Interlibrary Loan & Scanning Services

There are a few ways to place interlibrary loan requests:

• Log in to your Interlibrary Loan Account and fill out a request form.
• Use the Request via Summit, Request Article, or Request Book button in UW Libraries Search when an item is checked out or otherwise unavailable.  
• Use UW Worldcat to find material and place ILL requests.

• Most articles and book chapters are delivered electronically within 1 – 4 business days.
  • UW medical staff can place Clinical Rush requests with delivery in less than 4 business hours.
• Physical items like books, audio/visual materials, or microforms typically arrive within two weeks, though some from our Summit partners can arrive within 3 – 5 days.
• You will receive an email notification when physical items are ready to be picked up. You can pick up and return your interlibrary loan items at any UW library.
• Fragile or rare materials may need to be used in the library if required by the owning library.

• View requests, renew items, and download electronically-received items via your Interlibrary Loan account.
• Loan periods are determined by the owning library. Most materials borrowed by Interlibrary Loan are loaned for 12 weeks. Check Your Library Account for due dates.
  • Some items are eligible for one renewal with the owning library’s approval, but not all are.
• Make sure the interlibrary loan book band stays on your item. These help us keep track of items and ensure they make it back to the right place.
• On rare occasions, materials may be recalled by the owning library, which would change your due date. 
• We comply with U.S. copyright law and reserve the right to refuse a request if, in our judgment, fulfillment of the request would involve violation of copyright law.