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Interlibrary Loan

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Interlibrary Loan, or ILL, allows you to search for items in thousands of other libraries. Your request is processed and sent off to participating libraries.

PLEASE NOTE: Due to rising postage rates, and an increase in volume, the Library's Interlibrary Loan service is experiencing ever rising costs. In order to keep this a free service, beginning January 1, 2012, the Orcas Island Public Library will assess overdue fees on interlibrary loans. The rate will be $1.00 per day, up to a maximum of $10.00 for each overdue interlibrary loan item. Patrons wishing to keep their interlibrary loan item beyond its due date should request a renewal at a minimum of three days prior to the due date. This will allow time for your library and the lending library to communicate and process an item's renewal. Please be aware some libraries do not renew interlibrary loans. Requesting a renewal after the due date will not excuse any overdue fees already assessed.

Please keep the following parameters in mind when requesting items via Interlibrary Loan.

Requests for Interlibrary Loan items borrowed via OCLC will be limited to 3 requests per patron at any one time.

The following items are not available through Interlibrary Loan:

  1. Materials we already own.
  2. Materials published within the previous 9-month period (as verified on Amazon.com).
  3. DVDs.
  4. Audio books.
  5. Computer or video games in any format.
  6. Periodicals (entire issues) -- Libraries will not lend an entire issue of a magazine, but may provide photocopies of individual articles instead.
  7. If your request falls within one or more of the above categories, please make a purchase suggestion online or in person at the Library. If it is a book we already own, please reserve it through the library catalog.

If you need to keep your item beyond its return date, please contact the Interlibrary Loan Librarian at least three days before the item is due. However, some libraries do not renew interlibrary loans. Many libraries are instituting overdue fines for interlibrary loan items.

Click HERE for a short video tutorial on requesting an interlibrary loan.

Please click on the following link for access: Orcas Island Library Interlibrary Loan.