Who Can Visit? Understanding Michigan DOC's Visitor List Rules

Michigan DOC organizes visitation around approved visitor categories, each with its own paperwork. The main forms are the CAJ-334 (Visitor List) and CAJ-103 (MDOC Visiting Application). There are also specialized forms: the CAJ-356 (Outreach Volunteer Application), CAJ-1069 (Attorney, DHHS (Child Welfare) and SOM Employee), and CAJ-1037 (LEIN Request). The people who can be approved include immediate family, qualified clergy, attorneys, outreach volunteers, and other qualified visitors who meet MDOC requirements.

Immediate family gets its own category on the CAJ-334 Visitor List, and the prisoner can add or remove immediate family members at any time. For everyone else, the rule is simple: qualified visitors have to be added to the prisoner's Visiting List at the prisoner's request. If you want to visit, the starting point isn't the front desk or a generic request. It's getting the incarcerated person to request that you be added.

Here's a limit that catches people off guard. Michigan DOC allows a prisoner to have immediate family members on their Visiting List, plus up to ten non-family people. That "up to ten" cap applies only to non-family designations, not immediate family.

There's also a limit on how many people can visit at the same time. For in-person visits, a maximum of five visitors may visit a prisoner at once. Even if everyone in your group is approved and on the Visiting List, you'll need to split up so no more than five enter for that visit.

Video visits have their own headcount rule: a maximum of five persons may participate in a video visit with a prisoner. Children less than two years of age don't count toward that five-person limit. If you're trying to include multiple relatives on one call, this is the number to plan around.

For immediate family, changes can happen quickly. The prisoner is allowed to add or delete immediate family members at any time. If you're immediate family and your name isn't showing as approved yet, the fix is usually on the prisoner's side: they need to update their Visitor List.

If you're not immediate family, you can't add yourself independently. You have to be added to the prisoner's Visiting List at the prisoner's request. Your first move is to contact the prisoner if you're unsure whether you're on the list. After the request and application are submitted, timing depends on when the facility receives and processes the paperwork. Processing can take up to four weeks.

Some professional visitors use different forms and may get approved faster. Attorneys who submit the CAJ-1069 professional visitor application are processed within two business days of receipt at the facility. Other professional visitor paperwork may also apply in certain situations, including the CAJ-1037 (LEIN Request).

1. Ask the prisoner to add you to their Visiting List. Michigan DOC requires qualified visitors to be added at the prisoner’s request, so if you are unsure you are approved, contacting the prisoner is the most direct way to get started.
2. If you are applying by mail, send the application to the right facility and include a return envelope. Mail the visiting application to the facility where the prisoner is housed and include a self-addressed stamped envelope for the response. Processing may take up to four weeks.
3. Go to the facility for prisoner-specific questions. For questions about a specific prisoner, prisoner property, or visiting grievances, contact the facility where the prisoner is housed. MDOC also provides a Central Office number (517-335-1426) if you need to start in the right place.