In 1930, the Department of Justice created Commissarys to Federal institutions. The Commissary was developed to help form a savings account for the money that prisoners receive not payed-out from the Federal State Penitentiary. For the first time, these accounts provided the Bureau of Prisons to keep responsibility for monies prisoners obtain while incarcerated. Funding sources are typically from family and friends, however, other sources are allowed to supply as well.

If one were to send monies to a Federal inmate, the best way to do so would be via the US Postal Service or money transfer service via the Quick Collect Program. Before any monies can be retrieved, the prisoner must be housed at one of the Federal prisons. This means that if the prisoner is not physically housed at one of these facilities, the money cannot be posted and will be returned – as anybody could send funds to inmates through the mail. There are harsh rules that must be followed, otherwise, the money may be received.

It is important to always remember that the monies are sent in a form of money order. The money order must be made out to the inmate’s full legal name with their personal eight-digit registration number. Again, cash or personal checks will not be accepted for deposit.

Other guidelines are also essential. The name and address of the sender must appear in the upper left hand corner of the envelope. This is necessary in case the mail needs to be returned to the sender. The deposit envelope cannot hold anything other than the deposit. If this happens for any reason, the Bureau of Prisons will immediately discard of all items included with the deposit. If the monies are not received, it is the sender’s task to trace the funds through the company where the money order was purchased.

As earlier mentioned, monies can also be sent to inmates via money transfer services, also known as the Quick Collect Program. If sent between the hours of 7:00am and 9:00pm Eastern Standard time, funds sent via this manner will post to the prisoners account within 2-4 hours. Any monies received after this time will be posted the next business day by 7:00am.

Once again, as reminder: It is crucial that the sender is aware of the detailed instructions of sending monies. If for any reason, the inmate number is erroneous and funds are inadvertently posted to another prisoners account, the money will most likely not be returned.