How to Send Money to an Inmate in Alaska

If someone you love is locked up in Alaska, getting money into their account works differently than in most other states. Alaska does not use a centralized statewide deposit platform like JPay or Access Corrections for inmate trust accounts. Instead, money goes directly to the facility - by mailing a money order or cashier's check to the prison, or by dropping cash off in person at the facility's trust account window. There are also strict rules about who can send money and how much. Understanding those rules upfront will save you a wasted deposit.

Alaska's system has one primary custody type for state sentences: the Alaska Department of Corrections runs all state facilities. There are no separate county jails for sentenced felons - Alaska operates a unified corrections system. Figure out which facility your person is in before you send anything, because deposits go to a specific institution, not to a central clearinghouse.

Sending money to Alaska state prison inmates

Alaska DOC facilities handle inmate trust account deposits directly. The two main methods are mail and in-person.

By money order or cashier's check through the mail is the standard approach for most families. Make the money order or cashier's check payable directly to the inmate - using their full name. Include the inmate's state prison ID number (their DOC number). Your name and address must appear on both the money order or check itself and on the envelope, or it will be treated as unacceptable mail. Do not send cash in the mail. Cash sent by mail will not be credited and cannot be returned. Personal checks are also not accepted.

Mail the money order or cashier's check directly to the correctional facility where your person is housed, addressed to the inmate by name and ID number. Each facility has its own mailing address - find the current address for the specific institution on the Alaska DOC website.

Processing times and holds vary by facility. At some facilities, including Anchorage Correctional Complex, all money orders and acceptable checks have a ten-day hold placed on them before funds are available in the account. Build that wait into your timeline. At other facilities, processing may differ.

In person at the facility trust account window is available at some institutions. At Anchorage Correctional Complex, for example, the Offender Trust Account cash window is open on specific days by appointment only (Tuesday through Thursday, excluding holidays, during set morning and afternoon hours). Cash, money orders, and acceptable checks can be dropped off in person, and a copy of the receipt is provided. Call the specific facility to confirm whether they accept in-person deposits and what the current schedule and requirements are.

Acceptable checks beyond money orders. At Anchorage Correctional Complex, State checks, Federal checks, and Native Corporation checks are also accepted in addition to money orders and cashier's checks. Personal checks are not accepted at any Alaska DOC facility.

Who can deposit: the approved list requirement

This is one of the most important rules in Alaska and the one that catches families off guard. Alaska DOC facilities require that monetary gifts be made only by immediate family members, people who have previously visited with the inmate, or people who have previously deposited to the inmate's account. At Hiland Mountain Correctional Center, the rule is stated as: deposits may only be made by individuals on a prisoner's approved visitor list.

This means: if you have never visited your person in Alaska and have never deposited before, you may not be able to send money without first being added to the approved visitor list. The approved visitor list requires an application to the facility. Start that process early. Once you are on the list or have made a prior deposit, future deposits are permitted.

The monthly deposit limit

Alaska DOC limits the amount that can be deposited to a prisoner's account. The limit is $500 in a single month. Amounts above that limit will not be credited. Some facilities may have their own additional limits, so confirm with the specific institution if you are unsure.

Funds subject to deductions

Money in an Alaska inmate's trust account can be applied to cost of care, dependent support, disciplinary sanctions, and court-ordered fines, restitution, or judgments before the balance is available for spending. The Alaska Administrative Code authorizes these deductions. An account may also be frozen if the inmate is charged with a disciplinary infraction or crime involving property damage or personal injury.

Phone account funding is separate

Alaska DOC contracts with Securus Technologies for inmate telephone service. Securus phone accounts are separate from the inmate trust/commissary account. To enable calls, family members set up a Securus billing account at the Securus website or by calling 1-800-844-6591.

As of January 2025, all calls from Alaska DOC inmates cost $0.06 per minute, which applies to local, interstate, and intrastate calls. As of February 2025, all Alaska DOC inmates receive two free calls per month, credited to their Securus account on the first day of each month. The first two calls made in the month are free.

Funding a Securus account is done through Securus directly - not through the facility trust account deposit process. Securus Debit accounts can also be funded through Securus's website or app if the facility allows direct family deposits to that account type.

Online deposits through ConnectNetwork

Some resources indicate that ConnectNetwork (ViaPath) may offer online electronic deposits for some Alaska DOC facilities. If this option is available for the specific facility where your person is housed, you would create an account at ConnectNetwork, add your person's information, and make a card deposit. Verify whether this is currently offered at your person's facility by checking the Alaska DOC website or contacting the facility directly before relying on it - Alaska DOC's primary deposit method remains direct facility deposits by money order or in-person cash.

Federal custody

If your person is in federal Bureau of Prisons custody in Alaska - the one BOP facility in the state is FDC SeaTac in Washington state for pretrial federal defendants from Alaska, or they may be at FCI facilities in other states - deposits go through the BOP Trust Fund via Western Union, MoneyGram at retail, or online at bop.gov. You need the eight-digit BOP register number. Do not use Alaska DOC deposit methods for federal inmates.

What to know before you send anything

Find the correct facility first. Use the Alaska DOC inmate search to confirm where your person is housed. The deposit goes to that specific facility's address - there is no central DOC deposit address in Alaska.

Confirm you are on the approved list. If this is your first deposit and you have not previously visited, contact the facility to confirm whether you need to be on the approved visitor list before sending money.

Include all required information. Your name and address on both the item and the envelope. The inmate's full name and DOC number on the money order or check. Missing any of these will result in the item being returned or treated as unacceptable.

Never send cash by mail. Cash cannot be credited and cannot be returned once sent by mail.

Know the hold times. Money orders and acceptable checks may be held for up to ten days at some facilities before funds are available in the account.

Alaska DOC contact

P.O. Box 112000

Juneau, Alaska 99811-2000

Phone: (907) 465-4652

Related pages:

/prisons/alaska

How to write a letter to someone in an Alaska facility

Send mail and photos through InmateAid

Arrest Record Search (affiliate)