RDAP Shortened, Halfway House Delays, Visits Restored

The BOP made three moves this week that directly affect when your person walks out. Two of them can shift his date. One of them can cost you a wasted trip.

Here's what changed, and what you do about each one.

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RDAP Got Shorter — and His Sentence Credit Stays the Same

The BOP officially reduced the Residential Drug Abuse Program from 9 months to 6 months at most facilities.

I want to be precise here, because this is the part that matters: the sentence reduction for completing RDAP did not change. He still earns up to 12 months off his sentence for completing the program. What changed is how fast he gets there. A shorter program means an earlier completion date, which means the 12-month credit could hit his record sooner than anyone originally calculated.

If he's enrolled right now, that new completion date needs to be recalculated. If he's on the waitlist, his projected enrollment window shifts too.

His case manager holds the updated numbers. The case manager will not call you. CALL THE INSTITUTION and ask to leave a message, or have him request the updated completion date in writing on a cop-out (BP-8) and send you a copy. Get it documented. Verbal confirmation from a case manager means nothing when it doesn't show up in SENTRY.

If you want to see how this change interacts with his current release date calculation, the federal prison sentence calculator can help you build a baseline before you make that call.

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Halfway House Placements Are Running 4-6 Weeks Late Nationwide

The BOP is pointing at staffing shortages at Residential Reentry Centers. I don't know if that's the whole story. What I do know is that 4-6 weeks of delay is not a rumor — it's showing up in placement confirmations across the system right now.

If his projected halfway house date is within the next 60 days, do not assume it's locked.

Here's the specific move: contact the Residential Reentry Management office that covers his facility — not the institution itself, the RRM office. The RRM office handles the actual bed placement. The case manager handles the referral. They are two different conversations, and only one of them knows whether a bed is actually available.

You can find the RRM office covering his facility on the BOP's website under the Reentry section, listed by region. Call them directly. Ask whether a placement has been confirmed for his name and projected date. Write down who you spoke to and what they said.

If there's no confirmed placement yet and his date is close, he needs to file a request with his case manager to escalate. He can do that. You can also write to the warden's office if the case manager is unresponsive — that letter goes in his file.

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Visitation Changed This Week — Read This Before You Book a Trip

The BOP updated its visitation policy. A few of these changes will catch people off guard.

Same-day visit approvals are gone at most facilities. If you've been able to call ahead and get cleared day-of, that process is over. Visitors must now be on the approved list at least 48 hours before the visit. If you are not on his approved list, or if someone new wants to come with you, they need to be added and cleared before you ever get in the car.

The news that's actually good: contact visits are restored at camps and low-security institutions. If he's at a camp or low, you can hold his hand again. That matters.

Video visitation is now expanded to all medium-security facilities. If he's at a medium and in-person visits are hard to make work, this is a real option. To use it, you need a CorrLinks account — set it up now, not the week you want to visit.

DO NOT SHOW UP WITHOUT CONFIRMING YOUR STATUS ON HIS LIST. The drive, the time off work, the kids in the car — none of it matters if you get turned away at the door.

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What to Do Before the End of the Week

If he's in RDAP: Have him request his updated completion date in writing via cop-out. Ask him to send you a copy of the response.

If his halfway house date is within 60 days: Call the RRM office for his region directly. Confirm a bed is assigned. Write down the name of whoever answers.

If you're planning a visit: Check that you're on his approved list right now. Not the day before. Now. New visitors need 48 hours minimum.

If in-person visits aren't possible: Set up your CorrLinks account this week. Video visitation at mediums is live.

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Sources

• BOP Program Statement 5330.11 (RDAP)
• BOP Program Statement 7310.04 (Community Programs)
• BOP Residential Reentry Management Office Bulletin, August 2026
• BOP Visitation Policy Update, August 2026