> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.timetracker.in/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Trash: restore deleted items

> Deleted items land in Trash first. Restore them, delete them for good, or set how many days your workspace keeps them before they are removed.

**Trash** holds everything deleted but not yet destroyed. You can restore any of
it until the retention window ends. Find it at **Settings → Trash**.

Deleting sends an item here rather than destroying it on the spot. That is what
makes an accidental delete recoverable – especially a bulk one – in a system of
record for time and money.

## What is on this page

Two parts, top to bottom:

1. **Keep deleted items for** – the retention window for the whole workspace.
2. The list of deleted items, grouped by kind, with a search box.

## The retention window

| Control                | Choices                  | Default |
| ---------------------- | ------------------------ | ------- |
| Keep deleted items for | 7, 14, 30, 60 or 90 days | 30 days |

The card explains itself: "After this, items in the Trash are permanently
deleted. Anything still referenced by invoices or time entries is kept
regardless."

The **Save** button only appears once you change the value. When it saves you
get a confirmation such as "Deleted items are now kept for 60 days."

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open Trash">
    Go to **Settings → Trash**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Pick a window">
    Open **Keep deleted items for** and choose a number of days.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Save">
    Click **Save**. The new window applies to everything in Trash, including
    items already there.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Warning>
  Shortening the window can bring forward the removal of things already deleted.
  An item deleted 40 days ago survives a 90-day window but is due for removal
  under a 30-day one.
</Warning>

This setting exists because the right answer is a business judgement, not a
technical one. A team that deletes rarely wants a long window. A team with
data-retention obligations may need a short one.

Changing it needs `workspace.updateSettings`. Without it the dropdown is
read-only, so you can still see the window that applies.

## The list

* A **Search by name** box, filtering every group at once.
* One card per kind, with a count.
* One row per item, showing its name, when it was deleted, and when it is due to
  be removed – for example "Deleted 2026-07-09 · deletes 2026-08-08".
* **Restore** and a permanent-delete button on each row, if you may act on that
  kind of item.

When nothing is deleted you get **Trash is empty** – "Anything you delete lands
here first, so it can still be recovered."

## What can end up in Trash

Every kind that supports Archive can also be deleted into Trash: clients,
projects, sections, tasks, tags, groups, roles, expense categories, holidays,
leave policies, reports, scheduled reports and saved views.

Three more kinds appear **only** here, because they cannot be archived:

| Kind         | Capability to restore or delete it |
| ------------ | ---------------------------------- |
| Time entries | `time.edit`                        |
| Expenses     | `expense.submit`                   |
| Schedules    | `schedule.manage`                  |

## How to restore something

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open Trash">
    Go to **Settings → Trash**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Find the item">
    Search by name, or scroll to its group. Check the "deletes" date if you are
    close to the deadline.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Click Restore">
    It returns to your active lists at once. No confirmation is needed, because
    restoring destroys nothing.
  </Step>
</Steps>

Restoring gives back whatever the delete took with it. Restore a project and its
sections and tasks come back too.

## Deleting something for good

Each row has a permanent-delete button, marked with a bin icon. Use it when you
do not want to wait for the window to expire.

<Warning>
  Permanent delete cannot be undone.

  You must type the item's exact name to confirm. The name is shown ready to copy,
  with a copy button, and the delete button stays disabled until what you type
  matches exactly.
</Warning>

The confirmation states what is destroyed. Some examples:

| Kind       | What permanent delete destroys                                 |
| ---------- | -------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Client     | The client record. Its projects are kept but become unassigned |
| Project    | The project and every task, section and comment in it          |
| Task       | The task, its subtasks, comments, attachments and dependencies |
| Tag        | The tag, and it is removed from every task carrying it         |
| Group      | The group. Its members are kept but no longer belong to it     |
| Time entry | The time entry                                                 |
| Expense    | The expense and its receipt                                    |

## When something will not go away

Some items cannot be destroyed because other records still point at them. The
confirmation names what is in the way, with counts – "It is referenced by
412 time entries."

The same rule governs the automatic sweep.

<Note>
  **An item the system cannot safely destroy is kept, not forced out.** Time
  passing is not a reason to orphan an invoice line. Such items stay in Trash past
  their date, which is why you may see a row whose "deletes" date has already
  gone by.
</Note>

To clear one of these, deal with what references it first, then delete it again.

## Example

Jonas Bergman deletes the wrong task – "API rate limiting" instead of "API rate
card". Six hours of his tracked time were on it.

Nothing is lost. The task goes to Trash. Jonas opens **Settings → Trash**,
searches "API rate", and sees the row: "Deleted 2026-07-09 · deletes
2026-08-08". He clicks **Restore**, and the task and its six hours come back.

Northwind Studio keeps the default 30-day window. Maya later moves it to 90 days
so a month-end mistake is still recoverable at the next quarter-end review.

## Permissions

| Action                                | Capability                  |
| ------------------------------------- | --------------------------- |
| Open Trash                            | None – open to members      |
| Change the retention window           | `workspace.updateSettings`  |
| Restore or permanently delete an item | Depends on the kind of item |

Trash is open to everyone on purpose. It is a recovery screen, and hiding it
would recreate the problem it exists to fix. **Restore** and **permanent
delete** only appear on rows you may act on.

## Common questions

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="How long do I have to restore something?">
    As long as your workspace's retention window – 30 days unless someone has
    changed it. Each row shows its own "deletes" date.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Do items in Trash still count in reports?">
    No. Deleted items are out of your active data. Archived items are the ones
    that stay in reports.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I empty the whole Trash at once?">
    Not in one action. Permanent delete works one item at a time, and each one
    asks you to type its name. That is deliberate, given it cannot be undone.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Why is something still here after its delete date?">
    Because destroying it would break something else that still points at it.
    Those items are kept rather than forced out. Open the permanent-delete
    confirmation to see exactly what is referencing it.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Does deleting a time entry change an approved timesheet?">
    Approved time is locked. If a week has been approved or a period closed, the
    entries in it cannot be deleted until that is reopened. See
    [Reopen an approval](/approvals/reopen-an-approval).
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Related guides

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Archive, Trash and delete" icon="box-archive" href="/concepts/archive-trash-and-delete">
    The whole recovery model in one place.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Archive" icon="inbox" href="/settings/archive">
    Finished work that stays reachable and reportable.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Trash and restore" icon="rotate-left" href="/data/trash-and-restore">
    Deleting and recovering from an item's own screen.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Delete permanently" icon="triangle-exclamation" href="/data/delete-permanently">
    What permanent delete destroys, kind by kind.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Workspace settings" icon="gear" href="/settings/overview">
    Every settings page and who can open it.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Danger zone" icon="skull" href="/settings/danger-zone">
    Deleting the entire workspace.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>