As of 01/01/2022, the “Guidelines on the formation, management and preservation of electronic documents” drafted by AGID (Digital Italy Agency) in September 2020 officially came into effect.

The Guidelines, by providing useful indications for taking advantage of all the services that digital offers in terms, above all, of electronic storage, constitute a guide that Public Administrations(Art. 2, paragraph 2 – CAD Digital Administration Code) and private entities(Art. 2, paragraph 3 – CAD) can draw on to remodel their structure and adapt to what is required by the regulations.

The main changes contained in this text are as follows:

  • The Figure of the Preservation Manager: the creation of the figure of the Preservation Manager is required, that is, the person who is to supervise and conduct the preservation process. This person may be appointed either internally within the organization or externally. The important thing is that he or she does not coincide with the figure of the conservator, and in order to fulfill his or her role, he or she will have to possess skills not only in the legal field, but also in information technology and archiving. The Preservation Officer also prepares the preservation manual and takes care of its periodic updating in the presence of relevant regulatory, organizational, procedural or technological changes.

N.B. It is important to note that in the event that the preservation service is outsourced to a conservator (thus outsourced), part of the activities in charge of the Preservation Officer may be entrusted to the person in charge of the preservation service.

  • Metadata: new metadata are introduced that allow for greater interoperability, as well as greater clarity and knowability of the same, so as to make the reading of the document as least approximate as possible. In this way, it will be possible to approach the entire document context following a direct and quick path(Annex 5).
  • Compatible Formats: another new feature introduced concerns the types of files allowed. Lists of standards, technical specifications, and formats that can be used as references for the preservation system can be found in Annexes 2, “File and Pouring Formats,” and 4, “Standards and Technical Specifications.”
  • Preservation Standard: there are also plans to replace the current preservation standard. The new one, called SInCRO UNI 11386:2020, will optimize both the indexing process and the interoperability process of the entire information system.

We would also like to remind you that the electronic storage of electronic invoices issued-received and other tax documents, must be carried out by the third month following the deadline for the submission of annual returns, to be understood, in the interests of simplification and uniformity of the system, with the deadline for the submission of tax returns.

In view of these deadlines and for proper scheduling of activities, we are available to provide assistance related to preservation procedures.

For any queries, you can request personalized assistance from our consultants by proceeding to open a support ticket in Alink Area on the Regesta portal.

Below is a list of the main links from which you can view the Guidelines in their detail: