Belgium
Criminal investigations in Belgium
How the magistracy directs investigation: the public prosecutor leads the ordinary enquiry, and an investigating judge conducts the judicial investigation for more intrusive measures; the police carry it out.
Facts on this page were checked against their sources on .
Criminal investigation in Belgium is directed by the magistracy, not the police. In the ordinary investigation (the information / opsporingsonderzoek) the public prosecutor directs the enquiry; where more intrusive coercive measures are needed, an investigating judge (juge d'instruction / onderzoeksrechter) is appointed to conduct a judicial investigation (the instruction / gerechtelijk onderzoek). The police carry out the investigative acts under that direction.
The same idea, explained generally
- What is a criminal investigation?
A criminal investigation is a legally authorised process for establishing whether an offence occurred and gathering evidence that can be tested in court. This guide explains its structure, safeguards, and known failure modes.
- What is due process?
Due process is the requirement that the state follow fair, established procedures before it takes action against a person. This guide explains what it typically includes and how it differs between systems.
Sources
Sources
National justice systems — Belgium (European e-Justice Portal)
European Commission (European e-Justice Portal) · International organisation · link verified 2026-07-26
The European Commission's e-Justice portal page on Belgium, read directly. Supports the ordinary-court hierarchy — courts of first instance across 12 judicial districts, five courts of appeal ("Brussels, Liege, Mons, Ghent and Antwerp"), and the Court of Cassation (Cour de cassation / Hof van Cassatie) at the apex; the prosecution as the "State Counsel's Office or Prosecutor's Office (ministère public / openbaar ministerie)", the "standing judges" (magistrature debout / staande magistratuur, the parquet / parket) distinct from the "sitting judges" who adjudicate; and Article 151(1) on the independence of judges. An intergovernmental (EU) source describing Belgium.
The Belgian Constitution (official English translation, coordinated text)
Belgian House of Representatives (de Kamer / la Chambre) · Legislation · 1994 · link verified 2026-07-26
The official English translation of the coordinated Constitution, fetched as the House of Representatives PDF and text-extracted. Verbatim: Art. 1 "Belgium is a federal State composed of Communities and Regions"; Art. 40 "Judiciary power is exercised by the courts. Court decisions are executed in the name of the King"; Art. 142 "There is for all Belgium a Constitutional Court, the composition, competences and functioning of which are established by the law"; Art. 147 "There is a Supreme Court for all Belgium. This Court has no competence over the substance of the case" (the institution named is the Court of Cassation — see be-cassation); Art. 151 §1 "Judges are independent in the exercise of their jurisdictional competences. The public prosecutor is independent in conducting individual investigations and prosecutions, without prejudice to the right of the competent minister to order prosecutions and to enact binding directives of criminal policy". The "for all Belgium" single-body wording of Arts. 142/147/151 establishes that the judiciary, the constitutional court, and prosecution are federal (national) institutions, not Community/Region ones. Authoritative texts are Dutch/French/German; this is the official English reference translation.