Inter-library loans and delivery services

There is a processing fee of  EUR 2,00 per order. Additional costs may be incurred when ordering copies of very large journal articles. The processing fee is automatically deducted from your account when an order is submitted. There is no refund for unsuccessful requests.

When setting up an inter-library loan account, a credit balance has to be paid in. (Cashless by  CampusCard). University staff can transfer money via their cost unit. Please hand in a completed accounting form at one of the service desks or send it to the library by internal mail.

If a book or a journal is not in stock at the University Library, you can search the hebis portal and place an order there. This also works directly from the KARLA catalogue portal if you click on the inter-library loan link at the bottom of each result list. Login to the hebis portal with your local library card number and the corresponding password.

Please click on the request button of the item you would like to order and confirm the following pop-up windows. A generated number (A-number) indicates that the order is placed. It also helps to track your requests via your inter-library loan user account and serves a reference for futher questions.

Items in stock at the library cannot be requested via inter-library loan. This also applies to items that are presently on loan and therefore not available.

Valuable and older books and other documents not for loan for reasons of preservation are also excluded from inter-library loan. In these cases you might check whether access to a digital copy is available.

Books that cost a minimum of  EUR 15 in bookshops may not be requested via inter-library loan.

You might find publications such as travel guides, guidebooks etc. at the local public library or in the Onleihe digital library.

Master theses, diploma papers or bachelor theses are usually part of the exam documents and therefore not for loan. Standards and patent specifications cannot be requested either. The latest version of the Act on Copyright and Related Rights does not allow the delivery of any copies of newspaper articles or of articles from non-academic journals.

Loose-leaf editions are usually excluded from inter-library loans as well. Photocopies of chapters are possible.

Copies of journal articles usually arrive within a few days and we forward them to you by (internal) mail. Books are not copied, but sent as originals, their shipping time is usually about one or two weeks. We will notify you by e-mail as soon as the requested item is ready for pick-up.

Loan periods are set by the holding library. There are short loan periods of 14 days and loan periods of up to 8 weeks. Inter-library loan periods can generally not be extended.

The request of items via the international inter-library loan will cost an additional fee of EUR 6. You will also have to pay for postage and packaging. Costs between EUR 20 and EUR 50 may arise.

Kassel University Library provides items within the national and international inter-library loan systems. Journals, newspapers, reference works, oversized formats and older and valuable items are usually excluded. International inter-library loan requests are accepted by using an IFLA order form or by e-mail. We charge one or two IFLA vouchers per item (book or article copy) for orders from Europe or three to five vouchers for orders from overseas (depending on the mail charges).

Both journal articles and books can be ordered directly from a library via Subito. Books are sent by mail and articles by e-mail, mail or fax.

Costs for article copies: starting at EUR 5. This includes the author’s fee (royalty), which will be forwarded to the VG Wort – the amount depends on the user group of the customer. A licence fee of at least EUR 4 is due for article requests from journals with special licence agreements, if they are delivered electronically.

Costs for books: starting at EUR 9. Processing time: 24 hours (express service) or 72 hours (normal service).

Registration is required. Payment is made after receipt of the invoice.