Filing a police complaint and getting an FIR registered
For a serious (cognizable) offence the police must register an FIR — and if they refuse, the law gives you a clear ladder to force it. Note: the rules changed on 1 July 2024.
Your right
You have a legal right to have an FIR registered for a cognizable offence, free of charge, and to a free copy of it — under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023.
Since 1 July 2024 the old Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) has been replaced by the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, so the section numbers you may have heard before have changed. For a serious offence — theft, assault, a missing person, fraud — the police are bound to record a First Information Report and to give you a copy without charge. They cannot turn you away because the crime happened in another police station's area, and they cannot demand money. If they still refuse, you have a defined escalation path.
Step by step
- 1
Go to the police station and give your information
Report the offence at any police station. Give the facts as clearly as you can — what happened, when, where, and who was involved. The officer must write it down. If you cannot read it back, have it read to you before you sign.
- 2
Insist on an FIR for a cognizable offence
For a cognizable offence the police must register an FIR under BNSS section 173 — they have no discretion to refuse. "Zero FIR" means that even if the crime falls in another station's jurisdiction, the station you walk into must still register it and transfer it onward; never let distance be used as an excuse to send you away.
- 3
Take your free copy of the FIR
Once registered, you are entitled to a copy of the FIR at no cost. Keep it safe — you will need its number to follow up and for any later legal step.
- 4
Consider an e-FIR where it's offered
BNSS now allows information to be given electronically for certain offences. If you file this way, you must sign the report within three days for it to be treated as an FIR. Tamil Nadu Police also run an online citizen portal for complaints and status-tracking.
If you get no response
If the police refuse to register your FIR
Send the substance of your complaint in writing, by registered post, to the Superintendent of Police. Under BNSS section 173(4) the SP must either investigate or have it investigated if the matter discloses a cognizable offence. Keep the postal receipt as proof.
If the SP also does nothing
Approach the Judicial Magistrate under BNSS section 175(3) with an application to direct the police to register and investigate. Courts now generally expect you to show you first wrote to the SP under 173(4), so do that step and keep the proof.
For a preliminary enquiry delay
For some offences (punishable by three to less than seven years) the police may run a short preliminary enquiry — with a senior officer's approval and within 14 days — before registering. That's lawful for those categories; it is not a licence to refuse a clear cognizable case.
Legal basis
What you'll need
- A clear account of the incident — date, time, place, people involved
- Any identity proof you have (helpful, though not a precondition to register)
- Any evidence you hold — photos, messages, documents, names of witnesses
- The FIR number once it is registered, for all later follow-up
At a glance
- FIR registration
- Immediately, on receiving the information
- e-FIR signature
- Within 3 days
- Free FIR copy
- Given at once, no charge
- What it costs
- Free. Registering an FIR and getting a copy cost nothing; no police officer may ask you to pay.
- Where to go
- Any police station (Zero FIR), or the Tamil Nadu Police online citizen portal.