A person in federal prison can spend $460 a month in the commissary — the prison store, which most people inside call the canteen or “store day.” That figure rose from $360 on May 7, 2026, when the Bureau of Prisons issued Program Statement 4500.13, the Trust Fund/Deposit Fund Manual, replacing PS 4500.12 CN-1. Almost every page you will find on this subject still says $360.
The current numbers, in one place
| What | Current figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly commissary spending limitation | $460 | PS 4500.13 at p. 28 |
| November/December holiday period | $510 ($460 + $50) | PS 4500.13 at p. 28 |
| Items excluded from the limit | 8 categories (below) | PS 4500.13 at p. 28 |
| Spending limit if flagged “IFRP refuse” | at least $25/month | 28 C.F.R. § 545.11(d)(6) |
| Mark-up on standard items | cost + 30% (base), adjusted annually by national CPI | PS 4500.13 at p. 38 |
| Maximum item price (general rule) | under $100 including mark-up | PS 4500.13 at p. 37 |
| Athletic specialty shoes / work shoes / watches | $150 maximum selling price | PS 4500.13 at pp. 31, 33 |
| Mattresses | $175 maximum selling price | PS 4500.13 at p. 34 |
| Special Purpose Orders | 1 per month; $600 per quarter incl. mark-up and shipping | PS 4500.13 at p. 40 |
| Total items a commissary may stock | 600, excluding OTC medications and healthy food options | PS 4500.13 at p. 30 |
| Postage stamps per visit | 20 (first-class, domestic, 1-ounce, or equivalent) | 28 C.F.R. § 540.21(a)(2) |
| Shelf-stable kosher/halal entrees | 14 per visit; 21 maximum in possession | PS 4500.13 at p. 30 |
Figures verified against the Bureau’s own manual, PS 4500.13, effective May 7, 2026. A Program Statement is agency policy, not law — the regulation binds the Bureau; the manual is the Bureau’s instruction for applying it.
On this page
What the commissary actually is
The commissary is a store inside the institution that sells food, hygiene items, clothing, stamps, and a short list of approved goods to people held there. It is run by the institution’s Trust Fund department, and it is the only place they can buy anything: “The institution Trust Fund operation is the sole agency for purchase by inmates of approved articles or services not routinely supplied by the institution” (PS 4500.13 at p. 16).
Nothing is bought with cash. Money in a person’s hands inside a federal prison is contraband. Purchases are debited from the individual’s commissary account — formally the Inmate Deposit Fund, U.S. Treasury account 15X6085 — which is where deposits from family, prison wages, and any other income land. If you want to understand how the money gets in there, that is a separate walkthrough: see how to send money to a federal inmate.
The arrangement is old. In 1930, DOJ Circular No. 2126 authorized a commissary at each institution to provide “a bank-type account for inmate monies” and to procure “articles not regularly issued as part of the institution administration.” In 1934 Congress designated the funds of federal prisoners and the commissary funds as trust funds under 31 U.S.C. § 1321, which is why the money is held in trust rather than owned by the Bureau (PS 4500.13 at p. 15).
One thing to understand before anything else: the manual describes commissary access as a privilege, not an entitlement. “The use of Trust Fund services is, however, a privilege; the Warden or an authorized representative may limit or deny the privilege of a particular inmate. Similarly, the maximum amount that may be expended by an inmate for Trust Fund items or services is a controllable privilege” (PS 4500.13 at p. 16). That single sentence is the legal foundation for every restriction described further down this page.
The $460 monthly spending limitation — and the eight things it does not cover
Here is the operative rule, from the manual itself:
“To lessen the disparity between affluent inmates and inmates with few resources, the Bureau implements a spending limitation of $460 per month. The spending limitation is the maximum amount an inmate is allowed to spend per month on sales items not excluded from the monthly spending limitation… The spending limitation will be increased by $50 during the November/December holiday period.” — PS 4500.13 at p. 28
The increased holiday limit is “in effect for no more than one validation period” — meaning the extra $50 is a one-time bump, not a standing December allowance. The limit is revalidated automatically once per month for each person, “except where weekly or bi-weekly validation is used,” which some institutions do (PS 4500.13 at p. 29).
The exclusion list is the part almost nobody publishes, and it is the reason the limit is easier to live with than the number suggests. Per PS 4500.13 at p. 28, “the only items excluded from the spending limitation are”:
| Excluded from the $460 limit | Note |
|---|---|
| Postage stamps | Subject to a separate 20-per-visit cap and a 60-stamp possession limit |
| Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) patches or lozenges | Requires a health-care provider’s written authorization |
| Over-the-counter medications, medical products, and vitamin/mineral supplements | From the approved list; at least 25 must be stocked |
| Kosher/Halal shelf-stable entrees for people in IFRP Refusal status | Cannot be denied even to someone on the $25 restriction |
| Copy cards and copy paper | Legal work and correspondence |
| Footwear, including sneakers and safety shoes | Newly excluded in the 2026 edition |
| Mattresses | Newly excluded in the 2026 edition |
| Secured media device | Newly excluded in the 2026 edition; formerly called an “MP3 player” |
Four of those — nicotine lozenges, sneakers, mattresses, and the secured media device — were added to the exclusion list in the May 2026 revision (Summary of Changes, PS 4500.13 at p. 2). If your loved one has been told they cannot buy shoes because it would blow their monthly limit, that is no longer how the rule reads.
The Warden also retains authority to set local controls on top of the national limit: “local controls, including quantity limitations, may be set to restrict trafficking of Commissary items” (PS 4500.13 at p. 28). That is why one institution caps coffee at two bags and another does not. When somebody tells you “that’s the rule here,” they are usually describing the institution supplement — the local implementing document the manual requires each institution to write (PS 4500.13 at pp. 11–12).
How shopping actually works
The manual sets the framework; the institution sets the schedule. “The number of times an inmate may visit the Commissary is controlled by the administration of each institution. The number of visits and hours of Trust Fund operations are set in accordance with staff resources” (PS 4500.13 at p. 16). In practice most people get one store day a week, assigned by housing unit.
New in the 2026 edition, and worth knowing if your calls home have been full of complaints about the store being shut:
“Commissary will be open daily, except in cases of scheduled inventories, emergency situations, or upon direction or notification from the Trust Fund Branch, Central Office. In the event of a Commissary closure for reasons other than those specified, a written memorandum identifying the reason for the closure and its anticipated duration must be immediately prepared and routed from the Warden through the Regional Trust Fund Administrator to the Chief, Trust Fund Branch. This requirement includes closures resulting from staffing shortages.” — PS 4500.13 at p. 16
That last sentence is new and it matters. A commissary closed for a week because the institution is short-staffed is now supposed to generate a paper trail that goes to Central Office. If closures are chronic, that memorandum requirement is the hook for an administrative remedy or an inmate request to staff.
The sale itself runs like this:
- Prepare a list. Institutions “distribute lists of Commissary items and their selling prices to help inmates prepare shopping lists in advance” (PS 4500.13 at p. 39). Locally approved items are posted only in the commissary area itself (PS 4500.13 at p. 29).
- Identify. The salesperson uses the inmate identification card or official picture card — “photocopies or the image stored in TRUFACS are not accepted” — or, at institutions using biometrics, a fingerprint (PS 4500.13 at pp. 41, 43).
- Pay first, receive second. “Under no circumstances will inmates be allowed to receive any item from the Commissary until the item has been charged against the inmate’s account” (PS 4500.13 at p. 42).
- Sign and leave. “Once the inmate signs the receipt and leaves the sales area, the sale is final” (PS 4500.13 at p. 42). At fingerprint institutions: “Once the inmate leaves the sales area, the sale is final” (PS 4500.13 at p. 43).
Carrying it back
Purchases go into a nylon mesh bag the individual supplies; staff may use brown bags to facilitate deliveries. Manually pre-bagged items “are only sold in clear plastic bags,” and no one is allowed to bring previously purchased merchandise back inside the commissary (PS 4500.13 at pp. 42–43). The clear-bag and mesh-bag rules exist for the same reason as everything else in this policy: so staff can see what is moving across the compound.
Refunds are effectively nonexistent. “Sales are final after the inmate accepts/inspects the item(s), receives the sales receipt, and leaves the Commissary” — with exactly one exception, an undamaged, inactivated secured media device still in its original packaging (PS 4500.13 at p. 39). Warranty repairs on anything else must be shipped to an outside address at the purchaser’s own expense; only the commissary-bought secured media device can be shipped back to the institution (PS 4500.13 at p. 39). Coupons are not honored and institutions must not accept cash rebates (PS 4500.13 at p. 39).
What is on the shelves
Each institution decides its own list. “Within the following guidelines, the Warden and designated staff decide, based on the security, programs, climate, character, and composition of the inmate population, as well as Trust Fund infrastructure limitations, what items to sell” (PS 4500.13 at p. 29). A commissary may not stock more than 600 items, excluding over-the-counter medications and healthy food options — and the manual counts by category, not brand: “Soups are considered one item regardless of the number of brands; stamps are one item; cookies are one item; sodas are one item; candy bars are one item” (PS 4500.13 at p. 30).
