Enter the sentence and programming details to build an independent estimate of good conduct time, First Step Act credits, and the resulting dates — then hold it up against the BOP’s official computation. A gap of weeks or months is exactly the discrepancy worth putting in writing.
ESTIMATE ONLY — NOT THE OFFICIAL BOP COMPUTATION · EDUCATIONAL, NOT LEGAL ADVICE
Leave 0 to auto-estimate continuous programming for the time served.
ESTIMATED TIME LEDGER
How the math works. Good conduct time accrues at up to 54 days per year of the sentence imposed (18 U.S.C. §3624(b)). FSA credits accrue at 10 or 15 days per 30 days of successful programming (§3632(d)(4)); up to 365 credits apply toward earlier release, and credits beyond 365 apply toward prerelease custody — halfway house or home confinement — with no statutory cap (§3624(g)). RDAP completion can reduce eligible sentences by up to 12 months (§3621(e)).
This is an estimate, not the official computation. The BOP’s calculation controls, and real-world factors — eligibility exclusions, PATTERN changes, disciplinary losses, detainers, program interruptions, and application conditions — all move actual dates. Use this tool to spot discrepancies worth questioning, then verify with the official records. See how to check a release date and the miscalculation playbook.
FSA credits and good conduct time are two different things
Families mix these up constantly, and mixing them up produces a release date that is months off. Good conduct time comes from 18 U.S.C. 3624(b) and runs up to 54 days per year of the sentence imposed, awarded for avoiding disciplinary infractions. It is close to automatic for someone staying out of trouble. FSA earned time credits are separate: they come from the First Step Act, and they are earned by completing approved recidivism-reduction programming and productive activities — 10 days of credit per 30 days of successful participation, rising to 15 days per 30 for people assessed as minimum or low risk who hold that assessment across two consecutive reviews.
The two stack, but they do different work. Good conduct time shortens the sentence itself. FSA credits are applied either toward earlier transfer to prerelease custody — halfway house or home confinement — or, up to a 365-day cap, toward earlier transfer to supervised release. That cap is the detail most calculators skip, and it is why someone with three years of accumulated credits does not simply come home three years early.
Not everyone is eligible — check before you count
FSA earned time credits carry a long statutory exclusion list. Certain offenses disqualify a person from applying credits at all, even while they can still earn them on paper. The categories include many violent offenses, terrorism offenses, some sex offenses, certain fraud convictions above threshold amounts, and specific immigration offenses. People with final orders of removal are also excluded from applying credits.
This matters more than any arithmetic on this page. A family can compute a date, plan around it, and then learn the credits were never applicable. If there is any doubt about eligibility, the case manager is the person who can confirm it, and asking early is far better than discovering it late.
Why this is an estimate and not a date
The BOP computes release dates through its own sentence computation system and recalculates as circumstances change. Several things move the number in ways no outside calculator can model: the PATTERN risk assessment determines whether someone earns at 10 or 15 days per 30, and that score is reassessed periodically. Disciplinary incidents can cost good conduct time. Programming availability varies by facility, and a waitlist is a common reason credits accumulate slower than expected. Detainers, pending charges, and immigration holds can change prerelease custody eligibility entirely.
Use the figure above as a planning range, not a countdown. The authoritative number is the one on the inmate's sentence computation sheet, and a case manager can print it on request.
What families should ask the case manager
Four questions get most of the picture: Is he or she eligible to apply FSA credits, or only to earn them? What is the current PATTERN score, and what would move it down a tier? Which approved programs are available at this facility, and is there a waitlist? And what does the current sentence computation sheet show for projected release and prerelease custody eligibility? Those four answers turn an estimate into a plan.
This calculator gives you an estimate. If the number matters — a release date to plan around, a computation that looks wrong, a treaty transfer worth exploring — we will look at the actual case with you. Founded by someone who served federal time. First conversation free.
Tell us what happened. We’ll tell you what the system actually allows.
Answer a few questions about your loved one’s sentence, credits, and facility. We’ll point you to the right educational materials and self-help tools — and we’ll tell you honestly if you need a lawyer instead.