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Sexual Harassment Crime and Punishment (TCK Art. 105): Elements, Qualified Cases and Complaint Procedure Sexual Harassment, Acts Committed in Digital Environment and Distinction from Sexual Assault within the Scope of Turkish Penal Code Art. 105. This guide has been updated as of 2026, based on the Turkish Penal Code, Law No. 6284 and the Supreme Court case law.
Sexual harassment is behavior that is carried out for sexual purposes without involving physical contact and violates the sexual immunity of the victim. In the basic case, the punishment is imprisonment from three months to two years or a judicial fine; if the act is committed against a child, it is imprisonment from six months to three years. In cases of benefiting from the convenience provided by public duty, service relationship or family relationship, working in the same workplace, using postal or electronic communication tools, and in cases where the crime is committed by display, the penalty is increased by half; If the victim had to quit his job, leave school or his family, the penalty cannot be less than one year. The basic situation depends on the complaint and the complaint period is six months from the date of learning of the act and the perpetrator. Conciliation cannot be made in crimes against sexual immunity.
1. Which behavior constitutes a crime and which does not?
In files filed alleging sexual harassment, the discussion often centers not on whether the incident occurred or not, but on how the behavior will be legally characterized. At what point does a message, a word or a look become a crime? What type of crime does the presence of physical contact lead to?
These questions are not merely theoretical. Depending on the qualification, the same incident may be a crime punishable by imprisonment from three months to two years, or it may be considered a sexual assault subject to much more severe sanctions. The guide covers the elements of the crime of sexual harassment, its distinction from similar crimes, qualified circumstances, acts committed in the digital environment, complaint procedure and the issue of proof.
Article 105 of the Turkish Penal Code punishes anyone who harasses someone for sexual purposes. The crime is included in the section of crimes against sexual immunity, and the legal value protected is the sexual freedom and spiritual integrity of the person.
Absence of physical contact: This is the main criterion that distinguishes the crime from sexual assault. The action takes place in the form of words, writings, signs, gestures, insistent looks or electronic messages. If there is contact that violates body immunity, the qualification changes.
Sexual purpose: The behavior must be aimed at satisfying sexual desires. In cases where there is no purpose, the act is considered as insult or another crime, if the conditions are met.
Crime is free-moving; The law does not specify a specific course of action. In the practice of the Supreme Court, a marriage proposal made in accordance with moral rules, a request to meet, or expressions of appreciation that remain within the limits of politeness are not considered sexual harassment. A clear understanding of the sexual purpose from the entire concrete event is required.
The most confusing issue in practice is the characterization based on the presence of contact. The distinction directly determines the jurisdictional court of the case and the penalty range.
Typical appearance Word, message, sign, display short touch Gross violation of bodily immunity
competent court criminal court of first instance criminal court of first instance high criminal court
The General Criminal Assembly of the Supreme Court of Appeals uses the duration, intensity and whether it is intermittent as criteria in distinguishing between molestation and sexual assault. While sudden, short-lived and non-continuous contacts are considered molestation, continuous and intense acts are considered sexual assault.
Article 123/A, which was added to the Turkish Penal Code by Law No. 7406 in 2022, regulates the crime of stalking. Persistently following a person physically or persistently disturbing him or her through communication means in a way that creates a feeling of fear or helplessness in the person is within the scope of this article. If the act has a sexual purpose, the provisions of sexual harassment come into play, and if the act occurs in the form of persistent harassment without a sexual purpose, the provisions of persistent stalking come into play. It is also evaluated whether both crimes occur together in the same incident.
Benefiting from the convenience provided by public duty, service relationship or family relationship art.105/2-a The penalty is increased by half
Processed by a guardian, educator, trainer, caregiver, foster family, healthcare provider or protection and supervision obligor. art.105/2-b The penalty is increased by half
Benefit from the convenience of working in the same workplace art.105/2-c The penalty is increased by half
Benefiting from the convenience provided by postal or electronic communication tools art.105/2-d The penalty is increased by half
The victim had to quit work, leave school, or leave family art.105/2 The penalty to be imposed cannot be less than 1 year.
The free-moving nature of the crime allows it to be committed via messaging applications and social media. Sending text messages, voice messages, direct messages, comments and sexually explicit images are evaluated within this scope.
In such acts, the condition of benefiting from the convenience provided by postal or electronic communication tools is applied and the penalty is increased by half. Moreover, since the existence of this situation causes the crime to be investigated ex officio, giving up the complaint does not end the file.
If the content sent contains private images of the victim or if these images are disseminated, independent crimes such as unlawful dissemination of personal data and violation of privacy may also come to the fore. In this case, verbs are evaluated separately.
The basic nature of the crime of sexual harassment depends on the complaint. The victim must exercise his right to complain within six months from the date he learned about the act and the perpetrator. The period is derogatory.
The situation changes in cases where there are qualified cases. In these cases, investigation and prosecution cease to depend on the complaint; As soon as the prosecutor's office learns about the situation, it takes action ex officio and withdrawing the complaint does not drop the case. In practice, harassment committed through messaging often falls directly into this category, as the form of electronic communication comes into play.
It is controversial in the doctrine whether a complaint is required if the act is committed against a child. Since the complaint condition in the text of the law is regulated in relation to the entire first paragraph, it is defended that a complaint is sought in this case as well, but in practice, contrary evaluations are also encountered. However, since the acts committed against the child generally fall within the scope of qualified status related to the title of educator, caregiver or supervisor, the files are in practice investigated ex officio.