The manual’s approved categories, condensed (PS 4500.13 at pp. 30–36):
| Category | What the manual authorizes |
|---|---|
| Snacks and shelf-stable food | Cookies, crackers, chips, doughnuts, candy, nuts, dry cereal; tuna, sardines, salmon, canned meats, Vienna sausage, dried beef sticks, chip dips, processed fruit; peanut butter, honey, dry soup mix, bouillon |
| Frozen items | Pizza, ice cream, yogurt, sherbet, novelties — only where freezer storage exists and only in quantities that will be eaten before they need refrigeration |
| Nutrition bars | Permitted only if not marketed as bodybuilding or weight-enhancing, with fewer than 25 grams of protein and of carbohydrate per serving |
| Healthy food options | A required national list set by the Trust Fund Branch with Health Services; institutions may add more locally |
| Kosher/Halal shelf-stable entrees | Minimum of four certified entrees available for purchase or through the SPO program; 14 per visit, 21 maximum in possession (Wardens may set a lower cell limit at ADX Florence, in any special housing unit, or at a medical center) |
| Beverages | Instant coffee, tea, drink mixes, hot chocolate, powdered milk, creamer, sugar, sodas, juices |
| Postage stamps | Maximum five denominations; the only first-class stamp stocked for resale is the “Forever” stamp; pre-stamped international envelopes permitted |
| Radios | Clear-cased AM/FM only, battery or hand crank, earphones only, compliant with 47 C.F.R. pt. 15, subpart C |
| Watches | $150 maximum, no stones, “electronically unsophisticated, i.e., cannot send or receive signals” |
| Secured media device | Single Central Office–approved vendor; partially clear casing; microphone and memory-card slot deactivated; locked to one person and displays their name and register number |
| Electrical appliances | Fans only, on a local-option basis where weather and the electrical system allow |
| Clothing | Athletic supporters, bathrobes (no hoods), caps (no logos), gym shorts, handkerchiefs, headbands, knee wraps, white socks, stockings, sweatpants and sweatshirts (no hoods, no logos), T-shirts, underwear, religious headgear — in prescribed colors |
| Shoes | Athletic/specialty $150 max (2 pair), casual (1), shower (1), slippers (1), work $150 max meeting ASTM Standards F2412-05 and F2413-05 (1 pair) |
| Mattresses | $175 max, meeting 16 C.F.R. 1632 and 1633, Technical Bulletin 129, antimicrobial to a demonstrated 99% efficacy, fire-retardant, marked local-use-only and non-transferable |
| Toiletries and hygiene | Soap, deodorant, shampoo, conditioner, shaving supplies, combs, feminine hygiene products, laundry detergent, dental products, mouthwash (non-alcoholic), earplugs, lip ointment, moisture lotion, sunscreen |
| OTC medications and vitamins | From the national approved list; at least 25 must be stocked; expired products may never be sold; anything else can be requested through an SPO |
| Nicotine products | NRT patches/lozenges with a provider’s written authorization (one two-week supply at a time); FDA-authorized nicotine pouches for non-cessation use, sold only after age-21 verification, kept in a locked safe and inventoried daily |
| Miscellaneous | Pens, pencils, paper, envelopes, greeting cards, address books, alarm clocks, word spellers, bowls, cups, hangers, wallets, small purses, athletic and cosmetic bags, copy services, photo vouchers, playing cards, harmonicas, handball and athletic gloves, racquet and tennis balls, weightlifting belts, softball gloves, and the Master Lock #1525 (or keyed V-85 equivalent) — the only combination padlock permitted |
Two category notes worth flagging. All institutions housing women are now required to implement a standardized female-specific commissary list, a requirement added in the 2026 edition (PS 4500.13 at pp. 2, 29) — see women’s federal prisons. And hair dye is sold only at low-security-or-higher female institutions with an established cosmetology vocational program, only in the shade closest to the person’s natural color, only ammonia-free, and only against an authorization form signed by Education staff (PS 4500.13 at pp. 34–35).
The manual is also explicit that the commissary is not meant to substitute for what the institution owes people: consumable and medical items sold “must complement, not supplement, diet and medical care provided to the inmate population” (PS 4500.13 at p. 29). That principle matters when someone is being told to buy their own basic care — see medical care in federal prison and what you eat in prison.
Religious diets get specific treatment: institutions are “encouraged to offer Commissary goods acceptable for inmates with religious dietary restrictions,” kosher or halal certification is annotated on the shopping list, and during the week of Passover, requests for certified kosher-for-Passover items are accommodated through normal Trust Fund procedures (PS 4500.13 at p. 29). Those items also carry no mark-up (PS 4500.13 at p. 38). More on this at religious programs in prison and in Program Statement 5360.10.
What cannot be bought
The prohibited list at PS 4500.13 at pp. 36–37 is long, and some of it surprises people:
- All tobacco products — cigarettes, cigars, pipes, rolling papers, snuff, snus, chewing tobacco — except FDA-authorized nicotine pouches (see smoking in federal prison)
- Coins
- Protein, amino-acid, creatine and body-building products in any form — tablet, capsule, liquid, powder or bar
- Prepared meals from outside sources (delivery food)
- Any item containing poppy seeds; any item containing hemp seed oil; products containing olive leaf extract
- All canned foods; loaves of bread; fresh fruit and fresh vegetables
- Any perishable or potentially hazardous food that cannot be held at a safe temperature
- Beard trimmers and electric or battery-operated shavers
- All vitamins and dietary supplements not on the approved OTC list — melatonin, ginseng, CoQ10, garlic pills, green tea, l-tryptophan
- Acne products containing benzoyl peroxide; cold medications containing pseudoephedrine; Bromo-Seltzer; effervescent denture tablets such as Efferdent and Polident
- Electrical appliances except fans; musical instruments except the harmonica
- Lighters or any gas-, liquid- or flammable-fueled lighting paraphernalia; aerosol containers; products with chlorine as an active ingredient
- Computer or calculator devices allowing programming or password protection
- Magazines (periodicals arrive through the publications process instead, not the store)
- Any item with a unit price of $100 or more including mark-up, except watches, the secured media device, shoes, mattresses, and Special Purpose Orders
- Radios capable of shortwave, UHF, VHF or television bands; combination radio/tape players, recorders, CD players, video games, computer games, portable televisions
- Hair dye at FDC, FTC, MCC, MDC and all-male institutions
- Containers of crushed red pepper spice; mineral or baby oil; individual secured media device chargers
If an item is not stocked but is not prohibited, the route is a Special Purpose Order.
Special Purpose Orders — the way to buy what the store does not carry
An SPO is a request to buy an approved item that is not routinely stocked — books, hobbycraft, religious articles, legal materials, correspondence courses. The person submits a signed BP-A0200, Special Purpose Order Request – Inmate, to designated staff (PS 4500.13 at p. 40).
The current national limits:
| Rule | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Frequency | One SPO per month; exceptions require the Warden’s written approval | PS 4500.13 at p. 40 |
| Quarterly ceiling | $600, inclusive of mark-up and shipping | PS 4500.13 at p. 40 |
| Interaction with the monthly limit | “Purchases within any single validation cycle must not exceed the established institution spending limit, regardless of the remaining quarterly balance” | PS 4500.13 at p. 40 |
| Leather items | Unit cost of $100 or more including mark-up requires the Warden’s written approval; authority cannot be re-delegated | PS 4500.13 at p. 40 |
The quarterly ceiling doubled in the 2026 edition, from $300 to $600, and the “one per month unless the Warden says otherwise” language is also new (Summary of Changes, PS 4500.13 at p. 2).
An SPO gets rejected for “insufficient funds, exceeding the monthly quantity limit of SPOs or quarterly dollar limitations, spending limit restriction, or IFRP refuse status” (PS 4500.13 at p. 41) — and the account is encumbered (held) for the order amount from the moment the order is created, so the money disappears from the available balance before the item arrives. If the order is refused after delivery, “the encumbrance will remain on the requesting inmate’s account until the SPO is sold” (PS 4500.13 at p. 41).
What can be ordered through an SPO, who approves it, and what local dollar limits apply are all set in the institution supplement, which must address the approved-item list, the approving officials, and “monetary guidelines… limits on the value of individual items, the value of an entire order, the quantity of items on an individual order, and the frequency of orders” (PS 4500.13 at p. 12). Ask for the supplement by name; do not accept “we don’t do that here” as a rule.
How prices are set — with the manual’s own arithmetic
The mark-up rule changed in 2026 and the new wording is the citable one:
“30% Mark-up (Base) Standard items/SPOs purchased. Selling price is cost plus a 30% mark-up (base), adjusted annually by the national Consumer Price Index (CPI). The standard/SPO mark-up parameter will be set at the National level.” — PS 4500.13 at p. 38
Certain categories carry no mark-up at all (PS 4500.13 at p. 38): postage; self-improvement textbooks; correspondence courses; tools and materials for educational or vocational training; law books and other legal materials; non-edible religious articles; Smoking Cessation Program materials; and shelf-stable Passover meals during Passover. If your loved one is buying law books or a correspondence course, they are paying the Bureau’s cost.
Everything else is computed in the accounting system and rounded up to the next nickel. Here is the manual’s own worked example, verbatim (PS 4500.13 at p. 39):
“17 units selling for $0.35 each are in the Commissary; 120 units of the identical item are received. The new shipment of 120 units cost $0.20 each. The computed selling price is $0.26 each and requires rounding to $0.30 each. In addition, the selling price of the 17 units on hand decreases to $0.30.”
Two things fall out of that example. First, the “30%” is real and visible: $0.20 cost × 1.30 = $0.26, rounded up to $0.30. Second, prices move for everyone at once — “old and new stock may not be maintained at different selling prices” (PS 4500.13 at p. 38), so a new shipment resets the shelf price on stock already sitting there, up or down.
One more pricing rule that catches people: if the rounded price would exceed the manufacturer’s printed price on the package, the printed price governs; if the computed price is lower than the printed price, the computed price is used (PS 4500.13 at p. 38).
Commissary restriction: six different ways spending gets cut
“Commissary restriction” is not one thing. Six distinct mechanisms can reduce or eliminate purchasing, and they come from different places:
1. A disciplinary sanction. Loss of privileges “(e.g., visiting, telephone, commissary, movies, recreation)” is sanction F, available at every severity level under Program Statement 5270.09 at pp. 50, 53–54 — our explainer is at inmate discipline program. This follows an incident report and a hearing that can also cost good conduct time — see federal prison disciplinary proceedings.
2. The Warden’s standing authority. Because commissary is a privilege, “the Warden or an authorized representative may limit or deny the privilege of a particular inmate,” and the maximum spend is itself “a controllable privilege” (PS 4500.13 at p. 16).
3. IFRP refuse status. Covered in the next section.
4. Account-level flags. The accounting system carries per-person settings for “spending limit overrides, weekly or bi-weekly re-validation, restricted spending limit, item restriction” (PS 4500.13 at p. 63). A restriction can therefore be item-specific rather than dollar-specific — someone may be blocked from one product while shopping normally otherwise.
5. National controlled-item limits. Certain products carry a lifetime quantity ceiling; the Trust Fund Supervisor must personally approve bypassing the “lifetime quantity exceeded” warning at the register (PS 4500.13 at p. 44).
6. Encumbrance. Separately from a spending limit, the Warden can freeze funds outright — “to ensure inmates do not seriously deplete their funds before release, disciplinary measures, inmate’s request, claims.” That authority “is not delegated below the Associate Warden,” must be documented by a signed memorandum (or the signed DHO sanction, or the pending federal court order), and the money “may only be released upon their approval or upon inmate release” (PS 4500.13 at p. 67).
If a restriction seems wrong, the route is the same one it always is: an Inmate Request to Staff (filed electronically in TRULINCS since March 2026) first, then the Administrative Remedy Program.
