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1. What may be borrowed?

Anything not owned by the McKinney Public Library System may be borrowed if it is owned by another library that will agree to lend it.

2. Who may use the service?

Interlibrary Loan services are only available to McKinney Residents with a library card in good standing. 

3. What is not available through interlibrary loans (ILL)?

The following types of material often are not available through ILL:

• Entire volumes or issues of journals and newspapers. Exception: some libraries will lend them in micro-format such as microfiche or microfilm.
• Rare or expensive materials
• Original manuscripts
• Reference works 
• Books published within the last 12 months

4. How many items may I request?

You may request or have active five items at any one time.

5. How long does it take?

Since the item may come from anywhere in the United States, requests generally take two to three weeks to arrive.

6. How long may I keep the items?

The loan period for all ILLs is 3 weeks, with no renewals. If you need more time, you can request another copy through ILL once the first one has been returned.

Photocopied journal articles are yours to keep.

7. May I renew ILL materials?

The loan period for all ILLs is 3 weeks, with no renewals. If you need more time, you can request another copy through ILL once the first one has been returned.

8. Is there a charge?

Usually, there is no charge for the ILL service. However, some libraries do charge for photocopies or to loan materials. In this case, McKinney library staff will notify you and ask if you are willing to pay the charge before we finalize the request. Also, you are responsible for any fines and/or replacement costs levied by the lending library that you might incur.

9. I’ve lost/damaged an Interlibrary Loan. Can a replacement copy be purchased? If not, how much will it cost?

Please contact McKinney Library staff should this occur. The loaning library decides the amount to pay for an item and if replacements are acceptable.