Keeping, destroying and transferring records out of Commonwealth custody or ownership is regulated by Section 24 of the Archives Act 1983. Australian Government agencies may carry out these actions using:

• Records Authorities – issued by the National Archives to individual agencies to cover agency-specific core business. These authorities were previously called Records Disposal Authorities. 
• General Disposal Authorities – covering business performed by many agencies. An example is the Administrative Functions Disposal Authority, which covers common administrative business activities. The National Archives prepares and issues these authorities.
• Normal Administrative Practice (NAP) – as defined in agencies’ policies and procedures, detailing how records can be routinely destroyed if they do not provide evidence of agency business, and do not form part of its corporate records.

Appraisal is the process used to develop a Records Authority and to determine when NAP can be used. The publication Why Records are Kept? outlines National Archives objectives and criteria for selecting records as national archives.

Sentencing is the process of using a Records Authority, General Disposal Authority or a NAP policy and procedure to decide whether to retain, destroy or transfer a record. This decision tree will assist agencies to sentence records.

The process of transferring records to the Archives can occur once you have identified some records to be preserved and managed as national archives. To begin, contact the National Archives.

Occasionally the National Archives may place a destruction freeze (known as a records disposal freeze) on records when the particular topic or event they document gains prominence or becomes controversial. This freeze means that agencies are prevented from destroying particular records. For more information, see: Records disposal freezes.