NOTE: As of July 11th, 2025, this page has been superseded by the "Materials Assessment and State Approval Request Process" section of the new Materials and Data Disposal Guide.  Please refer to those resources from this point onward, and update any bookmarks or saved links. This page will be deleted no later than October 1st, 2025.  Feel free to contact us with any questions.

All State and University records that are not retained for their enduring historical value require permission from the State before being disposed of. The RIMS office facilitates obtaining that permission for all units across the University of Illinois System. After receiving permission from the State, the records must be disposed of properly. Please consult the RIMS office and the appropriate Records Retention Schedule prior to disposing of any records. The process below outlines the steps to follow in order to dispose of University Records.

General Recommendations

• Establish a routine for periodically reviewing your files (e.g., annually, semi-annually, or quarterly) to determine what records are ready for disposal.
• We recommend retaining your inactive records until you have accumulated at least ¼ cubic foot of records per each category. Questions or concerns? Contact us.

Records Disposal Process

Step 1: Inventory the Files

Using the RIMS inventory template, perform an initial review of the files in order to classify them into broad categories (e.g. invoice vouchers, general ledger statements, student records, etc.). Most record types are listed on the approved Records Retention Schedules on our RIMS webpage. Identify the date range (e.g. FY09-FY12 or 1998-2005) and the volume of documents (in number of boxes, file cabinet drawers, or gigabytes). The Volume Estimation Guide may be a helpful resource in this task.

Step 2: Identify Duplicates and Non-Records

Many documents in your unit are likely non-records or duplicates, neither of which require State approval prior to disposal. Communication 003: Identification of University Records versus Non-Records may be helpful at this step. If you are still unsure, the RIMS office can help you identify your non-record materials.

Step 3: Determine the Retention

Using the inventory from Step 1, the RIMS team will identify the retention requirement for the categories of files.

Step 4: Submit Disposal Request to the RIMS Office

The RIMS office will submit all disposal requests to the State at the end of each month. To be included in this monthly process, contact us with the inventory from Step 1.

Step 5: Disposal Approved

State approval for disposal should be approved approximately 30-45 days from the date the request was submitted to the State.

Step 6: Dispose of the Files

Once approval has been granted, the RIMS team will notify your unit that the disposal of records may proceed. All records should be properly disposed of. The RIMS Information Disposal Guide offers insight to how units can best dispose of their records.

Step 7: Submit Disposal Confirmation to RIMS Office

After the documents have been appropriately disposed of, email the RIMS office a confirmation notice. If the disposal was done by University staff, a simple email confirming the date and manner of disposal is acceptable. If a vendor was used, an email with their invoice will suffice.

Have a question that isn't answered here or need more specialized guidance? Please reach out!

Records and Information Management Services 

Visit the Contact RIMS page of our website to get in touch!

Urbana Office: Rm. 450 Henry Administration Building (HAB), M/C 359

Chicago Office: Rm. 258 Roosevelt Road Building (RRB), M/C 010