Visiting Mass Treatment Center When Your Loved One Just Arrived: What the First 40 Days Look Like
The first few weeks after someone arrives can be confusing — visiting works differently while approvals are still pending. Here's how the temporary visitor allowance, the 30-day visitor list, and the 40-business-day deadline all fit together.
When your loved one first arrives at a Department institution, they can have visitors right away - even before the pre-approval process finishes. Two visitors, plus a reasonable number of children, are allowed during this temporary period. If you're hoping to visit early, figure out who those two visitors will be sooner rather than later. You don't want to lose time or assume someone can visit when they're not covered by the temporary allowance.
Note: Visiting hours are subject to change. Call the institution to verify the current hours before you make the trip.
Your loved one has a deadline on their end: they need to submit an Inmate Visitor Listing within 30 days of admission. This list matters. Anyone added later - on a subsequent list - can't visit until they're fully approved. If you're not on that first list, you might still get in as one of the two temporary visitors. Otherwise, you'll be waiting for approval before you can see them.
The temporary window doesn't last forever. Those two visitors allowed while approval is pending become inactive after 40 business days - unless they've been properly approved through the application process. Since "business days" means weekdays only, the cutoff lands later than you'd expect if you're counting calendar days.
What "inactive" means: After the 40-business-day mark, those two temporary visitors lose their pending-approval access. From that point on, visiting depends on being fully approved through the normal process.
- Fill out the Visitor Application Form - complete it fully and carefully so it can be processed.
- Mail the form to the institution you intend to visit - send it directly to the specific institution where your loved one is housed.
- ✓ Call the institution to verify current visiting hours before you go.
- ✓ Follow up by phone to make sure your mailed Visitor Application Form is received and moving through processing.
- ✓ Keep the 40-business-day cutoff in mind so the two temporary visitors don’t become inactive before approval is completed.
During the first 40 days, work with the system instead of against it. Temporary visiting is limited to two visitors (plus a reasonable number of children), so coordinate with your family early about who fills those slots. Make sure your loved one submits their Inmate Visitor Listing within the first 30 days - anyone added later won't be able to visit until they're approved. And don't let the application sit: if the two temporary visitors aren't properly approved within 40 business days, that temporary access goes away. Then you're back to waiting for approval before you can visit again.
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