 7 years after the end of the project, unless a grant agreement or law requires longer.
- Donor minimums: US awards — at least 3 years from submission of the final financial report, extended while any audit, claim or litigation is open; EU, World Bank and EBRD grants — the period stated in the agreement. ASF always applies the longest period.
- What is kept: agreements and amendments, budgets, accounting records, invoices, payment proofs, procurement files, timesheets, asset registers, sub-award files, reports and correspondence.
- Format: original or certified electronic copies, filed by project code, backed up (Policy 32).
- Access: donors and their authorised representatives have the right to inspect and copy records and to interview staff.
- Destruction: only after the retention period, approved by the the Board Chair and logged; personal data under Policy 16.