Self-surrender — the Bureau of Prisons calls it voluntary surrender — means reporting to a federal prison on your own, on a date the court set, without a marshal escorting you. It is not a courtesy. It is worth three points off the Bureau’s security point total under the Bureau’s own classification rules, it is the moment your sentence legally begins under 18 U.S.C. § 3585(a), and it is the moment First Step Act time credits start accruing.
Missing it is a separate federal crime. 18 U.S.C. § 3146(a)(2) punishes anyone who, having been released, knowingly “fails to surrender for service of sentence pursuant to a court order,” and § 3146(b)(2) requires that any prison term for that offense “be consecutive to the sentence of imprisonment for any other offense.”
This page covers the mechanics — how the date and location are set, what happens when a designation has not issued, what happens at the gate. For what to arrange in the weeks beforehand, see before you report.
Self-surrender at a glance
| Item | Rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Who authorizes it | The sentencing judge, in the judgment | 18 U.S.C. § 3143(a) |
| Standard the judge applies | Detention unless the court finds by clear and convincing evidence that the person is not likely to flee or pose a danger | § 3143(a)(1) |
| Classification credit | −3 points off the Security Point Total | PS 5100.08, Ch. 4 at p. 5; Ch. 6 at p. 8 |
| Definition for credit purposes | The person “was not escorted by a law enforcement officer to either the U.S. Marshals Office or the place of confinement” | PS 5100.08, Ch. 4 at p. 5 |
| Excluded from credit | Surrender to the U.S. Marshals on the same day as sentencing | PS 5100.08, Ch. 4 at p. 5 |
| Also excluded | Supervised release, mandatory release, and parole violators — even where the court approves surrender | PS 5100.08, Ch. 6 at p. 8 |
| Credit applies only to | The initial term of confinement | PS 5100.08, Ch. 4 at p. 6 |
| Who sets the date if the court did not | The Designation and Sentence Computation Center (DSCC) contacts the court to establish a mutually agreeable date | PS 5100.08, Ch. 4 at p. 6 |
| Who decides where you report | The DSCC notes whether the surrender is to the USMS or to the designated institution | PS 5100.08, Ch. 4 at p. 6 |
| When the sentence commences | The date received in custody awaiting transportation to, or arrives voluntarily to commence service of sentence at, the official detention facility | 18 U.S.C. § 3585(a) |
| When FSA credits start | The date the person “arrives or voluntarily surrenders at the designated Bureau facility where the sentence will be served” | PS 5410.01 at p. 13 |
| Failure to surrender | Separate offense; penalty scaled to the underlying offense; term is consecutive | 18 U.S.C. § 3146 |
| Walking away after arrival | Escape — up to 5 years where custody is by virtue of conviction of any offense | 18 U.S.C. § 751(a) |
Statutory text verified against the United States Code as of 12 July 2026; Program Statement text verified against the Bureau’s own policy on 7 September 2026. A Program Statement is agency policy, not law.
On this page
Why the judge has to allow it — and why the Bureau rewards it
Self-surrender is not automatic, and the default in the statute runs the other way. Under 18 U.S.C. § 3143(a)(1), a judicial officer “shall order that a person who has been found guilty of an offense and who is awaiting imposition or execution of sentence… be detained, unless the judicial officer finds by clear and convincing evidence that the person is not likely to flee or pose a danger to the safety of any other person or the community if released.”
For a defined set of serious offenses — those described in 18 U.S.C. § 3142(f)(1)(A), (B), or (C) — § 3143(a)(2) sets a stricter rule: detention is required unless the court finds a substantial likelihood that a motion for acquittal or new trial will be granted, or the government recommends that no sentence of imprisonment be imposed, and makes the clear-and-convincing finding on flight and danger.
Where a defendant is appealing and asks to stay out, the standard is different again and harder: § 3143(b) requires both the clear-and-convincing finding and a finding that the appeal “is not for the purpose of delay and raises a substantial question of law or fact likely to result in” reversal, a new trial, a non-custodial sentence, or a sentence shorter than time served plus the appeal. See appeal bond and release pending appeal.
Once the judge permits it, the Bureau treats voluntary surrender as a data point about the person. PS 5100.08, Chapter 4 at p. 5 provides that the voluntary surrender item “allows for the subtraction of three points from the Security Point Total… when the Judgment indicates the inmate was allowed to voluntarily surrender.” Chapter 6 at p. 8 applies the same −3 to the Base Score used in custody classification.
