Interlibrary loan is the service whereby a user of one library can borrow materials owned by another library.

All Joliet Public Library cardholders are eligible for this service as long as they are in good standing, meaning they don’t have delinquent charges or overdue items.

Books, articles, DVDs, CDs, audiobooks and microfilms can be requested via interlibrary loan. Their availability depends on the policies of the owning libraries. New, popular and high-cost materials are often unavailable.

There are several ways to submit an interlibrary loan request to us:

1. Place an interlibrary loan request using our Pinnacle Catalog, but make sure that you change the All Pinacle Libraries tab into WorldCat Libraries Worldwide. If you use the Pinnacle Catalog, you will be able to see your interlibrary loan placement when you view your library account.


2. Stop by at our Adult Services Desk, and ask one of the reference librarians to assist you with your interlibrary loan request.


3. Call the library at our Main Building at 815-740-2660 and ask for Adult Services Department regarding an interlibrary loan request.


4. Submit an email request to ILL@jolietlibrary.org and include the author’s name and the title of the item you are requesting, as well as your library card barcode.

Once you submit your interlibrary loan request, it will be processed by a library staff member who will request the desired item from available libraries, and contact you when/if the item arrives.

There is no fee for this service, as the Joliet Public Library will make the effort to obtain the desired item from a non-charging lender. However, sometimes the item can be found only at libraries that request a fee for sending it to us. In a situation like this, a library staff member will contact you and ask you if you are willing to supply the requested fee in order to obtain the item.

Depending on the availability of the item and the location of the library (some libraries are out-of-state) it may take anywhere from one (1) to six (6) weeks for an item to be obtained.

The checkout period is determined by the lending library, but in general it varies between 2 (two) and four (4) weeks.

Interlibrary loan materials can be renewed pending approval from the library that owns them. To request a renewal, please give us a call one week before the item is due to allow us enough time to obtain permission for renewal from the lending library. You will receive a call from a library staff member with a notification whether or not the item was renewed.

Overdue, lost, or damaged interlibrary loan items will result in fines/charges just as they would if they were borrowed from the Joliet Public Library.

Sometimes your interlibrary loan request can be denied, because the item is new, checked out or because the libraries that own the item are unwilling to lend it. In a situation like this, you are not put on a waiting list. You will have to retry your request at a later time.

Items which cannot be interlibrary loaned will be evaluated for potential purchase by Joliet Public Library staff according to our Collection Development Policy.