Prosecution and crime
The soruşturma number
A soruşturma number is the count of the preparatory file kept at the public prosecutor’s office before a public case is brought. The court’s esas is given separately after an indictment is accepted. Seeing only the investigation number does not mean a case has been opened.
On the paper: A soruşturma no line sits on a statement minute or on the prosecutor’s cover note.
The preparatory papers are asked for with this number. A statement, an expert note and a police record can be tied to the same figure. The figure does not say that an offence was or was not committed. A person’s status is not read from the number either.
When an indictment is drawn, a separate figure can appear on it. When the trial starts, the court’s esas number comes into use. Writing the three in one box erases which office holds the paper. A petition should use the number of the office that has the file. A wrong number does not make the paper absent. It can still slow the search.
This page does not calculate a period. The current text of the Turkish Criminal Procedure Code is on the legislation system. The course of an investigation is a separate article. The same split applies in a fraud allegation. The number is not pasted into this form.
This page does not replace the official text.
Official source
Next step
Questions
Is the investigation number the court’s esas?
No. The court’s esas is given separately when the trial file opens.
Does the number show that an offence is proved?
No. The number separates the file. The characterisation is read from the papers.
Last legislation check: 2026-11-13. Av. Ayşenur Konar.