Three points is not a rounding error. Security point totals drive the security level of the institution a person is designated to — minimum, low, medium, or high — and the difference between adjacent levels is measured in single-digit point ranges. See security levels and security designation and custody classification.
The rule itself: what earns the −3 points
This is the rule that matters, and it is narrower than most people assume. The Bureau’s definition is exact.
| Requirement | What PS 5100.08 says | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Court authorization | “the Judgment indicates the inmate was allowed to voluntarily surrender” | Required |
| No law enforcement escort | “voluntary surrender means the inmate was not escorted by a law enforcement officer to either the U.S. Marshals Office or the place of confinement” | Required |
| Post-sentencing | “this item applies only to post-sentencing voluntary surrender” | Required |
| Not same-day | “does not include cases where the inmate surrendered to the U.S. Marshals on the same day as sentencing” | Disqualifying |
| Initial term only | “Voluntary Surrender Credit may only be applied to the initial term of confinement; it may not be applied to any subsequent Supervised Release, Mandatory Release or parole Violation return to custody” | Limiting |
| Violators excluded | “Supervised Release, Mandatory Release, and Parole Violators will not receive credit for Voluntary Surrender even if it is approved by the court” | Disqualifying |
Sources: PS 5100.08, Chapter 4 at pp. 5–6 (Security Designation Data, item 5); Chapter 6 at p. 8 (Custody Classification, item 7).
Two consequences follow, and both matter to real cases.
Surrendering to the marshals at the courthouse after sentencing does not earn the credit. The policy excludes same-day surrender to the USMS explicitly. If the point is to secure the −3, the judgment needs to set a future reporting date.
A person returning on a supervised release violation cannot get it, period. Even where the revocation judge permits surrender, PS 5100.08 Chapter 6 at p. 8 provides that violators “will not receive credit for Voluntary Surrender even if it is approved by the court.” Families who went through a self-surrender the first time are often surprised by this. See supervised release basics.
The policy also notes an administrative detail with a practical consequence: in cases where the court allows voluntary surrender “but the inmate will not receive (−3) points on this item the date will still be entered” on the form (PS 5100.08, Ch. 4 at p. 6). The surrender date is recorded either way — the credit is a separate question from the logistics.
Applied Insight — Christopher Zoukis, JD, MBA, Managing Director: The judgment is the document that controls, and it is written before anyone at the Bureau sees the case. Two things belong in it: an express finding that the defendant is permitted to voluntarily surrender, and — where the defense wants a particular institution — the court’s recommendation under 18 U.S.C. § 3621(b)(4), which the Bureau is required to consider. Neither is added later. If they are not in the judgment when it issues, the leverage is gone.
How the date and the location actually get set
Two questions decide what a surrender day looks like: when and where you report. Both are resolved by the same office.
The Designation and Sentence Computation Center (DSCC) in Grand Prairie, Texas, is the Bureau’s central designation office. It receives the Judgment and Commitment order, the Statement of Reasons, and the Presentence Report, builds the security designation on form BP-337, and issues the designation.
If the judgment sets a date, that is the date. It goes into item 5a of the designation form.
If the judgment permits surrender but names no date, PS 5100.08 Chapter 4 at p. 6 provides that “the DSCC will contact the court to establish a mutually agreeable date.” This is a real and underused fact: the date is negotiated between the DSCC and the court, and defense counsel who need a specific date should be raising it with the court rather than waiting for a letter.
The location is a separate entry. PS 5100.08 Chapter 4 at p. 6 provides that “[t]he DSCC will note whether the inmate is to voluntarily surrender to the USMS or to the designated institution.” Those are two very different days.
| If you report to… | What that means |
|---|---|
| The designated institution | You drive (or are driven) to the prison itself and report to the front lobby at the time in the letter. Intake happens there. This is the ordinary path when a designation has issued in time. |
| The U.S. Marshals Service | You report to the marshals’ office in the district, and the Marshals Service arranges transportation. This is what happens when the surrender date arrives before a designation has issued, and it usually means time in a contract detention facility first. |
The distinction is worth pressing on. Reporting directly to the designated institution is faster, less disruptive, and avoids a holdover stay. Reporting to the marshals frequently means weeks in a county jail or private detention facility under contract, where programming, commissary, visiting, and telephone access bear little resemblance to a federal institution.
