Where to Actually Send Money for an Inmate at FCI Gilmer (Don’t Use the Facility Address)

Don’t mail money to FCI Gilmer using the facility’s street or mailing address. For inmates at FCI Gilmer, all funds sent through the mail must be addressed to a processing center in Des Moines, Iowa.

Using the prison's address feels like the obvious choice. It's also the fastest way to create a problem for yourself. FCI Gilmer's guidance is clear: money sent through the mail should not be addressed to the facility. This isn't unique to FCI Gilmer. The same rule applies across all federal prisons. No matter which federal facility your person is in, mailed funds go to the processing center, not the institution.

Once funds are received and credited, they land in the inmate's commissary account. FCI Gilmer's commissary maintains this like a bank account, holding deposits from family, friends, or other sources.

Your loved one uses that commissary account to buy items not regularly issued by the institution. The money you send lets them purchase approved extras through commissary.

Since mailed funds for FCI Gilmer must go to the Des Moines, Iowa processing center, pull the current official instructions before you send anything. Check the Bureau of Prisons information on how to send money, and look at the FCI Gilmer facility page for location-specific details. Got a question about FCI Gilmer's specific procedures (what they accept, how to address it)? Contact the facility directly, not the BOP Central Office. The BOP's own guidance says to route facility-specific questions to that facility's web page.

• ✓ Confirm that mailed funds are addressed to the Des Moines, Iowa processing center (not the FCI Gilmer address).
• ✓ Check the official BOP instructions for the currently approved ways to send money.
• ✓ Use the inmate’s correct identifying information exactly as required in the BOP instructions.
• ✓ Keep any receipts, confirmations, or tracking details until the funds show up in the commissary account.
• ✓ If something is unclear, use the contact information on the FCI Gilmer facility web page to ask the facility directly.