diff --git a/internal/api/ocr_handlers.go b/internal/api/ocr_handlers.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..43e5b43
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/api/ocr_handlers.go
@@ -0,0 +1,169 @@
+package api
+
+import (
+	"fmt"
+	"net/http"
+	"strconv"
+
+	"archivmail/internal/audit"
+	"archivmail/internal/index"
+	"archivmail/internal/userstore"
+	"archivmail/pkg/mailparser"
+)
+
+// handleGetOCRText serves the OCR-extracted text of a mail as text/plain.
+//
+// PROJ-44 contract:
+//   - ocr_status='done' + non-empty text → 200 OK, attachment download
+//   - ocr_status='pending'              → 202 Accepted with hint JSON
+//   - ocr_status in {skipped,failed,disabled} or empty text → 404 JSON
+//   - ACL is enforced exactly like /raw via requireMailAccess + the
+//     tenant/role checks below.
+func (s *Server) handleGetOCRText(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	id := r.PathValue("id")
+	// SEC-22: Validate mail ID format to prevent path traversal.
+	if !isValidMailID(id) {
+		writeError(w, http.StatusBadRequest, "invalid mail id")
+		return
+	}
+
+	sess := sessionFromCtx(r.Context())
+
+	// Tenant isolation (mirrors handleGetRaw).
+	if sess.TenantID != nil {
+		mailTenant, _ := s.store.GetTenantForMail(r.Context(), id)
+		if mailTenant == nil || *mailTenant != *sess.TenantID {
+			writeError(w, http.StatusForbidden, "access denied")
+			return
+		}
+	}
+
+	// Auditor: only mails with no tenant assignment.
+	if sess.Role == userstore.RoleAuditor {
+		ok, err := s.store.IsWithoutTenant(r.Context(), id)
+		if err != nil || !ok {
+			writeError(w, http.StatusForbidden, "access denied")
+			return
+		}
+	}
+
+	// SEC-28/29: User only: own mails. Parse failure must NOT grant access.
+	// We load the raw mail solely to enforce the From/To/CC ownership check.
+	if sess.Role == userstore.RoleUser {
+		raw, loadErr := s.store.Load(id)
+		if loadErr != nil {
+			writeError(w, http.StatusNotFound, "mail not found")
+			return
+		}
+		pm, parseErr := mailparser.Parse(raw)
+		if parseErr != nil {
+			writeError(w, http.StatusInternalServerError, "failed to parse mail")
+			return
+		}
+		u, err := s.users.GetByUsername(sess.Username)
+		if err != nil || !mailBelongsToUser(pm, u.Email) {
+			writeError(w, http.StatusForbidden, "access denied")
+			return
+		}
+	}
+
+	// Load OCR meta from PostgreSQL.
+	status, chars, metaErr := s.store.GetOCRMeta(r.Context(), id)
+	if metaErr != nil {
+		s.logger.Warn("ocr-text: meta lookup failed", "mail_id", id, "err", metaErr)
+		writeError(w, http.StatusInternalServerError, "ocr meta lookup failed")
+		return
+	}
+	if status == "" {
+		// No row at all → treat as not-found just like /raw would.
+		writeError(w, http.StatusNotFound, "mail not found")
+		return
+	}
+
+	switch status {
+	case "pending":
+		writeJSON(w, http.StatusAccepted, map[string]string{
+			"error":   "ocr_pending",
+			"message": "OCR läuft noch, bitte später erneut",
+		})
+		return
+	case "skipped", "failed", "disabled":
+		writeJSON(w, http.StatusNotFound, map[string]string{
+			"error": "ocr_not_available",
+		})
+		return
+	case "done":
+		// fall through
+	default:
+		// Unknown status — be conservative and return 404.
+		writeJSON(w, http.StatusNotFound, map[string]string{
+			"error": "ocr_not_available",
+		})
+		return
+	}
+
+	if chars <= 0 {
+		writeJSON(w, http.StatusNotFound, map[string]string{
+			"error": "ocr_not_available",
+		})
+		return
+	}
+
+	// Resolve the correct per-tenant Manticore index for this mail.