The Bureau’s own separate policy explainer on voluntary surrender and unescorted transfers covers the parallel rule for people already in custody moving between institutions without an escort.
When no designation has issued by the surrender date
This is the single most common crisis in the weeks before reporting, and it has a specific answer: the surrender obligation is set by the court, not by the Bureau. A designation that has not issued does not excuse the date in the judgment.
What to do, in order:
- Confirm the designation status. Counsel contacts the DSCC or the U.S. Probation Officer who prepared the presentence report. Designation packets stall for identifiable reasons — a missing Statement of Reasons is one the Bureau names directly in PS 5100.08 as a cause of delay.
- Confirm the reporting instruction. If the DSCC has designated a surrender to the USMS rather than to an institution, that is the instruction to follow.
- If nothing has issued, counsel moves the court. The court that set the date is the only body that can change it. A motion to extend the surrender date, filed before the date, is the mechanism — not a phone call to the Bureau.
- Never simply not appear. Under 18 U.S.C. § 3146(c), the only affirmative defense is that “uncontrollable circumstances prevented the person from appearing or surrendering,” that the person “did not contribute to the creation of such circumstances in reckless disregard of the requirement to appear or surrender,” and that the person “appeared or surrendered as soon as such circumstances ceased to exist.” That is a narrow defense, and a pending designation is not obviously within it.
A note on appeals. Filing a notice of appeal does not stay a sentence. Under Fed. R. Crim. P. 38(b), “[i]f the defendant is released pending appeal, the court must stay a sentence of imprisonment” — the stay follows the release decision under § 3143(b), not the other way around. Rule 38(b)(2) adds one thing counsel should know: “[i]f the defendant is not released pending appeal, the court may recommend to the Attorney General that the defendant be confined near the place of the trial or appeal for a period reasonably necessary to permit the defendant to assist in preparing the appeal.”
What happens if you do not surrender
Two separate criminal statutes are in play, and which one applies turns on whether you had arrived.
Failure to surrender — 18 U.S.C. § 3146
Section 3146(a) provides that whoever, having been released, knowingly “(1) fails to appear before a court as required by the conditions of release; or (2) fails to surrender for service of sentence pursuant to a court order” shall be punished as provided in subsection (b).
The penalty scales to the offense the person was released in connection with:
| Underlying offense | Maximum for failure to surrender |
|---|---|
| Punishable by death, life imprisonment, or 15 years or more | Fine and/or up to 10 years |
| Punishable by 5 years or more | Fine and/or up to 5 years |
| Any other felony | Fine and/or up to 2 years |
| A misdemeanor | Fine and/or up to 1 year |
| Released as a material witness | Fine and/or up to 1 year |
Source: 18 U.S.C. § 3146(b)(1).
And the sentence stacks. Section 3146(b)(2) is one sentence long: “A term of imprisonment imposed under this section shall be consecutive to the sentence of imprisonment for any other offense.”
There are collateral consequences too. A failure to surrender is a fact the Bureau will have in the Judgment and Commitment file and the presentence report for the new offense; it bears directly on the security designation, on the Bureau’s willingness to consider community placement, and on the § 3553(a) analysis at any later sentencing.
Escape — 18 U.S.C. § 751
Once a person has arrived and is in custody, leaving is a different crime. Section 751(a) punishes whoever “escapes or attempts to escape from the custody of the Attorney General or his authorized representative, or from any institution or facility in which he is confined by direction of the Attorney General, or from any custody under or by virtue of any process issued under the laws of the United States.” Where “the custody or confinement is by virtue of an arrest on a charge of felony, or conviction of any offense,” the penalty is a fine “or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.” Where custody is for extradition, immigration exclusion or expulsion proceedings, or a misdemeanor arrest before conviction, the maximum is one year.
The line between the two statutes is arrival. A person who never reports is charged under § 3146; a person who reports and then leaves — including walking away from a minimum-security camp or a halfway house — is in § 751 territory. An escape conviction or even escape history also carries lasting classification consequences: it is a Public Safety Factor consideration in designation and is listed in the Bureau’s community-corrections policy among the circumstances requiring careful review of any halfway house placement (PS 7310.04 at pp. 10, 12).
