US · guidance
BOP Program Statement 5160.06 § 3
COMMENCEMENT OF SENTENCE
After the DSCC Sentence Computation Section Chief designates a state facility, authority for
commencement of a sentence is found in 18 U.S.C. § 3585(a) and § 3568 (repealed). 18 U.S.C. §
3585(a), states:
“A sentence to a term of imprisonment commences on the date the defendant is received in
custody awaiting transportation to, or arrives voluntarily to commence service of sentence at, the
official detention facility at which the sentence is to be served.”
For inmates currently serving a sentence for which the date of offense occurred before November
1, 1987, 18 U.S.C. § 3568 (repealed), states in part:
5160.06 9/3/2026 PROPERTY OF US GOVERNMENT 3
“The sentence of imprisonment of any person convicted of an offense shall commence to run
from the date on which such person is received at the penitentiary, reformatory, or jail for service
of such sentence.”
A federal sentence of imprisonment cannot commence earlier than the date on which it is
imposed. Therefore, a state institution can be designated for service of the federal sentence no
earlier than the date on which it was imposed.
History
PS 5160.06 dated 2026-09-03
Provenance
- Source
- bop.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-09-20
- Edition
- bop-ps-2026-09-20
- Content hash
70cb990d13f62e6626774d346ce0c56a88f678f9358704f53211a9607b42ff19
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