CORRLINKS — how to email a federal inmate.

What is CORRLINKS?

CORRLINKS is the public-facing side of TRULINCS (Trust Fund Limited Inmate Computer System) — the federal Bureau of Prisons' email service. If your match is in a federal facility — not a state prison or county jail — CORRLINKS is how you'll communicate with them electronically.

It works differently from Securus, GettingOut, and TextBehind in some important ways:

• It's free for the volunteer. You don't pay to send or receive messages.
• The inmate pays a small fee per message (usually around $0.05 per minute of computer time, billed to their inmate trust account).
• The inmate must initiate the contact request. Unlike Securus/GettingOut, you can't add them to your contacts and start writing — they have to add you to their contact list first.
• No attachments. CORRLINKS is text only. No photos, no files, no images of any kind.
• No internet access for the inmate. They can only message contacts they've explicitly added — not the wider internet.

How to get started

The CORRLINKS process is the opposite direction from other platforms — the inmate initiates it, not you.

Step 1 — The inmate adds you to their contact list

From their facility's TRULINCS terminal, the inmate enters your email address. The system sends you an invitation email from noreply@corrlinks.com.

For a Jeff's Second Family pen-pal match, the ministry coordinates with the inmate to make sure they have your email address. You'll know to expect the invitation.

Step 2 — You receive the invitation email

The email arrives with subject "Person in Custody Identification Number" and includes:

• The inmate's name
• Their Federal Register Number (their BOP ID)
• An identification code (8 characters)

This code is what you use to register on CORRLINKS. Save this email. You'll need it.

Step 3 — Create your CORRLINKS account

Go to corrlinks.com and click Sign Up. You'll be asked to:

1. Enter the email address the invitation was sent to
2. Enter the inmate's identification code from the invitation email
3. Create a password
4. Provide your name and basic info

Step 4 — Wait for the inmate's first message

Once your account is set up, the inmate has to send you the first message. You can't write to them until they've messaged you. This typically happens within a day or two of you completing registration.

Step 5 — Reply

From that point forward, it works like email. Sign in to corrlinks.com (or use the mobile app), see new messages in your inbox, click Reply.

What CORRLINKS messages can contain

CORRLINKS is plain text only. Here's what works:

• Plain text messages, up to 13,000 characters
• Standard punctuation and formatting (no rich text, but paragraphs are fine)
• No emojis (some get stripped, some come through garbled — keep it simple)
• No attachments of any kind — no photos, no PDFs, no files
• No links — URLs in messages are usually stripped or flagged

13,000 characters is a lot — roughly 2,000 words. Plenty of room for substantive letters. Use it well; CORRLINKS is one of the more generous platforms in terms of length.

What you cannot discuss

The Bureau of Prisons monitors all CORRLINKS messages. Same general rules as other platforms — but federal facilities tend to be stricter:

• No discussion of their pending or appealing legal case
• No mention of other inmates by name
• No mention of staff by name
• No coded language or anything that could appear to be coordinating activity
• No instructions or how-to information for anything dangerous
• No third-party messaging (don't pass messages from another person to the inmate)
• No URLs or web addresses

Cost — what each side pays

CORRLINKS is genuinely free for you. There's no subscription, no per-message fee, no charges of any kind on the volunteer side. You just need an email address and the registration is free.

The inmate pays roughly $0.05 per minute of computer time at the TRULINCS terminal. A typical message takes 5-10 minutes to compose and send (typing on a prison terminal is slower than typing on a personal computer). So each message costs them roughly $0.25-$0.50, deducted from their inmate trust account.

That means: if your match is on a tight budget, ask them how often they want to write. They may want to space out messages to manage cost, or they may have ample funds and want to write often. Take their lead.

Inbox and message flow

Messages on CORRLINKS work like email. You log in, see new messages in your inbox, and reply. The interface is bare-bones — it looks like email from 2005 — but it works.

Delivery times

Messages are reviewed by BOP staff before being delivered to the inmate's terminal. Typical review time: up to a few hours. The inmate sees your message the next time they log in to a TRULINCS terminal, which they typically do once a day or every couple of days, depending on facility access rules.

How long messages take to get a response

Federal inmates usually have limited terminal time — often capped at 60-90 minutes per day or week, depending on the facility. They have to balance email with other things they use the terminal for. Typical reply turnaround: 2-7 days. Longer if they're in a higher-security facility with stricter terminal access.

Photos and physical mail

Since CORRLINKS doesn't allow attachments, sending photos or cards requires using traditional USPS mail to the facility. The mailing address format for federal inmates is:

The Federal Register Number is critical — without it, mail will be returned. You can find each facility's mailing address on the Bureau of Prisons website using the Inmate Locator and the Facility Locator.

Federal facility mail rules:

• No staples, paper clips, glitter, stickers, or perfume
• Photos OK (max 4-5 per envelope, no Polaroids, no nudity)
• No money in letters — money goes through inmate trust deposits separately
• Use a return address that isn't your home (PO box recommended)
• Letter content rules same as CORRLINKS

Common problems and fixes

"I never received the invitation email"

Check your spam/junk folder for messages from noreply@corrlinks.com. Some email providers (especially AOL, Yahoo) aggressively filter automated mail from unknown senders. If you still can't find it after 48 hours, the inmate may need to re-send the invitation from their TRULINCS terminal.

"The identification code isn't working"

Identification codes expire after a set period (usually 10-30 days). If the code is expired, the inmate has to generate a new one from their terminal. If the code is fresh and still not working, double-check you're entering it exactly as shown — codes are case-sensitive.

"My message wasn't delivered"

If a message gets blocked by BOP review, you usually won't be told why. You may see "Message Pending" indefinitely. If a message has been pending more than 48 hours, contact CORRLINKS support and the inmate can also raise it through their case manager.

"I want to send a photo"

You can't through CORRLINKS — attachments aren't supported. Send photos via USPS mail to the facility address, addressed to the inmate's full name and Federal Register Number.

When CORRLINKS doesn't apply

CORRLINKS is exclusively for the Federal Bureau of Prisons. If your match is in a state prison or county jail, you'll use a different platform:

• Securus eMessaging — most state systems including Texas (TDCJ)
• TextBehind — many county jails and digital-mail-only state systems
• GettingOut (ViaPath) — alternative to Securus in some states
• Direct USPS mail — works at most facilities, slower but reliable