Federal Good Time Credit Policies

Good conduct time (GCT), commonly referred to as good time credit, is a statutory mechanism in the United States federal prison system that allows eligible inmates to reduce their sentences by demonstrating compliance with Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) institutional regulations. Under 18 U.S.C. § 3624(b), qualifying inmates may receive a credit of up to 54 days for each year of their court-imposed sentence, effectively reducing time served by approximately 15 percent. |title_mode=replace

A distinctive feature of federal good time credit is that the Bureau of Prisons calculates and applies the maximum possible credit when an inmate first enters custody, establishing a projected release date that assumes the inmate will maintain exemplary conduct throughout incarceration. No application or affirmative action is required from inmates to receive this credit. |title_mode=replace

However, the BOP retains authority to reduce or revoke good time credit if an inmate commits disciplinary infractions, making GCT forfeiture one of the most commonly imposed sanctions in the federal prison disciplinary system. |title_mode=replace

Eligibility, calculation, and application

Eligibility

Good conduct time credit under 18 U.S.C. § 3624(b) is available to federal inmates who meet the following criteria:

• Sentenced to a term of imprisonment exceeding one year (inmates serving sentences of exactly one year or less are ineligible)
• Not serving a life sentence
• Convicted of a federal offense committed on or after November 1, 1987 (earlier offenses are governed by repealed statutes with different credit rates)
• In custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons

For inmates subject to the PLRA (offenses committed on or after April 26, 1996), educational status affects the maximum available credit. Inmates who have earned or are making satisfactory progress toward a high school diploma or equivalent may receive up to 54 days annually, while those not meeting this requirement are limited to 42 days. Noncitizens subject to a final order of removal, deportation, or exclusion are exempt from the literacy requirement but remain eligible for good time credit.

Upfront crediting

Unlike many state systems where good time must be earned incrementally, the federal system calculates and applies maximum good time credit when an inmate first enters BOP custody. The BOP's Designation and Sentence Computation Center reviews each sentence and establishes a projected release date based on the assumption that the inmate will earn all available credit throughout incarceration. |title_mode=replace

This projected release date appears immediately in the BOP's inmate locator system and other records. No application, request, or affirmative action by the inmate is required to receive this preliminary credit. The credit is applied automatically to all qualifying inmates upon their designation to a BOP facility. |title_mode=replace

Practical effect

For an inmate receiving the maximum 54 days of credit per year, the sentence is effectively reduced by approximately 15 percent. An inmate sentenced to ten years (3,650 days) who earns full credit would receive 540 days of GCT, serving approximately 3,110 days or 85 percent of the imposed term. The credit is awarded on each anniversary date of the sentence, with prorated credit for any partial final year.

Forfeiture and reduction

Disciplinary process

Although good time credit is calculated and projected upfront, it remains subject to reduction or forfeiture throughout incarceration. The BOP may reduce GCT credit when an inmate commits prohibited acts that result in disciplinary sanctions, or fails to comply with literacy requirements.

Disciplinary proceedings in the federal system are governed by 28 CFR Part 541. When an inmate is accused of a rule violation, staff prepare an incident report that proceeds through a tiered review process. Minor violations are adjudicated by a Unit Discipline Committee (UDC), while more serious charges are referred to a Discipline Hearing Officer (DHO). The UDC may impose various sanctions but cannot order forfeiture or disallowance of good time credit; only the DHO has authority to impose GCT-related sanctions after a full hearing with due process protections.

