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Visitation

First-Time Visitor Checklist: What to Bring (and Leave Behind) for Connecticut DOC Facilities — including Northern CI

Your first visit to a Connecticut DOC facility goes smoother when you bring the right items—and leave behind the ones that'll get you turned away. Here's your checklist for Northern Correctional Institution (Northern CI) and other CT DOC facilities.

• 2 min read • portal.ct.gov
First-Time Visitor Checklist: What to Bring (and Leave Behind) for Connecticut DOC Facilities — including Northern CI

Before you make the drive, use the Connecticut DOC Inmate Search to confirm where your loved one is housed. People get moved between facilities more often than you'd think. Showing up at Northern CI when your person is actually somewhere else? Easy mistake, especially on a first visit.

  • ✓ Make sure you’re on the inmate’s approved visiting list before you go.
  • ✓ If you’re not sure you’ve been approved yet, get confirmation first - don’t assume you can be added at the door.
  • ✓ If you need to start the process, the inmate has to have you added to their approved visiting list before you can visit.

Bring a valid photo ID. Every visitor needs one to enter Northern CI - no exceptions. Forget it or bring something that doesn't qualify, and your visit ends before it starts.

Leave electronics behind: Cell phones and other electronic devices aren’t permitted inside Northern CI. Plan ahead so you can store them securely off-site (most people leave them locked in their vehicle).

Northern CI allows a maximum of two visitors at a time - and that includes children. If you're coming as a family, plan your group carefully. Show up with three people, and someone's waiting in the car.

Visits are currently limited to 30 minutes (until further notice) to allow for disinfection between sessions. Arrive ready to make the most of your time.

  • ✓ Visitation is not held on state-observed holidays.
  • ✓ Examples include New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day.

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Before Your First Visit to Northern CI: What to Bring and What to Leave Behind

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Getting on the Visiting List at Northern CI: What You Need to Know

If you show up to Northern Correctional Institution without being approved first, you'll be turned away at the door. Here's how the approved visiting list works, what can affect it, and who to contact when you need help.