If the library doesn’t have something you’re looking for, Interlibrary Loan (ILL) can try to get it for you for your research. Students, faculty, and staff of UNC Charlotte can use ILL to borrow almost anything from other libraries for free. Request Document Delivery for scans of physical book chapters or journal articles that we own.
Before submitting an ILL request, check the Atkins Library catalog to see if we have the item available at Atkins or Offsite Storage. If the item is available, you can create a hold request for the Atkins owned copy.
Hold requests are items owned and available at Atkins. Interlibrary Loan requests are for items not owned or items not available at Atkins. Instructions for placing a hold requests can be found on the Request an Item to Pick Up page.
Video tutorial: Using Interlibrary Loan
Go to your account to submit and view requests.
What can I request?
Books, electronic copies of book chapters, articles, and other items for your personal use. You can also request items we own if they are checked out or missing. Textbooks are not available through Interlibrary Loan.
How long does it take?
- Physical items (books, media, etc.) may take 2-3 weeks to receive.
- Electronic copies of book chapters and articles from other libraries usually are received within 1-3 days.
What about Copyright?
You are responsible for using materials in accordance with Copyright Law (Title 17, US Code) and its guidelines. See the Copyright and Fair Use guide for assistance.
You are responsible for conducting your own Fair Use Analysis when appropriate and may contact our Copyright & Licensing Librarian, Kate Dickson, for assistance.
How do I request an item through Interlibrary Loan?
- From the library homepage, click the My Accounts icon.
- Log in to your Interlibrary loan account.
- Click the Add Request tab and select the type of item you are requesting.
- Complete the request with as much citation information as you have. Including an ISBN or ISSN, while not required, will speed up processing time.
- Scroll the the bottom of the form to add any notes and submit your request.
Video tutorial: Finding Articles with a Citation
You can also make an Interlibrary Loan request in the online search catalog by selecting a title and clicking “Request Item Through Interlibrary Loan”. Citation information will automatically transfer to the request form.
To check on the status of your request or make sure you submitted it properly, click My Requests.
How do I access the requested item?
You will receive an email when your requested item is available. Please be sure to activate your UNC Charlotte email account and check for arrival notices. Please notify us if you no longer need an item you requested.
Physical Items (books, videos, etc.)
- Pick up physical items (books, videos, etc.) at the Information and Research Desk. You will be asked to show your UNC Charlotte ID in order to pick it up items. Items are held for pickup until the due date.
- Faculty and staff can have items sent to their office through campus mail. Select “Office Delivery” in your ILL account profile. It may take several days to arrive.
- Books for Distance Ed students will be sent to their home address via UPS. Select "Home Delivery" in your ILL account profile.
Articles and Book Chapters
- You will receive an email when your item is available.
- Download articles and book chapters from the Electronically Received Articles section of your Interlibrary loan account.
How do I request a scan of an article or book chapter we own (Document Delivery)?
Document Delivery is a free service for students, faculty, and staff of UNC Charlotte. We’ll provide articles, book chapters, and more. If we own it in print, we can scan it for you - typically, delivery time will be within 24 hours. All copies are delivered electronically as described above.
Guidelines for Document Delivery Requests:
- You can request one chapter from a book.
- 35 page maximum
- Provide a complete and accurate bibliographic description (Title, Author, Pages, etc.) of the requested material.
- You are responsible for using materials in accordance with Copyright Law (Title 17, US Code) and its guidelines. See the Copyright and Fair Use guide for assistance.
- You are responsible for conducting your own Fair Use Analysis and may contact our Copyright & Licensing Librarian, Kate Dickson, for assistance.
Can I renew an item?
Some physical ILL materials can be renewed - check the printout attached to your book for notes about renewal limits. If you want to renew your ILL item, you can request a renewal through your Interlibrary Loan Account at least one day before the due date of the item.
- Go to the Checked Out Items section of your ILL account.
- Click the Actions button for the item you want to renew and request a renewal. If this option is not available please contact interlibraryloan@uncc.edu for help. We will not charge overdue fines if you have requested a renewal and we are waiting for a response from the lending library.
What are the fines for overdue items?
- Fines for overdue ILL materials are $1.00 per day (no maximum).
- Fines for overdue ILL items that have been recalled are $5.00 per day (no maximum).
- Failure to return interlibrary loan items by the due date will result in your Interlibrary Loan Services being blocked. This is also true for any intentional damage to books such as underlining or highlighting.
What if I lose or damage a book?
There is a nonrefundable charge for lost ILL materials of $100 or more per item, depending on the replacement cost charged by the lending library. Fines may also be applied for damages at the discretion of the lending library.
What items aren’t available through Interlibrary Loan?
We are not able to process interlibrary loans for the following types of materials:
- Textbooks assigned to current UNC Charlotte courses
- Test material
- Boxes of archival papers
- Maps (stand alone)
- E-books (are generally not available)
- Rare Books (held in Special Collections)
- Reference Books (held in Reference Collections)
- Entire journal issues
- Publication requirements of a particular journal
- Material needed for reserve use (copyright violation)
- Material recently borrowed and returned for the same individual
- Requests that don’t comply with the Copyright Law (Title 17, US code) and its guidelines
- Incomplete or incorrect citations
Hard-to-Obtain Requests
Since most libraries don’t lend the following materials, these items may not be available through ILL:
- Rare or valuable material, including manuscripts
- High demand material (best sellers, newly published, etc.)
- Reference books, audiovisual materials and genealogy works
- Bulky or fragile material
- Media such as DVDs and CDs
Interlibrary Loan Contact Information
Email: interlibraryloan@uncc.edu
Phone: 704-687-0478
Hours: Monday - Friday, 8:00 - 5:00
Interlibrary Loan services are available to UNC Charlotte students, faculty, and staff whose Atkins accounts are in good standing. Interlibrary Loan services are not available to friends, alumni, early college students, members of the public, or UNC Charlotte students, faculty, and staff whose accounts are not in good standing.