Closing a Practice in North Dakota: Records Checklist

For a practice that is closing, being sold, relocating or whose physician is retiring. Prepared 21 September 2026.

How long records must be kept

Adult patients: At least 7 years - unless the records are appropriately transferred to another licensee or entity.
Patients who were minors: No separate minors period in this rule.
Clock starts: The LAST DATE OF SERVICE for each patient - not the date the record was created.
Also: Effective 1 April 2024. The custodian-appointment duty has applied since 1 January 2024.
Also: Authority NDCC 43-17-07.1(10); implements NDCC 43-17-27.2.

Before you close — what this state requires

Where a records custodian fits

North Dakota law addresses a records custodian directly in the items above. Morgan Records Management performs this role; the duties below are the ones that transfer to, or must be evidenced by, whoever holds the records.

NDAC 50-01-03-01(2), IN FORCE SINCE 1 JANUARY 2024: 'a licensee shall APPOINT another North Dakota licensee or other representative or entity, to ensure that all requirements of this section are met in the event of the licensee's death or incapacitation. UPON REQUEST BY THE BOARD, THE LICENSEE SHALL SHOW PROOF OF APPOINTMENT of a representative.' It carries a proof-on-demand element: North Dakota physicians must have a custodian arranged BEFORE anything happens.
NDAC 50-01-03-01(3)(a): on death, retirement, sale of a practice, or departure, all medical records shall be transferred to another licensee or entity 'that is held to the same standards of confidentiality AND AGREES TO ACT AS CUSTODIAN OF THE RECORDS'.
NDAC 50-01-03-01(3)(c): NOTIFY THE BOARD of the LOCATION AND CONTACT INFORMATION OF THE CUSTODIAN, which the Board may give to a patient who asks.

Where this comes from

Read this before you act on it. Every statement above was taken from the state's own published rule or statute and is quoted or closely paraphrased from it. It is a working checklist, not legal advice, and it is a snapshot: retention periods change, and several states adjust their copying fees every year. Confirm the current text with the source listed above, or with your attorney, before you rely on a date or a dollar figure.

Figures stated as of: Verified September 2026

Prepared by Morgan Records Management for North Dakota. Checklist built 21 September 2026.

North Dakota — Medical Records Checklist

How long records must be kept

Before you close — what this state requires

Where a records custodian fits

Where this comes from