Prison phone calls are one of the most important lifelines between an incarcerated person and their family, and one of the most expensive. The prison phone industry has historically operated as a near-monopoly charging rates that few other consumer services would get away with. This section covers how the prison phone system works, why rates are so high and what has changed in recent years, how debit calling accounts function, how to get a number approved on an inmate's call list, how InmateAid's local number service reduces call costs by up to 70 percent, and what international callers need to know about reaching a US facility from another country. The questions answered here come from families who are paying too much for calls and from inmates trying to navigate phone access from inside. Understanding how the system works is the first step toward getting the most contact for the least cost. See also our sections on Money Transfer and Commissary.
Related InmateAid Services
Subject: Inmate phone calls
They are two separate lists with two different approval processes, and understanding the difference is useful when you are trying to get on both.
The phone list is managed by the inmate and processed through the facility's phone carrier, whether that is Securus, GTL, IC Solutions, or whoever holds the contract at that facility. The inmate submits numbers they want to be able to call, the carrier runs a basic verification, and approved numbers become active for outgoing calls. The process...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
GlobalTel*Link, now operating as ConnectNetwork, is the platform you need to set up on your end to receive calls from a facility that uses GTL as their carrier. Here is how the process works.
Go to connectnetwork.com and create an account. During setup you will register the phone number where you want to receive calls and add funds to what is called an AdvancePay account. That prepaid balance is what gets drawn down as calls come through. You need money in...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
Yes, Telmate, which operates through GettingOut.com, is the phone carrier at Winston County Jail in Alabama. Every call your boyfriend makes from that facility runs through their system.
If you are paying more than $3.00 for a 15-minute call right now, InmateAid can get that rate down to $3.00 or less. The savings come from the same place they always do with jail phone carriers. Telmate charges different rates depending on the number being dialed, and InmateAid identifies the number that...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
Pretty much any time as long as there are funds on their account and no one is in line in front of them
Subject: Inmate phone calls
NCIC - if you live in Texas, check out our Discount Phone Service, we can cut the price of the call in half.
Subject: Inmate phone calls
There is a waiting period, and it is standard across virtually every correctional facility in the country including Groveland. It is not specific to that facility and it is not a punishment. It is simply the Admissions and Orientation process that every newly arrived inmate goes through before privileges become available.
During A&O, which typically runs anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks depending on the facility and how smoothly intake moves, the inmate is being processed into...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
Yes, you are responsible for getting the number to your inmate. You can use one more "expensive call" to relay the number, you can try to contact the facility to see if they will pass it along (the rules prohibit it, but some of the COs will if you're nice on the phone) or mail the number in a postcard or letter. We offer a free postcard, just email us at aid@inamteaid.com and we'll send you a coupon code.
Subject: Inmate phone calls
Yes, that is exactly correct and you have it set up the right way.
Your personal phone number is the destination, meaning the number where you actually want to receive the calls. The InmateAid number that was emailed to you is the routing number, which is the number your inmate dials at the facility to reach you at the lower rate. When your inmate dials the InmateAid number, the call routes through to your personal number at the discounted rate rather...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
The BOP line from InmateAid is local to the facility the inmate is in. The inmate has to pay for each call from their cell coming out of their Trulincs account - they use their money is for calls, emails, and commissary.
The 15-minute call to your number is $3.15, the call to the local number is $0.90. You're saving $2.25 per call simply by using our local number (which rings to your long distance number). Our $8.95 fee to rent this...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
USP McCreary is a federal Bureau of Prisons facility, and InmateAid offers several services that make a real difference for inmates and their families there.
On the phone side, federal inmates at McCreary get 300 minutes per month through the BOP system, with that allotment bumping up to 400 minutes in November and December for the holidays. Every call costs either $0.06 per minute for local numbers or $0.21 per minute for long distance numbers, with the money coming out of...
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