Federal Prison News · First Step Act

Which Offenses Disqualify You From First Step Act Time Credits?

Writ Large · September 7, 2026

Written by Prisoner Legal Aid

Successfully completing evidence-based recidivism-reduction programming or productive activities under the First Step Act earns time credits — generally 10 days for every 30 days of participation, with an additional 5 days for people assessed at minimum or low recidivism risk who maintain that status. Those credits can be applied toward earlier transfer to prerelease custody or supervised release. But none of that matters if the underlying conviction falls on the statute's exclusion list.

Where the exclusion list actually lives

The disqualifying offenses are set out in 18 U.S.C. § 3632(d)(4)(D) — a long, specific list Congress wrote directly into the statute, not something BOP invented on its own. A prisoner serving a sentence for a conviction under any listed provision is simply ineligible to earn time credits under this program, regardless of program participation or conduct.

The categories the list actually covers

The exclusion list runs long, but it clusters around several recognizable categories:

• Violent and weapons-related offenses — including assault with a deadly or dangerous weapon, assault resulting in serious bodily injury to an intimate partner, drive-by shootings, arson, and use of a firearm during a crime of violence or drug-trafficking offense under § 924(c).
• Sexual offenses — including sexual abuse offenses under chapter 109A, sexual exploitation of children, and failure to register as a sex offender.
• National-security and terrorism-related offenses — biological and chemical weapons offenses, offenses involving weapons of mass destruction, and terrorism-related provisions.
• Certain homicide and kidnapping offenses — most of chapter 51 (homicide) and chapter 55 (kidnapping), with narrow carve-outs such as manslaughter and specific attempt provisions.
• Certain drug-trafficking offenses with aggravating factors — several provisions under 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1) and § 960(b) apply only where the sentencing court made specific findings, such as that the offender was an organizer or leader, or that the offense involved a detectable amount of fentanyl analogues and resulted in death or serious injury.
• Immigration-related offenses, including illegal reentry after removal under specified aggravating circumstances.

This is a summary of the categories, not a substitute for reading the statute against your specific offense of conviction — the list is long, and several provisions apply only when particular sentencing findings were made, not to the offense generally.

A separate rule for immigration detainers

Even for a prisoner whose offense isn't on the exclusion list, § 3632(d)(4)(E) adds a related but distinct rule: a prisoner subject to a final order of removal under the immigration laws is ineligible to apply earned time credits toward earlier transfer, even though the credits themselves may still accrue.

Why the 85% floor matters even for eligible offenses

For prisoners who are eligible and who do accumulate enough credits, 18 U.S.C. § 3624(g) still requires at least 85% of the imposed term of imprisonment to be served before transfer to home confinement, separate from the underlying eligibility question. Time credits change when within that framework someone can transfer — they don't override the 85% floor itself.

Why this is worth checking early

BOP sentence computations are not error-proof, and misapplied or miscalculated time credits are common enough to be worth verifying independently rather than assuming the computation is correct. If your offense sits anywhere near the boundary of this list — or you believe credits you've earned haven't been applied correctly — that's generally a challenge to the execution of your sentence, which is a § 2241 question, not a § 2255 one.

If time credits aren't available, placement may still be

Being on the exclusion list forecloses time credits — it does not foreclose a closer-to-home placement request. Section 601 of the First Step Act separately directs the BOP to house people within 500 driving miles of their primary residence where practicable, and that request stands on its own footing regardless of time-credit eligibility. Our free transfer request tool prepares it on the official BOP form at no cost.

If his offense is not on the list, the time-credit checklist shows how to build the record when the credits look wrong.

None of this is a substitute for review of your specific sentence computation. If you believe your FSA time credits have been miscalculated or wrongly withheld, call 786-408-5073 or start an intake below.

More on this subject: all articles on this topic.

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