The visiting form in federal prison allows staff members to assess whether they will authorize a person to visit. If a person appears as a family member in the presentence investigation report, the staff members may authorize the person to visit without a visiting form. In most cases, staff members will require people to complete a visiting form before they will authorize visiting.
The button provides a link to a sample of the visiting form. Each institution may have specific information.
When a person surrenders to prison, the person should get the appropriate form from the assigned counselor. Then, the person may send the form from the local institution to his recipients. The recipients must send the completed form to the assigned counselor, not the person serving a prison sentence.
Staff members will use the information on the form to conduct a background check. The background check will help the staff member assess whether to authorize visiting privileges. A criminal record will not necessarily preclude someone from visiting in federal prison. It’s crucial to respond to all questions honestly. Lying on a government form is a federal offense, and it would also result in the loss of visiting privileges.
Bureau of Prisons Info on Visiting:
- https://www.bop.gov/inmates/visiting.jsp
In certain circumstances such as when an inmate first enters prison or is transferred to a new prison, a visiting list might not exist yet. In this case, immediate family members who can be verified by the information contained in the inmate’s Pre-Sentence Report, may be allowed to visit. However, if there is little or no information available about a person, visiting may be denied. You should always call the prison ahead of time to ensure your visit will be permitted.
Bureau of Prisons
