How to mail a PDF to someone in a West Virginia prison

Quick facts

System

West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation (WVDCR)

Inmate ID

OID number (Offender Identification number)

General mail goes to

Centralized scanning center — PO Box 336, Phoenix, MD (TextBehind)

Recipient receives

Digital scan of letter pages (originals are not delivered)

Page limit

No published page-count cap for personal letters

Allowed contents

Handwritten or typed letter pages only — no photos or enclosures

Return address

Full first and last name required — initials not accepted

One offender per envelope

Mail addressed to multiple offenders is returned

Where to send mail

Personal mail from family and friends (including printed PDFs)

Address to the centralized mail center with the person’s full name, OID number, and the complete facility name — do not abbreviate the facility. Your return address must show your full first and last name (no initials), or the mailing will be returned.

[Full Name] [OID Number]
[Full Facility Name — do not abbreviate]
PO Box 336
Phoenix, MD 21131

Send elsewhere — not the Phoenix scanning center

• Books, magazines, and newspapers → Facility mailing address (publisher or book retailer only)

  Publications may be received only from the publisher or a book retailer, with the sender’s address clearly identified on the package (PD 503.03). Do not tuck books or magazines into a personal letter to the scanning center — enclosures are returned.

• Attorney-client / legal mail → Facility mailing address

  Attorney-client mail must clearly state “legal mail” on the envelope or indicate it is from the person’s attorney of record (PD 503.00). WVDCR’s public friends/family page routes personal letters to Phoenix, MD — legal mail is handled under separate privileged-mail rules at the facility.

• Packages → Contact the individual facility

  The friends/family letter page covers correspondence only. Ask the facility about package rules before shipping anything other than a letter.

Format & content rules

• Non-legal personal mail — handwritten or typed letters, including printed PDF pages mailed as correspondence — must go to PO Box 336 in Phoenix, MD. Contents are scanned; the incarcerated person receives the digital scan, not your originals.
• No photographs. If the envelope contains photographs, the entire mailing is returned to the sender.
• No attachments or enclosures beyond the letter itself. Handwritten or typed letter pages are the only permitted contents. Do not include stamps, money, cards with pop-ups, or other extra items.
• One offender per envelope. Mail addressed to multiple people is returned.
• Return address must include your complete first and last name — no initials.
• Address must include the person’s full name, OID number, and the full facility name with no abbreviations.
• Violation of any of the above causes all contents to be returned to the sender.
• Content can still be withheld under WVDCR mail and publication policies if it threatens security, good order, or discipline.

Document mailing checklist

1. Confirm the person is in WVDCR custody and look up their OID number and facility.
2. Address to PO Box 336 in Phoenix, MD with name + OID number and the full (unabbreviated) facility name.
3. Put your full first and last name in the return address — no initials.
4. Keep the packet to typed or handwritten letter pages only — no photos, books, stamps, money, or other enclosures.
5. Send to one person per envelope.

Look up an OID number →

Send with PrisonPDF

• Upload a multi-page PDF or DOCX and we print and mail it for you.
• When you select West Virginia, we use the centralized scanning address, collect the full facility name, and format your mailing as letter pages only.
• We do not review PDFs — WVDCR may still reject or return mail that violates policy.

Official sources

• WVDCR — Sending Letters to an Inmate
• WVDCR PD 503.00 — Mail Privileges for Inmates
• WVDCR PD 503.03 — Incoming Publications
• WVDCR Offender Search