Mail & Packages in New Jersey (NJDOC)

New Jersey routes mail in two separate streams, and using the wrong address is the most common mistake.

Personal Mail Goes to a Scanning Center

Since 2025, all incoming personal mail for NJDOC prisons is sent to a third-party processing center, where it is opened, scanned, and delivered to the incarcerated person as printed copies. The originals are not delivered — they are held for a period and then destroyed. The department adopted this to keep drug-soaked paper out of the prisons. Address personal mail exactly like this:

[Person’s name] – [SBI number] [Facility name] – [Facility code] P.O. Box 96777 Las Vegas, NV 89193

The SBI number is New Jersey’s ID for the person (look it up on the NJDOC Offender Search), and each facility has a code that must be on the envelope. A few limits the department posts: photos must be 4 by 6 inches (up to 10 per envelope), greeting cards and postcards no larger than 5 by 7 inches, and envelopes no larger than about 4 by 9½ inches. Scanned copies are typically delivered within a few days.

Legal Mail and Publications Go to the Prison

Two kinds of mail are not sent to the scanning center:

• Legal and privileged mail — correspondence from an attorney or a court — goes directly to the facility, where it is opened and inspected in the person’s presence but not scanned. The envelope must be clearly marked “Legal Mail,” “Confidential,” or “Attorney/Client.”
• Publications — books, magazines, and newspapers — must be sent directly by the publisher, bookstore, or distributor to the facility. The scanning center will not accept them, and a publication sent by a family member is not allowed.

What Cannot Be Sent

Do not put money in any form in the mail — cash, checks, gift cards, or credit cards are removed (money goes through the deposit system in Sending Money). Also not allowed: stickers, glitter, stapled items, and books or magazines sent by a family member. An indigent person is provided postage for up to 12 personal letters a month.

If Someone Is in a County Jail

A person awaiting trial or serving a sentence of a year or less is held in a county jail, which sets its own mail rules — and many county jails use their own scanning vendors and addresses, different from the state system. Confirm where the person is held and that jail’s mailing instructions before sending anything.

Verify Before Acting

For the general, nationwide overview of this topic, see the national guide: Staying in Touch.