How to Send Books and Magazines to an Inmate in Virginia

INMATEAID EDITORIAL ARTICLE

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Internal links: Virginia inmate search, send money, visitation, Staying Connected hub, Virginia reentry resources

*** VOLATILE / RECHECK BEFORE PUBLISH ***

(1) VADOC OP 803.2 content owner reviewed 4/2025; a rewrite may be in progress - re-verify current version before publish. (2) A legal-advocacy source (Asheville Prison Books) describes an approved-vendor BOOK restriction via "Change 2 (8/13/2025) / Change 3 (10/16/2025)" to a "Section 9.1" - that section numbering does NOT match VADOC OP 803.2 (which uses Roman-numeral sections and, in the current published 4/1/2024 version amended 6/1/25, says the only approved-vendor list applies to FOREIGN-LANGUAGE pubs only, Section V.A). That "9.1 approved-vendor" rule appears to be a LOCAL/REGIONAL JAIL policy, not state DOC. Article written on authoritative VADOC OP 803.2 + 803.4. If VADOC later adopts a named-vendor book list, revise to no-Amazon/approved-vendor handling. (3) CMDC address discrepancy: official OP 803.2 says State Farm VA 23160; SureShot vendor page says Big Stone Gap VA 24219 - used OFFICIAL State Farm address; verify before publish.

=> CRITICAL ROUTING: ALL books/newspapers/magazines (inmate-purchased, third-party, or donated) MUST be mailed to VADOC Central Mail Distribution Center (CMDC), 3521 Woods Way, State Farm, VA 23160 (Inmate name, Inmate #) for X-ray screening, THEN forwarded to facility. Items NOT received via CMDC are disposed of. THE DEFINING VA ANGLE.

=> HARDCOVER: OP 803.2 does NOT ban hardcovers at the state level - policy contemplates dust jackets (staff remove dust jacket from incoming book, give inmate photocopy of jacket), which only applies to hardbacks => hardcovers ALLOWED (jacket removed). Did NOT assert statewide softcover-only rule; noted many VA JAILS require paperback + recommended paperback as safer, but state DOC allows hardcover. (Stale "softcover only" claims = jail rules.)

NOTE: Governing (STATE prisons) = VADOC OP 803.2 (eff. 4/1/2024; amended through 6/1/25) + OP 803.4 (CMDC). ID = inmate name + DOC number; institution name spelled out (no abbreviations). CMDC routing mandatory for books/newspapers/magazines (State Farm address). Third party (friends/family) may buy a book + subscribe to periodicals; non-family may NOT buy for an inmate unless sharing a family relationship; staff/volunteers need Facility Unit Head approval. Inmate book/back-issue orders need Personal Property Request 802_F1 approval; periodicals/subscriptions do NOT need approval (inmate or third party). Prepaid only, no trial basis. No purchase limit but POSSESSION capped to Property Matrix (varies by institution; religious/study/photo-book/legal refs count toward max). Content (Attachment 1 + I.A.2, III.A): no nudity/sexually explicit; no threat to security/order; no promotion of violence/disorder/law violation; Criterion E (detrimental to rehabilitation, individualized via Program/Mental Health staff); Criterion I (nudity, with anthropological/educational/medical EXCEPTIONS). CHILD-SAFETY: inmates required to register in Sex Offender and Crimes against Minors Registry for a SEXUAL offense are barred from ANY nudity (NO exception); non-sexual-offense registrants eligible for exception unless Criterion E applies. Under-18 inmates cannot receive age-restricted ("not to be sold to persons under...") publications. Disapproval: Facility Unit Head case-by-case + issue-by-issue; WHOLE publication disapproved (no page removal); PRC (3 members); inmate appeal via Offender Grievance Procedure (within 7 days of 803_F10); publisher notified + may appeal to Deputy Director for Institutions (within 15 days); Disapproved Publications List on Virtual Library; Prison Legal News handled specially. Dust jackets removed (photocopy to inmate). Media tablets/kiosks (music, media files) + institution libraries = low-cost reading context. Whole-publication disapproval invalidates vendor refund (II.B.8). Vendor sites (SureShot Big Stone Gap address; jail "softcover only"/approved-vendor pages) = soft cross-check / often JAIL rules; relied on official VADOC OP 803.2 + 803.4.

How to Send Books and Magazines to an Inmate in Virginia

A book is one of the best things you can put in the hands of someone you love inside a Virginia prison. It fills the long, empty hours, it keeps the mind working, and it is a piece of the outside world they get to hold. Virginia's rules are workable once you know them, but the state has one routing rule that is different from almost everywhere else, and getting it right is the whole game. Let me walk you through exactly how it works.

