A letter from home arriving at mail call is one of the most powerful moments in an incarcerated person's day. It is proof that someone on the outside is thinking about them, that life is continuing, and that there is something worth coming home to. But sending mail to a correctional facility involves rules that vary by institution and mistakes can mean your letter never arrives. This section covers how to address mail correctly for federal and state facilities, what the mailroom screening process looks like and how long it adds to delivery time, what content is and is not permitted in letters, how to send photos and why sending them through InmateAid's service is more reliable than printing and mailing them yourself, how to send mail from outside the United States, and what the InmateAid return letter service does for inmates who want to write back. The guidance here makes sure every letter you send reaches its destination. See also our sections on Inmate Care Packages, Send Books and Magazines, and Inmate Phone Calls.
Related InmateAid Services
Subject: Send inmate mail
The inmate writes to you using our address - some people love not having to use their own address if they choose not to. We receive the letters (up to 6 pages) on your behalf and scan them into your account and send you an email notification that it's there.
Subject: Send inmate mail
You can write him through InmateAid, the letters will get there in one day as we are headquartered in Palm Beach County Florida only one county away from Broward County where he is locked up. You can send him magazines or books - with his situation, he is completely walled off from contact with other inmates. I've been in soitary and it is no joke. Reading was my only escape. There are other enlightenment opportunites down the road through college correspondence courses, but that...
Read moreSubject: Send inmate mail
Yes, InmateAID is a preferred source of inmate mail at EVERY prison and jail in the US. The mail room staff knows that since 2012, they can trust that the mail with an InmateAID logo on the envelope to be free from contraband or any other attempt to smuggle things into their facility.
Subject: Send inmate mail
The short answer is "yes", but there is a little more to it. One of the reasons InmateAid offers the Greeting Cards service is that the process follows strict guidelines for incoming mail. Most store-bought cards have glitter or other affixings that might cause it to be rejected in the mail room of the prison. The selection of cards on InmateAid are delivered on a postcard that meets the standards of every facility in the US. For 99 cents each,...
Read moreSubject: Send inmate mail
There is a California State Statute that permits the prison mail room to hold incoming mail for inmates up to three weeks. It does not happen often, but they have that right and sometimes they enforce it.
Subject: Send inmate mail
Yes, they make it easy. Once you get a name or two, you should use this service, everyone does as it's cheaper and recognized by the jails and prisons
Subject: Send inmate mail
They would only know if you wrote them a letter. they cannot take messages for inmates not accept phone calls, you'll have to either write them a letter or use the InmateAid service for Letters or Postcards.
Subject: Send inmate mail
Yes, "Letters from Inmates" is one of the most popular services. It provides a safe place to receive mail - our members write famous inmates, too and sometimes do now want to use their own address. For overseas members, there is no faster or cheaper way to receive mail from your inmate.
Subject: Send inmate mail
Federal inmates do have access to a limited email system called CorrLinks, and it works differently from standard email in a few important ways.
The key thing to understand is that your boyfriend has to initiate the connection, not you. He submits a request through the TRULINCS system at the facility, which sends you an invitation to your email address. Once you receive that invitation, you go to CorrLinks.com, create an account, and accept the connection. From that point you can...
Read moreSubject: Send inmate mail
Absolutely, and the mundane details you are hesitant to share are often exactly what inmates appreciate most.
Life inside is stripped of everything ordinary. The same walls, the same faces, the same routine day after day creates a kind of sensory and experiential deprivation that makes the normal details of outside life feel genuinely meaningful rather than trivial. A new dog, a Christmas gathering, what the weather has been like, a funny thing that happened at the grocery store, all of...
Read moreSubject: Send inmate mail
Yes, absolutely. Mail is sacred in prison and/or jail and unless the offender is under a terrorism charge, all mail will flow to the inmates without an issue. If you would like to try our letter and photo service for free, send a request via email (aid@inmateaid.com) and we will send you a unique code to get the first letter to your inmate quickly
Subject: Send inmate mail
The InmateAid photos are of fantastic quality! They are 4 x 6 glossy photos that are printed to the edge of the paper - prison approved size. It is better than what you'd get at your local pharmacy photo developer. If you would like a free trial, please email us and simply ask for a coupon. We'd be happy to give your inmate the first one on us.
Subject: Send inmate mail
Mail forwarding between correctional facilities is not reliable and in most cases does not happen at all. When an inmate transfers out of a facility, mail that arrives after their departure typically gets returned to sender rather than forwarded to the new location. The timing in your situation makes it particularly uncertain since the transfer happened the day after you sent the letters and postcard.
Whether your mail reaches him depends on where it was in the postal system when the...
Read moreSubject: Send inmate mail
The most reliable confirmation is hearing back from your inmate directly, but when that response has not come, it does not necessarily mean your mail is not getting through.
Inmates receive mail more consistently than most people on the outside realize. Facilities treat incoming mail as a protected form of communication and make genuine effort to ensure it reaches the right person. If you have been sending through InmateAid consistently, the letters and emails are almost certainly arriving. What varies is...
Read moreSubject: Send inmate mail
Yes they are permitted, there are no limits to the amount they can receive too
