Borrowing Guide

Taking something out? Here are the ins and outs of placing holds, borrowing physical and digital content, and paying fees for overdue items.

Physical Items
Digital Content
Late Fees
Frequently Asked Questions
Browse

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Physical Items

How Many?

How Long?

Not Done?

Renew it and keep it longer. You may renew or request items as long as:

Your library card is current and your late fees are less than $10
It is not a Hits To Go* item
It is not a magazine

You may renew items up to 2 times if they are not requested by another person.

Extended borrowing periods may be arranged for special circumstances such as hospital stays or vacations.

*Hits To Go are new releases or high demand items only available to borrow for a week.

Where to Return?

Place a Hold

Did you know that you can request up to 50 physical and 30 digital holds?

Just log in to your account, search for the item you want and click "Place a Hold." You'll be notified by email or phone when your items are ready for pick-up. You have 7 days to pick up your hold(s).

Get Hold NotificationsGet hold notifications by email

Want to receive your hold notifications by email, but don't have your email address on file? Sign up for email notifications!

Digital Content

EPL subscribes to a number of Online Resources, some of which have their own borrowing limits and loan periods.

Acorn TV

Cantook Station

cloudLibrary (eXpress Titles)

EBSCO eBooks

Freading

hoopla

Kanopy & Kanopy Kids

New York Times

OverDrive & OverDrive Kids

RB Digital Audiobooks

Online Resource

Gale OneFile: Home Improvement

Perfect for hobbyists and professionals alike. Publications include Canadian House & Home, Home Energy, House & Garden and many more.

Late Fees

What happens if you don’t return your materials on time? The following late fees are applied daily on each overdue item:

Books, magazines, CDs: $0.25 on Adult items, $0.10 on Youth items
DVDs, blu-rays, Hits to Go items: $1.00 on Adult items, $0.40 on Youth items
Video games: $1.00

If your fines reach a total of $10.00 or more or if you have 40 items or more overdue, you will not be able to borrow any more items, place holds or access eBooks, eAudiobooks or any other digital content.

If your items are really, really late

If a library item is past 15 days overdue, a notice will be mailed or emailed to you. If a library item has not been returned after 30 days, you will be billed for the replacement cost.

Pay Your Late Fees Online

Pay Your Late FeesPay Your Late Fees

It's important to keep your account in good standing, so visit a branch to pay in person or log in to your account to make a payment online.

Pay Online Pay Online

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I renew an item?

What happens when I have $10.00 or more in late fees?

If you have $10.00 in late fees you can no longer borrow library materials. Visit a branch or make a payment online.

If your account has fees of $40.00 or more AND continues to show the outstanding balance for 60 days or more after you have been billed, it will be referred to a materials recovery agency who will contact you to ensure you are aware of the outstanding balance and encourage you contact us. If the outstanding balance remains unaddressed after 120 days, your account will be referred to a collection agency. Once your account has been referred to a materials recovery agency, a non-refundable administration fee of $15.00 will be automatically applied to your account. Note that even if all materials are returned, your account may still be referred to collections if it has an outstanding balance.

Why do I need a library card to access the databases and eBooks?

How do I suggest a title for EPL's collection?

We want to build a balanced collection to serve all of Edmonton. If you’re interested in a title that’s not in the EPL catalogue, let us know and we’ll consider your request.

Just make sure it was originally published or produced in the last 10 years. Suggestions are evaluated according to our Collection Development Policy.

You can request up to five items per month through our online catalogue. Track the progress of your suggestion within the Suggest a Purchase pages (after logging in). Before making your suggestion, check our catalogue to make sure we don't already carry it.

You can also make 3 eBook and eAudiobook suggestions every 30 days through our eBook service OverDrive. When making suggestions in OverDrive, ask to be added to the holds list in order to track the item's progress.

Suggest a new item (library card and PIN required)

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Borrowing Guide

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