Borrow and access

Log in to your account to renew your items.

You can renew your items for the same period as the initial loan period. The new due date is calculated from the renewal date and not from the original due date. Due dates will not extend beyond your account's expiry date.

Books can be renewed as long as:

• No one has requested or recalled them
• You owe less than $20 in fines and charges

Courtesy notices are sent by email when:

• an item you have borrowed is due soon - normally 2 days before an item is due
• an item you have borrowed is overdue
• an item you have requested is available to pick up
• an item you have checked out has been recalled

Students, faculty and staff: notices are emailed to your @uOttawa.ca address. Others: Notices are emailed to the address you entered on your library card application form. You are responsible for returning materials by the due date even if you fail to receive a notice.

Sign in to your account to check the due date for an item.

When the library is open, you may return your items to any library circulation desk. A return chute is also available in each library, as well as in Desmarais Hall, Colonel By Hall and the Social Sciences Building.

When the library is closed, items may be placed in the night return chute located outside the Brian Dickson Law Library, the Health Sciences Library and the Morisset Library. 

Exceptions: 

• Reserve items must be returned to the owning library. 
• Equipment must be returned to the Morisset Library circulation desk. 

Policies on overdue and damaged materials

University of Ottawa students, faculty and staff can use Omni to request:

• Items already on loan
• Items located at off-site storage facilities
• Items that are in process

Click on the Request button, enter your information, and choose a pickup location. The item you have requested will be held for you for 7 days after it arrives at the pickup location. Your request may be cancelled if a faculty member requests that we put the item aside for a course.

Users affiliated with the University may also request that an item be transferred from the main campus libraries to the Health Sciences Library, Berkman Library or Saint Paul University Library, or vice versa.

Users not affiliated with the University may request books located at off-site storage facilities. Send your request to [email protected].

An item can be recalled when another user requests it and it is on extended loan, or overdue. If you have an item for an extended period and are planning to leave the region, make the necessary preparations to be able to comply with any recall during your absence.

• An item that has been recalled must be returned within 7 days. After 7 days, fines of $4.00/day will be charged. Fines for media and equipment will be assessed at $10.00/day. After 14 days the item will be declared lost.
• Books and DVDs declared lost will incur a $125 default replacement charge. The replacement cost for any lost multimedia equipment/accessory or for any damaged multimedia equipment that is beyond repair can vary depending upon the item but may be as high as $500.

Your borrowing privileges will be suspended if you have:

• fees on your account of $20 or more
• an overdue reserve item
• an overdue recalled item

Students: In order to graduate or receive marks or transcripts, you must have no outstanding charges. Unpaid accounts may be referred to a collection agency.

See our rules on overdue and damaged materials.

The University of Ottawa Library is officially cashless. In an effort to minimize risk and streamline their transactions, all Library locations accept debit, credit (Visa, Mastercard), cheques, or the uO Flex card as valid methods of payments.