A task force set up to prepare for a public inquiry into mother and baby homes has asked the Executive for an extra six months to allow institutions to come clean over their records.
The request from the Truth Recovery Independent Panel came after information about at least one of the institutions was shown to be inaccurate.
If granted, the extension could further delay the start of the long-awaited inquiry.
Panel co-chair Sean O’Connell said: “We know that not all victims and survivors will like that because it means, potentially, a further delay.
“We have spent a lot of our first six months talking about things, trying to get money released and preparing things, rather than actually doing some of the work.”
Government departments had said all relevant records were with the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland.
But an interim report from the panel found: “It is now evident that with regard to at least one Mother and Baby Institution, this response was inaccurate.”
The home in question was Mount Oriel in Belfast.
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Following an expert report, the Assembly passed a law compelling all institutions to preserve files.
By the start of the summer, the Public Records Office of Northern Ireland had received more than 3,000 items.
The panel has also recommended that the Executive go ahead with the early appointment of a chairperson for the public inquiry.
There has been no response from the Executive Office so far to the requests.
The panel said the delay was partly the result of working within public sector procurement procedures “not designed for a time-limited panel”.
No one from Mount Oriel was available for comment.
The panel was launched after victims and survivors said they wanted an opportunity to present their testimonies in a safe space that did not involve legal cross-examination.