Mailing Letters to Someone at North Idaho Correctional Institution: Correct Address and What You Can Send

Skip the department's general Boise PO Box. Use the mailing address listed on NICI's individual facility page - that's where mail for this specific prison should go.

NICI is a program-focused prison north of Cottonwood with an operating capacity of 428 male residents. It's a standalone facility, not just a general IDOC mailing hub - so using the NICI-specific address ensures your mail gets routed correctly.

Residents at NICI can receive personal letters from family and friends. Stick to regular mail - packages aren't allowed, and sending one is a common reason mail gets rejected or returned.

• ✓ Photos are allowed.
• ✓ Polaroids are not allowed.
• ✓ Photos with nudity are not allowed.

Personal letters are opened and searched for contraband before delivery. This is standard processing at NICI, so don't include anything inside a letter that you wouldn't want staff to see during screening.

If staff find something unacceptable, it won't be delivered. Depending on what it is, those items may be returned to you or turned over to authorities - so keep every piece of mail plain and clean.

IDOC recognizes "confidential mail" to or from certain officials - the governor or legislature, for example. At NICI, staff will open and inspect these envelopes in the resident's presence, but they won't read the contents.

For everyday personal correspondence, the rule is straightforward: letters are opened and searched for contraband. If you're mailing anything sensitive, know which category it falls under before sending. NICI screens mail as part of standard facility safety procedures.

If the resident is indigent (has no funds), NICI provides stationery and postage for one personal letter per week. This helps set expectations about how often they can write back when money on their account is tight.

1. Use the NICI facility-page mailing address - NICI mail should go to the address listed on NICI’s individual facility page, not the department’s general Boise PO Box.
2. Make the recipient easy to identify - Put the resident’s name clearly, and add their IDOC number if you have it so mailroom staff can route it accurately.
3. Keep it specific to this facility - Because NICI is its own program-specific institution north of Cottonwood, addressing it to NICI (not a generic IDOC address) helps avoid delays and misrouting.

• ✓ Packages (NICI residents can receive letters, not packages)
• ✓ Polaroid photos
• ✓ Photos with nudity
• ✓ Anything you wouldn’t want rejected, returned to you, or turned over to proper authorities if it’s considered unacceptable

Quick Summary

• ✓ Use the mailing address listed on NICI’s individual facility page (not the general Boise PO Box).
• ✓ Letters are allowed; packages are not.
• ✓ Photos are allowed, but no Polaroids and no nudity.
• ✓ Personal letters will be opened and searched for contraband.
• ✓ Unacceptable items can be returned to the sender or turned over to proper authorities.
• ✓ Indigent residents get stationery and postage for one personal letter per week.