Bellefonte Mail Guide: Where to Send Letters, Photos, Publications, and Official Documents
If your loved one is in the Pennsylvania DOC system, the right address depends on what you're mailing. Regular letters and photos go to Smart Communications for scanning. Publications and photo books route through the Bellefonte Security Processing Center (SPC).
Most everyday mail (letters and photos) doesn't go straight to the prison. Instead, it goes to Smart Communications, a contracted processing center that opens and scans everything. The facility then prints the scans and delivers them to the inmate. Publications and photo books follow a different path through the Security Processing Center in Bellefonte. Certain originals and legal mail have their own rules too, all covered below.
All general (non-privileged) correspondence routes through Smart Communications. Address your envelope like this: Smart Communications/PA DOC Inmate Name/Inmate Number Institution Name P.O. Box 33028 St. Petersburg, FL 33733 Use the inmate's full name and number exactly as they appear in DOC records, and include the name of the institution where they're currently housed.
Photo limit: Photos are limited to 25 per mailing, and photos cannot be returned to you.
Once your letter arrives, Smart Communications opens the envelope and scans the letter and any photos into an electronic document. The facility mailroom then prints those scans and delivers them to the inmate. Because of this process, only send photos you can afford to lose. They can't be returned.
Publications and photo books go through the Department's Security Processing Center (SPC) in Bellefonte. Use this address: Inmate Name, Inmate Number 268 Bricker Road Bellefonte, PA 16823-1667 Publications must come from original source vendors (publishers, bookstores, or online distributors). Don't mail books, magazines, or photo books yourself as an individual.
Don't skip the details: Include the inmate's name and number on the shipment. The sender must be an original source vendor, not a friend or family member.
Got an original document that needs the inmate's signature and you need it back (like a vehicle title transfer)? Don't send it through Smart Communications. Mail these original transactional documents directly to the institution's business office. Clearly identify the inmate by name and number so staff can route it for signature and processing.
Use this attention line: ATTN: Business Officer – Inmate Name/ Inmate Number (then put the institution address on the next lines).
Legal (privileged) mail follows its own rules. For the envelope to be treated as privileged, it must include a full return address and be addressed to the inmate with their name and number at the institution's legal mail address. It also needs the attorney or court control number. Attorneys must include the weekly secondary authentication number/time code.
- ✓ Full return address
- ✓ Inmate name and inmate number
- ✓ Institution name
- ✓ Institution legal mail address
- ✓ Attorney or court control number associated with the law office
- ✓ Secondary authentication number/time code issued for that week (attorneys only)
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- ✓ For regular letters and photos, use: Smart Communications/PA DOC, Inmate Name/Inmate Number, Institution Name, P.O. Box 33028, St. Petersburg, FL 33733
- ✓ For publications and photo books, use the Bellefonte SPC address: Inmate Name, Inmate Number, 268 Bricker Road, Bellefonte, PA 16823-1667
- ✓ Only order publications/photo books from original source vendors (publishers, bookstores, online distributors), not from individuals
- ✓ Keep photos to 25 per mailing
- ✓ Send originals that require an inmate signature to the institution’s business office (ATTN: Business Officer – Inmate Name/ Inmate Number)
- ✓ For legal mail, include the required control number(s) and the correct legal-mail addressing elements
Reminder: Photos sent as general incoming correspondence cannot be returned to the sender.
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