+	reader := s.ocrTextReader(sess.TenantID)
+	if reader == nil {
+		s.logger.Warn("ocr-text: indexer does not support AttachmentTextReader",
+			"mail_id", id)
+		writeError(w, http.StatusInternalServerError, "ocr text unavailable")
+		return
+	}
+
+	text, err := reader.GetAttachmentText(id)
+	if err != nil {
+		s.logger.Warn("ocr-text: reader failed", "mail_id", id, "err", err)
+		writeError(w, http.StatusInternalServerError, "ocr text fetch failed")
+		return
+	}
+	if text == "" {
+		// DB said chars > 0 but Manticore returned empty — race / out of sync.
+		writeJSON(w, http.StatusNotFound, map[string]string{
+			"error": "ocr_not_available",
+		})
+		return
+	}
+
+	// Audit log — every download is recorded (PROJ-44 AC).
+	s.audlog.Log(audit.Entry{
+		EventType: audit.EventOCRDownload,
+		Username:  sess.Username,
+		IPAddress: s.remoteIP(r),
+		MailID:    id,
+		Success:   true,
+	})
+
+	// Filename: use the first 16 hex chars of the SHA-256 mail ID. Mirrors
+	// /raw behaviour; safe by construction (no quotes, no newlines).
+	filename := fmt.Sprintf("%s.ocr.txt", id[:16])
+	body := []byte(text)
+
+	w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "text/plain; charset=utf-8")
+	w.Header().Set("Content-Disposition", fmt.Sprintf(`attachment; filename="%s"`, filename))
+	w.Header().Set("Content-Length", strconv.Itoa(len(body)))
+	w.WriteHeader(http.StatusOK)
+	_, _ = w.Write(body)
+}
+
+// ocrTextReader returns the AttachmentTextReader for the given tenant or
+// nil when no reader-capable index is wired. Resolution rules match the
+// search path (see handleSearch): per-tenant index when available, else the
+// global indexer.
+func (s *Server) ocrTextReader(tenantID *int64) index.AttachmentTextReader {
+	var idx index.Indexer = s.idx
+	if s.idxMgr != nil && tenantID != nil {
+		idx = s.idxMgr.ForTenant(tenantID)
+	}
+	if r, ok := idx.(index.AttachmentTextReader); ok {
+		return r
+	}
+	return nil
+}
diff --git a/internal/api/server.go b/internal/api/server.go
index f8f3248..8eae884 100644
--- a/internal/api/server.go
+++ b/internal/api/server.go
@@ -215,6 +215,8 @@ func (s *Server) routes() {
 	s.mux.HandleFunc("GET /api/mails/{id}/attachments/{index}", s.auth(s.requireMailAccess(s.handleGetAttachment)))
 	s.mux.HandleFunc("GET /api/threads/{threadID}", s.auth(s.handleGetThread))
 	s.mux.HandleFunc("GET /api/mails/{id}/raw", s.auth(s.requireMailAccess(s.handleGetRaw)))
+	// PROJ-44: OCR-Text-Download — gleicher ACL-Pfad wie /raw.
+	s.mux.HandleFunc("GET /api/mails/{id}/ocr-text", s.auth(s.requireMailAccess(s.handleGetOCRText)))
 	s.mux.HandleFunc("GET /api/admin/services", s.authAdmin(s.handleListServices))
 	s.mux.HandleFunc("POST /api/admin/services/{name}/action", s.authAdmin(s.handleServiceAction))
 
diff --git a/internal/audit/audit.go b/internal/audit/audit.go
index 0522c12..bf1c9b4 100644
--- a/internal/audit/audit.go
+++ b/internal/audit/audit.go
@@ -11,13 +11,14 @@ import (
 )
 
 const (
-	EventLogin    = "login"
-	EventLogout   = "logout"
-	EventSearch   = "search"
-	EventMailView = "mail_view"
-	EventImport   = "import"
-	EventExport   = "export"
-	EventUserMgmt = "user_mgmt"
+	EventLogin       = "login"
+	EventLogout      = "logout"
+	EventSearch      = "search"
+	EventMailView    = "mail_view"
+	EventImport      = "import"
+	EventExport      = "export"
+	EventUserMgmt    = "user_mgmt"
+	EventOCRDownload = "mail:ocr_download" // PROJ-44: extracted OCR text downloaded
 )
 
 // Entry is a single audit log record.