Conciliation cannot be made in crimes against sexual immunity. This prohibition is valid even if the crime is based on a complaint; The fact that the parties agree among themselves does not end the file. The competent court is the criminal court of first instance, and the statute of limitations is eight years.
Since acts of sexual harassment often occur in environments without witnesses, the issue of proof is at the center of the trial. In the practice of the Supreme Court, victim statement alone is not considered sufficient for conviction; It is evaluated together that the statement is stable, consistent and in line with the ordinary flow of life, that it coincides with supporting evidence, and that the victim does not have a reasonable reason for slander.
Message contents, call logs and timestamps.
Security camera footage.
Statements of people who directly saw the incident or witnessed the victim's condition after the incident.
Workplace records, leave and resignation documents, disciplinary files.
Legally obtained sound recordings. Digital content should not be satisfied with a screenshot, but should be identified with its source. Since there is a high probability of deletion, it should be identified through a notary and access records should be requested from the relevant institutions. On the other hand, whether the record was obtained legally and whether it can be shared are different issues; Publishing content on social media that must be submitted to the competent authorities as evidence may constitute an independent crime.
The victim may request a protective and preventive measure within the scope of Law No. 6284, independently of the criminal investigation. In this context, measures such as not approaching the perpetrator, not communicating and not approaching the workplace or residence may be ordered. The request may be forwarded to the family court or law enforcement units.
If the sentence imposed at the end of the trial meets the conditions, postponing the announcement of the verdict or postponing the sentence may be on the agenda. However, these opportunities narrow in cases where qualified circumstances are applied and the amount of punishment increases. The victim may also request non-pecuniary damages in civil court.
A person working in a company sent sexual messages via a messaging application to his colleague working in the same unit. The messages continued for three weeks and continued despite the victim not responding. The victim resigned after the working environment became intolerable and subsequently filed a complaint.
Since there is no physical contact, the act falls within the scope of sexual harassment. Sending messages via a messaging application constitutes a qualified condition of benefiting from the convenience provided by electronic communication tools, while the parties working in the same workplace constitutes a separate qualification. Due to the existence of qualified circumstances, the investigation is carried out ex officio and withdrawing from the complaint does not drop the case. If the victim had to quit his job, the penalty cannot be less than one year. The fact that the victim did not respond does not affect the criminal nature of the act. Since conciliation cannot be used, the file cannot be concluded with this method. Determining the content of the messages along with their source and adding the workplace records regarding the resignation process to the file are decisive in terms of proof.
Does text harassment constitute a crime?
Yes. Since the crime is free-moving, it can be committed through messages, voice messages and social media correspondence. The use of electronic communication tools is also a qualified circumstance that increases the penalty by half.
If the complaint is dropped, will the case be dismissed?
It is dropped only in the basic case and in files where there are no qualified cases. Since the investigation is carried out ex officio in the presence of one of the qualified circumstances, giving up does not end the case.
Is reconciliation possible in sexual harassment?
No. Conciliation cannot be made in crimes against sexual immunity. The parties' agreement does not automatically conclude the file.
Is a marriage proposal or compliment considered sexual harassment?
In the practice of the Supreme Court, marriage proposals that comply with moral rules, requests for acquaintance and expressions within the limits of politeness are not considered sexual harassment. What is decisive is whether the behavior has a sexual purpose or not.
If there is touching, is the crime still sexual harassment? No. If there is physical contact, the act is considered harassment or sexual assault, depending on the duration and intensity of the contact. This characterization changes the jurisdiction and sentencing range.
How long is the complaint period?
In the basic case, it is six months and runs from the date on which the act and the perpetrator become known. In cases where there are qualified circumstances, this time limitation does not apply since the crime is prosecuted ex officio; The lawsuit is based on the statute of limitations period of eight years.
Missing the six-month period: In the basic case, the complaint period is derogatory. Expiration of the period will result in dismissal without entering into the merits.
Failure to properly identify digital evidence: Relying solely on the screenshot opens the source of the content to question. Notary identification and access records should be requested in case of deletion.
Wrong characterization from the beginning: Whether there is contact or not determines the place of the file between the first instance penalty and the heavy penalty. The incident must be described in detail and consistently in the complaint petition.
Delaying the process in anticipation of reconciliation: Since the path to reconciliation is closed in this crime, failure to take any steps with the assumption that the parties will agree will result in loss of rights.
Sharing the content on social media: Making evidentiary correspondence public may create independent criminal liability for the victim.
The factors that determine the outcome in sexual harassment files are the legal qualification of the act and the proper submission of evidence to the file. Accurate determination of whether there is physical contact, evaluation of qualified circumstances and their impact on the complaint regime, follow-up of the six-month period, detection of digital contents along with their source, and timely request for protection measures within the scope of Law No. 6284 change the course of the process for both parties. Küheylan Law Firm provides victim representation and defense services in files regarding crimes against sexual immunity; It provides legal support in evidence detection, protection measure applications and trial processes.
Important Legal Notice: The legal explanations and sample scenarios in this guide have been prepared by Küheylan Law Firm for general information purposes and do not constitute legal advice. Since the unique circumstances of each file may change the outcome, it is recommended to seek legal support from a lawyer from the first stage of the process. © 2026 Küheylan Law Firm. All rights reserved.
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