Cal. Codes » Penal Code / PART 3. OF IMPRISONMENT AND THE DEATH PENALTY / TITLE 1. IMPRISONMENT OF MALE PRISONERS IN STATE PRISONS / CHAPTER 7. Execution of Sentences of Imprisonment / ARTICLE 1. Commencement of Term
California Codes

Cal. Penal Code § 2900.5 (2026)

Commencement of Term

✓ current as of May 2026
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(a)In all felony and misdemeanor convictions, either by plea or by verdict, when the defendant has been in custody, including, but not limited to, any time spent in a jail, camp, work furlough facility, halfway house, rehabilitation facility, hospital, prison, juvenile detention facility, or similar residential institution, all days of custody of the defendant, including days served as a condition of probation in compliance with a court order, credited to the period of confinement pursuant to Section 4019, and days served in home detention pursuant to Section 1203.016 or 1203.018, shall be credited upon his or her term of imprisonment, or credited to any base fine that may be imposed, at the rate of not less than one hundred twenty-five dollars ($125) per day, or more, in the discretion of the court imposing the sentence. If the total number of days in custody exceeds the number of days of the term of imprisonment to be imposed, the entire term of imprisonment shall be deemed to have been served. In any case where the court has imposed both a prison or jail term of imprisonment and a fine, any days to be credited to the defendant shall first be applied to the term of imprisonment imposed, and thereafter the remaining days, if any, shall be applied to the base fine. If an amount of the base fine is not satisfied by jail credits, or by community service, the penalties and assessments imposed on the base fine shall be reduced by the percentage of the base fine that was satisfied.

(b)For the purposes of this section, credit shall be given only where the custody to be credited is attributable to proceedings related to the same conduct for which the defendant has been convicted. Credit shall be given only once for a single period of custody attributable to multiple offenses for which a consecutive sentence is imposed.

(c)For the purposes of this section, “term of imprisonment” includes any period of imprisonment imposed as a condition of probation or otherwise ordered by a court in imposing or suspending the imposition of any sentence, and also includes any term of imprisonment, including any period of imprisonment prior to release on parole and any period of imprisonment and parole, prior to discharge, whether established or fixed by statute, by any court, or by any duly authorized administrative agency.

(d)It is the duty of the court imposing the sentence to determine the date or dates of any admission to, and release from, custody prior to sentencing and the total number of days to be credited pursuant to this section. The total number of days to be credited shall be contained in the abstract of judgment provided for in Section 1213.

(e)It is the duty of any agency to which a person is committed to apply the credit provided for in this section for the period between the date of sentencing and the date the person is delivered to the agency.

(f)If a defendant serves time in a camp, work furlough facility, halfway house, rehabilitation facility, hospital, juvenile detention facility, similar residential facility, or home detention program pursuant to Section 1203.016, 1203.017, or 1203.018, in lieu of imprisonment in a county jail, the time spent in these facilities or programs shall qualify as mandatory time in jail.

(g)Notwithstanding any other provision of this code as it pertains to the sentencing of convicted offenders, this section does not authorize the sentencing of convicted offenders to any of the facilities or programs mentioned herein.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 234 cases (39 in the last 5 years), 1974–2026 · leading case: People v. Sage, 611 P.2d 874 (Cal. 1980).
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People v. Sage, 611 P.2d 874 (Cal. 1980). · cites it 6× “Penal Code section 2900.5 imposes on the sentencing court the obligation to determine the number of days of custody and, in those cases *509 to which it expressly applies, conduct credit to which the defendant is entitled, and to enter the credits on the abstract of judgment.”
Uriel Gonzalez v. Stuart Sherman, 873 F.3d 763 (9th Cir. 2017). · cites it 2× “Cal. Penal Code § 2900.5 (d). Prison officials must then subtract those days from the total number of days to which the defendant would otherwise have been sentenced.”
People v. Kennedy, 209 Cal. App. 4th 385 (Cal. Ct. App. 2012). · cites it 3× “. . credited to the period of confinement pursuant to Section 4019 .”
People v. Sengpadychith, 27 P.3d 739 (Cal. 2001). · cites it 2× “) Penal Code section 2900.5 credits "all days of custody of the defendant, including days served as a condition of probation .”
United States v. Wilson, 503 U.S. 329 (1992). · cites it 2× “The credit must be for a specified period of time and shall be provided for in the sentence");see also Cal. Penal Code Ann. § 2900.5(d)(West Supp.”
People v. Eric J., 601 P.2d 549 (Cal. 1979). · cites it 2× “The statute refers to `felony and misdemeanor convictions' and provides for precommitment custody time to be credited only against the defendant's `sentence.' (Italics added.) A declaration of wardship is not a `conviction' and a dispositional order of the juvenile court is not…”
People v. Edward B., 10 Cal. App. 5th 1228 (Cal. Ct. App. 2017). · cites it 2× “Section 726 provides that when a “minor is removed from the physical custody of his or her parent or guardian as the result of an order of wardship made pursuant to Section 602, the order shall specify that the minor may not be held in physical confinement for a period in excess…”
In Re Rojas, 588 P.2d 789 (Cal. 1979). · cites it 2× “Penal Code section 2900.5, which provides for credit to be given for time spent in custody prior to commencement of sentence, reads in relevant part: “(b) For the purposes of this section, credit shall be given only where the custody to be credited is attributable to proceedings…”
People v. Emilio C., 11 Cal. Rptr. 3d 85 (Cal. Ct. App. 2004). · cites it 2× “(Pen. Code, § 2900.5, subd. (a); In re Eric J.”
Harden v. Pennsylvania Bd. of Prob. & Parole, 980 A.2d 691 (Pa. Commw. Ct. 2009). · cites it 2× “" CAL.PENAL CODE § 2900.5; People v. Rodgers, 79 Cal.”
People v. Mendoza, 171 Cal. App. 4th 1142 (Cal. Ct. App. 2009). · cites it 3× “In addition, Penal Code section 2900.5 mandated that all days spent in custody as a condition of probation be credited against a prison term.”
People v. Darnell, 224 Cal. App. 3d 806 (Cal. Ct. App. 1990). · cites it 4× “Discussion Penal Code section 2900.5 provides, in pertinent part: “(a) In all felony and misdemeanor convictions, .”
Show all 234 citing cases →
Cal. Penal Code § 2900.5(a): 1 case
People v. Mendoza, No. D084511 (Cal. Ct. App. Nov. 8, 2024).
Cal. Penal Code § 2900.5(b): 2 cases
Von Staich v. California Dep't of Corr., 228 F. App'x 780 (9th Cir. 2007).
Williams v. Giurbino, 249 F. App'x 549 (9th Cir. 2007).
Cal. Penal Code § 2900.5(d): 1 case
United States v. Wilson, 503 U.S. 329 (1992). “The credit must be for a specified period of time and shall be provided for in the sentence");see also Cal. Penal Code Ann. § 2900.5(d)(West Supp.”
Cal. Penal Code § 2900.5(e): 2 cases
Quackenbush v. Cnty. of Santa Barbara, 175 F. App'x 801 (9th Cir. 2006).
Quackenbush v. Cnty. of Santa Barbara, 175 F. App'x 801 (9th Cir. 2006).
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