The day itself
The Bureau does not publish a single national self-surrender procedure — reporting time, entrance, and what may be carried in vary by institution, and the designation letter is the controlling instruction. What is common across facilities is the sequence.
Report at the time in the letter, to the entrance in the letter. Arriving early is fine; arriving late is not. Bring a government-issued photo ID and the designation letter itself.
Bring almost nothing else. Property rules vary by institution and nearly everything is refused at the door. The realistic list is: photo ID, the designation letter, a small amount of cash or a money order for the commissary account, and a written list of names, addresses, and phone numbers — because phones are surrendered and nothing in them survives. Prescription medication in its original labeled container should be brought, but it will be reviewed by Health Services and is not guaranteed to be continued as prescribed. Whoever drives should expect to leave immediately, take the car, phone, wallet, and keys, and not wait. The full preparation checklist — money, mail, medical records, powers of attorney, employment and family logistics — is at before you report and how to prepare for prison.
Intake follows. Photographs, fingerprints, a register number, a medical and mental health screening, an initial custody classification, and assignment to Admission and Orientation. That process is the same whether a person arrived voluntarily or in a transport van, and it is covered at your first day in prison and the intake process.
Two clocks start. The sentence commences under 18 U.S.C. § 3585(a) on “the date the defendant is received in custody awaiting transportation to, or arrives voluntarily to commence service of sentence at, the official detention facility at which the sentence is to be served.” Separately, First Step Act time credits begin accruing at the same moment: the Bureau’s policy states that credits begin “after the inmate’s term of imprisonment commences (e.g., the date the inmate arrives at or voluntary surrenders to their initially designated Bureau facility to serve their sentence),” and that no credits accrue “when in U.S. Marshals Service custody prior to arriving at their designated facility, regardless of where they are housed” (PS 5410.01 at pp. 13–14).
That last sentence is the practical argument for reporting directly to an institution rather than to the marshals. Time spent in a contract facility awaiting transport counts toward the sentence, because under § 3585(a) the sentence commences when the person is received in custody awaiting transportation — it is not lost time — but it is not First Step Act earning time. See prior custody credit and First Step Act time credits.
Someone on the outside should be able to find the person. The Bureau’s public inmate locator updates once the register number is assigned. See inmate locator and, for families, how to send money to federal inmates.
Frequently Asked Questions About Self-Surrender
What is self-surrender in a federal case?
Self-surrender, which the Bureau of Prisons calls voluntary surrender, is reporting to begin a federal sentence on your own — without a law enforcement escort — on a date set by the sentencing court. The judge must authorize it: under 18 U.S.C. § 3143(a)(1) a person awaiting execution of sentence is detained “unless the judicial officer finds by clear and convincing evidence that the person is not likely to flee or pose a danger to the safety of any other person or the community.” Where the judgment permits it, the Bureau records it and, if the definition is met, subtracts three points from the security point total under PS 5100.08, Chapter 4 at p. 5.
Does self-surrender actually help with which prison you go to?
It affects the arithmetic that produces the answer. PS 5100.08 at Chapter 4 p. 5 provides for “the subtraction of three points from the Security Point Total… when the Judgment indicates the inmate was allowed to voluntarily surrender,” and Chapter 6 at p. 8 applies the same three-point reduction to the Base Score in custody classification. Because security point totals determine the security level a person classifies to, three points can matter. It is one input among many — the offense, criminal history, detainers, Public Safety Factors, and the sentencing court’s own recommendation under 18 U.S.C. § 3621(b) all feed the same designation — and no one can tell you in advance where the Bureau will designate a particular person.
Who sets the self-surrender date?
The sentencing court, in the judgment. If the court permits voluntary surrender but does not name a date, PS 5100.08, Chapter 4 at p. 6 provides that “the DSCC will contact the court to establish a mutually agreeable date” — the Bureau’s Designation and Sentence Computation Center works it out with the court. Where the date needs to change, the motion goes to the court that set it, before the date, not to the Bureau.
Do you report to the prison or to the U.S. Marshals?
