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.<\/p>\n
The investigating judge (onderzoeksrechter) can temporarily forbid contact with anyone other than the lawyer, for at most three days after the first hearing.<\/p>\n
That ban is not a punishment. It protects the investigation in the first days.<\/p>\n
After that, the judge can still impose restrictions for certain people.<\/p>\n
That is possible when there is a risk of collusion or of evidence disappearing. Ask the lawyer whether such restrictions apply to you.<\/p>\n
If your family member is not Belgian, they can ask for their consulate or embassy to be informed of the detention.<\/p>\n
To visit, your family member must tell the prison management that you want to come, and you show valid identity papers at reception.<\/p>\n
Your family member tells the management that you want to come.<\/p>\n
If you are not family, he passes on your name.<\/p>\n
The rules are on the FOD Justitie page requesting a prison visit (in Dutch)<\/a>. The same page exists in French and German.<\/p>\n Family members show proof of kinship, such as a marriage booklet (trouwboekje) or a household composition certificate (attest van gezinssamenstelling).<\/p>\n Other visitors may be asked to send a copy of their identity card.<\/p>\n If your proof of kinship is a foreign document, ask the prison beforehand whether it is accepted.<\/p>\n At the Antwerp prison you send a copy of your identity document in advance to bezoek.antwerpen@just.fgov.be.<\/p>\n 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)<\/a>.<\/p>\n In Antwerp you report to reception at least 45 minutes before the visit.<\/p>\n Bags go into a locker, for which you need coins. You pass through a metal detector.<\/p>\n You may not give your family member anything without the staff’s permission.<\/p>\n Children under 16 always come with an adult.<\/p>\n A child visiting a parent does not need the other parent’s permission, unless that parent objects in writing.<\/p>\n You send money by bank transfer to the prison’s account, with your family member’s surname and first name in the payment reference.<\/p>\n The account number is on the page of each prison.<\/p>\n Copy it from there, not from an old message or another site.<\/p>\n With that money your family member can, among other things, buy products in the prison and make phone calls.<\/p>\n A security deposit (borgsom) is something else: you pay it to the Deposit and Consignment Office (Deposito- en Consignatiekas), never to the prison.<\/p>\n Whether and how you can hand in clothes, laundry or items differs per prison. Ask the prison before you bring anything.<\/p>\n During a visit, do not bring anything to hand over unless the staff allow it.<\/p>\n Anything that is not allowed is kept until you leave.<\/p>\n For medication, give the treating doctor’s details to the lawyer or the prison. Bringing medication yourself is, as a rule, not possible.<\/p>\n Your family member can phone you from the prison, at his own cost and at set times.<\/p>\n Writing letters is possible. Keep them short and personal.<\/p>\n Do not write or talk about the facts of the case. That also applies during a visit.<\/p>\n Assume that what you say or write is not always confidential.<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n 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<\/a>.<\/p>\n The hearings come back at fixed intervals. One of those rules is explained in the two-month extension after the fourth appearance<\/a>.<\/p>\n Your family member chooses his own lawyer.<\/p>\n You can, however, contact a lawyer and ask them to visit him in prison.<\/p>\n The proceedings in Flanders are in Dutch.<\/p>\n Which law applies?<\/strong> 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.<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n Only if the prison allows it. During the visit, give nothing without the staff’s permission.<\/p>\n No. That hearing takes place behind closed doors. You can give the lawyer details beforehand.<\/p>\n If your family member is in pre-trial detention and you have questions about the next hearing, you can contact our office.<\/p>\n Our office assists suspects in criminal cases in Antwerp and the surrounding area<\/a>.<\/p>\n Call our office on working days on +32 476 22 04 02, or send us a message through the contact form<\/a>.<\/p>\nStep 2: Prepare the documents<\/h3>\n
Step 3: Book the visit<\/h3>\n
Step 4: Arrive on time and expect checks<\/h3>\n
Visiting with children<\/h3>\n
Sending money to a detainee<\/h2>\n
Clothes, laundry and parcels<\/h2>\n
Staying in contact: phone and letters<\/h2>\n
How do you best help the lawyer?<\/h2>\n
Frequently asked questions<\/h2>\n
Can I visit my family member every day?<\/h3>\n
Which prison is my family member in?<\/h3>\n
Can I give my family member a present or a book?<\/h3>\n
Can I attend the council chamber hearing?<\/h3>\n
Call our office about the next step<\/h2>\n