How to Visit Facility
Visiting someone at Hays State Prison comes down to two things: knowing which visitation schedule applies to your loved one and getting your request submitted on time. Here are the current visitation windows and the basics of how Georgia DOC approves visitors and schedules visits.
General population visitation at Hays State Prison runs 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM on Saturdays, Sundays, and state holidays. If the person you're visiting is in general population, plan around those days and times.
Tier I/II and Step Down visitation follows a different schedule. These visits happen 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM on Wednesday and Friday, and they're by appointment only. If your loved one is in one of these groups, the weekend general population schedule does not apply to you.
Timing matters. For weekend visits, the cutoff to submit your request through the Georgia DOC system is 5:00 PM on Wednesday of the same week. For state holidays, the cutoff is 5:00 PM three days before the holiday. Don't wait until the last minute.
Before you can visit, you need to be approved. The process starts with the Georgia DOC Visitation Request Form. Fill it out and submit the completed form to the facility where the incarcerated person is housed. Once you're approved, you schedule individual visits through the Georgia DOC "Request a visit" process.
Already have a visit on the books? Georgia DOC gives you tools to adjust your plans. Need to bring someone else along? Use the "Add Visitor" link to find your scheduled visitation and add additional visitors. Can't make it? Use the "Cancel my visit" link to find and cancel your appointment.
- Become an approved visitor. Fill out the Georgia DOC Visitation Request Form and submit the completed form to the facility where your loved one is incarcerated.
- Request a scheduled visit. Use the Georgia DOC visitation request form process to submit a request for a scheduled visit.
- Match the schedule to your loved one’s status. General population visits run 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM on Saturdays, Sundays, and state holidays. Tier I/II and Step Down visits run 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM on Wednesday and Friday, by appointment only.
- Submit your request before the cutoff. Weekend visits must be requested by 5:00 PM on Wednesday of the same week. State holiday visits must be requested by 5:00 PM three days before the holiday.
- ✓ Use the “Add Visitor” link if you already have a scheduled visit and need to add additional visitors.
- ✓ Use the “Cancel my visit” link if you need to find and cancel a scheduled visitation appointment.
What to Verify
- ✓ Confirm the current general population visitation window (9:00 AM to 3:00 PM on Saturdays, Sundays, and state holidays).
- ✓ Confirm whether your loved one is scheduled under general population visitation or Tier I/II and Step Down visitation (Wednesday and Friday, 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM, by appointment only).
- ✓ Confirm the current request cutoffs in the Georgia DOC system (5:00 PM Wednesday for weekend visits, 5:00 PM three days before a state holiday for holiday visits).
Double-check that you're using the correct Georgia DOC Visitation Request Form and the right "Request a visit" process for scheduling. Also verify exactly how the facility expects you to submit the completed form (and where to send it), since approval requires submitting it directly to the facility where your loved one is housed.
Planning to update an existing appointment? Make sure you can access the Georgia DOC tools you need. The system has an "Add Visitor" option to find a previously scheduled visitation and add people, and a "Cancel my visit" option to find and cancel a scheduled visit.
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