USP Canaan Visiting Hours and the BP-A0629 Form

The Rotating Weekend Schedule

USP Canaan splits its housing units into 2 visiting groups that alternate by weekend. Red Side, covering Units A and B and C, visits one weekend. Blue Side, covering Units D and E and F, visits the next. Federal holidays are added into the rotation as extra visiting days. This means the weekend your family member can have visitors depends on which unit they’re assigned to, so confirm this directly with them or with the facility before planning a trip.

What’s Not Confirmed

The official visiting calendar shows which weekends belong to which housing group, but it doesn’t state the specific time-of-day hours for those visits. Call USP Canaan directly at (570) 488-8000 to confirm both the current unit rotation and what time visiting starts and ends.

Step 1. Get Form BP-A0629 Started

Every person who wants to visit, including immediate family, must be listed on Form BP-A0629 (Visitor Information). The inmate submits this to their assigned counselor, who runs a background check (an NCIC check) before approving each visitor. Start this process as early as possible after the person arrives at USP Canaan.

Step 2. Wait for Approval

The counselor reviews each proposed visitor before adding them to the inmate’s approved visiting list. There’s no way for a family member to submit this form directly, it has to come from the inmate.

USP Canaan Is Not the Same as SCI Waymart

USP Canaan and SCI Waymart are both located in Waymart, Wayne County, PA, but they’re entirely separate systems with separate visiting processes, separate approval forms, and separate facilities. Make sure you’re headed to the right one.

ID and Screening

Bring a valid, government-issued photo ID. Expect security screening similar to other federal facilities, including a walk-through metal detector and possible additional search procedures.

If You Have Other Questions

Call USP Canaan directly at (570) 488-8000 for questions about the BP-A0629 process or to confirm the current weekend rotation.

Parking and Arriving On Site

Use the facility’s designated visitor parking area, not the general staff or Bureau Road parking. Large vehicles like campers, RVs, tractors, or trailers aren’t allowed in the visitor lot at any time. Arrive with enough time to clear the entry process before your scheduled window starts, since federal facilities generally don’t build in a grace period for late arrivals.

Visitor Conduct and Early Termination

Visits are expected to stay quiet, orderly, and dignified since many families share the visiting room at once. A brief hug, kiss, and handshake are generally allowed at the start and end of a visit, but staff can limit contact for security reasons, most often to prevent contraband from changing hands, and the visiting room officer can end a visit on the spot if either the visitor or the inmate isn’t behaving appropriately. The BOP doesn’t permit conjugal visits.

Weather in Northeastern Pennsylvania

Winters around Waymart can bring significant snowfall given the area’s elevation and distance from major roads. If you’re making a real drive for a weekend visit between December and March, call (570) 488-8000 the morning you leave to confirm conditions haven’t affected normal operations.

Medical Needs and Accessibility

Most BOP facilities provide a private area in the visiting room for nursing mothers. If you need a specific accommodation for a disability or medical condition, such as a wheelchair-accessible entry or help with a hearing impairment, contact USP Canaan directly at (570) 488-8000 before your visit so staff can plan for it in advance rather than sorting it out at the door.

Holiday Visiting

Visiting is often available on federal holidays in addition to the regular weekend schedule, and time visited on a holiday typically doesn’t count against an inmate’s usual visiting allowance. Confirm with USP Canaan at (570) 488-8000 how holiday visiting works under its specific system before planning a trip, since the exact rules can vary by facility and by the inmate’s custody level.

Dress Code

The BOP prohibits revealing or inmate-like clothing for visitors: no shorts, halter or crop tops, see-through garments, low-cut or backless blouses, sleeveless tops, or miniskirts. Clothing that resembles the inmate uniform, typically khaki tones, is also not allowed. Dress conservatively to avoid being turned away.

Legal and Attorney Visits

Attorney visits follow a separate process from general visiting and aren’t limited by the same monthly allowance. If you’re an attorney or working with one, contact USP Canaan directly at (570) 488-8000 to arrange it rather than using the standard visitor approval process.

Bringing a Minor

A child still needs his own place on the BP-A0629, and BOP practice generally expects an approved adult to accompany him. If you’re not already on the approved list and you’re planning to bring a grandchild, niece, or nephew, ask USP Canaan at (570) 488-8000 what documentation is expected, proof of the child’s relationship to the inmate commonly comes into play.

Changing Your Visitor Status

Anything you want to update about your approval, including asking to be removed from the list, still routes through him and his counselor rather than through a form a visitor files directly.

Approval Doesn’t Follow a Transfer

Being cleared to visit at USP Canaan is specific to USP Canaan. If he’s moved to a different BOP institution, a fresh BP-A0629 has to clear at wherever he lands, this approval doesn’t carry over automatically. Check the Inmate Locator first if you suspect a transfer.

Getting to Waymart

USP Canaan sits in a rural part of Wayne County in northeastern Pennsylvania. There’s no major airport nearby, families flying in typically land in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre or the New York City area and drive the rest of the way. Given how remote the area is, lodging options near Waymart are limited, book ahead if a weekend visit means staying overnight.

Photos During Your Visit

Some BOP visiting rooms allow a limited number of photos, usually taken by a staff photographer for a small fee rather than a personal phone or camera, neither of which clears the entrance. Ask about current photo policy and pricing when you call (570) 488-8000, it’s not published on the general facility pages.