Before Your First Visit to FCI Englewood: Step-by-Step Checklist

At a Glance

• ✓ Confirm the inmate has added you to their approved visiting list before you go.
• ✓ Bring a valid, government-issued photo ID if you’re age 16 or older (driver’s license, state ID, military ID, passport, or U.S. Permanent Resident card).
• ✓ Don’t rely on a Matricular ID card (Mexican Consulate) or a B1/B2 Visa/Border Crossing card - those aren’t accepted for entrance.
• ✓ Plan to travel light: all bags entering the facility must be clear.
• ✓ Have a plan for anything you can’t bring in - small lockers are available in the Front Lobby, but the institution isn’t responsible for missing or stolen items.
• ✓ Build in extra time and avoid the count closure window: visiting processing is closed from 9:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. for count.

Before you make the drive, confirm you're actually on the inmate's approved visiting list. At FCI and FPC Englewood, inmates can request up to 10 friends in addition to immediate family and relatives - but the request has to be submitted and approved first. Timing matters here. If your loved one just arrived at FCI/FPC/FDC Englewood, they can submit an initial visitor request within the first 60 days. After that window closes, visiting lists can only be changed once per quarter - January, April, July, and October. Last-minute additions usually aren't possible.

• ✓ Your full address
• ✓ Your phone number (if known)
• ✓ Your Social Security number
• ✓ Your birth date

Everyone proposed for the visiting list at the FCI and FPC goes through an NCIC background check before they're allowed to visit. If the check turns up any warrants, you'll be denied visiting privileges until the warrant is resolved. One more thing: visitors who aren't on the approved list almost never get in. If someone wasn't added before the inmate arrived, only immediate family identified in the inmate's PSI may be permitted to visit.

If you're 16 or older, you'll need valid picture identification to enter the visiting room at FCI Englewood. Accepted forms include a valid driver's license, state identification card, military identification, passport, or U.S. Immigration card (Permanent Resident card). If your ID is damaged, hard to read, or doesn't match your current name, fix it before you go. Getting turned away over an ID issue is one of the easiest ways to lose a visit.

Visiting as a common-law spouse? Englewood can recognize that relationship for visiting purposes, but you'll need documentation proving your common-law status. The facility wants evidence the relationship is established - not just a label.

1. Screen in and sign the visitor logbook - All visitors must be screened in and sign the visitor logbook before admission.
2. Read and sign the BP-A0224 Notification to Visitor Form - You’ll sign this during intake; it explains Title 18 U.S.C. penalties for bringing prohibited items onto institution grounds.

1. Pass through the walk-through metal detector - You must clear the metal detector successfully to enter.
2. Keep bags simple and searchable - Any items staff can’t search thoroughly (including some purses) won’t be allowed inside.
3. Use the Front Lobby lockers if you need to - Small lockers are available, but the institution isn’t responsible for items missing or stolen. And remember: all bags entering the facility must be clear.

At Englewood, FCI and FPC inmates get 40 visiting points per month. Weekend and holiday visits use points faster - two points per hour instead of one. Watch the clock. At the FCI, FDC, and FPC, any visit over 15 minutes counts as a full hour. Even a short visit "costs" a full hour once you pass that 15-minute mark.

Visitor limits can affect your plans, especially if you're traveling with family. Due to limited space at the FCI/FPC/FDC, inmates are allowed only three adult visitors per visit. Children 16 or older count as adults. SHU visits have tighter rules: one hour per day, maximum of two visitors. If no one else is waiting, staff may grant a one-hour extension - but SHU social visits won't exceed two hours total.

The background check is one of the most common reasons people get blocked at the door. All proposed visitors go through an NCIC check, and any outstanding warrants mean you'll be denied entry until the warrant is resolved. If you think something might come up, handle it before you travel. A wasted trip is hard enough - it's worse when it was preventable.