IFRP refusal status and the $25 ceiling
The Inmate Financial Responsibility Program is how the Bureau collects court-ordered obligations — special assessments, restitution, fines, court costs — from money in the trust account. Declining to participate, or falling behind on a signed financial plan, triggers a defined list of consequences under 28 C.F.R. § 545.11(d), and the commissary one is severe:
“The inmate shall be subject to a monthly commissary spending limitation more stringent than the monthly commissary spending limitation set for all inmates. This more stringent commissary spending limitation for IFRP refusees shall be at least $25 per month, excluding purchases of stamps, telephone credits, and, if the inmate is a common fare participant, Kosher/Halal certified shelf-stable entrees…” — 28 C.F.R. § 545.11(d)(6); PS 5380.08 at p. 12
The rest of the § 545.11(d) list: no furlough except possibly an emergency or medical furlough; no performance pay above maintenance level, no bonus or vacation pay; no work detail outside the secure perimeter; no UNICOR placement, and removal from UNICOR with a six-month waiting-list bar; lowest housing status; no community-based program; no release gratuity without the Warden’s approval; no incentive for residential drug treatment; and a zero score on “Responsibility” on the custody classification form (PS 5380.08 at pp. 11–13).
Two practical points. Staff “will not approve any special purchase item request(s) for inmates in IFRP ‘REFUSE’ status,” except kosher/halal certified shelf-stable entrees for verified common fare participants (PS 5380.08 at p. 13; PS 4500.13 at p. 40). And the minimum payment that keeps someone out of refuse status is ordinarily $25.00 per quarter for non-UNICOR and UNICOR grade 5 workers — § 545.11(b)(1) — which is a very different number from the $25 monthly commissary cap that refusing produces. The regulation also excludes $75.00 a month deposited into the trust account from the IFRP assessment, expressly “to allow the inmate the opportunity to better maintain telephone communication” (§ 545.11(b)).
This page covers IFRP to orientation depth only. The full treatment, including how a payment plan is set and how to challenge one, is at inmate restitution and the IFRP and in Program Statement 5380.08.
Applied Insight — Christopher Zoukis, JD, MBA, Managing Director: When a family calls because commissary access suddenly dropped to nothing, the first question is which of the six mechanisms above is actually operating, because the answer determines the remedy. A disciplinary sanction is appealed through the discipline process. An IFRP refuse flag is fixed by renegotiating the financial plan with the unit team. A Warden’s encumbrance requires a memorandum that should exist in writing and can be asked for. They are not interchangeable, and a request to staff aimed at the wrong one goes nowhere.
Paying for it: where the money comes from
Every purchase debits the individual’s Inmate Deposit Fund account. Money reaches that account from four places:
| Source | How it works |
|---|---|
| Deposits from family and friends | National lockbox money order, Western Union Quick Collect, MoneyGram Express Payment, or an electronic transfer — see how to send money to a federal inmate |
| Institution pay | Inmate Performance Pay, Facilities pay, and Trust Fund wages, processed through the payroll system (PS 4500.13 at p. 79) |
| UNICOR pay | Federal Prison Industries wages, posted on the eighth calendar day each month (PS 4500.13 at p. 79) — see UNICOR |
| Other income | Tax refunds, dividends, state benefits — which 28 C.F.R. § 506.2(b) directs to the centralized commissary account |
Commissary jobs themselves pay, on a scale set in the manual: $0.55/hour starting, $0.75 after three months, $0.95 after six months, $1.20 after nine months, all “if warranted” and subject to available funds (PS 4500.13 at p. 24). Bonus pay may not exceed half of the monthly pay. That scale is worth holding next to the $460 limit: at institution wages alone, nobody is spending anywhere near the cap. For context on the work side, see prison jobs and inmate work assignments.
Money also leaves the account without anyone shopping: IFRP payments, the medical co-payment under 18 U.S.C. § 4048, court-ordered PLRA filing fees, telephone and TRULINCS transfers, and — if applicable — the Cost of Incarceration Fee under 28 C.F.R. pt. 505. None of those require a signature (PS 4500.13 at p. 81). Two small charges are set in the manual itself: $5 for a replacement Personal Access Code (PS 4500.13 at p. 63) and $3.00 for each 30-day telephone account statement requested (PS 4500.13 at p. 56).
If the account runs empty, a separate framework takes over. Someone who “has not had a trust fund account balance of $6.00 for the past 30 days” is an inmate without funds for medication purposes and can obtain up to two over-the-counter medications a week from the institution pharmacy (28 C.F.R. § 549.31(a); PS 6541.03 at p. 3, and our explainer at over-the-counter medications). For postage, the test is different: an “inmate without funds” is one “without sufficient commissary balance to purchase a postage stamp sufficient for first-class, 1-ounce domestic mailing,” and that person gets up to five stamps a week for legal mail or administrative remedy filings, plus a suggested five letters a month for community ties (28 C.F.R. § 540.21(d)–(e); PS 5265.14 at pp. 19–20). Writing paper and envelopes are free to everyone. The full picture of what an empty account does and does not cost you is covered at what indigent federal prison inmates are provided.
Protecting what you buy — and the rules that turn generosity into an incident report
Commissary goods are the compound’s currency, and that is exactly where people get hurt. The disciplinary code treats transactions between individuals as prohibited acts regardless of intent, under 28 C.F.R. § 541.3 and Program Statement 5270.09:
| Code | Prohibited act | Severity |
|---|---|---|
| 217 | Giving money to, or receiving money from, any person for the purpose of introducing contraband or any other illegal or prohibited purpose | High |
| 216 | Giving or offering an official or staff member a bribe, or anything of value | High |
| 204 | Extortion; blackmail; protection; demanding or receiving money or anything of value in return for protection | High |
| 219 | Stealing; theft | High |
| 328 | Giving money or anything of value to, or accepting money or anything of value from, another inmate or any other person without staff authorization | Moderate |
| 304 | Loaning of property or anything of value for profit or increased return | Moderate |
| 303 | Possession of money or currency, unless specifically authorized, or in excess of the amount authorized | Moderate |
| 334 | Conducting a business; conducting or directing an investment transaction without staff authorization | Moderate |
| 324 / 325 / 326 | Gambling; preparing or conducting a gambling pool; possession of gambling paraphernalia | Moderate |
Codes and severity levels from PS 5270.09 at pp. 47–53.
Read code 328 twice. Handing a cellmate a soup is a prohibited act. So is accepting one. A High-severity finding exposes someone to disallowance of “ordinarily between 25% and 50% (14–27 days) of good conduct time credit available for year” and disciplinary segregation up to six months; a Moderate finding, up to 25% (1–14 days) of that year’s good conduct time and segregation up to three months (PS 5270.09 at pp. 50, 53–54). Losing good conduct time moves a release date. That is the real cost of an informal loan.
The practical protections people inside actually use:
- Lock it. The Master Lock #1525, or a keyed V-85 equivalent, is the only combination padlock the commissary may sell, and it is issued under the Lockshop Security Officer’s direction (PS 4500.13 at p. 32).
- Buy what you will consume. Stockpiling attracts attention and pressure. It is also how the black market starts.
- Refuse the loan, in both directions. Code 328 does not distinguish between the person who gives and the person who accepts.
- Say no to “shop for me.” Someone else’s list on your receipt is your receipt. If a person is being pressured to buy for others, that is a safety issue — see protective custody and violence and sexual assault in prison.
- Keep the receipt until you leave the sales area, and check the bag before you sign. After the signature, the sale is final (PS 4500.13 at p. 42).
- Property loss has its own process. Damaged or lost property is handled under Program Statement 5581.01; what may be kept in a cell is governed by Program Statement 5580.10. Commissary goods are subject to search like anything else — see searches, shakedowns, and contraband.
For families: the single most common way an outside person creates a disciplinary problem is by depositing money into the account of someone other than their own relative, at a friend’s request. That is covered in detail on the sending money page, and the short version is that transfers between individuals require the Warden’s written approval and a close-relative relationship (PS 4500.13 at pp. 85–86).
What changed on May 7, 2026
PS 4500.13 rescinded PS 4500.12 CN-1 (March 6, 2025). The commissary changes, from the manual’s own Summary of Changes at p. 2 and confirmed in the body text:
| Change | From | To | Confirmed at |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly spending limitation | $360 | $460 | [p. 28] |
| Maximum selling price — athletic specialty shoes, work shoes, watches | $100 | $150 | [pp. 31, 33] |
| Special Purpose Order quarterly maximum | $300 | $600 (incl. mark-up and shipping) | [p. 40] |
| Mark-up | Prior schedule | Cost + 30% base, adjusted annually by national CPI | [p. 38] |
| Terminology | “MP3 Player” | “Secured Media Device” | [pp. 31–32] |
| Spending-limitation exclusions | Prior list | Adds nicotine lozenges, sneakers and safety shoes, mattresses, secured media device | [p. 28] |
| Items approved for sale | Prior list | Adds mattresses and nicotine pouches for other than the Smoking Cessation Program | [pp. 34–36] |
| Female-specific list | Not required | Standardized female-specific commissary list required at institutions housing women | [p. 29] |
| Miscellaneous products | Suntan lotion | Sunscreen | [p. 34] |
| Holiday packages | Prior rule | Not provided to anyone in disciplinary segregation at the time of distribution | [p. 20] |
| Commissary closures | Prior rule | Any closure outside inventory/emergency/Central Office direction — including for staffing shortages — requires a Warden’s memorandum to the Chief, Trust Fund Branch | [p. 16] |
| Postage stamp envelope | Trust Fund Supervisor + Business Administrator, another FMD/Trust Fund employee, or the Union Representative | Union Representative removed as an authorized person to open the envelope | [pp. 2, 27] |
| SPO frequency | Prior rule | One per month; exceptions require the Warden’s written approval | [p. 40] |
That last row is small but diagnostic: the sealed envelope holding a duplicate stamp-safe combination may now be opened only in the presence of the Trust Fund Supervisor and either the Business Administrator or one other Financial Management/Trust Fund employee (PS 4500.13 at p. 27). If a page you are reading still lists the Union Representative, or still says $360, it predates May 7, 2026.
Where people get stuck with commissary lists and limits
“The list here is different from the list at his last institution.” It is supposed to be. The Warden and designated staff set the local list within the national guidelines, and it is revised as part of the annual institution supplement review (PS 4500.13 at pp. 12, 29). A national policy question and a local supplement question have different answers and different remedies.
“He can’t shop because the commissary keeps closing.” Since May 2026, closures outside scheduled inventories, emergencies, or Central Office direction — expressly including staffing shortages — require a written memorandum from the Warden through the Regional Trust Fund Administrator to the Chief, Trust Fund Branch (PS 4500.13 at p. 16). Ask for it by name.
“He bought the wrong thing and they won’t take it back.” They won’t. The only refundable item in the entire manual is an undamaged, inactivated secured media device in original packaging (PS 4500.13 at p. 39).
