Interlibrary loans

If you are a registered user and cannot find the document you are looking for at the Swiss National Library (NL), you can order it via interlibrary loan. Other libraries in Switzerland or abroad can also request the loan of works held at the NL.

Interlibrary loans for NL users

As a registered user of the NL, you can order books and articles from periodicals located at other libraries in Switzerland or abroad. This can be done directly via the Helveticat catalogue. Your orders are therefore registered in your patron account, which means you can track them.

Ordering and fees (including VAT)

Interlibrary loan

Not picked up loans

Copies : delivery by mail or e-mail

Please complete an order form for books or photocopies for each order.

To ensure that your order can be processed quickly, please make the bibliographic description as precise and complete as possible.

Interlibrary order forms are available in the NL's Helveticat online catalogue:

You must pay the fees for books and photocopies directly at the circulation desk in the NL when you pick them up.

For reasons of coordination between the various libraries (lending periods, loan conditions), we are unfortunately unable to send the orders via interlibrary loan to your home address. 

Delivery times

Delivery

You will receive a letter or e-mail notifying you that the documents ordered have arrived at the NL’s circulation service. We do not offer home delivery of documents ordered via interlibrary loan.

Lending period and extension

Returns

Loaned documents can be returned by taking them to the circulation desk at the NL, placing them in the returns box or posting them in appropriate packaging. A charge will be made for any lost or damaged documents.

Interlibrary loans for libraries and documentation centres

Document lending

Lending conditions

  • All libraries and documentation centres in Switzerland and abroad can borrow documents from the NL’s collections through interlibrary loans.
  • Documents published more than 50 years ago may be borrowed by partner libraries, provided they guarantee that the documents will be consulted exclusively in the reading room.
  • No documents published before 1900, valuable documents, non-books or large formats are available for interlibrary loans, but reproductions of these may be ordered.
  • Documents on loan outside Switzerland must be consulted exclusively in the reading room.

Ordering

  • Monographs and some periodicals may be borrowed directly via the NL’s online catalogue Helveticat. A user ID number corresponding to the International Standard Identifier for Libraries and Related Organizations (ISIL) and a password can be obtained from the circulation service.

ISIL Centre Switzerland

  • Alternatively, the interlibrary loan order form can be used.

Form for interlibrary loan requests (documents or copies) for libraries and public documentation centres

Lending period and extension

  • The lending period is 28 days.
  • Extensions are possible.
  • Documents loaned abroad must be consulted exclusively in the reading room.

Cost

  • For interlibrary loans within Switzerland, no cost applies to the borrowing library (postage is free for NL users).
  • For international interlibrary loans, a charge of one IFLA voucher per volume applies.

Ordering photocopies

Ordering

  • Please complete the form below to order photocopies (analogue or digital).

Form for interlibrary loan requests (documents or copies) for libraries and public documentation centres

  • Please contact the Photography and Reprography service for other forms of reproduction.

Reproductions

Pricing

  • The rates stipulated in the Ordinance on fees charged by the Swiss National Library apply. A fee of CHF 10.- will be charged for administrative costs.
  • In order to limit invoicing costs, we recommend using the following means of payment for photocopy orders (analogue or digital): 1 IFLA voucher per article of up to 20 pages. 

Identifiers and accessibility codes for interlibrary loans within Switzerland

Library identifiers and addresses

The NL assigns each library a standardised alphanumeric identifier for interlibrary loans within Switzerland.

The library identifiers and addresses used for interlibrary loans are managed by the NL and can be consulted in the Swiss ISIL directory.

Accessibility codes

Libraries determine their own accessibility code for the delivery of documents under interlibrary loans. The following accessibility codes are available:

* Monographs and photocopies of articles from periodicals or monographs

Requesting an identifier and accessibility code

To request an identifier and accessibility code for your library, complete the form below and send it to the NL.

Swiss National Library

Interlibrary loans
Switzerland