Visiting Regulations

One of the most important items for a new inmate or for any inmate is his/her visiting privileges. A visit from a spouse, child, or family member means everything to an inmate. It is one of the first things on the minds of all new inmates. There are certain steps that must be done prior to arriving at federal prison, certain forms that must be filled out before that first visit is possible. Visiting times and rules may vary between institutions, especially between Federal Prison Camps (FPCs) and Federal Correctional Institutions (FCIs). Federal Prison Camps have similar rules and regulations as those of Federal Correctional Institutions. Yet, there are major differences. Fortunately, the rules and regulations at Federal Prison Camps are not nearly as stringent as those at Federal Correctional Institutions. Yet, there are several differences that you need to know.

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Visits can be wonderful yet they may also be very stressful. You may not have seen your spouse or family for several weeks or even several months. You may still have unresolved issues to deal with. You may have traveled on the infamous Con-Air and visited several prisons for long or short stays on your way to your final designated federal prison. These intermediate federal prisons may have been too far away for your visitors to travel to visit you. You may have only stayed a week or two at each one and did not have enough time to set up visiting privileges. Finally though, you have arrived at your designated federal prison and you are now ready for a visit. Once your paperwork is completed and approved and your visitors have been cleared for visits, you may find other frustrating problems that can make your visit even more emotional and stressful. First, your visitors may spend an hour or more just filling out all the necessary paperwork needed for the visit. Then they may wait in line for another hour just to see you. The Bureau of Prisons is notorious for the excessive amount of paperwork that is required to be filled out. You will not be called to the Visiting Room until all of your visitor's paperwork has been completed and identification confirmed. Now, after all the paperwork is processed you are able to see your visitor just to be greeted by a rude, uncaring Corrections Officer. You are restricted on kissing, holding, and hugging your visitor. You may be singled out and sanctioned for kissing your wife, holding her hand, letting her cry on your shoulder, or even sitting too close to her. You try to talk to her and comfort her as you are surrounded by 100 to 200 other inmates and their visitors. The room is loud, little children are running around making noise, people are laughing, people are crying, and guards are watching over you to make sure you do not get too close to your visitor. You have so much to say yet the time seems to fly by. Yet in spite of all these obstacles, visits are wonderful and are cherished by the inmates. You will become accustomed to the long waits in line, the noisy conditions, and the rude Corrections Officers. The only thing that matters is your visit.

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PCG explains, informs, and educates our clients on the Bureau of Prisons’ Visiting Regulations and Policies. We provide the required information so that the inmate may have visits almost immediately upon his arrival. There are different rules and regulations for visiting which depend upon the security level of the federal prison in which the inmate is housed. Other federal prisons may have certain local rules which must be adhered to. This can be very confusing and upsetting to both the inmate and his family. How devastating it would be to have your family show up for a visit just to be turned away due to misinformation or a mistake. Unfortunately, this happens way too frequently. PCG Consulting prepares specific information for our client on the federal prison he is designated to which will assure successful visits. We will provide the visiting information and visitor regulations specific to the federal prison our client is incarcerated in. This information is necessary to assure the inmate the ability to receive visitors his first week of incarceration.

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