For many inmates and their families, the third penitentiary degree represents something more than an administrative category: it is the first real light at the end of the prison tunnel, the first opportunity to recover some semblance of normal daily life before definitive freedom arrives. Being able to leave the facility during the day, work, be with family, sleep in a less institutional environment — all those possibilities that seemed so distant on the day of admission to prison become accessible with third-degree classification.
The third degree — also known as the open regime or, in common parlance, "semi-liberty" — is the most favourable level of penitentiary classification within the ordinary system, and the step prior to conditional release. It is not full freedom, but it represents a radical change in the way the inmate experiences the serving of their sentence. It is, in essence, the phase in which the penitentiary system puts to the test whether the inmate is ready to reintegrate definitively into society.
In this article we explain exactly what the third degree is, what it entails in practice, when it may be granted, what requirements must be met, what its various forms are, and what a lawyer can do to help obtain it.
What Does Being in the Third Degree Mean?
The third degree is the open-regime classification provided for in the General Organic Prison Law and the Prison Regulations. Its defining characteristic is that the inmate may leave the facility during the day to carry out work, training, family, or other activities, and returns to the facility — or to the assigned dependent unit — to sleep at night.
The difference from the previous degrees is substantial. A first-degree inmate lives under the maximum level of restriction, with very limited time outside their cell. A second-degree inmate lives in the ordinary module of the facility with structured activities. A third-degree inmate, by contrast, spends the majority of their time outside the facility, interacting with society, maintaining their family and work ties, and preparing for definitive freedom.
This openness does not mean an absence of oversight. The third-degree inmate is subject to periodic controls, must comply with a scheduled time to return to the facility, may be subject to electronic monitoring, and has specific prohibitions that must be observed. Failure to comply with the conditions of the third degree may result in regression to the second degree.
The Requirements for Accessing the Third Degree
Classification at the third degree does not occur automatically upon serving a certain amount of a sentence: it requires the fulfilment of a series of objective and subjective requirements established by the Prison Regulations, which the facility's Treatment Board must assess.
The Time Requirement: Half of the Sentence
The Prison Regulations establish as a general criterion that, in order to access the third degree, the inmate must have served at least half of their sentence. This time-based criterion is not absolute: it admits exceptions, and in practice classification may occur earlier if the inmate's personal circumstances and the progress of their treatment justify it.
However, for certain particularly serious offences — such as terrorism or offences committed within criminal organisations — the law sets higher minimum thresholds for access to the third degree, which in some cases cannot occur before the inmate has served 80% of their sentence.
Positive Progress in Treatment
Beyond the time served, what truly determines classification at the third degree is the inmate's development within the penitentiary system. The Treatment Board analyses whether the inmate has actively participated in treatment programmes, whether their behaviour within the facility has been appropriate, whether they have accepted responsibility for the offence committed, and whether they demonstrate an attitude compatible with social reintegration.
This assessment is not mechanical. An inmate who has served half their sentence but who displays a poor attitude, has not participated in any treatment programme, or has been involved in serious disciplinary incidents within the facility may not meet the conditions for the third degree. And an inmate who has shown exceptional progress may be proposed for the third degree before having served half their sentence.
A Favourable Reintegration Prognosis
A central element of the assessment for the third degree is the social reintegration prognosis, prepared by the treatment team professionals — psychologists, social workers, educators — on the basis of an analysis of the inmate's personal circumstances. This prognosis assesses factors such as family ties, the availability of a social support network, employment prospects, the level of risk of reoffending, and the presence of vulnerability factors that could hinder reintegration.
The Availability of a Viable Life Plan
For the third degree — particularly for its more open forms — the inmate must demonstrate that they have a concrete and viable life plan for the open-regime period: a residence, a job or daytime activity, a family or social support network, and the minimum financial resources to manage independently. An inmate who lacks all of these elements will face greater difficulty in accessing the third degree, although they may be supported by collaborating organisations that offer supervised accommodation and employment insertion programmes.
The Forms of the Third Degree
The third degree is not monolithic: there are various forms that adapt to the circumstances of each inmate and offer different levels of openness and supervision.
The Full Open Regime
This is the most common form of the third degree. The inmate leaves the facility in the morning — generally to work or to participate in training activities — and returns at night to sleep there. The departure and return times are established in the inmate's life plan, and non-compliance has disciplinary consequences. Freedom of movement during the permitted hours is very broad, although the inmate must observe any specific conditions imposed on them — for example, a prohibition on approaching the victim or frequenting certain environments.
Dependent Units
Dependent units are flats or residences located outside the penitentiary premises where third-degree inmates may live communally under the supervision of collaborating organisations — associations, foundations, or NGOs that work with the prison administration on reintegration programmes. An inmate living in a dependent unit has a greater degree of integration into society than one who returns to the facility each night, because their daily life takes place entirely in a non-penitentiary environment, albeit subject to oversight and the rules of the unit.
