How to Fill Out and Submit CDCR Form 106: Background Check and Denials

CDCR Form 106, the Visiting Questionnaire, is the application every adult must submit and have approved before visiting someone in a California state prison. You cannot download it. The incarcerated person requests a blank form from prison staff, signs it, and mails it to you; you fill it out, send or hand-deliver it back to that facility’s Visiting office, and wait roughly four to six weeks for a background check.¹

Getting a Blank Form

The form comes to you from the incarcerated person, not from CDCR directly. They request it from staff, sign it, and mail it out. Their signature has to be on the questionnaire before you begin filling in your side. A questionnaire that reaches the Visiting office directly from an incarcerated person will be disapproved.²

If you are not certain which prison holds the person, search the California Incarcerated Records and Information Search (CIRIS) tool at ciris.mt.cdcr.ca.gov, or call the CDCR Identification Unit at (916) 445-6713. You will also need their CDCR number, which appears on any correspondence from the facility and in the CIRIS record.

What To Have Ready Before You Start Writing

Missing or inconsistent information is one of the most common reasons applications stall or get denied. Pull everything together before you put ink on the form.

A valid government-issued photo ID. Acceptable forms include an unlaminated California driver’s license or DMV identification card, a U.S. passport, a military ID card, an immigration ID card issued by the Department of Justice, or a Matricula Consular de Alta Seguridad (MCAS) issued by a Mexican consulate.³
Your Social Security number, exactly as it appears on your card.
Physical description details: height, weight, hair color, eye color.
A complete criminal history. Every past arrest and conviction, including misdemeanors, dismissed cases, and any law enforcement contact likely to show up in the California Law Enforcement Telecommunications System (CLETS). CDCR runs its own background check, and anything that appears in the system but not on your questionnaire can produce an automatic denial.¹
The incarcerated person’s full legal name and CDCR number, matching official correspondence.

Disclose too much rather than too little on criminal history. An old dropped charge looks like concealment when the database returns it and your form doesn’t. CDCR draws a sharp line between the two: an omission means the application gets reconsidered once you supply the missing information, but falsification bars any new application for six months.⁴

Filling Out the Form

Write legibly in ink, and complete every field. Blank spaces or illegible entries give the Visiting office a reason to return the form unprocessed.⁵ The form moves through several sections:

Inmate information. Full legal name and CDCR number, exactly as they appear on official correspondence.
Your personal information. Full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number, current mailing address, phone, and physical description. Use the name on your photo ID. Nicknames or shortened names create a mismatch.
Relationship to the incarcerated person: spouse, family member, friend, or other.
Arrest and conviction history. Each incident with approximate dates, charges, and disposition. Include pending cases.
Signature under penalty of perjury. Sign and date the final section certifying that everything you wrote is true. Once signed, the form is a legal document in the prison’s administrative files, and false statements carry consequences beyond a denied visit.

Before you sign, double-check names, numbers, and dates against your ID and Social Security card. A transposed digit or a maiden name against a married name is exactly the kind of inconsistency that delays processing for weeks.

Submitting the Completed Form

Send the questionnaire to the Visiting office at the specific institution where the incarcerated person is housed, or deliver it in person. Address the envelope to the attention of “Visiting.” The regulation allows both common carrier (USPS, UPS, FedEx) and personal delivery.² If you mail it, use a method with tracking.

Confirm the facility’s current address before sending. CDCR transfers incarcerated persons between institutions, and a form mailed to the wrong facility will not be forwarded. CIRIS or the Identification Unit can verify current housing.

The Background Check and How Long It Takes

Once the Visiting office has your form, staff run your information through criminal records databases including CLETS. They check for outstanding warrants, conviction history, parole or probation status, and any conflict between what you wrote and what the databases show.¹ Review typically runs four to six weeks, longer if the facility has a backlog.⁶

If you are approved, the incarcerated person is notified and passes the news to you. If you are denied, CDCR sends a letter directly to you with the reason. The incarcerated person is told of the denial but not why.¹

Common Reasons for Denial

CDCR spells out the grounds for turning down a visitor application. Reading them before you submit lets you assess your chances honestly.

Outstanding warrants, including a DMV Failure to Appear notice without a court disposition.⁴
Recent felony convictions: one within the last three years, two within the last six years, or three or more within the last ten years.⁴
Any conviction for smuggling drugs or contraband into a prison, aiding or attempting an escape, or being a co-participant in an offense with the incarcerated person. These disqualify regardless of how long ago they occurred.⁴
Active parole, probation, or supervised release. You need written permission from your case supervisor and prior approval from the institution head.⁴
Prior CDCR incarceration. You need the institution head’s prior written approval. After one year from discharge or completion of parole, the standard visitor criteria apply.⁴
Omitted or falsified information. Omissions delay the application until corrected; falsification produces a six-month bar on reapplying.⁴

Misdemeanors and older offenses carry less weight than recent felonies. A criminal record does not automatically disqualify you; the regulation sets specific time windows, and convictions outside those windows should not on their own block approval.

Appealing a Denial

If you disagree with the decision, write to the Warden of the prison. The Warden must respond within 15 working days of receiving your appeal.¹ Address the specific reason in your denial notice. If an omission was the problem, include the missing information. If it was a criminal record now outside the time windows above, explain that and attach court records showing the disposition date.

Keeping Your Approval Current

Approval is not permanent. CDCR periodically reviews visitor information, and any new arrest or conviction can trigger a reassessment. Any change to your name, address, phone number, or arrest history has to be reported to the facility, and you may need to submit an updated questionnaire to keep your status.² If the incarcerated person transfers to a different institution, you will generally need to be re-approved at the new facility using the same Form 106 process, sent to that facility’s Visiting office. Keep a copy of your completed questionnaire so you can reproduce the details quickly.

After Approval

Once your name is on the approved visitor list, schedule visits through CDCR’s Visitation Scheduling Application at cdcr.gtlvisitme.com, which handles both in-person and video visits.⁷ Each facility sets its own hours, dress code specifics, and rules on minors and personal items, so check the institution’s page or call its Visiting Sergeant before your first trip.

1
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. How to Get Approved to Visit an Incarcerated Person
2
New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. 15 CA ADC 3172 – Applying to Visit an Incarcerated Person
3
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Pelican Bay State Prison Visitor Information Pamphlet
4
Cornell Law Institute. California Code of Regulations Title 15 Section 3172.1 – Approval/Disapproval of Visitors
5
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Pelican Bay State Prison Family Visiting Information Pamphlet
6
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Visiting Information – Office of the Ombudsman
7
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. CDCR Visitation Updates and Information