“He hit the limit halfway through the month.” Check whether the purchases were actually limit-eligible. Stamps, approved OTC medications, copy cards and paper, footwear, mattresses, the secured media device, and NRT products do not count against the $460 (PS 4500.13 at p. 28).
“They took his commissary for a year.” Verify which mechanism. A disciplinary sanction has an appeal path and a term; a Warden’s privilege limitation and an IFRP flag do not work the same way. If the sanction followed a hearing, the record is reviewable — start with inmate discipline proceedings and, if the sanction cost good conduct time, understand that a lost-time finding directly affects release timing.
Applied Insight — Elizabeth Franklin-Best, Esq., Principal Attorney: Commissary restriction rarely arrives alone. When it accompanies a disallowance of good conduct time, the disciplinary record itself becomes the thing worth reviewing — whether the incident report was delivered on time, whether the hearing findings identify the evidence relied on, and whether the sanction was within the range authorized for that severity level. Those are record questions, and the record either supports the finding or it does not.
Talk to us about a federal prison problem
Commissary questions look small until they are not — until a restriction turns out to be a disciplinary sanction that also cost good conduct time, or an IFRP flag that will follow someone into a halfway house decision. Elizabeth Franklin-Best, P.C. is a boutique federal criminal defense and appellate firm with a national practice, working federal prison matters from designation through early release and reentry planning.
If your family member is dealing with a commissary restriction, a disciplinary sanction, an IFRP dispute, or a trust account problem nobody at the institution will explain, contact our office. We can tell you which policy actually governs and what the realistic route is — see our federal prison consulting services for how that work is structured.
What happens when there is no money: indigency
A person in federal prison with no money still receives clothing, bedding, linen, three meals a day, basic hygiene articles, medical and mental health care, religious services, recreation, library access and education — all at no cost. What money buys is everything else: deodorant, shampoo, shower shoes, better shoes, snack food, a radio, stamps beyond the free allowance, phone credit. The gap between those two lists is what “indigent” actually means day to day, and this page maps it item by item with the document behind each entry.
There is no single federal definition of “indigent.” There are at least three, they set different tests, and which one applies depends on what benefit is at stake. For free over-the-counter medication, an “inmate without funds” is someone “who has not had a trust fund account balance of $6.00 for the past 30 days” (28 C.F.R. § 549.31). For free postage, it is someone “without sufficient commissary balance to purchase a postage stamp sufficient for first-class, 1-ounce domestic mailing” (28 C.F.R. § 540.21). For the $2 medical co-pay, the regulation sets no numeric test at all — it says only that you are not charged “if you are considered indigent and unable to pay,” and leaves the Warden to “establish procedures to prevent abuse of this provision” (28 C.F.R. § 549.74). Anyone who tells you there is one indigency threshold in the federal system has not read the regulations.
Indigency in federal prison: the verified facts
| Statutory duty | The Bureau must “provide suitable quarters and provide for the safekeeping, care, and subsistence” of everyone in its custody — 18 U.S.C. § 4042(a)(2) |
|---|---|
| Indigency test — free OTC medication | Trust fund account balance that has not reached $6.00 in the past 30 days; the Warden must provide up to two OTC medications per week — 28 C.F.R. § 549.31; PS 6541.03 at p. 3 |
| Indigency test — free postage | No “sufficient commissary balance to purchase a postage stamp sufficient for first-class, 1-ounce domestic mailing” — 28 C.F.R. § 540.21(d)(2); PS 5265.14 at p. 19 |
| Indigency test — medical co-pay waiver | No numeric test. “You will not be charged a health care service fee if you are considered indigent and unable to pay” — 28 C.F.R. § 549.74; PS 6032.01 at p. 4 |
| Medical co-pay | $2.00 per health care visit you requested, with a long exempt list — 28 C.F.R. § 549.70(b); PS 6032.01 at p. 2 |
| Free postage for community ties | Five letters per month suggested as reasonable — PS 5265.14 at p. 19 |
| Free postage for legal and administrative-remedy mail | Up to five stamps per week — PS 5265.14 at p. 19 |
| Free paper and envelopes | “Writing paper and envelopes are provided at no cost to the inmate” — 28 C.F.R. § 540.21(b) |
| Clothing furnished | Enough for three changes of clothes weekly; at least three changes of clean clothing and one change of linen per week — PS 4500.13 at pp. 112–113 |
| Free hygiene articles | “The Warden shall make available to an inmate those articles necessary for maintaining personal hygiene” — 28 C.F.R. § 551.6 |
| Free menstrual products | Tampons and sanitary napkins, free by statute — First Step Act of 2018 § 611, note to 18 U.S.C. § 4042 |
| Commissary spending limit (if you have money) | $460 per month, plus $50 in the November/December holiday period — PS 4500.13 at pp. 2, 28 |
| Release gratuity | Discretionary, up to $500 for offenses on or after Nov. 1, 1987 — 18 U.S.C. § 3624(d); PS 5873.06 at p. 2 |
Read from the Bureau’s own regulations and Program Statements, September 2026.
Three definitions of “indigent,” and which one applies to what
This is the part that decides real outcomes, so it is worth being exact. The Bureau does not run a single indigency determination that unlocks a package of benefits. Each benefit has its own test, and a person can qualify for one and not another on the same day.
| Benefit | Test | Who decides | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free over-the-counter medication (up to 2 items per week) | Trust fund account balance has not reached $6.00 at any point in the past 30 days | Pharmacy verifies “via the relevant Trust Fund application or by verifying with the appropriate Trust Fund personnel” | 28 C.F.R. § 549.31; PS 6541.03 at pp. 3–4 |
| Free postage — legal mail and administrative remedies (up to 5 stamps per week) | “[N]either funds nor sufficient postage”; an “inmate without funds” means one “without sufficient commissary balance to purchase a postage stamp sufficient for first-class, 1-ounce domestic mailing” | Associate Warden makes the final determination; authority may not be delegated below unit manager | 28 C.F.R. § 540.21(d); PS 5265.14 at p. 19 |
| Free postage — personal mail (5 letters per month suggested) | Same “inmate without funds” test, plus international air-mail postage where community ties require foreign correspondence | Associate Warden, not delegable below unit manager | 28 C.F.R. § 540.21(e); PS 5265.14 at pp. 19–20 |
| Waiver of the $2 medical co-pay | No numeric threshold in the regulation. “[C]onsidered indigent and unable to pay”; the Warden “may establish procedures to prevent abuse of this provision” | Health Services staff determine whether a co-pay is charged, entered in the electronic health record | 28 C.F.R. § 549.74; PS 6032.01 at p. 4 |
| Release gratuity | Discretionary. Factors include institution resources, trust fund and phone credit balances, community resources, immediate release needs, and IFRP participation. “Greater consideration may be given to an inmate without funds or community resources” | Unit staff recommend up to $250 with Case Management Coordinator approval; above $250 requires the Warden | 28 C.F.R. § 571.21; PS 5873.06 at pp. 2, 4 |
| Postage for property shipped on transfer | “In the case of an indigent inmate, Unit Management staff are contacted to see if stamps are available for payment of postage” | Unit Management | PS 5580.10 at p. 16 |
Three practical consequences.
A person can be “without funds” for medication and not for postage, or the reverse. The OTC test is a 30-day look-back at whether the balance ever reached $6.00. The postage test is about whether there is enough right now to buy one stamp. A small deposit resets one and not necessarily the other.
Encumbered money is still money — except for OTC. PS 6541.03 addresses this expressly: people “may not be indigent but still lack resources to purchase medications (e.g., new intakes whose funds have not yet posted),” and those people “may access triage/sick call through the usual procedures and request the item.” But “[i]nmates with commissary restrictions or other encumbrances are not considered indigent and will be required to follow this program statement for the provision of OTCs through commissary” (PS 6541.03 at p. 4). An IFRP encumbrance, in other words, does not make you indigent.
The Warden can restrict every one of these to prevent abuse. Each provision carries an anti-abuse clause: the OTC rule addresses “a pattern of depleting his or her commissary funds before requesting OTC medications” (28 C.F.R. § 549.31(c)); the postage rules permit restrictions and, after two separate months of depleting-and-restoring an account, require reimbursement on a BP-199 (PS 5265.14 at p. 19).
The complete issued-versus-purchased table
Everything below is verified from the governing document.
