Two of the routes here are completely free, and the one most families use is not either of them. Send photos and letters too.
Send photos and letters too
You need two things to deposit money for someone on Rikers Island: their first and last name, and their Book and Case number. After that it is a question of which route, and the honest answer is that the department’s own cashier window and cash handed over at a visit are both free while the convenient online routes are not. There is also one distinction worth getting right before you send anything, because commissary money and bail money go to completely different places.
Start here, because most guides bury them.
The Department of Correction cashier window. The department states there is still no fee when you deposit money directly at one of its cashier windows. Nothing is deducted. The handbook places it as the Cashier’s Office at the facility.
Cash at a visit. Handed over during a visit, and the department confirms the funds are available the next day. If you are already crossing the bridge, this is the fastest and cheapest thing you can do.
Everything below costs money.
This is where deposits go wrong.
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| City Code | NYCITYDOC |
| State Code | NY |
The department’s wording is that both are required to make a deposit. A transfer with the city code and no state code does not complete.
Western Union takes it by phone, online at westernunion.com, or in person at an agent. Two official phone numbers appear across the department’s own documents, 800-325-6000 on the send money page and 800-634-3422 in the handbook, and it does not say which is current. Try the send money page number first.
Online at jpay.com, by phone on 800-574-JPAY, walk-in, or at a kiosk. The department notes that JPay’s kiosks are cash only.
Money orders in any denomination up to $1,000 are accepted. They are opened and inspected in the person’s presence, a receipt is issued, and the funds are available five business days after receipt.
Cash sent by post is no longer accepted. Only money orders and cashier’s cheques. The department made this change and it is worth heeding, because cash in an envelope is not returned to you, it becomes a problem.
The department says all transactions through the money transfer agents require a fee, that the fee varies between agents, and that the Department of Correction receives none of it.
If the amount matters, check the agent’s own site before you commit, or use one of the two free routes.
No weekly or monthly commissary spending cap is published.
Different money, different payee, different places, and mixing them up is expensive.
Bail cannot be paid online. Bail cheques and money orders are payable to New York City Department of Correction, capped at $1,000 each, and no change is given.
| Location | Hours |
|---|---|
| Rikers Island Central Cashier | 24 hours, 7 days |
| Manhattan Detention Complex, 125 White St | 24 hours, 7 days |
| Bronx Criminal Court, Lower Level Room M-05C | Mon and Tue 9 to 5, Wed to Fri 9 to 8, closed weekends |
| Queens Courts, 126-01 Queens Blvd, Kew Gardens, ground floor | Mon to Fri 9 to 5 |
| Brooklyn Courts, 120 Schermerhorn, Room 101C | 7 days, 8:30 AM to 1:00 AM |
Do not write “New York City Department of Correction” as the payee on a commissary money order. That instruction belongs to bail and only to bail.
Do not hand cash to the person during a visit. Cash is contraband inside, and the department states that visitors who give cash to a person in custody are subject to arrest. Handing money to staff at the cashier window is the legitimate version of the same instinct, and it is free.
6 of 9 questions
A Department of Correction cashier window, which charges no fee, or cash handed over during a visit, which is available the next day. Every other route goes through a transfer agent and carries a fee that the department says varies and does not publish.
Send MoneyThe person's first and last name and their Book and Case number, which is the identifier the department assigns at admission. It appears in the Person in Custody Lookup, which also carries a Send Money button through to the transfer agents.
Send MoneyCity code NYCITYDOC and state code NY. The department states that both are required, and a transfer entered with only the city code does not complete. Two official phone numbers appear in department documents, 800-325-6000 and 800-634-3422, without saying which is current.
Send MoneyNo. Cash sent through the post is no longer accepted by the Department of Correction. Only money orders and cashier's cheques, in any denomination up to $1,000, opened and inspected in the person's presence with a receipt issued. Funds are available five business days after receipt.
Send MoneyNo, and it is a serious matter. Cash is contraband inside, and the department states that visitors who give cash to a person in custody are subject to arrest. What you can do is hand cash to staff at the cashier window during the same trip, which is free and lands the next day.
Send MoneyCommissary orders go in once a week, by phone or on the assigned tablet, through Keefe Commissary Group. The menu is on the tablet and posted by the housing area phone along with the delivery schedule. If they are at court when the order arrives, it comes the next day.
Send MoneyYes, through Securepak, which Keefe also runs. A family package can be worth up to $25 and a person may receive one every 21 days. That is separate from the ordinary package rules, which cap parcels at 15 pounds and prohibit food and toiletries outright.
Send MoneyNo, and confusing the two is costly. Bail cannot be paid online, uses New York City Department of Correction as the payee, and is taken at specific locations including the Rikers Island Central Cashier, which is open around the clock. Never write that payee on a commissary money order.
Send MoneyIt follows them between city facilities. If it has not arrived after a transfer, the handbook points to Counseling staff as the escalation route. Worth checking the lookup anyway, because a move between the six jails on the island changes the address you write to as well.
Send MoneySix jails, and the lookup that cannot see police custody.
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All information on this page comes directly from official government and facility sources. How we verify information › Last verified September 15, 2026.