Which hotel records should be exported before an old PMS contract ends?
A successful system change leaves your hotel able to answer an invoice query months later. Plan who will retrieve each record when the old login, download links and support access stop working.
Before your property management system (PMS) contract ends, export invoices, credit notes, receipts, payment and refund references, voucher balances, outstanding accounts and the supporting transaction history. Include only guest data still needed for a documented purpose. Assign an archive owner and test retrieval without the old PMS. Moving bookings into another system does not establish that historical documents have been preserved.
Agree the export scope before access ends
For a hotel PMS data export in Ireland, separate the historical archive from the files needed to operate your next system. Revenue requires complete VAT transaction records, including supporting documents that allow individual transactions to be checked. VAT means Value-Added Tax.
- Confirm the exact access cut-off, export formats, download expiry and any retrieval charges with your outgoing supplier. Request a sample while there is time to fix omissions.
- Agree the periods and properties covered with your accountant. Identify documents held separately by payment providers, accounting software or your booking channels.
- Name a hotel archive owner and deputy. Record who can grant access after termination and who handles later refunds, disputes and invoice requests.
A practical hotel exit export register
Hypothetical example: an independent Galway hotel uses a restricted, hotel-controlled folder called PMS-Exit. The paths and roles below are a suggested structure, not a customer case or a promise of available supplier exports.
| Record and format | Fields to preserve | Owner and location after exit | Test outside the old PMS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Invoices and credit notes: original electronic files, PDF copies and CSV index | Document number, issue date, billed party, line items, net, VAT and gross amounts; original invoice reference for credits. | Finance lead; PMS-Exit/Finance by year and document number. | Open documents offline; find a credit and its invoice; compare line items and totals with the source. |
| Receipts, payments and refunds: CSV plus supporting documents | Transaction reference, booking/invoice reference, date, amount, currency, status, payment method and settlement reference. | Finance lead; PMS-Exit/Payments, including provider statements. | Trace a receipt and refund to the invoice and provider settlement; explain fees or timing differences. |
| Gift vouchers: CSV plus terms and issue evidence | Voucher identifier, issue date, original value, redemptions, remaining balance and recorded expiry/terms. | Reservations manager; PMS-Exit/Vouchers with controlled access to redeemable codes. | Check partially redeemed vouchers and reconcile the outstanding total to the source register. |
| Open accounts and deposits: CSV plus balance report | Account/booking reference, debtor, charge, amount paid, balance, currency and cut-off time. | Finance lead; PMS-Exit/Open-balances. | Match account totals to the old report; record separately how opening balances enter the new system. |
| Financial reports and audit history: CSV and PDF | Daily/monthly totals, tax codes, adjustments, cancellations, timestamps and linked document numbers. | Accountant and finance lead; PMS-Exit/Reports with a field glossary. | Reproduce one reporting period; explain voids, gaps, date filters and negative entries. |
| Necessary guest and booking records: filtered CSV; relevant correspondence files | Booking reference, stay dates, necessary contact/billing details and evidence for unresolved requests or disputes. | Hotel manager; restricted PMS-Exit/Guest-records. | Retrieve one required booking; verify excluded fields and a recorded review/deletion date. |
| Archive instructions and handover: PDF or text plus CSV manifest | File paths, period, filters, export time/time zone, counts, totals, owner, permissions and test result. | Hotel manager and deputy; PMS-Exit/Read-me. | Deputy retrieves a specified document without help from the exporter or an old login. |
CSV means comma-separated values. Record the actual filename, export date, row count and approval beside each register entry. Keep unchanged originals and use separate working copies.
A download is not a completed handover. Revenue's electronic invoicing rules require retrievable records, integrity, source validation and an audit trail. A totals spreadsheet alone cannot demonstrate all of these. Keep supporting records and confirm the archive arrangement with your accountant.
Check completeness, access and data limits
- Run a rehearsal export, then a final export covering changes through the agreed cut-off. Include late credit notes and refunds; log unresolved exceptions before sign-off.
- Open files in a separate PDF reader and spreadsheet application. Check leading zeros, Irish names with accents, dates, euro amounts, negative values and missing attachments.
- Match document counts and period totals. Hypothetical voucher check: €1,500 issued minus €450 redeemed minus €100 refunded leaves €950 outstanding, assuming no other adjustments.
- Store an access-controlled backup and test restoration. Preserve payment references; exclude full card numbers and card security codes from the general archive.
Revenue's business guidance says original tax records must be kept for six years and that the business remains responsible even when an accountant holds them. Check record-specific conditions, including unresolved tax matters and paper-issued invoices, before approving disposal.
The Data Protection Commission explains that the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) sets no universal retention period. Keep personal data only as long as its purpose and applicable obligations justify. Do not copy every guest profile, identity scan or preference note simply because export is possible.
Keep archiving separate from RoomRaccoon setup
RoomRaccoon's onboarding process describes importing existing reservations and training on invoicing and payments. Its hotel property management system supports invoicing and reservation management. These descriptions do not confirm that every historical document from your old supplier can be imported. Agree the accepted fields and formats, and identify records that remain in your separate archive.
Bring your export register to discuss the handover requirements for your property.
Book a demo for your propertyQuestions before your PMS contract ends
Is a supplier backup enough?
Only if you can retrieve and read the required records after termination. A proprietary database without a usable reader or continuing access is not a tested archive.
Do old invoices need to appear in the new PMS?
Not necessarily. They need a reliable retrieval route. Keep original identifiers and avoid recreating historical invoices as new sales, which could duplicate revenue.
What if a guest requests an invoice after cancellation?
Reception should send the document reference or stay details to the named archive owner, who retrieves the preserved invoice through the agreed access process.
Can the supplier delete everything immediately?
Agree a documented closure process after archive verification. Review contractual deletion and backup arrangements, alongside any records that must still be retained for legal obligations or unresolved claims.
Sources and checks
Checked 13 November 2026. Republic of Ireland guidance and public product information; export formats and import scope require supplier confirmation.