| Item | Issued at no cost | Must be purchased | What the indigent person gets instead | Document that sets it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shirts, blouses, pants, dresses/skirts, belts | ✔ standard wardrobe | Commissary versions in gray/white (men) or pastel green/gray/white (women) | The issued wardrobe, and the institution “still required to furnish” it even where commissary clothing is sold | PS 4500.13 at pp. 112–113 |
| Underwear, slips, socks | ✔ standard wardrobe | Commissary versions in approved colors | Issued underwear and socks | PS 4500.13 at p. 112 |
| Shoes | ✔ standard wardrobe (ASTM F2412-05/F2413-05) | Athletic (2 pr, $150 cap), casual (1), shower (1), slippers (1), work (1, $150 cap) | Issued shoes only. Medically required special shoes are purchased by Health Services | PS 4500.13 at pp. 112–113, 33 |
| Coats, jackets, headgear | ✔ standard wardrobe | Commissary bathrobes, caps, sweats in approved colors | Issued coat and jacket | PS 4500.13 at pp. 112–113 |
| Special/protective work clothing | ✔ issued per the work assignment | — | Issued | PS 4500.13 at p. 113 |
| Mattress | ✔ one | Optional commissary mattress, $175 cap, non-transferable | Issued mattress | PS 4500.13 at pp. 113, 34 |
| Sheets, pillow, pillowcase | ✔ two sheets, one pillow and case (unless built into mattress) | — | Issued | PS 4500.13 at p. 113 |
| Blankets | ✔ “[s]ufficient blankets to provide comfort under existing conditions” | — | Issued | PS 4500.13 at p. 113 |
| Towels | ✔ | — | Issued | PS 4500.13 at p. 113 |
| Laundry | ✔ at least three changes of clean clothing and one change of linen weekly | — | Same. Where there is no central laundry, the institution provides detergent | PS 4500.13 at p. 113 |
| Soap, toothbrush, toothpaste/powder, comb, toilet paper | ✔ | Branded commissary versions | The issued articles — the Warden “shall make available … those articles necessary for maintaining personal hygiene” | 28 C.F.R. § 551.6; PS 5230.05 at p. 3 |
| Shaving equipment | ✔ “available upon request” | Disposable razors, shaving cream and brushes at commissary | Institution shaving equipment on request | PS 5230.05 at p. 3; PS 4500.13 at p. 34 |
| Haircuts / hair care | ✔ | Commissary combs and brushes | Institution hair care services | 28 C.F.R. § 551.4(c) |
| Tampons, maxi pads, panty liners | ✔ free by statute, five product types, not rationed, stocked in a common area, replenished within 24 hours; monthly issuance “strictly prohibited” | Additional commissary versions | The free five, available at all times of day; daily issuance in restrictive housing | FSA 2018 § 611 (note to 18 U.S.C. § 4042); PS 5200.09 at p. 14 |
| Deodorant, shampoo, conditioner, lotion, sunscreen, mouthwash, dental floss | ✘ | ✔ commissary | Nothing issued. These are convenience items; PS 6541.03 expressly says commissary items not on the indigent list “are for the inmates’ convenience but are not considered medically necessary items” | PS 4500.13 at pp. 33–34; PS 6541.03 at p. 4 |
| Shower shoes | ✘ | ✔ commissary (1 pair) | Nothing issued | PS 4500.13 at p. 33 |
| Laundry detergent (personal) | Only where there is no central laundry | ✔ commissary otherwise | Institution-provided low-suds biodegradable detergent where no central laundry exists | PS 4500.13 at pp. 34, 113 |
| Over-the-counter medication | ✘ for people with funds | ✔ commissary | Up to two items per week from the Bureau-approved indigent OTC list, requested from the pharmacy; no clinical encounter required; more than two means sick call | 28 C.F.R. § 549.31; PS 6541.03 at pp. 3–4 |
| Meals | ✔ three per day, nutritionally adequate | Commissary food supplements the diet | Same meals as everyone. Commissary “must complement, not supplement,” the diet | PS 4700.08 at pp. 2–3; PS 4500.13 at p. 29 |
| Medical and dental care | ✔ access is never conditioned on ability to pay | $2 co-pay for inmate-requested visits | Co-pay waived if “considered indigent and unable to pay”; care is never denied for inability to pay | 28 C.F.R. §§ 549.70, 549.74; PS 6032.01 at pp. 1, 4 |
| Mental health care and substance abuse treatment | ✔ never carries a co-pay | — | Free to everyone | 28 C.F.R. § 549.72(g), (h) |
| Writing paper and envelopes | ✔ “provided at no cost to the inmate” | Commissary stationery, greeting cards, address books | Free paper and envelopes | 28 C.F.R. § 540.21(b) |
| Postage — personal mail | ✘ for people with funds | ✔ stamps at commissary, limit 20 per visit, possession limit 60 | Five letters per month suggested as reasonable, at government expense | 28 C.F.R. § 540.21(e); PS 5265.14 at pp. 18–19 |
| Postage — legal mail and administrative remedies | ✘ for people with funds | ✔ commissary | Up to five stamps per week | 28 C.F.R. § 540.21(d); PS 5265.14 at p. 19 |
| Postage — holdovers and pretrial | — | — | Three letters per week suggested as reasonable | 28 C.F.R. § 540.21(i); PS 5265.14 at p. 20 |
| Library — leisure and reference | ✔ open to general population at least 3 hours daily and 6 hours over the weekend | Commissary books and magazines | Full library access | 28 C.F.R. § 544.100; PS 1542.07 at pp. 1–2 |
| Literacy / GED program | ✔ and mandatory — 240 instructional hours or GED, whichever comes first | — | Free instruction | 28 C.F.R. § 544.70; PS 5356.01 at p. 2 |
| College courses | Only where funded by Pell Grants, institution funding, scholarships, grants or authorized donations | ✔ otherwise — “inmates are responsible for all costs … including tuition, books, and related fees” | Pell-funded programs where available | PS 5354.04 at p. 4 |
| Religious services, chaplaincy, religious literature | ✔ — chaplaincy staff distribute literature purchased by or donated to the Bureau | Personal religious items from commissary or a Chaplain-approved catalog on a BP-A0200 | Free access to services; free distributed literature | 28 C.F.R. § 548.10; PS 5360.10 at p. 14; PS 5580.10 at p. 5 |
| Recreation and wellness programming | ✔ | Hobbycraft materials, athletic gloves, weightlifting belts and similar at commissary | Free access to the program | PS 5370.12; PS 4500.13 at p. 32 |
| Release clothing | ✔ “appropriate for the time of year and the inmate’s geographical destination” | Clothing sent from home in the last 30 days, at the family’s cost | Bureau-provided release clothing; work clothing on request | 28 C.F.R. § 571.22; PS 5873.06 at pp. 5–6 |
| Release funds | Discretionary gratuity, up to $500 | — | Discretionary, with “[g]reater consideration … given to an inmate without funds or community resources” | 28 C.F.R. § 571.21; PS 5873.06 at pp. 2, 4 |
Clothing and bedding
The Bureau issues a full wardrobe at no cost, and the institution is obliged to keep enough of it in stock. The standard wardrobe is shirts, blouses, dresses or skirts, pants, belts, underwear, slips, socks, shoes meeting ASTM Standard F2412-05 and F2413-05, coats, jackets and headgear, all of which must be “properly fitted, climatically suitable, durable, and presentable” (PS 4500.13 at pp. 112–113). Bedding is one mattress, two sheets, one pillow and pillowcase unless built into the mattress, towels, sufficient blankets, and two nylon mesh bags (at p. 113).
Two provisions matter specifically to someone with no money:
- Buying commissary clothing does not shift the burden. “Institutions that allow inmates to wear personal clothing purchased from the Commissary are still required to furnish the institution’s standard wardrobe” (PS 4500.13 at p. 112).
- Medical shoes are not a commissary expense. “When inmates require special shoes due to medical reasons, the Health Services Department purchases them” (PS 4500.13 at p. 113).
Clothing from home is not an option — civilian clothing “ordinarily is not authorized for retention,” and only release clothing (last 30 days) and Health Services–approved medical devices may be received in a package (PS 5580.10 at pp. 3, 5–6). The detail is on our prison clothes and bedding page.
Food
Food is provided, not purchased, and commissary food is legally a supplement rather than a substitute. Bureau policy is explicit that “[c]onsumable items and medical items sold must complement, not supplement, diet and medical care provided to the inmate population” (PS 4500.13 at p. 29).
The obligation itself is in PS 4700.08, the Food Service Manual (May 7, 2026): inmates “will be provided with nutritionally adequate meals, prepared and served in a manner that meets established government health and safety codes” (at p. 2). Nutritional adequacy is defined as “[a] balanced dietary pattern aligned with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and federal nutrition science,” delivered through a National Menu approved by the Central Office Food Service Branch that provides standardized portion sizes, emphasizes nutrient-dense foods, includes high-quality protein, prioritizes fiber-rich whole grains, maintains “saturated fat below 10 percent of total daily calories,” and in most circumstances limits sodium “consistent with federal recommendations of less than 2,300 mg” (at p. 3).
Medical diets are provided by self-selection from the National Menu — a person is taught to choose items meeting a prescribed diet — unless menu items cannot meet the requirement, in which case a therapeutic special diet is ordered by Health Services (PS 4700.08 at pp. 3–4). Religious diets are accommodated, and the commissary is separately directed to stock kosher- and halal-certified name-brand items, with kosher-for-Passover accommodations each spring (PS 4500.13 at p. 29).
During a lockdown, the floors are national: “at least three meals within a 24-hour period,” one served hot daily absent exigent circumstances, all medical and religious diets “strictly maintained,” and food that “must never be withheld or its quality varied as a disciplinary measure” (PS 5525.01 at p. 7).
More on the everyday reality of prison food is on our what do you eat in prison page and in our Food Service Manual explainer.
Hygiene items
The binding rule is one sentence long: “The Warden shall make available to an inmate those articles necessary for maintaining personal hygiene” (28 C.F.R. § 551.6). It contains no list. The list people quote comes from PS 5230.05, Grooming — still dated November 4, 1996 — which gives as examples “soap, toothbrush, toothpaste or powder, comb, and toilet paper,” adds that “products for female hygiene needs shall be available,” states that “[s]having equipment is to be available upon request,” and directs that “[t]he admission process at each institution is to ensure that such items are available to newly admitted inmates” (at p. 3).
At intake, “[t]oiletries should be available for new arrivals as needed” (PS 5800.19 at p. 21). During a lockdown, “[b]asic hygiene supplies including soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, and toilet paper must be issued as necessary to maintain an acceptable level of personal hygiene” (PS 5525.01 at p. 6).
Menstrual products are in a different legal category — they are free by federal statute. Section 611 of the First Step Act of 2018, set out as a note to 18 U.S.C. § 4042, requires the Director “to make the healthcare products described in subsection (c) available to prisoners for free, in a quantity that is appropriate to the healthcare needs of each prisoner”; subsection (c) names tampons and sanitary napkins. Bureau policy implements it as five specific products at no cost — tampons regular and super, maxi pads with wings regular and super, and regular panty liners — with instructions that staff “may not ration these items,” that products be stocked “in common areas, either a bathroom or accessible area of the housing unit,” that women “must have access to these items at all times of the day,” that “[m]onthly issuance of these items is strictly prohibited,” and that supplies be replenished “with 24 hours of notification that a particular product is lacking.” In restrictive housing, “all five products must be available for issuance on a daily basis,” and misuse “is not cause for withholding access” (PS 5200.09 at p. 14). Hair styling irons and hair dryers “must also be made available.”
Everything else — deodorant, shampoo, conditioner, shaving cream, lotion, sunscreen, mouthwash, dental floss, shower shoes — is a commissary purchase (PS 4500.13 at pp. 33–34). There is no free-issue substitute, and the Bureau says so in its own words: commissary items outside the approved indigent list “are for the inmates’ convenience but are not considered medically necessary items which must be made available to indigent inmates” (PS 6541.03 at p. 4). Our showers and toilets page carries the hygiene-specific version of this table.
Medical care, the $2 co-pay, and the OTC route
Access to care is never conditioned on money. “All inmates have access to Bureau health care services… Inmates will not be denied access to necessary health care because of an inmate’s inability to pay the copay fee” (PS 6032.01 at p. 1).
The fee is $2.00 per health care visit you requested, or where you are found responsible through the disciplinary process for injuring someone who then needs care (28 C.F.R. § 549.70(b)). If more than one provider sees you during a single visit, “the inmate will only be charged for one visit” (PS 6032.01 at p. 2).
