Interlibrary Loan and Document Delivery Services

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The National Library of Medicine (NLM) has one of the largest collections of biomedical literature in the world. NLM's interlibrary loan (ILL) and document delivery services make these resources available to U.S. and international libraries as part of NLM's mission to collect, preserve and disseminate biomedical information.

Annually, the Library responds to more than 350,000 requests, averaging over 1,600 requests daily for articles, books, audiovisuals and microform materials. NLM is the library of last resort for biomedical materials that are not available from local or regional libraries. See more information on the National Network of Libraries of Medicine® (NN/LM).

Submitting Interlibrary Loan Requests to NLM

Libraries are encouraged to submit interlibrary loan (ILL) requests through DOCLINE, NLM’s request routing and referral system. To report a problem with ILL requests filled by NLM, please use our ILL Customer Service form.

Individuals who need access to medical literature should make a request through a local library or register with a Loansome Doc library that agrees to provide articles to them. Use our search engine during registration to find a Loansome Doc document delivery provider.

Please see our Interlibrary Loan Fact Sheet for information on NLM’s ILL service and charges:

• Access to NLM
  • U.S. Medical Libraries
  • U.S. Non-Medical Libraries
  • Canadian Libraries
  • Other Non-U.S. Libraries
• Borrowing Methods
• Request Requirements
• Loan Period
• Delivery and Returns
• Clinical Emergencies
• Charges
• Billing
• Images and Audio/Visual Materials
• Where to Submit Requests

Interlibrary Loan Billing

NLM offers two billing services. ILL Customers may choose to be billed through either the Electronic Fund Transfer System (EFTS) or the National Technical Information System (NTIS).

Electronic Funds Transfer System (EFTS) Information

NTIS Deposit Account Information

Preferred Delivery Methods

NLM's Preferred Delivery Methods are email and post-to-web. For more information about the delivery methods available from NLM, please see our NLM Preferred Delivery flyer (This document requires the use of the Adobe® Acrobat® Reader, which can be downloaded from Adobe's Web site at no charge.)