Mandatory loss for certain inmates

For inmates subject to the PLRA (offenses committed on or after April 26, 1996), loss of good time credit is a mandatory disciplinary sanction upon a finding that the inmate committed a prohibited act. The amount forfeited depends on the severity level of the offense:

• Greatest severity offenses (100-level): May result in forfeiture of up to 100 percent of non-vested GCT, or disallowance of 50 to 75 percent of GCT available for the year
• High severity offenses (200-level): May result in disallowance of 25 to 50 percent of GCT available for the year
• Moderate severity offenses (300-level): May result in disallowance of 12.5 to 25 percent of GCT available for the year
• Low severity offenses (400-level): May result in disallowance of up to 12.5 percent of GCT available for the year, typically only for repeated violations within a six-month period

Vesting of credit

For inmates convicted of offenses committed on or after September 13, 1994, but before April 26, 1996, good conduct time credit vests once awarded and cannot be subsequently withdrawn, provided the inmate meets applicable literacy requirements. For PLRA inmates (offenses on or after April 26, 1996), credit does not vest until the date the prisoner is released from custody, meaning all accumulated GCT remains subject to forfeiture for the duration of incarceration. |title_mode=replace

Relationship to other credits

Good conduct time is distinct from First Step Act earned time credits, which inmates may earn for participating in recidivism reduction programs and productive activities. While GCT is applied automatically based on compliance with institutional rules, FSA time credits require active participation in approved programming and may be used for early transfer to prerelease custody or supervised release. |title_mode=replace

The two credit systems operate independently and cumulatively. The BOP first applies good conduct time to calculate a projected release date, then applies any earned FSA time credits to potentially advance placement into prerelease custody.

Historical background

Pre-1987 system

The federal government first authorized good time deductions in 1867. Under the system that prevailed before November 1, 1987, good time credit functioned as a prospective entitlement. Inmates received deductions on the day they entered prison, subject to potential forfeiture for misconduct during their sentence. The repealed statute at 18 U.S.C. § 4161 authorized credit at rates that varied with sentence length, allowing inmates serving sentences exceeding ten years to receive up to seven days per month, or approximately 84 days annually. |title_mode=replace

Sentencing Reform Act of 1984

The Sentencing Reform Act of 1984, enacted as part of the Comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1984, fundamentally restructured federal good time credit for offenses committed on or after November 1, 1987. The Act capped the maximum credit at 54 days per year, eliminated federal parole, and implemented determinate sentencing, requiring inmates to serve at least 85 percent of their imposed sentences even with maximum credit. |title_mode=replace

The Sentencing Reform Act also reversed the default approach to earning credit. Rather than awarding credit prospectively at the start of incarceration, the statute required the BOP to determine at the end of each year whether the prisoner had displayed exemplary compliance with institutional regulations during that period. Credit for the final year or portion thereof was to be prorated and credited within the last six weeks of the sentence.

Prison Litigation Reform Act of 1996

The Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA), effective April 26, 1996, added educational requirements to good time eligibility. For offenses committed on or after that date, inmates must have earned, or be making satisfactory progress toward earning, a high school diploma or equivalent degree to qualify for the full 54 days of annual credit. Inmates who do not meet this literacy requirement may receive a maximum of only 42 days per year. |title_mode=replace

Barber v. Thomas (2010)

In implementing the Sentencing Reform Act, the BOP interpreted the phrase "term of imprisonment" to mean time actually served rather than the sentence imposed by the court. This interpretation resulted in a complex calculation that yielded a practical maximum of approximately 47 days of credit per year rather than the statutory 54 days. The Supreme Court of the United States upheld this interpretation in Barber v. Thomas, 560 U.S. 474 (2010), finding the BOP's methodology consistent with the statutory language and legislative intent. |title_mode=replace

First Step Act of 2018

The First Step Act, signed into law on December 21, 2018, amended 18 U.S.C. § 3624(b) to specify that inmates earn good time credit based on the sentence imposed by the court rather than time actually served. This change effectively restored the full 54 days per year that Congress had originally specified. The amendments took effect on July 19, 2019, when the Department of Justice published the required risk and needs assessment system.

The First Step Act changes apply retroactively to all inmates convicted of federal offenses committed on or after November 1, 1987, including those sentenced before the Act's passage. The BOP released 3,163 inmates on July 19, 2019, following immediate recalculation of their release dates under the new formula.