A long list of services carries no fee at all, regardless of whether you are indigent (28 C.F.R. § 549.72):
- health care services based on staff referrals
- staff-approved follow-up treatment for a chronic condition
- preventive health care services
- emergency services
- prenatal care
- diagnosis or treatment of chronic infectious diseases
- mental health care
- substance abuse treatment
Bureau policy gives examples: blood pressure monitoring, glucose monitoring, insulin injections, Chronic Care Clinics, tuberculosis testing, vaccinations, wound care and patient education (PS 6032.01 at p. 3). No co-pay is charged for a medical evaluation requested by non-clinical staff where the condition is not an emergency — an injury assessment before SHU placement, a hunger-strike evaluation, a restraint check (at p. 2).
And if you are indigent, there is no fee. 28 C.F.R. § 549.74: “You will not be charged a health care service fee if you are considered indigent and unable to pay. The Warden may establish procedures to prevent abuse of this provision.” Note what the regulation does not do: it sets no dollar figure, no look-back period and no application form. Health Services staff decide at the point of the visit whether a co-pay applies, and record it in the electronic health record (PS 6032.01 at p. 4). A disputed charge is reviewable “through the Bureau’s Administrative Remedy Program” (28 C.F.R. § 549.73).
Over-the-counter medication has its own, harder-edged rule. 28 C.F.R. § 549.31 requires the Warden to “establish procedures to provide up to two OTC medications per week for an inmate without funds,” and defines that as someone who “has not had a trust fund account balance of $6.00 for the past 30 days.” Under PS 6541.03 (March 19, 2026, rescinding the 2004 edition):
- the person selects no more than two items from the Bureau-approved indigent OTC list, no more than once weekly, and submits the request to the institution pharmacy;
- more than two items in a week means going to triage or sick call;
- the pharmacy verifies indigency through the Trust Fund application or with Trust Fund staff, and “[a] clinical encounter is not required prior to providing indigent medications”;
- the approved indigent OTC list is maintained by the Bureau National Pharmacy & Therapeutics Committee, and a local institution “may choose to utilize a list that is more, but not less, restrictive”;
- an item not on the list, or a depleted weekly allotment, goes through sick call, where a provider decides medical necessity (PS 6541.03 at pp. 1, 3–4).
Where funds exist but cannot be reached — a new arrival whose money has not posted, for example — the route is sick call rather than the indigent list. But commissary restrictions and other encumbrances “are not considered indigent” (at p. 4).
Fuller treatment: medical and dental care in prison, dental care in prison, and our explainers of the Inmate Copayment Program, Patient Care and Over-the-Counter Medications.
Mail and postage when there is no money
This is the benefit families ask about most and understand least, because it has two separate allowances with different limits.
Paper and envelopes are always free. “Writing paper and envelopes are provided at no cost to the inmate” (28 C.F.R. § 540.21(b)).
Legal mail and administrative remedies: up to five stamps a week. For a person “who has neither funds nor sufficient postage” wishing to mail legal mail — courts and attorneys — or administrative remedy forms, the Warden “will provide … up to five postage stamps (denomination for first-class, domestic, 1-ounce mailing) or the equivalent each week” (PS 5265.14 at p. 19). This is the allowance that protects a filing deadline, and it should be requested by name.
Personal mail: five letters a month, suggested. Where a person “has neither funds nor sufficient postage,” the Warden “shall provide the postage stamps for mailing a reasonable number of letters at government expense to enable the inmate to maintain community ties,” and “[f]ive letters per month are suggested as reasonable in most circumstances” (28 C.F.R. § 540.21(e); PS 5265.14 at p. 19).
Holdovers and pretrial detainees: three letters a week, suggested (28 C.F.R. § 540.21(i); PS 5265.14 at p. 20).
Two catches worth knowing. Stamps cannot be mailed in — “[i]nmates may not be permitted to receive stamps or stamped items … other than by issuance from the institution or by purchase from commissary,” and anything sent is returned to the sender on a BP-A0328 (28 C.F.R. § 540.21(j)). And there is a reimbursement trigger: someone who has, “for at least two separate months, depleted his/her commissary account, obtained Government-paid postage stamps, and then restored money to the account” is required to complete a BP-199 for the amount, which commissary staff hold and charge as soon as funds exist (PS 5265.14 at p. 19).
If you have money, the commissary sells stamps, ordinarily limited to 20 per visit, with possession capped at 60 unless the Warden authorizes more (28 C.F.R. § 540.21(a)). Stamps are also excluded from the $460 monthly spending limitation (PS 4500.13 at p. 28). See write an inmate: U.S. mail for federal inmates and our Correspondence explainer.
Recreation
Recreation is a program, not a purchase. PS 5370.12, Inmate Recreation Programs, took effect June 22, 2026 as part of the Bureau’s mass reissue, and access does not depend on a trust fund balance. What money buys is the equipment layer: hobbycraft materials, playing cards, fingerless athletic gloves, handball gloves, harmonicas, racquet and tennis balls, weightlifting belts, gloves and wraps, and softball gloves are commissary items (PS 4500.13 at p. 32), and PS 5370.12 sets quarterly limits on hobbycraft purchases.
Some limits are national and apply to everyone regardless of means: no training equipment for boxing, wrestling, judo, karate “or any other martial arts”; “[n]o body building or weightlifting equipment of any sort may be purchased for recreation purposes”; and no in-cell television viewing except for people segregated for their own safety (PS 5370.12 at p. 6). Institution-purchased televisions must have Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and USB capabilities disabled (at p. 7).
The practical point for a person with nothing: the yard, the track, the gym, the movie program and the wellness programming cost nothing. Our prison recreation programs and workouts page covers what that actually looks like.
Religious services
Religious practice is a right rather than a purchase. 28 C.F.R. § 548.10(a): “The Bureau of Prisons provides inmates of all faith groups with reasonable and equitable opportunities to pursue religious beliefs and practices, consistent with the security and orderly running of the institution.”
Free, regardless of money: chapel services, chaplaincy access, and religious literature — “Chaplaincy staff will distribute to inmates religious literature purchased by, or donated to, the Bureau of Prisons when consistent with the secure and orderly running of the institution” (PS 5360.10 at p. 14). Religious headwear is authorized by faith group and worn throughout the institution including the SHU (at p. 12).
Purchased: personal religious items. “Inmates may only purchase personal religious items from the commissary or a Chaplain-approved catalogue using the BP-A0200, Special Purchase Order Request – Inmate form,” and — the rule families most often run into — “[i]nmates cannot receive religious items from home” (PS 5580.10 at p. 5). One non-metallic religious medallion and chain without stones, declared value not more than $100, is ordinarily permitted. Institutions housing women “should have a supply of jumper dresses available in the laundry” for those seeking loose-fitting clothing as a religious practice (PS 5360.10 at p. 13).
See religious programs in prison and our explainer of PS 5360.10.
Psychological counseling
Mental health care never carries a co-pay. 28 C.F.R. § 549.72(g) exempts “[m]ental health care” from the health-service fee outright, and § 549.72(h) does the same for “[s]ubstance abuse treatment.” That exemption applies to everyone, not only to people who are indigent — which means the $2 co-pay is never a reason to skip a request to see Psychology Services.
Screening happens automatically. Under PS 5310.17, the Psychology Services Manual, a Transfer Intake Screening is conducted with people who transfer in or who “have been out of the institution for more than 30 calendar days” (at p. 2). During a lockdown exceeding three days, “a mental health professional must visit affected units at least weekly” (PS 5525.01 at p. 7).
Treatment programs — including the Residential Drug Abuse Program — are Bureau-run and carry no tuition. See mental health programs for inmates and our explainers of Psychology Services, Psychology Treatment Programs and treatment and care of inmates with mental illness.
Education
Education splits cleanly into what the Bureau pays for and what it does not.
Free — and, for some people, mandatory. Under 28 C.F.R. § 544.70, a person “who does not have a verified General Educational Development (GED) credential or high school diploma is required to attend an adult literacy program for a minimum of 240 instructional hours or until a GED is achieved, whichever occurs first.” PS 5356.01, Literacy Program, effective June 22, 2026, rescinded the 2003 Literacy Program (GED Standard) and shortened the window for producing proof of existing credentials from 60 days to 28 days (at p. 1).
The literacy requirement has a money consequence. A person “ordinarily must show prior attainment of a GED credential or high school diploma to be promoted above the minimum pay level or grade in a commissary work assignment, an institutional work assignment, or an industrial work assignment” (PS 5356.01 at p. 7). The Warden may grant a pay-promotion exemption for someone who needs more than 480 hours to complete the program and is making a strong effort, reviewed at least every 240 instructional hours (at p. 7). For someone with no outside support, the GED is the gate to earning more than the minimum.
Free — library. 28 C.F.R. § 544.100 requires library services “necessary for educational, cultural, and leisure activity,” ordinarily “available to all inmates daily, including evenings and weekends.” PS 1542.07, effective June 22, 2026, sets the floor: “[t]he main library will be open to the general population for at least three hours daily and a minimum of six hours over the weekend,” with an alternative access method — request and delivery, mobile circulation — when the main library is closed (at p. 2).
Paid, with exceptions. For postsecondary education, “[w]ith the exceptions of programs funded through Federal Pell Grants, institution funding, or other approved funding sources (e.g., scholarships, grants, or authorized donations), inmates are responsible for all costs associated with participation in PSE programs, including tuition, books, and related fees” (PS 5354.04 at p. 4, effective June 22, 2026). The same reissue “[r]emoves guidance related to instructor-led, on-site programs funded by inmates due to the reinstatement of the Federal Pell Grant program” (at p. 1) — which is the single most important development in prison education funding in three decades, and it means an indigent person can now, at institutions with a participating partner, take college courses at no cost.
See inmate education levels, vocational training in prison, prison library, and our explainers of the Literacy Program, Postsecondary Education, Career and Technical Education and Inmate Library Services.
How a person stops being indigent
The exit from indigency is a work assignment, and the arithmetic is set locally rather than nationally.
Institution work and performance pay is governed by PS 4250.01, Facilities Inmate Work and Performance Pay (January 15, 2026), which grades assignments from Grade 1 (highest, master trades worker) to Grade 4 (lowest), with Maintenance Pay as “a flat monthly rate” that “may be used temporarily when overcrowding limits available skilled assignments” (at pp. 2, 7). The Bureau does not publish the rate in the Program Statement. “The Chief, Facilities Management Branch will issue an Operations Memorandum (OM) announcing the hourly performance pay rates annually. These rates will remain in effect until superseded by a new OM” (at p. 2). We will not quote a wage figure, because the document that sets it is not published — but that is the document to ask about.
