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Belgium · Antwerpen

Antwerp prison

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Verified 28 May 2026
Fresh · 1d ago

Data is aggregated from public sources and may be incomplete or out of date. Always verify with primary sources before acting on any figure. See data sources.

For families

How to send mail, money, and visit Antwerp prison

Step-by-step guidance using the Belgium system — addresses, money services, visit booking, what to bring on your first visit.

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Photograph of Antwerp prison

Background

Antwerp prison (Gevangenis van Antwerpen) is a nineteenth-century prison complex located at Begijnenstraat in the port city of Antwerp, Belgium. Built in the 1850s to plans by architect Joseph Jonas Dumont as part of Édouard Ducpétiaux’s modernisation of the Belgian penal system, it remains in use as Antwerp’s principal remand facility. The star-shaped complex combines Neo-Romanesque architecture with a panopticon layout inspired by London’s Pentonville model. During the Second World War several prominent collaborators and nationalists were held and deported from the prison. Chronic overcrowding and infrastructure problems have drawn criticism in the 21st century, leading to plans for a replacement facility.

Source: Wikipedia article lead, CC-BY-SA.

Capacity

439

Current population

Occupancy

Year opened

Operational

Facility profile

Operator

Federale Overheidsdienst Justitie

Population held

Mixed/unknown

Opened

Region

Antwerpen

Security level

Death-row facility

No

Conditions

No conditions summary available yet.

Visiting

No visiting information available.

Mailing

No mailing information available.

Practical info

Contact the operator's website for inmate-specific procedures.

Known issues

No major issues documented in our database.

Contact & address

42 Begijnenstraat, Antwerpen 2000

Conditions Risk Score

Derived signal — not a judgement. How it's calculated

Insufficient data
We don't have enough public data on this facility to score it. Have something to add? Send us a correction.

Compared to other facilities in Belgium

78 peers
Capacity (beds)this: 439 · peers avg: 265 (+65%)

Data completeness

44%

How many of our profile fields are populated. We surface this so families and researchers know the limits.

Sources