ILL Frequently Asked Questions
Who can request an inter-library loan?
All registered staff and students of NUI Galway are eligible to apply for an inter-library loan, provided they require it for research and non-commercial purposes.
- Undergraduates must contact their subject Librarian before ordering an Inter-Library Loan.
- Taught postgraduates may apply using the online ordering form for three Inter-Library loans annually. If further applications are required they must contact their Subject Librarian.
- Staff and Research Postgraduates may use the online ordering form and no restrictions apply.
- Those who are not staff or students of the University may avail of the Inter-Library Loan Service by becoming an External User of the Library. A charge of €20 will apply per inter-library loan obtained on behalf of an external user. External users must apply in person to the ILL Office on the Ground Floor of the Library and must show a current Library card.
What can I order?
On your behalf Inter Library Loans can order books, journal articles, theses, book chapters, conference papers, patents, standards, reports and journal articles from libraries in Ireland, the U.K. and the rest of the world. Pre-1900 material is available from the British Library.
Do conditions apply?
Yes: some libraries stipulate that any book we order from them must be consulted in our Library only. However many items may be borrowed and consulted outside the Library. The procedures for borrowing in each case will be made clear to users at the point of borrowing. Items which cannot be removed from the Library may be put behind the Customer Services Desk if required for future consultation.
Please note that the terms of lending stipulated by an external library will be strictly enforced, and any attempt to remove restricted items from the Library may result in the withdrawal of future ILL privileges.
Theses and special collection materials borrowed from an external library may never be removed from the Library, with the exception of theses which come in microfilm format.
Is there a charge?
There is no charge for ILL for registered students and staff of NUI Galway. However, please note that the Library pays to borrow material from other libraries and the cost of a transaction, on average, can come to €11.25 for an article and €17.50 for a book.
In order to protect budgets from unnecessary orders, we require undergraduate students to apply in person to the ILL Office, so that we can advise them of reasonable alternatives within our own stock if possible. However it is important to stress that these procedures are in no way designed to restrict borrowing for undergraduates. If an undergraduate student has a genuine need of an ILL, this will be obtained on their behalf.
External users will be charged €20 for each inter-library loan request.
How quickly will I get my requested item?
A book or thesis can take up to five to ten days to arrive, depending on the lending institution.
A journal article usually takes a maximum of four days to arrive if sent electronically, or up to ten days if received in hard format.
Readers will be e-mailed immediately an item is received, and they can then collect it from the ILL Office.
How long can I keep the item?
Books and theses are usually loaned for a period of two to four weeks. The lending period is dependent on the lending library and will be advised at the point of collection.
Can I renew items?
Renewals for books, theses or any other print material can be applied for, provided readers come to us three days before the due date. However, the number of renewals is restricted to one without exception.
A renewal costs the Library UK£5.00 on average, and we would therefore request that users only apply for inter-library loans when they are ready to use the material, so that they can complete their research and return the item within the lending period. If this is not possible, we will be happy to facilitate a renewal.
What if I'm late returning the book?
Failure to return inter-library loans books within time may result in substantial fines being charged to the Library or, in extreme cases, partner institutions suspending the facility to our Library. Accordingly, ILL will apply a charge of €1 per day for the late return of items, which will be charged to patron’s library accounts. If patrons are unable to return an item within time, for any reason, we would ask them to contact the ILL Office as quickly as possible to explain the difficulty.