Three constraints on earnings, all of which matter for an indigent person:
- IFRP refusal caps pay. A person “who refuses to participate in the financial responsibility program shall not ordinarily receive performance pay above the maintenance pay level, or bonus pay, or vacation pay” (28 C.F.R. part 545, subpart B; PS 4250.01 at p. 5). See the Inmate Financial Responsibility Program.
- Discipline caps pay. People found guilty of 100- or 200-series prohibited acts “will have performance pay reduced to maintenance level for one year,” and are removed from any work detail outside the secure perimeter (PS 4250.01 at p. 6).
- The GED gates promotion. As above, a credential is ordinarily required for promotion above minimum pay or grade 4 (PS 5356.01 at p. 7).
The other route is money from outside. Deposits, the timing rules and the hold periods are covered on how to send money to federal inmates and MoneyGram. See also UNICOR in the Federal Bureau of Prisons and prison jobs and inmate work assignments.
What people actually need that this list does not cover
The issued list keeps a person alive and clothed. It does not do the following, and families should plan for it.
Phone and email cost money. Telephone and TRULINCS charges are not waived for indigency in the way postage is. See inmate phone calls and CorrLinks inmate email.
Copies cost money, and legal work generates copies. Copy cards and copy paper are commissary items — though notably they are excluded from the $460 monthly limit (PS 4500.13 at p. 28), which is a small and deliberate protection for people doing their own legal work.
Comfort items are not “necessary.” The Bureau’s own words: OTC and hygiene products outside the approved indigent list “are for the inmates’ convenience but are not considered medically necessary items which must be made available to indigent inmates” (PS 6541.03 at p. 4).
Property that arrives without postage can be lost. On transfer, where property exceeds the two-box limit or is authorized for retention but not for shipment at the Bureau’s expense, the person bears the mailing cost — and “[i]n the case of an indigent inmate, Unit Management staff are contacted to see if stamps are available for payment of postage.” If postage is not obtained, staff follow up at 30-day intervals, and “[a]fter 60 days, this property will be identified as voluntarily abandoned property and disposed of” (PS 5580.10 at p. 16). This is the single most consequential indigency provision most people have never heard of: an unfunded transfer can cost a person their property in 60 days.
The most useful thing a family can do is fund the account modestly and consistently rather than in one large deposit — the OTC indigency test looks at whether the balance reached $6.00 at any point in 30 days, and a single deposit can end the free-medication route for a month while doing very little else.
Release: what you leave with
Nobody is released with nothing, but almost nothing about it is automatic.
Clothing is provided. Staff “shall provide release clothing appropriate for the time of year and the inmate’s geographical destination,” with work clothing on request subject to availability; people transferring to a residential reentry center get “adequate clothing to complete a job search and perform work,” plus “an outer garment, seasonably suited for the geographical destination” (28 C.F.R. § 571.22).
Transportation is provided to the place of conviction or a legal residence in the United States or its territories (28 C.F.R. § 571.22(c)).
Money is discretionary. A gratuity of up to $500 is available for offenses committed on or after November 1, 1987 (18 U.S.C. § 3624(d)) and up to $100 for earlier offenses (18 U.S.C. § 4281). Unit staff may recommend up to $250 with Case Management Coordinator approval; above that, the Warden must approve (PS 5873.06 at p. 2). Eligibility “is determined by the availability of personal and community resources,” and “[g]reater consideration may be given to an inmate without funds or community resources” (28 C.F.R. § 571.21). The listed factors include institution resources, trust fund and phone credit balances, community resources, immediate release needs, IFRP participation and spending habits — and “[o]rdinarily, an inmate’s refusal to participate [in the IFRP] results in the inmate not receiving a release gratuity unless one is approved specifically by the Warden” (PS 5873.06 at p. 4).
Two narrower provisions: someone without personal funds “may receive a gratuity when transferred to a community corrections center,” in an amount to “care for needs in transit and allow for the purchase of necessary personal items upon arrival” (28 C.F.R. § 571.21(c)); and staff must ensure that each non-citizen released to immigration authorities for release or transfer to a community corrections center has $10 cash, with exceptions (PS 5873.06 at p. 5).
Planning for this belongs in the release-preparation conversation, not the last week. See our Release Preparation Program and release gratuities explainers.
What changed in 2026
| Document | What changed | Effective |
|---|---|---|
| PS 6541.03, Over-the-Counter Medications | Rescinded PS 6541.02 (2004). Abolished the BP-A0788 request form; moved the approved indigent OTC list to the Bureau National Pharmacy & Therapeutics Committee; added express guidance on people who are “not indigent but have limited access to commissary or funds.” | March 19, 2026 |
| PS 6032.01, Inmate Copayment Program | Rescinded PS 6031.02 (2005) and changed the policy number. Updated language and clarified the applicable C.F.R. provisions under the Federal Prisoner Health Care Copayment Act of 2000. | May 7, 2026 |
| PS 4500.13, Trust Fund/Deposit Fund Manual | Monthly spending limitation $360 → $460; holiday increase $50; shoe ceiling $100 → $150; mattresses added at $175; footwear, mattresses and secured media devices added to the spending-limitation exclusion list; standardized female-specific commissary list added. Carries Chapter 13, the operative rules on issued clothing, bedding, linen and laundry. | May 7, 2026 |
| PS 4700.08, Food Service Manual | Current National Menu nutritional-adequacy standards, including saturated fat under 10% of daily calories and sodium ordinarily under 2,300 mg. | May 7, 2026 |
| PS 5525.01, Lockdowns and Modified Operations | New — the Bureau’s first dedicated lockdown policy, setting national floors on showers, meals, hygiene issuance, welfare rounds and commissary access. | May 7, 2026 |
| PS 5356.01, Literacy Program | Rescinded PS 5350.28 (2003). Title changed from Literacy Program (GED Standard); window to produce proof of existing credentials cut from 60 days to 28 days. | June 22, 2026 |
| PS 5354.04, Postsecondary Education Programs | Removed guidance on inmate-funded on-site instructor-led programs “due to the reinstatement of the Federal Pell Grant program.” | June 22, 2026 |
| PS 1542.07, Inmate Library Services | Current library access floors: at least three hours daily, six hours over the weekend, with an alternative access method when the main library is closed. | June 22, 2026 |
| PS 5370.12, Inmate Recreation Programs | Current recreation policy, including television size and technology restrictions. | June 22, 2026 |
What did not change: PS 5230.05, Grooming (November 4, 1996) and its regulations 28 C.F.R. §§ 551.1–551.7 (1981), which remain the operative national rules on free hygiene articles; PS 5265.14, Correspondence (April 5, 2011), which sets the free-postage allowances; and PS 5873.06 (August 6, 2003), which sets the release-gratuity procedure.
Where people get stuck with sick-call fees and indigence
“He was charged $2 for a sick call and he has nothing.” 28 C.F.R. § 549.74 waives the fee for someone “considered indigent and unable to pay,” and § 549.72 exempts staff-referred visits, chronic-condition follow-ups, preventive care, emergencies, prenatal care, chronic infectious disease, mental health care and substance abuse treatment for everyone. A disputed fee is reviewable through the Administrative Remedy Program (28 C.F.R. § 549.73). Name the subsection.
“The pharmacy says he has to see a provider for aspirin.” Not for the indigent list: “[a] clinical encounter is not required prior to providing indigent medications” (PS 6541.03 at p. 4). Two items per week from the approved list, requested from the pharmacy per local procedure. Sick call is required only for a third item or something off the list.
“He can’t mail his 2255 because he has no stamps.” 28 C.F.R. § 540.21(d) provides up to five stamps a week for legal mail and administrative remedy filings for someone with neither funds nor postage. This is separate from and additional to the five-letters-per-month personal allowance. Ask for it by subsection, and note that the determination rests with the Associate Warden and “may not be delegated below unit manager.”
“They’re saying his property will be destroyed.” If property exceeded the two-box transfer limit and no postage was obtained, staff follow up at 30-day intervals and treat it as voluntarily abandoned after 60 days (PS 5580.10 at p. 16). Move fast: ask Unit Management about stamps for postage, and if the property is valuable, get funds to the account before the clock runs. If property has already been lost or destroyed, the route is a small claim under 31 U.S.C. § 3723 and PS 5581.01, Inmate Property Claims — not a grievance.
“A single $20 deposit ended his free medication.” That is how 28 C.F.R. § 549.31 works — the test is whether the balance reached $6.00 at any point in the past 30 days. Steady small support is worth more than an occasional lump sum.
“He says he can’t get a work assignment.” Look first at whether an IFRP status or a disciplinary finding is capping pay (PS 4250.01 at pp. 5–6), and second at whether the literacy requirement is gating promotion (PS 5356.01 at p. 7). Those are three different problems with three different fixes, and only one of them is about job availability.
How our firm helps
Indigency compounds every other problem in a federal sentence. A person who cannot buy stamps files fewer administrative remedies; a person who files fewer administrative remedies loses the record that a later court filing depends on; a person whose property is abandoned for want of postage loses the legal material they were going to use.
We work these as documents-and-deadlines problems. That means naming the correct provision — § 549.31 rather than “indigent status,” § 540.21(d) rather than “he needs stamps” — in a written request to the official the regulation actually names, so that the institution’s own answer becomes part of the record. It means tracking the administrative remedy clocks in 28 C.F.R. part 542, subpart B so nothing is lost to a filing deadline. And it means separating the problems that policy actually solves from the ones it does not, so a family spends its limited money where it changes something.
Where indigency intersects with a designation, a medical care level, an IFRP dispute or a disciplinary sanction, those are worked together — see designation and transfer problems, the Inmate Financial Responsibility Program and medical and dental care in prison. Legal representation in any court proceeding is provided by Elizabeth Franklin-Best and the firm’s attorneys. You can contact the firm.
Frequently Asked Questions About Commissary and Canteen
What is commissary in jail or prison?
Commissary is the store inside a correctional facility where incarcerated people buy food, hygiene items, clothing, stamps and a limited list of approved goods using money held in an account rather than cash. In the federal system it is run by the institution’s Trust Fund department, and it is the only authorized place to purchase anything not issued by the institution (PS 4500.13 at p. 16). “Canteen” and “store” are the words people inside usually use for the same thing.
How much can a federal inmate spend at commissary per month?
$460 per month, under Program Statement 4500.13 at p. 28, effective May 7, 2026 — an increase from the previous $360 limit. The limit rises by $50, to $510, during the November/December holiday period, for no more than one validation period. Stamps, approved over-the-counter medications, copy cards and paper, footwear, mattresses, the secured media device, NRT patches or lozenges, and kosher/halal shelf-stable entrees for people in IFRP refusal status do not count against it.
What can you buy in a federal prison commissary?
