Sending Photos to a Federal Inmate: Rules, Screening, and Pricing

Photos matter more than almost anything else you can send someone doing federal time — and they’re also the easiest thing to get wrong, since a photo that violates a facility’s content rules can come back rejected instead of reaching your loved one at all. Here’s exactly how sending photos to a federal inmate works through ContactMeAsap, how screening protects your order, and what it actually costs.

Two Ways to Send a Photo

Once your inmate is set up (see our guide on how to text a federal inmateif you haven’t gotten that far yet), you can send a photo the same way you’d send a text: as a regular multimedia (MMS) message to your inmate’s unique phone number. Your inmate will be notified that a photo arrived, its price, and how many other photos are still pending.

The alternative — and the one we recommend — is uploading the photo through the website upload form instead of texting it. Photos sent by text come through at lower picture resolution, while the uploaded photos are printed on the same equipment used for school photos: high-resolution images on quality paper, run through a traditional photo lab machine.

Why Photos Get Rejected — and How Screening Prevents It

Every photo you send is screened for content that would get rejected by the Bureau of Prisons, so an entire batch of photos doesn’t get sent back over one problem image. We also edit photos professionally so they’re formatted to be received according to Federal Bureau of Prisons policy before they ever ship. That screening step exists precisely because content rules are real and facilities do enforce them.

What we can’t do is publish a universal list of exactly what’s allowed, because the specific content and size rules are set by the Bureau of Prisons and can vary from one institution’s admission and orientation handbook to the next. If you want the exact policy for your loved one’s facility, the Bureau of Prisons keeps facility contact information and policy documents at bop.gov.

What the Finished Photos Actually Look Like

We print exclusively on FUJIFILM Crystal Archive paper, so the quality your inmate receives is built to last — up to 100+ years without fading. Everything is processed and printed in-house, so you don’t have to worry about a third party handling your family photos, and we ship from our photo lab six days a week.

That in-house processing is handled by a dedicated team of photo lab technicians, working alongside the same programmers and customer service staff who run the messaging side of the service. ContactMeAsap is a long-standing, 100% female owned and operated company, and every photo you send is processed and printed entirely in-house on FUJIFILM Crystal Archive paper — we ship from that same photo lab six days a week, with the rest of the service open 24/7 so support is there whenever you need it.

How to Get Started Sending Photos

If you haven’t set up your account yet, click Add Fundsand provide the information needed to get your inmate connected. Once your payment is approved, you’ll receive instructions by text and email covering account setup — including how to reach the website upload form for photos. From there, sending a photo is as simple as uploading it online or texting it to your inmate’s unique phone number, the same number you use for regular messages.

What Photo Printing Costs

Depending on the facility and the volume purchased, prints run as low as $0.52 each, including shipping and screening. Your inmate is notified of the exact total price before the order goes through — that price doesn’t change afterward and covers everything, including the content screening described above.

The Basic Federal Plan ($20) includes access to Pay Per Print photo service, billed at the per-photo pricing above. The Premium Federal Plan ($30) includes 25 free federal prison photos on top of everything in Basic, along with priority Corrlinks processing and 24/7 support. Ready to send your first photo? Add funds to get started.

Either way, there’s no subscription and no auto-billing involved. We don’t save your card details, so you add funds when you actually want to send photos, and whatever balance you add stays on your account until you use it. If your loved one is released or no longer needs the service, there’s nothing to formally cancel — you simply stop adding funds.

Notification and Approval

Your inmate is notified whenever a photo is sent and who it came from, whether it arrived by text or through the website upload form. For orders placed through the website, the exact total price is confirmed before the order is finalized, so there are no surprises once printing begins.

Why the Screening Step Exists

When photos ship as part of a batch, one image that violates a facility’s content policy can put the whole order at risk of being sent back. Screening every photo before it goes out is what keeps a single questionable image from holding up the rest of the photos you’re sending — and it’s paired with the professional editing described above, which formats each photo to be received according to Federal Bureau of Prisons policy in the first place, rather than catching problems after the fact.

Tips for Photos That Go Through Cleanly

• Use the website upload form rather than texting the photo directly — you’ll get a sharper, higher-resolution print.
• Let our screening step do its job; it exists specifically to catch content a facility would otherwise reject.
• For anything borderline — a background detail, an item of clothing, a gesture — check your specific facility’s admission and orientation handbook or bop.gov rather than guessing.
• Send photos early if there’s an occasion behind them; we ship from our lab six days a week, but mail delivery time inside the facility is outside our control.

Getting Help With a Photo Order

If you’re unsure about the status of an order, or a photo came back flagged, text 734-215-7002 for 24/7 support. You can also read more about how the messaging side of the service works on our how it works page, or reach us through any method listed on our contact page.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does it cost to send a photo to a federal inmate?

As low as $0.52 per photo, including shipping and screening, depending on the facility and the volume you purchase. The exact total is shown and confirmed before your order is finalized, and it doesn’t change afterward.

Will my photo get rejected by the prison?

We screen every photo for content that the Bureau of Prisons would reject before it ships, so an issue with one image doesn’t hold up the rest of your order. The exact content rules are set by the Bureau of Prisons and can vary by facility, so check bop.gov or your loved one’s facility handbook for anything you’re unsure about.

Can I just text a photo instead of using the website?

Yes — texting a photo to your inmate’s unique number works and is notified the same way. We recommend the website upload form instead when picture quality matters, since texted photos come through at lower resolution.

Is photo printing included in my plan, or is it extra?

The Basic plan includes access to Pay Per Print photo service at the per-photo pricing above. The Premium plan includes 25 free federal prison photos in addition to everything in Basic.