I am going to explain it the way someone who has done time would, plainly, so you get it right the first time and your money and effort actually reach the person you sent them for.

The One Rule That Matters Most: Mail to the Screening Center, Not the Prison

Here is the rule that trips up almost everyone sending to a Virginia state prison. Books, newspapers, and magazines do not go to the prison. They must be mailed to the Virginia Department of Corrections Central Mail Distribution Center, where every item is screened and inspected before it is forwarded to your person at their facility.

The address is the same for every state facility:

VADOC CMDC

Inmate Name, Inmate Number

3521 Woods Way

State Farm, Virginia 23160

This applies whether you bought the book, your person ordered it, or it was donated. If a book or magazine is sent straight to the prison instead of the screening center, it will not be delivered, it will be disposed of. So when you place an order, the shipping address you enter is the Central Mail Distribution Center in State Farm, with your person's name and DOC number, not the prison's street address. That one detail is the most common reason a Virginia order goes wrong, so lock it in before anything else.

One important caution: addresses for the screening center have appeared differently on some third-party vendor sites. Always use the official State Farm address above, and if you have any doubt, confirm the current Central Mail Distribution Center address on the Virginia Department of Corrections website before you ship.

Who Can Order, and How

The good news is that Virginia lets family and friends order books and magazines for an inmate, so you are not shut out. There are a couple of distinctions worth knowing.

For magazines and newspapers, you or your person can set up a subscription without any prior approval from the facility. Periodicals published on a regular schedule are the easy category. For a single book or a back issue of a magazine that your person orders using their own trust account funds, your person first needs approval from the facility through a property request form. When you, as a friend or family member, order and pay for a book yourself and have it shipped to the screening center, your person does not need to do that step, but the book still goes through the same screening and gets added to their property record on arrival.

One limit to know: you can order for your own incarcerated family member, but you cannot order publications for someone else's incarcerated loved one unless you share a family relationship with that person. Keep your orders to your own people and you are fine.

Using Amazon to Send a Book

Amazon is the easiest route for most families, and it works for Virginia state prisons because Amazon qualifies as a vendor that regularly provides mail order service to the public. Virginia does not maintain a restricted list of approved book vendors for English-language books at the state level, so your everyday booksellers are open to you.

A quick word on hardcover versus paperback. At the state level, Virginia does allow hardcover books, and staff simply remove the dust jacket and give your person a photocopy of the cover before issuing the book. That said, many local and regional jails in Virginia, which run their own rules, require paperback only. If your person is in a city or county jail rather than a state prison, check that jail's rules directly, and when in doubt, a new paperback is the safer choice that works almost everywhere.

Magazines and Newspapers

Magazines are a great fit for Virginia, and they are the simplest category since a subscription can be set up by you or your person without facility approval. A subscription is also one of the most reliable, low-effort ways to keep your person reading, because once it is set, each issue arrives on its own and gives them something to look forward to without anyone having to act again. Each issue still routes through the screening center before delivery, which is normal and just adds a little time.

What Can Get a Book or Magazine Rejected

Virginia screens publications for both contraband and content, and most mainstream books and magazines pass without trouble. On content, the concerns are the usual ones: material that threatens the security or order of the facility, that promotes violence or law-breaking, or that contains nudity or sexually explicit content. Virginia does allow exceptions to the nudity rule for material that is genuinely anthropological, educational, or medical in nature, reviewed case by case, so an anatomy reference or similar educational work can be acceptable.

Two specifics are worth knowing. First, when any part of a publication is disapproved, the entire publication is disapproved. Staff will not tear out a section to make it acceptable, so a single problem chapter or image takes down the whole book or issue. Second, there is a content rule tied to a person's offense: inmates who must register in the Sex Offender and Crimes against Minors Registry for a sexual offense are barred from any publication containing nudity, with no anthropological, educational, or medical exception available to them. If that could apply to your person, keep clear of anything with nude imagery so a well-meant gift does not create a problem. Inmates under 18 also cannot receive publications marked as not for sale to minors.

If a publication is disapproved, Virginia has a defined process. The facility decides on a case-by-case, issue-by-issue basis, your person receives written notice of the specific reason, and a Publication Review Committee gives a fuller review. Your person can appeal through the inmate grievance procedure, and the publisher is notified and can appeal as well. Disapproved titles go on a list that your person can review, so decisions are documented rather than arbitrary.

