The open regime is the form of serving custodial sentences that most closely resembles ordinary life in society. The inmate who benefits from it may leave the penitentiary facility during the day, work, undertake training, interact with their social and family environment, and, in the most advanced forms, live directly in the community under supervision. In the scale of the Spanish penitentiary system, it is the step prior to conditional release and the phase in which the State makes its most decisive commitment to the convicted person's capacity to reintegrate into society.
For inmates' families, the open regime also represents a profound change in the dynamics of the relationship: the loved one is no longer inaccessible behind bars, but can share meals, attend to daily responsibilities, and gradually recover the role they held in family life before entering prison. This relational aspect — which the penitentiary system does not always weigh sufficiently — is of enormous importance both for the inmate's reintegration and for the stability of families who have borne the impact of the sentence.
In this article we explain exactly what the open regime is, what its various forms are, how the inmate's daily life is structured under this regime, what controls and conditions are maintained, what rights and obligations it generates, and what happens when those obligations are not met.
The Philosophy of the Open Regime
The open regime is not a gratuitous concession or a reward for good behaviour in the strict sense: it is the logical consequence of the constitutional principle that custodial sentences must be oriented towards re-education and social reintegration. If the purpose of the sentence is not simply to punish but also — and primarily — to prepare the convicted person to live in society within the law, there comes a point at which total confinement becomes an obstacle to that objective rather than an instrument for achieving it.
The open regime is the point at which the penitentiary system recognises that the best preparation for living in society is to live gradually in society. Not in the isolation of the facility, but in the real environment in which the inmate will have to function once they are free. With the support of the system, with controls that ensure the transition takes place in an orderly manner, but in real contact with the outside world.
This philosophy has empirical support: criminological studies consistently show that serving a sentence with greater contact with the social and family environment significantly reduces reoffending rates. The open regime is not a gift to the offender: it is a long-term investment in public safety.
The Forms of the Open Regime
The open regime is not a single regime but a family of forms that the system can combine according to the inmate's circumstances and progress.
The Full Open Regime
This is the most common form and the one most inmates benefit from. The inmate leaves the penitentiary facility in the morning — normally around eight or nine o'clock — to go to work, to training activities, or to other authorised occupations, and returns to the facility in the afternoon or at night — normally before ten o'clock — to sleep. Life within the facility is limited to practically just sleeping time and the periodic checks that the regime itself establishes.
The exact departure and return times are set in the inmate's individual life plan approved by the Treatment Board. This plan can be flexible and adapted to the needs of the inmate's work — for example, if they work night shifts, the schedule is reversed — but failure to comply with the established times is an infraction that may have consequences.
Dependent Units
Dependent units are residences situated outside the penitentiary premises where a group of third-degree inmates live communally under the supervision of collaborating organisations — associations, foundations, non-governmental organisations — that work in collaboration with the prison administration on reintegration programmes.
An inmate living in a dependent unit does not return to the penitentiary facility each night: their daily life takes place entirely outside the ordinary prison system, in a community environment that facilitates their social integration. They work during the day, live alongside other inmates in the process of reintegration, and receive support from the collaborating organisation's specialists in overcoming the obstacles they encounter on their path to definitive freedom.
Dependent units are particularly useful for inmates who do not have a stable family environment to return to, who lack their own accommodation, or who come from severely socially excluded backgrounds. For them, the dependent unit may be the only pathway to the open regime and to subsequent conditional release.
Electronic Monitoring: Article 86.4 of the Prison Regulations
This form — popularly known as the "electronic bracelet" or "telematic third degree" — allows the inmate to serve the open regime from their own home under electronic monitoring, rather than returning to the facility each night. The inmate wears a monitoring device that enables the prison administration to verify that they are in the authorised places during the established times.
Electronic monitoring is reserved for cases where the inmate's personal circumstances make this form particularly justified: illnesses that make travel to the facility difficult, caring responsibilities for minor children or dependent family members, employment with schedules incompatible with nightly return to the facility, or other analogous circumstances. It is the form of open regime closest to actual freedom, because the inmate lives in their usual environment subject only to remote monitoring and the conditions of life established in their plan.
The Open Section Within the Penitentiary Facility
In some penitentiary facilities there are modules or sections operating under the open regime within the premises themselves, where third-degree inmates live under conditions significantly more relaxed than in the ordinary modules. Although the inmate sleeps within the facility, life in these modules is less restrictive: there is greater freedom of movement within the module, more opportunities to participate in activities, and fewer security checks.
This form is usually a transitional stage before moving to an open-regime form with greater presence outside the facility, and may also be used when the inmate does not yet have all the elements of the life plan necessary to leave during the day.
Daily Life Under the Open Regime: Rights and Obligations
The open regime radically transforms the inmate's daily life. But with that transformation come concrete obligations that must be scrupulously observed in order to maintain the benefit.
The Inmate's Obligations Under the Open Regime
The most basic and most important obligation is to scrupulously observe the return schedule to the facility. A late return — even by a few minutes — without an acceptable justification may be treated as an infraction and may lead to disciplinary consequences. The inmate in the open regime must treat the return schedule with the same seriousness that a worker treats their working hours.
In addition to the schedule, the inmate is obliged to:
- Inform the facility of any change in their life plan — new employment, change of address, modification of activities — before that change takes place.
