Most families do not have a document problem until the day they need one paper, fast. A school asks for a birth certificate, a lender wants last year's tax return, a hospital asks who has power of attorney, or a parent dies and nobody knows where the life insurance policy is. This checklist covers which papers to keep, which ones to keep only for a while, and where each kind belongs so the right person can find it.
First, sort documents into three groups
Before buying folders or a safe, decide what kind of document each one is. That decision tells you where it goes.
- Hard to replace: originals that take time, money or travel to get again. Birth and death certificates, marriage and divorce papers, Social Security cards, passports, property deeds, vehicle titles, adoption and citizenship papers.
- Keep for a period: records you need for a few years and then can shred. Tax returns and receipts, pay stubs, bank and credit card statements, medical bills.
- Keep current: documents that only matter in their latest version. Insurance policies, medicine lists, emergency contacts, wills and powers of attorney, account lists.
The important documents checklist
Identity and vital records
- Birth certificates for everyone in the household
- Social Security cards (keep them at home, not in a wallet)
- Passports and passport cards, with their expiration dates noted
- Marriage certificate, divorce decree, name change documents
- Adoption papers, citizenship or naturalization certificates, green cards and other immigration records
- Military service records, including discharge papers (DD-214) if anyone served
- Death certificates for family members whose affairs you may still be handling
Legal and estate documents
- Will and any trust documents, plus the name and phone number of the attorney who prepared them
- Financial power of attorney
- Health care power of attorney (health care proxy) and living will or advance directive
- HIPAA authorizations naming who may receive medical information
- Guardianship wishes for minor children, if you have documented them
- Prenuptial or postnuptial agreements
Property and vehicles
- Deed or mortgage documents, or your lease
- Vehicle titles and loan papers
- Records of home improvements, which can matter when you sell
- Photos or video of your home's contents, saved somewhere other than the house
Money
- A list of bank, retirement, investment and credit accounts: institution and type only, not full account numbers
- Recent statements for each account
- Tax returns and the records that support them
- Loan documents and any debts others should know about
- Pension and benefit information
Insurance
- Life, disability, health, dental and long-term care policies
- Home or renters, auto and umbrella policies
- Benefits through work, which many families forget exist
- Agent names and phone numbers, and policy numbers
Health
- A current medicine list for each person, with doses and the reason for each
- Allergies, conditions and past surgeries
- Copies of insurance and Medicare cards, front and back
- Vaccination records, especially for children
Where to keep each kind of document
There is no single right place for everything. A practical system uses three or four locations, each with a job.
| Location | Good for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Fire- and water-resistant box or safe at home | Hard-to-replace originals, passports, Social Security cards, titles | Tell at least one trusted person where it is and how to open it |
| Bank safe deposit box | Originals you rarely need, like deeds and savings bonds | It can be hard for family to open quickly. Ask your bank who can access it. Avoid storing documents needed in an emergency, like a health care power of attorney. |
| Home file drawer or binder | Current policies, statements, medicine lists, an index of where everything else is | Shred old versions so no one relies on outdated information |
| Encrypted digital storage | Scans of key documents and the photo inventory of your home | Use strong, unique passwords and two-step login. Make sure someone you trust can reach it. |
| Your attorney's office | Original will, if your attorney offers to hold it | Keep a copy and a note at home saying where the original is |
Ask the attorney who prepared your will where the original should be kept. Rules and habits vary by state, and a copy is not always accepted in place of the original.
How long to keep common papers
Holding on to every paper is almost as unhelpful as losing them, because the important ones get buried. These are common general guidelines; check with a tax professional for your situation.
- Keep permanently: vital records, estate documents (current versions), property deeds while you own the property, adoption and citizenship papers, military records
- Keep several years: tax returns and supporting records. The IRS website explains how long to keep them; some situations call for longer periods.
- Keep until replaced: insurance policies, vehicle titles while you own the vehicle, warranties while they are valid
- Keep about a year, then shred: pay stubs once they match your year-end tax form, monthly statements once reconciled (unless needed for taxes)
The one page that ties it together
The most useful document in the whole system is not a legal paper. It is a simple locator: a list of each important document and exactly where it is. "Will: original at attorney's office, copy in blue folder, top drawer of desk. Life insurance: policy in fire box; agent's number is in my phone under 'Insurance'." A locator turns a scavenger hunt into a five-minute task for whoever has to step in. If you do only one thing from this article, write that page.
A few safety rules for the locator and any family organizer:
- Write where something is kept, never a full password, PIN or account number
- Keep the locator with your other important papers, not taped to the fridge
- Tell one or two trusted people that it exists
Keep it current
- Pick a yearly date, such as tax season or a birthday, for a 30-minute review
- Update after big life changes: a move, a birth, a marriage or divorce, a new job, a death in the family
- Check passport expiration dates before planning travel
- Replace medicine lists the same day a prescription changes
If you are also building a binder for emergencies, our guide to what to put in a family emergency binder covers contacts, health, digital accounts and wishes.
Add your family's medical information
You can build all of this with plain folders and the lists above. For the medical part, get the free ER-Ready Kit: the one-page Emergency Health Summary, the "Where should I go?" guide and interpreter wallet cards, in English and Spanish. To keep the whole family's health information together, the Family Health Binder: Fillable + iPad Edition ($29) keeps medicines, allergies, conditions, doctors and insurance in one binder, every page in English and Spanish.
Related: Home records such as warranties, appliance model numbers, repair history and a home inventory belong in a house manual. See what to put in a house manual.
The Ambos Health team
General information, not legal, financial or medical advice. In an emergency, call 911.