Library Fees

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The New York Public Library does not charge late fines for any overdue circulating materials. The Library does assess some fees for lost materials, damaged materials and other instances. Please review our updated fees information below for details.

Replacement Fees

Borrowers are responsible for returning or renewing the items they check out before the due date. If they do not, the item will be labeled as overdue and the patron will be notified. Items are declared lost after they have been overdue for 30 days and a replacement fee will be charged to the patron account.

  • A replacement fee is determined by the official vendor’s pricing of the lost item.
  • Replacement fees will vary depending on the type of item that is lost.
  • If patrons return the item, even after it has been declared lost, the Library will remove the replacement fee from their account.
  • If patrons pay the replacement fee but later find and return the item within 90 days past its due date, they may receive a refund for the replacement fee from the Library.
  • The Library will not accept replacement copies of the item.
  • Borrowers will be assessed the replacement cost of any library materials checked out to them if those materials are intended for in-library use only and are not returned by the end of the designated loan period.
  • For Research Libraries’ materials, the replacement cost will be determined on an item-by-item basis.
  • Borrowing privileges will be suspended for cardholders with replacement fees totalling $100 or more. This suspension only applies to borrowing physical materials. Patrons with blocks on physical material borrowing can still use their library cards to access e-books and Library computers.

Payment Method

Fees can be paid at any New York Public Library branch in cash, U.S. Postal money order, personal check, or online through the Library website.

To pay fees online, patron’s can log into their NYPL account. In the My Account interface, patrons can use a credit or debit card to pay any fees. Online payment is handled via PayPal and the Library does not retain the credit card information of its users. Note that a minimum amount of $1.01 is required to use online payment.

Borrowers using shared or Library PCs to pay fees should take special care to log out of their account when they have completed the payment process. Credit card payment is not currently possible at Library public service desks.

Money orders and checks must be made out to The New York Public Library. Fee payments can be mailed to any NYPL branch or to:

ASK NYPL
Attn: Patron Accounts Management
The New York Public Library
11 West 40th Street
New York, NY 10018

To facilitate processing, include your library card number in the note/memo field of any check or money order mailed.

Fees cannot be paid by phone. Any disputes regarding fees submitted to Patron Accounts Management must be submitted in writing to the address listed above.

Replacement Fee for a Lost or Stolen Card

A mandatory replacement fee of $1.00 will be charged for a lost or stolen library card. Borrowers are also responsible for the replacement cost of any items checked out to their card before it is reported lost. Any claim that a borrower did not check out items on their card must be supported by a police report listing the theft of the card and/or items dated within two weeks of the checkout.