- Observe the specific conditions and prohibitions that the Treatment Board or the PSJ have established in their case: a restraining order preventing approach to the victim, a prohibition on frequenting certain environments, an obligation not to consume alcohol or drugs.
- Attend the follow-up interviews with the specialists from the facility's treatment team at the established frequency.
- Maintain an attitude of cooperation with the facility's staff and with the collaborating organisations participating in their reintegration.
- Not commit any new offence during the open-regime period — which would result in immediate regression to the second degree and the commencement of new criminal proceedings.
The Inmate's Rights Under the Open Regime
The inmate in the open regime continues to hold all the rights that belong to them as an inmate, but with a greater external dimension. They have the right to:
- Maintain communications with their family members without the restrictions of the ordinary regime.
- Manage their personal and professional affairs during the hours outside the facility.
- Receive remuneration for their work and manage their income with greater autonomy than under the ordinary regime.
- Participate in cultural, sporting, and social activities outside the facility during the permitted hours.
- Access external health services when their state of health requires it.
The Controls Maintained Under the Open Regime
The open regime is not freedom without supervision: the prison administration maintains a system of controls that ensures the sentence is served within the authorised limits.
The most immediate control is the entry and exit register of the facility — or of the electronic device, in the case of electronic monitoring — which makes it possible to verify that the inmate observes the established times. In dependent units, the staff of the collaborating organisation exercise an analogous supervisory function.
Periodically, the inmate must attend follow-up interviews with the specialists from the treatment team. These interviews assess the inmate's progress under the open regime, identify possible difficulties, and allow the life plan to be adjusted if circumstances have changed.
The prison administration may also carry out unannounced checks to verify that the inmate is where they should be. If the inmate is employed, the employer may be contacted to confirm their attendance. If the inmate has declared a particular address, this may be verified.
Failure to comply with the controls — not presenting oneself for the entry check, not being in the declared location when a surprise verification is carried out, not attending follow-up interviews — constitutes an infraction that may result in sanctions ranging from a formal warning to regression in degree. Transparency and proactive communication with the facility are the best strategies for the inmate in the open regime.
What Happens When There Are Problems Under the Open Regime
Although the majority of inmates who access the open regime complete it without significant incidents, problematic situations can arise that must be managed correctly.
If the inmate has difficulty complying with any of the conditions — they lose their job, a health problem arises preventing them from travelling to the facility, a family conflict affects their living arrangements — the correct response is to communicate this to the facility immediately and propose an alternative solution. Proactive communication demonstrates good faith and prevents an isolated situation from being interpreted as a deliberate breach.
If the breach has already occurred, the inmate must explain the circumstances and provide the documentation justifying it. If the facility initiates a regression procedure, the lawyer must intervene to argue that the breach was involuntary or that it does not have the gravity that would justify regression, and to propose alternative measures that would allow the third degree to be maintained under modified conditions.
In situations of acute crisis — a relapse into drug use, a serious family conflict, a loss of employment that leaves the inmate without any activity — collaborating organisations and penitentiary support services can offer urgent assistance. Knowing who to turn to in those moments is part of the preparation that the inmate should have received before accessing the open regime.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the inmate in the open regime have to return to the facility at weekends?
It depends on how their life plan is configured. Under the standard full open regime, the inmate returns to the facility every day — including weekends — to sleep. However, if the life plan provides for it and has been approved by the Treatment Board, the inmate may be authorised to sleep outside the facility on some weekends, which amounts in practice to a weekend permit integrated into the regime itself. In dependent units and under electronic monitoring, the inmate does not return to the penitentiary facility at all.
Can the inmate in the open regime travel abroad?
Not without express authorisation. The inmate's legal situation under the open regime does not allow them to leave the national territory freely: any travel abroad — including work trips — requires prior authorisation from the Treatment Board or the Penitentiary Surveillance Judge. The authorisation request must be submitted with sufficient advance notice, explaining the reason for the trip, its duration, and the guarantees of return. Without that authorisation, leaving the country would constitute a serious breach of the conditions of the open regime that could result in regression.
Does work under the open regime have to be employed work, or can it be self-employment?
Work under the open regime may be either employed or self-employed, provided the activity is legal and sufficiently documented so that the facility can verify that the inmate is actually carrying out that activity during the permitted hours. Inmates who work as self-employed must demonstrate their activity with invoices, activity records, or any other means that allows the administration to verify that the activity is genuine and regular.
What happens if the inmate in the open regime suffers a workplace accident?
An inmate in the open regime who is employed is covered by the social security system — with the specific features of penitentiary work — and is entitled to the corresponding benefits in the event of a workplace accident. They must notify the penitentiary facility of the accident immediately, provide the corresponding medical documentation, and follow the facility's instructions on how to manage the situation during the period of incapacity. Sick leave due to an accident does not entail regression in degree if the inmate communicates the situation and takes the appropriate measures.
Can the inmate in the open regime apply for conditional release?
Yes. In fact, the open regime is the usual step prior to conditional release. Once the inmate has served three quarters of the sentence — or two thirds in certain cases — and has undergone a period of adaptation under the open regime, they may apply for conditional release before the Penitentiary Surveillance Judge. Positive progress under the open regime is one of the most important factors that the PSJ takes into account when resolving a conditional release application, meaning that behaviour during the third degree has a strategic importance that goes beyond the open regime itself.
