What Happens After You Send a Relationship Request (Alfred D. Hughes Unit visitors)
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When you submit a relationship request (after clicking “Request Approval”), the request is sent to the inmate’s unit of assignment. From there, TDCJ staff review it and verify the visitor/inmate relationship. Until that verification step is completed, you’re basically in a waiting phase - nothing is “wrong” just because you can’t schedule right away.
While the request is still being reviewed, you’ll continue to see it listed on your visitor home page under “Relation Requests Pending Approval.” That’s the normal place for it to sit until TDCJ staff approves it.
Once TDCJ staff confirms the visitor/inmate relationship, it won’t stay in “Relation Requests Pending Approval.” It moves over to the “Verified Inmate Relations” section on your home page, which is your sign that the relationship itself has been approved.
From there, scheduling depends on what the scheduler shows next to the inmate’s name. If the “Schedule Visit” option is available, you can move forward and book a visit. If it isn’t available, that usually means the system can’t offer online scheduling for that person at that time - often because visitation privileges aren’t currently in place or because the unit requires scheduling by phone instead.
If you’re looking at the verified relationship but the “Schedule Visit” button is blank or replaced with “Call Unit,” don’t keep resubmitting the request. In that situation, the scheduler is telling you to call the inmate’s unit of assignment to schedule the visit.
Note: If you see “Not Approved for Visits,” that message indicates the inmate’s visitation privileges have been removed. The next step is to contact the unit to ask what options (if any) are available and what needs to happen before visits can resume.
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- ✓ Answer every Background Questionnaire question when you create your scheduler account (you can’t move forward until they’re all completed)
- ✓ When adding the inmate, make sure the TDCJ/SID number you enter is exactly 8 digits
Most delays come from small account setup issues that force the unit to stop and sort things out. A fully completed Background Questionnaire and an 8-digit TDCJ/SID number help your relationship request get to the right place cleanly, so staff can focus on verifying the relationship instead of correcting missing or mismatched information.
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