How to deposit funds, commissary, and payment options
To add money for someone at Hobby Unit, you must be an approved sender—either on the inmate's Approved Visitation List or on the Inmate Telephone (Approved Phone) List (which can include a phone registered with Securus). Don't mail cash or personal checks for deposits. They aren't accepted and will be returned. Keep timing in mind: single transactions of $500 or more (and certain checks) are placed on a 14-day hold before the inmate can use the funds. For eCommDirect, purchases are limited to one per inmate per day. Quarterly caps are $70 for Jan–Mar, Apr–Jun, and Jul–Sep, and $95 for Oct–Dec. Orders typically arrive within five business days after TDCJ receives the transaction. Fees apply: $3.75 purchase fee, plus deposit fees of $2.50 plus 2.25%.
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Sending money or ordering commissary for someone at the Hobby Unit can be confusing—especially when TDCJ rules trip you up and cause delays. Here are the five questions families ask most, along with the rules that actually matter.
Sending money to someone at the Hobby Unit is straightforward once you know two key rules: you must be an approved sender, and cash or personal checks won't be accepted—they'll be returned.
Only people on the inmate’s Approved Visitation List or the Inmate Telephone (Approved Phone) List can deposit money for someone at the Hobby Unit. The inmate can add you to the visitation list, or you can register your phone with Securus to appear on the Approved Phone List.
No. Cash and personal checks sent for inmate deposits aren’t accepted and will be returned to the sender. Use approved deposit methods through the unit’s allowed vendor/kiosk options or eCommDirect instead.
eCommDirect allows one purchase per inmate per day, with quarterly caps of $70 for Jan–Mar, Apr–Jun, and Jul–Sep, and $95 for Oct–Dec. Fees apply, including a $3.75 purchase fee and deposit fees of $2.50 plus 2.25% (and combined deposit+purchase fees may apply). Purchases are normally delivered within five business days after TDCJ receives the purchase details, but unit security and staffing can delay delivery.
Getting on (and staying on) an inmate's Visitors List at Hobby Unit comes down to a few rules: the list has a hard size limit, changes only happen on a set timeline, and removals have a short appeal window. Here's how to handle each part.
Getting calls and remote video visits from Hobby Unit starts with phone registration. Here's how enrollment works, what you'll need, what to expect during calls, and how to schedule the $10 remote video visit option.
If your loved one is at the Hobby Unit, you'll need to register your phone number before calls can come through. Once that's done, calls follow TDCJ's statewide rules—set hours, time limits, and monitoring.
