How to Find Out Where an Inmate Is Before You Plan Your Visit to FCI Allenwood

Confirming an inmate's current location is step one before planning a visit to FCI Allenwood. People get moved within the Bureau of Prisons for many reasons, including program access at another facility, and transfers can happen without much notice. A quick location check saves you from a wasted drive, a visit that can't happen, or paperwork headaches if you're preparing to get on the approved visiting list. It also helps you avoid planning around dates that may shift later, since release dates can change while sentences are being reviewed under the First Step Act.

1. Go to the BOP inmate locator. This is the Bureau of Prisons tool for finding the whereabouts of federal inmates incarcerated from 1982 to the present.
2. Search by name or register number. If you have the register number, it is usually the fastest, cleanest match. If not, start with the person’s name.
3. Open the matching result. You are looking for the current facility listed on the record so you can confirm whether they are at FCI Allenwood or somewhere else in the BOP.
4. Read the status carefully. A listing that shows a facility location indicates the person is currently in BOP custody at that institution.
5. Treat dates as “check again” information. Because sentences are being reviewed and recalculated under the First Step Act, the release date shown in the locator may not be up to date. Plan your next steps using the location, and keep checking back if something does not look right.

If you have the inmate's BOP register number, enter it exactly as the locator requires: five digits, a hyphen, then three digits (#####-###). That format matters. Leaving out the hyphen or entering the wrong number can cause failed searches or pull up the wrong record.

• ✓ Double-check every digit before you hit search
• ✓ Include the hyphen in the middle (#####-###)
• ✓ Remove extra spaces or characters
• ✓ If you do not have the register number, try a name search instead

If the locator shows "Released" or "Not in BOP Custody" with no facility location listed, the person is no longer in BOP custody. That doesn't always mean they're physically out, though. They may still be held by another correctional, criminal justice, or law enforcement agency, or they may be on parole or supervised release. When you see one of these statuses, pause your travel plans. Check the locator again periodically for updates, and use official BOP information to confirm what you're seeing before you plan a visit to FCI Allenwood or any other federal facility.