Need Your Receipts for Tax Purposes? Photocopy them!

Thanks to the newest technology, cash registers and credit card machines can print out receipts containing a wealth of information, including a detailed description of the items purchased, the date and time purchased, the price, any discounts, and even the store’s return policy and warranty information. However, if you need receipts for an expense account report or for tax purposes, there’s a hitch: Most thermally printed receipts fade over time, and if you have to look back months or even years to verify a purchase, you might have a problems.

One solution is to periodically photocopy your receipts in order to get more durable copies. Once a week, or once a month, spread your receipts out on your flatbed printer and copy them; cut them apart, attach the original receipts to the appropriate copies, and file them as you would any other receipt. If you have to justify an expense to your company or the IRS, you’ll have a legible copy you can use.

Of course, you shouldn’t have to copy all your receipts. Many of them can be kept until your bank statements or credit card bills arrive, and then discarded once you check them against the statements. Copy only the ones that contain information you need for business or tax purposes, or for warranty information, and toss the rest.