NYPL, Getting a Library Card

Library Card Terms and Conditions

General Policy Statements

Any person who lives, works, attends school or pays property taxes in New York State is eligible to receive a New York Public Library card free of charge. Use of a New York Public Library card is non-transferrable, i.e., can only be used by the person whose name appears on the card.

The above status entitles you to one New York Public Library card. The Library will merge or delete the records of any user found to have multiple active cards.

Any organization that operates in New York State is eligible to apply for a New York Public Library Organizational Borrower's card free of charge valid for one year.

All materials borrowed must be returned on or before the due date. The Library offers universal returns – most circulating material can be returned to any New York Public Library location in the Bronx, Manhattan or Staten Island, except the Schomburg Center. Likewise, pickup of holds and payment of fines and fees may take place at any Library location with the exception of Schomburg.

Fines are charged for items returned after their due date.

Cardholders are responsible for all materials borrowed on their card, all use of the card and all charges made against it, until the card is reported lost to the Library.

Eligibility Requirements

When applying for a New York Public Library card in person, or providing proof of their identity to validate a card received in the mail, an applicant must show proof that he/she lives, works, attends school, or pays property taxes in New York State. To apply for a card:

Adults may provide only one piece of identification if it is one of the following valid New York State IDs:

Current driver's license
Current photo learner's permit
Current non-driver's identification
Young Adults (ages 12-18) can show the same ID as adults. Alternatively, young adults may present one of the following, provided name and address are included in the documentation:
Current school photo ID
Current report or program card
Working papers

If the above documentation is not available, any two of the following forms of identification are acceptable for adults and/or young adults, provided one shows a photo and/or signature and the other the applicant's current address:

Current college or university photo ID card
Current employee photo ID card
New York City welfare ID card
Current Armed Services ID card
Alien Registration photo ID card
Matricula Consular (Mexican CID)
Current passport
Medicare/Medicaid card
Social Security card
Birth certificate
Medicare/Medicaid card
New York State motor vehicle registration
Professional, vocational or union photo ID
Current rent bill or lease agreement
Tax bill or receipt
Statement from a homeless shelter
Current photo ID with signature and expiration date issued by an embassy or consulate in New York

Children ages 0-11 must have their application completed and signed by a parent or guardian who has presented the requested information above.

Note: Any rent receipts, or statements from a homeless shelter used for verification of your identity must be dated no more than 2 months prior to the application date.

The name and address provided to verify your identification must match the information entered on the application.

The same identification must also be presented when a change to the borrower's address is made and when replacing a lost card.

Special Notes on Young Adult Borrowers

Young Adults who are age 12 through 18 or are in the seventh to twelfth grade must present identification that indicates their grade level or age to obtain an application for a library card.

A parent/guardian may verify his/her child's age in the absence of identification.
Parents/guardians of teenagers between the ages of 12 and 18 may be given information about overdue materials only, upon presentation of the youth's library card barcode number, printed overdue notice, or personal identification that confirms that the adult is the youth's parent/guardians

Special Notes on Juvenile Borrowers

Children may be present to receive their library cards, but their presence is not required.
A children's application form must be signed by a parent or guardian. If a parent/guardian is not present, the library card application must be taken home for completion and signature.
On the library card application, parents/or guardians determine whether their child may borrow all library materials or only juvenile materials.
Children under the age of 12 will not be able to register for library cards over the Internet.
Parents/guardians are responsible for the lost or damaged materials borrowed by their children.

Special Notes on Organizational Borrower

In order to receive an organizational borrower's card, a brief letter of request on organizational letterhead must be submitted along with the completed application form.
The authorized person who signs the application form is responsible for all materials borrowed against that organizational borrower's card.
Should the authorized person who signs the application leave the organization, the organization will continue to be responsible for all materials borrowed.
If the organization has a change of address or phone number, or the card is lost, the library must be notified immediately.
All regulations of the New York Public Library apply to the organizational borrower's card.

