Yes, you can also submit a report anonymously. Anonymous reports can help uncover unlawful conduct and lead to an investigation. It is important to describe as specifically as possible what happened, where and when, and to include any information that may help with the investigation. You do not need to have all the evidence or know every detail.

If you wish to remain anonymous, you can create an email address that does not reveal your identity. This will allow us to communicate with you and, if necessary, ask you to provide additional information.

Your employer must not retaliate against you for reporting a possible breach of the law. The law expressly prohibits all forms of retaliation, including dismissal, a reduction in pay, transfer to a less favourable position, intimidation or other forms of disadvantage at work.

You can apply for protected whistleblower status when reporting serious wrongdoing that constitutes a criminal offence or an administrative offence. The whistleblower submits the application to a prosecutor when reporting a criminal offence, or to the competent administrative authority when reporting an administrative offence – either together with the report or during the proceedings.

The competent authority decides whether the statutory conditions for granting protection have been met. If you are granted protection, your employer cannot take an employment-related action against you that you do not consent to without the approval of our Office.

Retaliation does not necessarily mean dismissal. It can also take more subtle forms, such as removing your work responsibilities, excluding you from meetings, pressuring you or intimidating you.

If you feel that your employer is treating you this way because of your report, preserve evidence. Record what happened, when it happened and who was present. Keep relevant work-related communications and documents that you are authorised to access.

We can help you assess whether the conduct may constitute retaliation and explain your options for taking further action. In justified cases, we can issue a written warning to the employer to refrain from retaliatory conduct. If your employer has already taken an employment-related action against you that you do not agree with, contact us as soon as possible.

Yes. You do not need to know in advance whether a law has been broken, who to report the matter to or what evidence you need. You can contact us even if you are still deciding how to proceed. We will help you understand your options and explain which course of action may be appropriate in your situation.

You can also consult us if you are concerned about retaliation or unsure whether you should first use your employer’s internal reporting system.

We can provide basic information through our free helpline. You can find the telephone number and operating hours in the Contacts section.

Just because a suspicion is ultimately not confirmed does not mean you have done anything wrong. People often do not have access to all the information, and the purpose of an investigation is to establish what actually happened.

What matters is that you submit your report in good faith – that is, that you have reasonable grounds to believe the information about a possible breach of the law is true.

It would be a different situation if someone knowingly provided false information or fabricated a report. That is why we recommend describing primarily what you actually know and distinguishing your own observations from assumptions or information obtained second-hand.

It depends on the specific situation. Inappropriate behaviour, a conflict with a supervisor or workplace bullying do not generally constitute the kind of wrongdoing that we can deal with under the Whistleblower Protection Act. However, the circumstances of each case matter.

Bear in mind that wrongdoing in this context includes criminal offences, administrative offences, minor offences and, potentially, other conduct that has a negative impact on society.

We are not the authority responsible for resolving employment disputes. If your employer has failed to pay your wages, you disagree with your dismissal or you have another individual employment-related issue that was not preceded by a report of a breach of the law, the dispute will generally fall outside our remit.

If it is purely an employment dispute, you may wish to contact the labour inspectorate.

However, if you have reasonable grounds to suspect that a breach of the law has also occurred at your workplace and you want to report it, you can contact us. We will help you determine whether the matter falls within our remit or whether it would be more appropriate to contact another authority.

Examples include suspected corruption, fraud, abuse of power, breaches of public procurement rules or other conduct that may constitute a criminal offence, an administrative offence or a minor offence.

You do not need to identify exactly which law has been broken or determine for yourself whether a criminal offence has been committed. What matters is that you describe what you have discovered, how you learned about it and why you suspect that something is wrong. If you have documents or other supporting materials that may help with the investigation, attach them to your report.

If you are unsure whether the matter should be reported, you can consult us before submitting a report. Our helpline can help you understand your situation.