Either, and the Bureau records which. PS 5100.08, Chapter 4 at p. 6 provides that “[t]he DSCC will note whether the inmate is to voluntarily surrender to the USMS or to the designated institution.” Reporting directly to the designated institution is the ordinary path when a designation has issued in time. Reporting to the Marshals Service generally means the Marshals arrange transportation, which often involves a stay in a contract detention facility first. The designation letter states which applies.
What happens if the Bureau has not designated a facility by the surrender date?
The court’s date still governs — a pending designation is not a self-executing extension. Counsel should confirm the designation status with the DSCC or the U.S. Probation Officer, confirm whether the instruction is to report to the Marshals Service instead, and, if neither has issued, move the court to extend the surrender date before the date passes. Simply not appearing exposes a person to prosecution under 18 U.S.C. § 3146, whose only affirmative defense requires “uncontrollable circumstances,” no reckless contribution to those circumstances, and surrender “as soon as such circumstances ceased to exist.”
What is the penalty for failing to surrender for a federal sentence?
Section 3146(a)(2) makes it a separate federal offense to knowingly fail “to surrender for service of sentence pursuant to a court order.” The maximum under § 3146(b)(1) depends on the underlying offense: up to 10 years where that offense was punishable by death, life, or 15 years or more; up to 5 years where it was punishable by 5 years or more; up to 2 years for any other felony; and up to 1 year for a misdemeanor. Section 3146(b)(2) requires that any term “be consecutive to the sentence of imprisonment for any other offense” — it is added on top, not absorbed.
Is leaving a prison camp after you arrive the same offense?
No — it is escape under 18 U.S.C. § 751(a), which punishes escape or attempted escape “from the custody of the Attorney General… or from any institution or facility in which he is confined by direction of the Attorney General.” Where custody is “by virtue of an arrest on a charge of felony, or conviction of any offense,” the maximum is five years. The distinction from § 3146 is arrival: a person who never reports is charged with failure to surrender; a person who reports and then leaves is charged with escape. Escape history also carries lasting classification consequences in designation and in halfway house consideration.
Does self-surrender affect First Step Act time credits?
It sets the start date. Under 18 U.S.C. § 3585(a), a sentence commences on the date the defendant “is received in custody awaiting transportation to, or arrives voluntarily to commence service of sentence at, the official detention facility at which the sentence is to be served.” The Bureau’s First Step Act policy ties earning to the same event: credits begin “after the inmate’s term of imprisonment commences (e.g., the date the inmate arrives at or voluntary surrenders to their initially designated Bureau facility),” and no credits accrue “when in U.S. Marshals Service custody prior to arriving at their designated facility, regardless of where they are housed” (PS 5410.01 at pp. 13–14). Time in a contract facility awaiting transport still counts toward the sentence, which commences under § 3585(a) when the person is received in custody awaiting transportation — but it is not First Step Act earning time.
Who does not get the voluntary surrender credit?
Three groups, under PS 5100.08. People who surrendered to the marshals on the day of sentencing: Chapter 4 at p. 5 states the item “applies only to post-sentencing voluntary surrender, and does not include cases where the inmate surrendered to the U.S. Marshals on the same day as sentencing.” Anyone escorted by law enforcement: the same page defines voluntary surrender as meaning the person “was not escorted by a law enforcement officer to either the U.S. Marshals Office or the place of confinement.” And supervised release, mandatory release, and parole violators: Chapter 6 at p. 8 states they “will not receive credit for Voluntary Surrender even if it is approved by the court,” and Chapter 4 at p. 6 confirms the credit “may only be applied to the initial term of confinement.” For a violator, the logistics of surrendering may still be available; the three points are not.
Does filing an appeal delay the surrender date?
Not by itself. Under Fed. R. Crim. P. 38(b), “[i]f the defendant is released pending appeal, the court must stay a sentence of imprisonment” — so the stay follows a release decision made under 18 U.S.C. § 3143(b), which requires both clear and convincing evidence of no flight risk or danger and a finding that the appeal “raises a substantial question of law or fact” likely to produce reversal, a new trial, a non-custodial sentence, or a shorter one. Rule 38(b)(2) adds that if the defendant is not released, “the court may recommend to the Attorney General that the defendant be confined near the place of the trial or appeal for a period reasonably necessary to permit the defendant to assist in preparing the appeal.”
Reviewed for legal accuracy by Elizabeth Franklin-Best, Esq., Principal Attorney·September 2026