Knowledge base / Documents and records
Free business document tracking spreadsheet (and how to use it)
Download a ready-made document register, see exactly what columns to keep, and learn the three habits that stop it going out of date.
Download the template
The free document expiry tracker opens in Excel, Google Sheets or Numbers. It has one row per document and these columns: document, category, issued by, reference, issue date, expiry date, days left, owner, where the file is, status and notes.
What to put in it first
Start with the documents people ask you for most, and the ones that cause trouble when they lapse: company registration, trade and premises licences, insurance certificates, key contracts and leases, tax registrations, and staff certificates such as first aid or food handling. Twenty well-kept rows are worth more than two hundred half-filled ones.
Make the "days left" column work
In the days left column, enter a formula that subtracts today's date from the expiry date. In most spreadsheets that is =F2-TODAY(), copied down the column. Then add conditional formatting: red when the number is below 0, amber below 30. Sorting by this column gives you an instant "what is expiring next" view.
Three habits that keep it accurate
- Update on arrival. When a renewed certificate arrives, change the dates and file the new copy the same day.
- One owner per row. Everybody's responsibility is nobody's. Put a name against every document.
- A monthly look. Put a recurring 15-minute appointment in your calendar to sort by days left and act on anything under 60.
Where a spreadsheet falls short
A spreadsheet only warns you when someone opens it and reads the right column. It can't email the owner, keep the previous version of a certificate, or stop two people editing different copies. When you have more than a few dozen documents or more than one person involved, that is the point to move to a system that sends reminders and keeps the files with the records.