Article 86.4 of the Prison Regulations: Electronic Monitoring
This form, colloquially known as "third degree with electronic monitoring" or "electronic bracelet," allows the inmate to serve their sentence at their own home, under electronic monitoring, without needing to sleep at the penitentiary facility. It is a particularly flexible form of the open regime, reserved for cases where the inmate's personal circumstances — serious illness, exceptional family responsibilities, situations of particular vulnerability — justify it, and which combines reintegration with remote supervision.
The Third Degree on Medical or Humanitarian Grounds
Article 104.4 of the Prison Regulations provides for the possibility of classifying at the third degree — without waiting for the ordinary timeframes to be met — inmates who suffer from very serious and incurable illnesses or who find themselves in conditions that make the ordinary serving of the sentence incompatible with their state of health. This form is important because it allows the early release of terminally ill or very seriously ill inmates who cannot wait for the ordinary classification process to run its course.
The Procedure for Obtaining the Third Degree
Classification at the third degree is not obtained through a simple form: it is the result of a process involving several actors and requiring careful preparation.
The process begins with the Treatment Board of the penitentiary establishment, which periodically assesses the inmate's situation and proposes the classification or reclassification it considers appropriate. The inmate may expressly request that the Treatment Board review their situation and consider progression to the third degree, although the Board is not obliged to accede to that request if it does not consider the conditions to be met.
If the Treatment Board proposes the third degree, the proposal must be approved by the Directorate — the Secretary General for Penitentiary Institutions or the competent regional body. In some cases, the proposal must also be approved by the Penitentiary Surveillance Judge. If the proposal is approved, classification takes place and the inmate may begin to benefit from the open regime.
If the Treatment Board denies the request for third-degree classification, the inmate may challenge that denial before the Penitentiary Surveillance Judge, who will review whether the Board's decision is justified and whether the classification criteria have been correctly applied.
The Role of the Lawyer in Obtaining the Third Degree
A criminal lawyer specialising in Prison Law can play a very significant role in obtaining the third degree. Their involvement may be decisive at several stages of the process.
In the preliminary phase, the lawyer can help the inmate prepare a solid life plan — with documentation evidencing the available residence, employment prospects, family support, and treatment commitments — that strengthens the third-degree proposal before the Treatment Board.
They may also provide external expert reports — psychological, social, medical — that complement or add nuance to the reports prepared by the penitentiary facility's specialists and that reinforce the favourable reintegration prognosis.
If the Treatment Board denies the third degree, the lawyer may appeal that decision before the Penitentiary Surveillance Judge with legal and technical arguments demonstrating that the denial is not justified or that the criteria have been incorrectly applied. This appeal can be decisive when the denial is based on subjective assessments or the mechanical application of criteria that do not reflect the inmate's actual situation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the third degree the same as conditional release?
No. They are two distinct, though related, concepts. The third degree is a form of serving a sentence: the inmate continues serving their sentence, but under the open regime. Conditional release is the suspension of the execution of the remaining unserved portion of the sentence, when certain requirements are met. The third degree is the usual step preceding conditional release: the inmate progresses from the second to the third degree and, after a period in the open regime, may apply for conditional release to finally extinguish the sentence without having to serve it in full.
Can a third-degree inmate leave at any time, or is there a fixed schedule?
The third-degree inmate has a fixed departure and return schedule established in their life plan and approved by the Treatment Board. They cannot leave the facility at any time or return whenever they please: they must comply with the authorised schedule. Failure to observe the return time — arriving later than the established time without justification — is an infraction that may result in disciplinary sanctions and even regression to the second degree if the non-compliance is repeated or particularly serious.
Can the judge deny the third degree even if the Treatment Board has approved it?
Yes. In cases where third-degree classification requires judicial approval, the Penitentiary Surveillance Judge may deny the Treatment Board's proposal if they consider that the legal requirements are not met or that the proposal is insufficiently justified. The PSJ exercises a legality review over the proposals of the prison administration, and that review includes the power to refuse to approve classifications they consider premature or inappropriate. In that case, the administration may submit a new proposal once the inmate's circumstances have progressed favourably.
Can the third degree be maintained if the inmate commits a new offence during the open regime?
No. If the inmate commits an intentional offence during the third-degree period, regression to the second degree — or even the first, depending on the gravity of the facts — is the appropriate outcome, because the commission of a new offence demonstrates that reintegration is not proceeding satisfactorily and that the level of openness of the open regime is not compatible with the actual level of risk. Furthermore, the commission of the new offence may result in the loss of other benefits and the initiation of a new criminal process that will add further sentences to those already in force.
What happens if the inmate loses the job that justified their third degree?
Loss of employment does not automatically entail revocation of the third degree, but it may trigger a review of the classification. An inmate who loses their job during the open regime must immediately notify the penitentiary facility and present a new life plan to replace the lost employment activity. If the inmate demonstrates that they are actively seeking work or that they have other commitments that justify their life under the open regime, the Treatment Board may maintain the third-degree classification. If, on the other hand, the inmate has no activity or commitments justifying the open regime, regression may follow.
