Dumfries Prison serves the courts of Dumfries and Galloway. It holds up to 80 male prisoners who are remanded in custody for trial and those convicted but remanded for reports. Short-term convicted male prisoners may be retained at Dumfries or transferred to another establishment according to their length of sentence and the availability of spaces.

Dumfries Prison also provides a national mainstream facility for holding up to 120 long-term and short-term prisoners who require to be separated from mainstream prisoners because of the nature of their offence, termed as offence related protection prisoners.