Snacks and shelf-stable food, instant drinks and sodas, frozen items where freezers exist, kosher and halal shelf-stable entrees, postage stamps, toiletries and hygiene items, approved over-the-counter medications, clothing in prescribed colors, athletic and work shoes, a clear AM/FM radio, a watch, a secured media device, a fan where authorized, writing supplies, playing cards, a harmonica, and a Master Lock #1525 padlock. Each institution sets its own list within those national categories and may stock no more than 600 total items (PS 4500.13 at pp. 29–36).
What items can’t be purchased in the prison commissary?
Tobacco products other than FDA-authorized nicotine pouches, coins, protein and body-building supplements, canned foods, fresh fruit and vegetables, loaves of bread, anything with poppy seeds or hemp seed oil, electric shavers and beard trimmers, most vitamins and dietary supplements, pseudoephedrine cold medicine, benzoyl peroxide acne products, aerosols, lighters, magazines, electrical appliances other than fans, and any item priced at $100 or more including mark-up (with narrow exceptions for watches, shoes, mattresses, the secured media device, and Special Purpose Orders). The full list is at PS 4500.13 [pp. 36–37].
How are federal prison commissary prices set?
The selling price is the Bureau’s actual cost plus a 30% base mark-up, adjusted annually by the national Consumer Price Index, computed automatically and rounded up to the next nickel (PS 4500.13 at p. 38). Postage, self-improvement textbooks, correspondence courses, educational and vocational materials, law books and legal materials, non-edible religious articles, smoking-cessation materials, and Passover meals carry no mark-up. Old and new stock cannot be sold at different prices, so a new shipment resets the shelf price for everything already there.
What happens to commissary if someone refuses the IFRP?
The monthly commissary spending limitation drops to at least $25 per month, excluding stamps, telephone credits, and — for common fare participants — kosher/halal certified shelf-stable entrees, under 28 C.F.R. § 545.11(d)(6). Special Purpose Orders are also refused, except kosher/halal shelf-stable entrees for verified common fare participants. Nine other consequences attach as well, including no furlough, no UNICOR, lowest housing status, no community-based placement, and no release gratuity without the Warden’s approval.
Can a federal inmate give commissary items to another inmate?
No — not without staff authorization. Code 328 makes “giving money or anything of value to, or accepting money or anything of value from, another inmate or any other person without staff authorization” a Moderate severity prohibited act under 28 C.F.R. § 541.3 and PS 5270.09 at p. 52. Lending for profit is code 304, and giving or receiving money for a prohibited purpose is code 217, a High severity act. A Moderate finding can cost up to 25% (1–14 days) of a year’s good conduct time; a High finding, 25–50% (14–27 days).
How does a federal inmate buy something the commissary doesn’t stock?
Through a Special Purpose Order, submitted on form BP-A0200 to designated staff. The national limits are one SPO per month — exceptions require the Warden’s written approval — and $600 per quarter including mark-up and shipping, with any single validation cycle still capped by the institution’s monthly spending limit (PS 4500.13 at p. 40). The order encumbers the account when it is created, before the item arrives. Leather items with a unit cost of $100 or more require the Warden’s personal written approval.
How often can a federal inmate go to commissary?
The manual says the commissary “will be open daily, except in cases of scheduled inventories, emergency situations, or upon direction or notification from the Trust Fund Branch, Central Office,” but “the number of times an inmate may visit the Commissary is controlled by the administration of each institution” (PS 4500.13 at p. 16). In practice most institutions assign one shopping day a week by housing unit. Since May 2026, any closure outside those three categories — including one caused by staffing shortages — requires a written memorandum from the Warden to the Chief, Trust Fund Branch.
What happens to unspent commissary money at release?
The balance is returned. All funds other than gratuities and transportation are ordinarily paid out on an inmate release card; where a card is unavailable, payment is made in cash up to $500 with the remaining balance disbursed by U.S. Treasury check to the release destination (PS 4500.13 at pp. 86–87). Funds still on hold as outstanding negotiable instruments are not included in the release payment. A separate discretionary release gratuity of up to $500 may be authorized under 18 U.S.C. § 3624(d), 28 C.F.R. § 571.21 and PS 5873.06 at p. 2 — our explainer is at release gratuities, transportation and clothing.
What does the Bureau of Prisons provide to indigent inmates for free?
Clothing (the full standard wardrobe), bedding and linen with at least three changes of clean clothing and one change of linen a week, three nutritionally adequate meals a day, basic hygiene articles, hair care, medical and dental care, mental health care and substance abuse treatment with no co-pay, religious services and chaplaincy, recreation, library access, and a mandatory free literacy program. Someone who is “without funds” also gets up to two over-the-counter medications a week from a Bureau-approved list (28 C.F.R. § 549.31), free writing paper and envelopes, five stamps a week for legal and administrative-remedy mail, and about five personal letters a month at government expense (28 C.F.R. § 540.21). What is not provided free: deodorant, shampoo, shower shoes, snack food, phone credit and everything else on the commissary list.
What does “indigent” mean in federal prison?
It depends on the benefit, because there is no single federal definition. For free over-the-counter medication, an “inmate without funds” is one “who has not had a trust fund account balance of $6.00 for the past 30 days” (28 C.F.R. § 549.31). For free postage, it is someone “without sufficient commissary balance to purchase a postage stamp sufficient for first-class, 1-ounce domestic mailing” (28 C.F.R. § 540.21(d)(2)). For the medical co-pay waiver, the regulation sets no numeric test at all — only that you are not charged if “considered indigent and unable to pay,” with the Warden empowered to set anti-abuse procedures (28 C.F.R. § 549.74). A person can qualify under one test and not another on the same day.
Is $50 enough for a federal prison commissary account?
It buys hygiene and a little food, and it will not last a month. The Bureau’s monthly spending limitation is $460 (PS 4500.13 at p. 28), which is the ceiling rather than a typical spend, but it indicates the scale of what a full commissary list costs. Commissary prices are calculated as cost plus a 30% base mark-up, adjusted annually by the Consumer Price Index, and the Bureau does not publish item prices — so no honest source can tell you exactly what $50 buys at a given institution. Note that stamps, over-the-counter medications, copy cards and copy paper, and footwear are all excluded from the monthly limit, and that a deposit large enough to push the balance over $6.00 will end the free over-the-counter medication route for the next 30 days.
Do inmates get blankets and sheets in federal prison?
Yes, at no cost. The institution issues “suitable, clean bedding and linen,” specifically one mattress, two sheets, one pillow and pillowcase (unless the mattress has a pillow built in), towels, “[s]ufficient blankets to provide comfort under existing conditions” with an optional cotton blanket mattress cover, and two nylon mesh bags (PS 4500.13 at p. 113). In the Special Housing Unit the same entitlement appears in the binding regulation — “a mattress, blankets, a pillow, and linens for sleeping,” with necessary opportunities to exchange linens (28 C.F.R. § 541.31(d)).
How much is the medical co-pay in federal prison, and who has to pay it?
$2.00 per health care visit that the incarcerated person requested, or where they are found responsible through the disciplinary process for injuring someone who then needs care (28 C.F.R. § 549.70(b)). No fee is charged for staff-referred visits, staff-approved chronic-condition follow-up, preventive care, emergencies, prenatal care, diagnosis or treatment of chronic infectious disease, mental health care, or substance abuse treatment (28 C.F.R. § 549.72). Someone “considered indigent and unable to pay” is not charged at all (28 C.F.R. § 549.74), and no one may be denied necessary care for inability to pay.
Do prisoners get to shower daily, and what are the prison hygiene rules?
There is no national rule setting a general-population shower frequency; the binding regulation requires each person to observe “the standards concerning bathing and clothing that exist in the institution,” which leaves the schedule to the facility (28 C.F.R. § 551.7). National minimums exist only in restricted settings: at least three times per calendar week during a lockdown (PS 5525.01 at p. 6) and at least three times per week in the Special Housing Unit (28 C.F.R. § 541.31(f)). Hygiene articles are free: the Warden “shall make available to an inmate those articles necessary for maintaining personal hygiene” (28 C.F.R. § 551.6), with soap, toothbrush, toothpaste or powder, comb and toilet paper given as the policy examples.
How many free stamps does an indigent federal inmate get?
Two separate allowances. For legal mail and administrative remedy filings, someone with “neither funds nor sufficient postage” receives up to five postage stamps each week (28 C.F.R. § 540.21(d)). For personal mail to maintain community ties, “[f]ive letters per month are suggested as reasonable in most circumstances” (28 C.F.R. § 540.21(e)). Holdovers and pretrial detainees get a suggested three letters per week. Writing paper and envelopes are free to everyone. Stamps may not be mailed in from outside; they come only from the institution or the commissary.
Can an indigent federal prisoner get over-the-counter medicine?
Yes. The Warden “must establish procedures to provide up to two OTC medications per week for an inmate without funds” (28 C.F.R. § 549.31). Under current policy the person selects no more than two items from a Bureau-approved indigent OTC list, no more than once weekly, and submits the request directly to the institution pharmacy — and “[a] clinical encounter is not required prior to providing indigent medications” (PS 6541.03 at p. 4). Needing more than two items, or an item not on the list, means going to triage or sick call, where a provider decides medical necessity. Commissary restrictions or other encumbrances do not make a person indigent for this purpose.
Are education and college free in federal prison?
The literacy program is free and, for anyone without a verified GED or high school diploma, mandatory — a minimum of 240 instructional hours or until a GED is achieved (28 C.F.R. § 544.70). Library access is free, with the main library open at least three hours daily and six hours over the weekend (PS 1542.07 at p. 2). College is different: outside of “programs funded through Federal Pell Grants, institution funding, or other approved funding sources,” people “are responsible for all costs associated with participation in PSE programs, including tuition, books, and related fees” (PS 5354.04 at p. 4). The reinstatement of Federal Pell Grant eligibility has changed this materially where a participating college partner exists.
What happens to an indigent prisoner’s property during a transfer?
Two boxes travel at the Bureau’s expense. Beyond that, or for property authorized for retention but not for Bureau-paid shipment, the person pays the postage — and “[i]n the case of an indigent inmate, Unit Management staff are contacted to see if stamps are available for payment of postage” (PS 5580.10 at p. 16). Staff follow up at 30-day intervals and, “[a]fter 60 days, this property will be identified as voluntarily abandoned property and disposed of.” Legal material is exempt from the two-box limit if the boxes contain only legal materials and are marked “Legal Material,” and special-needs institutional clothing and shoes ship at government expense in addition to the two boxes.
Reviewed for legal accuracy by Elizabeth Franklin-Best, Esq., Principal Attorney·September 2026