West Virginia: pen pal rules and how to send mail
We found no rule in this department's published policies that stops people here from being listed on a pen-pal site. Normal mail rules still apply, and no one may ask pen pals for money.
Personal letters to people in West Virginia prisons go to a department-wide mail center, not to the prison. They are scanned.
Checked against the department's own pages . How we check, and corrections
Pen pal listings
We found no rule in this department's published policies that stops people here from being listed on a pen-pal site. Normal mail rules still apply, and no one may ask pen pals for money.
Sending mail to someone in West Virginia
Personal letters to people in West Virginia prisons go to a department-wide mail center, not to the prison. They are scanned.
The department gives this address format for personal mail (each prison's page below fills in its own name):
Inmate's First and Last Name and OID Number Full name of Facility (no abbreviations) PO Box 336 Phoenix, MD 21131“You must mail all letters to offenders at the following address.” Department source
“Handwritten or typed letters are only allowed to be scanned to the offender.”
Electronic messages: On GettingOut, either side can send the contact request, and both have to accept it. Step by step for each app. Department page.
Source: West Virginia mail page, read 2026-10-07. Rules change; the department's page is the final word.
See also: prison mail rules and your first letter.
Prisons in West Virginia (16)
How to write to someone at each one: the mailing format, mail rules and messaging, from the department's own pages.
Find someone in West Virginia
Official West Virginia inmate locator
We check every profile's name and ID number against this locator within a day of it going live.