After an arrest, the family can mainly help in practical ways: arranging a prison visit in Belgium, paying money into the detainee’s account and giving the lawyer details that support a release under conditions. According to FOD Justitie, a suspect in pre-trial detention may receive visitors every day. In the first days, contact can be limited.
Contact with the family after the arrest: why it sometimes waits
The investigating judge (onderzoeksrechter) can temporarily forbid contact with anyone other than the lawyer, for at most three days after the first hearing.
That ban is not a punishment. It protects the investigation in the first days.
After that, the judge can still impose restrictions for certain people.
That is possible when there is a risk of collusion or of evidence disappearing. Ask the lawyer whether such restrictions apply to you.
If your family member is not Belgian, they can ask for their consulate or embassy to be informed of the detention.
Prison visit in Belgium: how to arrange it
To visit, your family member must tell the prison management that you want to come, and you show valid identity papers at reception.
Step 1: Let your family member register you
Your family member tells the management that you want to come.
If you are not family, he passes on your name.
The rules are on the FOD Justitie page requesting a prison visit (in Dutch). The same page exists in French and German.
Step 2: Prepare the documents
Family members show proof of kinship, such as a marriage booklet (trouwboekje) or a household composition certificate (attest van gezinssamenstelling).
Other visitors may be asked to send a copy of their identity card.
If your proof of kinship is a foreign document, ask the prison beforehand whether it is accepted.
At the Antwerp prison you send a copy of your identity document in advance to bezoek.antwerpen@just.fgov.be.
Step 3: Book the visit
In Antwerp your family member books the visit, or you do so yourself at reception. The visiting hours are on the page of the Antwerp prison (in Dutch).
Step 4: Arrive on time and expect checks
In Antwerp you report to reception at least 45 minutes before the visit.
Bags go into a locker, for which you need coins. You pass through a metal detector.
You may not give your family member anything without the staff’s permission.
Visiting with children
Children under 16 always come with an adult.
A child visiting a parent does not need the other parent’s permission, unless that parent objects in writing.
Sending money to a detainee
You send money by bank transfer to the prison’s account, with your family member’s surname and first name in the payment reference.
The account number is on the page of each prison.
Copy it from there, not from an old message or another site.
With that money your family member can, among other things, buy products in the prison and make phone calls.
A security deposit (borgsom) is something else: you pay it to the Deposit and Consignment Office (Deposito- en Consignatiekas), never to the prison.
Clothes, laundry and parcels
Whether and how you can hand in clothes, laundry or items differs per prison. Ask the prison before you bring anything.
During a visit, do not bring anything to hand over unless the staff allow it.
Anything that is not allowed is kept until you leave.
For medication, give the treating doctor’s details to the lawyer or the prison. Bringing medication yourself is, as a rule, not possible.
Staying in contact: phone and letters
Your family member can phone you from the prison, at his own cost and at set times.
Writing letters is possible. Keep them short and personal.
Do not write or talk about the facts of the case. That also applies during a visit.
Assume that what you say or write is not always confidential.
How do you best help the lawyer?
You help the lawyer most by providing details that show your family member has a stable life: a home address, work, family and any care.
Those details are useful for the council chamber (raadkamer) hearing, where a release under conditions can be requested. Read more about what happens at the council chamber hearing.
The hearings come back at fixed intervals. One of those rules is explained in the two-month extension after the fourth appearance.
Your family member chooses his own lawyer.
You can, however, contact a lawyer and ask them to visit him in prison.
The proceedings in Flanders are in Dutch.
Which law applies? The practical rules for visits and money come from the Federal Public Service Justice (FOD Justitie) and the prison itself, and can differ per prison.
Frequently asked questions
Can I visit my family member every day?
According to FOD Justitie, a suspect who has not been convicted may receive visitors every day. A visit lasts at least one hour. Visiting hours differ per prison.
Which prison is my family member in?
You hear that from your family member or from the lawyer. The Antwerp prison is a remand prison (arresthuis) for men and women, but a suspect can also be held elsewhere.
Can I give my family member a present or a book?
Only if the prison allows it. During the visit, give nothing without the staff’s permission.
Can I attend the council chamber hearing?
No. That hearing takes place behind closed doors. You can give the lawyer details beforehand.
Call our office about the next step
If your family member is in pre-trial detention and you have questions about the next hearing, you can contact our office.
Our office assists suspects in criminal cases in Antwerp and the surrounding area.
Call our office on working days on +32 476 22 04 02, or send us a message through the contact form.
