How to Get Approved to Visit Someone at Ohio Reformatory: Step-by-Step Application Guide

Forms Required

• ✓ Visitor Application (DRC2096) for adults, also provided as DRC-2096 E in the visiting packet. This application asks for information such as your relationship to the incarcerated person and whether you have prior incarceration or are on probation or parole.
• ✓ Declaration of Understanding (DRC2554), signed.
• ✓ ODRC General Visiting Instructions (DRC2274), signed.
• ✓ A legible copy of your photo ID. This is required with the application materials.

Your paperwork ties directly to the incarcerated person's approved visiting list, and that list has limits. Under ODRC policy, the list can include up to 15 approved adult visitors, with no more than two friends. On top of that, each institution's managing officer has discretion over how visiting works locally: how many visitors are allowed at a time, how often visits happen, how long they last, which visits get priority, and the visiting hours. This is why submitting clean, complete forms early matters, especially if several family members are all applying.

1. Complete DRC2096 and gather your documents: You will need the visitor application, signed DRC2554, signed DRC2274, and a legible copy of your bona fide identification.
2. Choose a submission method: ODRC allows you to send the application through U.S. Mail, email it, fax it, or drop it off in person.
3. Submit one complete packet: However you submit it, make sure the packet is complete. Missing signatures or a hard-to-read ID copy can slow down processing.

Before you can visit, staff review everything you submitted. They're checking for a completed DRC2096, the required signatures on DRC2554 and DRC2274, and a copy of your bona fide identification. If anything is incomplete, approval can stall. Visitation still won't be granted until you are approved and notified.

• ✓ Confirming you submitted a complete Visitor Application (DRC2096)
• ✓ Confirming DRC2554 (Declaration of Understanding) is signed
• ✓ Confirming DRC2274 (General Visiting Instructions) is signed
• ✓ Reviewing your identification copy to make sure it is bona fide and legible
• ✓ Processing the application before any visit is granted, then approving and notifying you

Plan on needing approval before you can visit. ODRC policy is clear: visitation is not granted until the application has been processed, you've been approved, and you've been notified. For reception situations specifically, adults requesting to visit an incarcerated person during reception are expected to submit a complete DRC2096, signed DRC2554, signed DRC2274, and a copy of bona fide identification at the time of the first visit. Because the managing officer at each institution sets local visiting numbers, priority, and hours, confirm how Ohio Reformatory handles visits for someone in reception before you make the trip.

1. Wait for approval: You cannot schedule a visit until your visitor application is approved.
2. Register on GTL VisitMe: After approval, you must register on the GTL VisitMe system to make a visit reservation.
3. Make your reservation: Once your account is set up, use the portal to schedule the visit.

• ✓ Pick the date, time, and location that works best for you
• ✓ Reserve a time in advance, which helps you avoid long lines
• ✓ Get instant confirmation once the visit is scheduled

Tips Troubleshooting

• ✓ Keep a copy of everything you submit (DRC2096, signed DRC2554, signed DRC2274) plus the ID copy you included
• ✓ If you email, fax, mail, or drop off your application, save proof of what you sent and when
• ✓ Do not travel expecting to visit until you have been approved and notified