Special Notes on Homebound/Books by Mail Borrowers

The New York Public Library endeavors to meet the needs of all residents of Manhattan, the Bronx and Staten Island including those who are homebound and do not have any other way to get library materials. The Books by Mail service sends books and other library materials through the US Postal Service and the materials may be returned in the same way at no charge to the patron.

The homebound patron is eligible for the same services provided to the general population, including the use of all circulating materials and access to online resources and e-resources.
In order to be eligible for the Books by Mail service, a person must live in the Bronx, Manhattan or Staten Island and have a physical disability which prevents them from visiting the library in person. This disability may be permanent or last for as little as six months. Books by Mail is for individuals, whether they are living at home or in an institution.
Applicants must submit a completed Books by Mail application. These forms should be available in all library locations, in both English and Spanish. The application can also be printed from http://www.nypl.org/branch/services/booksbymail.html using 8 1/2" x 14" paper or can be requested by calling 212-621-0564 and leaving a message.
The form must be filled out and signed by the patron and also signed by a physician, nurse or social worker who has a professional relationship to the borrower, verifying that they cannot visit The Library due to a physical disability. It does not matter whether the person already has a library card. The Library will not register patrons who do not submit a completed application form; other documentation may not be substituted.
Only Books by Mail staff can register a patron as a Homebound user. If a Books by Mail patron or anyone else contacts another unit requesting a change to or from Homebound status, they should be referred to the Books by Mail service.
Books by Mail service participants are not charged overdue fines.
Charges for lost or damaged materials do apply to Books by Mail borrowers.

Special Notes on Non-Resident (Visitor or Temporary) Borrowers

Visitors from out-of-state or abroad are welcome to use the Library's resources on-site, many of which do not require the issuance of a library card. For access to Research Libraries’ collections, non-residents may be issued a free temporary library card on-site, with an expiration date reflecting the brevity of their stay.
With the exception of a much sooner expiration date of up to three months from the date of issuance, all other registration procedures are applicable to the applicants.

Special Notes on Existing Cardholders

Research Library-issued Access Cards as well as cards issued in the Branch Libraries will continue to be accepted at all New York Public Library locations until their expiration date.
The records of borrowers with both an Access and Branch Library card will be merged. The merge will include the consolidation of any materials currently checked out, as well as any existing fines and fees to a single record. Only the most recently issued card will remain valid.
Special Notes on Brooklyn and Queens Public Library Card Holders
As a courtesy to other New York City library users, Brooklyn Public Library and Queens Public Library cardholders may use their existing cards once it is linked to NYPL.
Materials borrowed from The New York Public Library branches cannot be returned at the Brooklyn Public Library or The Queens Borough Public Library.
Materials borrowed from the Brooklyn Public Library or The Queens Borough Public Library must be returned to their respective branch libraries.
Renewing Your Library Card
Effective July 6, 2009, all adult, teen and child library cards expire and must be renewed every three years. Organization cards expire after one year. The above-mentioned forms of identification and/or other requirements must be presented to renew your library card.

Lost and Replacement Library Cards

When you register for a New York Public Library card, you accept responsibility for all items on the card, all use made of the card and all charges made against it until your card is reported lost. The Library must have a record of your card having been reported lost, or it is not considered lost. Therefore it is to the patron’s benefit to report the loss or theft of a library card immediately.

The cost of replacing a lost or stolen library card is $1.00. This fee is assessed at the time the card is reported lost.

Report lost cards by phone, in person at any Library location, or by e-mail. Eligible users may also apply for a replacement library card online.

Library Notices

The New York Public Library provides a notification service for held items, overdue materials and other service-specific reasons. Notices are available via print, telephone or e-mail and the method by which you receive them is chosen at the time you apply for a card. It is the responsibility of the borrower to notify The Library if any of their contact information changes.

Note: In the case of borrowers who receive their notices by e-mail, it is their responsibility to make sure that e-mails sent from addresses with @nypl.org in the sender information be allowed through any filters they may have in place on their Inbox.

Failure to receive a notice does not absolve the borrower from any fines or fees attached to their patron record.