Prisons and other places of detention are enclosed environments where people (including staff) live in close proximity. Every country has a responsibility to increase their level of preparedness, alert and response to identify, manage and care for new cases of COVID-19. Countries should prepare to respond to different public health scenarios, recognizing that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to managing cases and outbreaks of COVID-19. Four transmission scenarios that could be experienced by countries at the subnational level have been defined for COVID-19, and countries should therefore adjust and tailor their approach to the local context.