A Note on Quantity

Virginia does not cap how many publications you can buy, but your person can only possess a set number at a time, based on the property limit for their institution. Religious texts, study books, personal photo books, and legal references count toward that limit, while books borrowed from the facility library do not. The practical takeaway is to send a steady, manageable flow rather than a large pile at once, so your person stays within their property limit and does not have to give something up to receive your latest gift.

Lean on the Library and the Tablet

Here is something families overlook. Virginia prisons have libraries, and using them is free. Encourage your person to use the library heavily and to request the titles they want, since that often puts a book in their hands faster and at no cost than a shipped order, and library books do not count against their property limit. Virginia also issues media tablets that let your person access music and other media, which helps fill time alongside reading. For a family watching every dollar, the library does the heavy lifting on books, and your money can go toward a magazine subscription and the occasional book your person most wants to own. Many people inside read far more than they ever did on the outside, simply because there is time, so a steady library habit paired with a subscription can carry someone for years. We keep current pointers to programs and resources that serve Virginia on our Virginia reentry resources page, which is a good place to check as procedures change.

Staying Connected

Reading is one thread of staying close, but it works best alongside steady contact. Virginia handles letters through its mail system, supports phone calls and visits, and lets you put money on your person's account, and keeping up regular contact makes the books and magazines you send land in a fuller relationship rather than arriving cold. Just remember that letters and publications route differently, since personal letters and publications each have their own screening paths, and books and magazines specifically must go to the Central Mail Distribution Center. Think of books, magazine subscriptions, the free library, and the tablet for reading and media, and letters, calls, and visits for staying connected.

Get It Right the First Time

Here is the whole thing in a breath. For a Virginia state prison, books, newspapers, and magazines must be mailed to the Virginia Department of Corrections Central Mail Distribution Center in State Farm, not to the prison, with your person's name and DOC number. Family and friends can order, and at the state level your everyday booksellers like Amazon are fine, with no restricted vendor list for English-language books. Subscriptions can be set up without facility approval; single books your person buys need a property request first. Pay up front, since trial or unpaid publications are not allowed. The state allows hardcover with the dust jacket removed, though many Virginia jails require paperback, so check if your person is in a jail. Keep within the property limit, steer clear of nudity and explicit content, and lean on the free library and tablet to round things out.

Get it right and you become the person who reliably gets good books to someone who needs them. On the inside, that means more than you can know from out here.

FAQ

**Where do I mail a book or magazine for a Virginia inmate?** For a state prison, books, newspapers, and magazines must go to the Virginia Department of Corrections Central Mail Distribution Center, 3521 Woods Way, State Farm, Virginia 23160, addressed with your person's name and DOC number. Items sent directly to the prison are not delivered. Confirm the current address on the VADOC website if you have any doubt.

**Can I order from Amazon?** Yes, for state prisons. Virginia does not keep a restricted approved-vendor list for English-language books at the state level, and Amazon qualifies as a vendor. Set the shipping address to the Central Mail Distribution Center with your person's name and DOC number, and pay in full at checkout.

**Can family and friends order, or only the inmate?** Family and friends can order books and subscribe to magazines for their own incarcerated family member. You cannot order for someone else's incarcerated loved one unless you share a family relationship. Subscriptions need no facility approval; a single book the inmate buys with their own funds needs a property request first.

**Can I send a hardcover book?** At the state level, yes. Virginia allows hardcover books and simply removes the dust jacket, giving your person a photocopy of it. However, many local and regional jails require paperback only, so if your person is in a city or county jail, check that jail's rules. A new paperback is the safest choice overall.

**How do magazines work in Virginia?** A subscription can be set up by you or your person without facility approval, and it ships to the Central Mail Distribution Center for screening before delivery. Address it with your person's name and DOC number. Each issue is reviewed individually, so a single problem issue can be held, though mainstream titles rarely are.

**What content is not allowed?** Virginia rejects material that threatens security or order, promotes violence or law-breaking, or contains nudity or sexually explicit content, with limited anthropological, educational, or medical exceptions. When any part of a publication is disapproved, the whole item is. Inmates registered for a sexual offense cannot receive any nudity, with no exception.

**What happens if a publication is rejected?** The facility decides case by case and issue by issue, your person gets written notice of the specific reason, and a Publication Review Committee provides further review. Your person can appeal through the inmate grievance procedure, and the publisher is notified and may also appeal. Disapproved titles are placed on a list your person can review.