Borrowing from SCLSNJ
When you come to pick up an item on hold that is available for you, find the Contact Free Holds area at your branch.
Holds will be on the shelf in order by:
- The first four letters of your last name, and then
- The last four digits of your library card number.
Important!! Items awaiting pickup have NOT been checked out to you ahead of time!!
You can bring your checkouts back to any SCLSNJ branch location. Return your materials inside during open hours, or use our 24/7 outdoor bookdrops to return items anytime.
You must have a valid library card, photo of the library card, or driver’s license to checkout material. The card holder does not need to be present as long as one of the aforementioned items are given.
You can have a maximum of 75 items checked out at any given time. Only a few types of items have specific limits — see the Fees and Loan Periods section below for more information.
For Contact Free Checkout download the SCLSNJ App on your personal device or use our self-checkout stations.
Automatic Renewal
We will automatically renew your items for you two days before they are due. If your materials cannot be renewed for some reason, you will receive a coming due notice as usual.
- Materials with holds cannot be renewed.
- There is a limit of 5 renewals for each item.
- Library accounts must be in good standing.
- Automatic renewals only apply to physical materials; e-books and e-audiobooks will not be automatically renewed.
We want you to return the items you check out so that we can share them with others. We won’t charge you a fine for returning an item late, but if you haven’t returned it several weeks after the due date, we will consider the item lost and charge you the cost to replace it. You will not be able to check out items if you have $20 or more in fees.
We will charge you a late fee for Cultural Adventure Passes that are not returned on time. For interlibrary Loans, any fee incurred from the lending library will be added to your account.
Be sure to sign up to receive a courtesy email reminder. This notification will remind you when your items need to be returned. You can always check your status by logging on to the My Account link.
- In person – Pay by cash, check or credit card at any SCLSNJ location during regular operating hours.
- Online – Log into My Account and use your credit card to pay online
- About your credit card payment:
- No service charge
- Payments immediately applied to your Library account
- Email receipts sent automatically after payment
You can avoid fees by signing up to receive a courtesy email reminder!
Accounts shall be referred to a collection agency if there is a balance of $75 or more.
Patrons will be charged a fee of $7 for each collection agency referral.
Fines and Loan Periods
| Item Type | Loan Period | Checkout Limit | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audiobooks | 21 days | – | |
| Books | 21 days | – | |
| Book Discussion Kits | 42 days | – | |
| Cultural Adventure Passes | 3 days | – | |
| DVD/Blu-Rays (1 or 2 discs) | 7 days | – | |
| DVD/Blu-Rays (3 or 4 discs) | 14 days | – | |
| DVD/Blu-Rays (5 or more discs) | 21 days | – | |
| Equipment for in-house use | varies 1 – 4 hours | – | |
| Hotspots | 21 days | 1 | |
| Interlibrary Loans | varies | – | |
| Launchpads | 7 days | 2 | |
| Lucky Day Books | 10 days | 2 | |
| Lucky Day DVDs | 4 days | 2 | |
| Lucky Day Hotspots | 10 days | 1 | |
| Magazines | 7 days | – | |
| Music CDs | 21 day | – | |
| Overnight Reference* | 1 day | – | |
| Storytime Theme Kits | 14 day | – | |
| Video Games | 7 days | 7 |
We will charge you a late fee of $20 per day for Cultural Adventure Passes that are not returned on time. For interlibrary loans, any fee incurred from the lending library will be added to your account.
*At the discretion of SCLSNJ staff, reference materials can be loaned on a case-by-case basis.