Yes, provided certain conditions are met. Protection covers not only current employees but also people who are no longer in an employment relationship with the organisation. A whistleblower may therefore also be a former employee, a job applicant who learned about a possible breach of the law during a recruitment process, or a person in another comparable relationship, such as a self-employed person, a supervisory board member or an intern.

Exercise caution when gathering supporting materials. If you submit documents that you are authorised to access and that are relevant to your suspicions, they may be useful in the investigation.

However, do not attempt to obtain evidence through unauthorised access, by circumventing security rules or by any other unlawful means.

You are not required to use your employer’s internal reporting system if you do not trust it or have other reasons not to do so. You can submit a report directly to the competent external authority.

When deciding, consider whether you trust the way your employer would investigate the report, whether there is a risk of a conflict of interest or disclosure of your identity, and whether you fear retaliation.

If you have decided to report the matter to an external authority but are unsure which one is responsible, you can contact us. We will help you understand your options and the next steps.

Under certain circumstances, you may also disclose information about possible breaches of the law through the media or social media. However, making information public does not automatically mean that you will be protected under the Whistleblower Protection Act.

The law sets out specific conditions under which such public disclosure may be protected. This may apply where you have first used the appropriate reporting channels but have not been informed of the outcome of the investigation, or where there are reasonable grounds to fear an imminent threat to the public interest or that the competent authority will not ensure an impartial investigation.

Public disclosure through the media or social media should therefore be considered a last resort rather than a routine way of reporting wrongdoing.

If you have doubts about how your employer investigated your report, that does not have to be the end of the matter. You can contact us or submit a report to the public prosecutor’s office or the competent administrative authority.

A report should describe as specifically as possible what happened, when and where it happened, who was involved and why you suspect that the law may have been broken. It is also helpful to provide the names of any witnesses or information about documents that may help clarify your suspicions.

You do not need to know the exact legal provision that may have been breached or assess for yourself whether unlawful conduct has occurred. What matters is that you describe the facts you have discovered. If you are unsure how to formulate your report, you can contact us and we will help you understand how to proceed.

Once we receive your report, we will assess its contents and whether the matter falls within our remit. If necessary, we may ask you to provide additional information. If we cannot deal with the matter, we will advise you which authority you can contact.

Submitting a report does not automatically mean that formal proceedings will be initiated. What happens next depends on the contents of the report and the circumstances of the case. It is therefore useful to provide as much specific information as possible and respond to any requests we may make for further details.

No. Protected whistleblower status is a special form of protection granted when the statutory conditions are met. The fact that you have not been granted this status does not in itself mean that you may be subjected to retaliation for making a report.

The law also protects whistleblowers who do not have this special status against retaliation. If you feel that your employer is disadvantaging you or retaliating against you in connection with a report, contact us. We will help you assess your situation and explain your options for taking further action.

Reporting unlawful conduct can be emotionally demanding. A person may experience stress, uncertainty, concerns about their job or tension in relationships with colleagues. You do not have to face this alone. In justified cases, we also arrange psychological support and counselling for whistleblowers.

Yes. If you obtain new information after submitting a report, remember an important detail or find documents that may help clarify the situation, you can provide them as additional information. Specify which report the additional information relates to and describe as precisely as possible what the new information proves or clarifies.

If we ask you for further information during the investigation, respond within the specified deadline where possible. You should also avoid obtaining supporting materials through unauthorised access to documents or systems. If you are unsure whether you may use particular materials, consult us.

The length of an investigation depends on what the report concerns, how complex the circumstances are and what supporting materials are available. It is therefore not always possible to say in advance when a particular case will be concluded.

Statutory deadlines apply to reports investigated through an employer’s internal reporting system: receipt of a report must be acknowledged within seven days, and the whistleblower must be informed of the outcome of the investigation within 90 days of the acknowledgement of receipt.

Different rules apply to reports submitted directly to us. If you would like to know which procedure and deadlines apply to your situation, contact the person handling your report.