Frequently Asked Questions

You are limited to 10 requests at any one time. Requests count toward your limit from the time they are placed until the time they are returned to the owning library. When this limit is reached, you will not be able to place new requests until items are returned to and checked in by the lender. 

Try entering your library card number and password again in case they were mistyped, but usually this means there is a problem with your card.

If your card has expired, or if your card has fees in excess of $10, or if you are otherwise prevented from checking out materials from the Saint Paul Public Library, you will be unable to place requests in MNLINK.

If it is a Saint Paul Public Library card, contact your local branch to see that you are in good standing. If your card was issued by a different library system, you will need to be in good standing with both the Saint Paul Public Library and with your home library system. 

NOTE: At present if you are at your hold limit for SPPL items it will prevent you from logging in to MNLINK. We are investigating whether this can be fixed.

If your search fails to find a record for the item you want, please check your search criteria. If you are still unable to find what you are searching for, it may be possible that the item you are trying to request is not owned at any library within the MNLINK network.

Search WorldCat, opens a new window to find items held by libraries in Wisconsin, North Dakota, or South Dakota.

If it is an item that you have reason to think is available through MNLINK, but is not showing up in your search results, you can try creating a blank request. To create a request, log in to MNLINK, opens a new window and click "Title Not Found? Request here" on the left-hand menu. Complete the fields, providing as much information as possible to identify the item, and click "Request item".

If you wish to further pursue obtaining the item, you can place a National Request.

If an item is not available through MNLINK, you may request that we try to obtain the item from libraries elsewhere in the United States. This request may be submitted by e-mail to interlibraryloan@ci.stpaul.mn.us or by telephone at 651-501-6306. You may also make the request in person at any Saint Paul Public Library location.

There is a $5.00 fee per national search request. The $5.00 fee will be added to your patron account and is not refundable if we are unable to obtain the item. Please note that borrowing privileges are suspended for accounts owing more than $10 in fees. You may pay the fee in advance if making the request in person.

You may include specifics such as "12th edition only," "just volume 2 needed" or "large print only". These messages will be sent along to the lending library.

You can check the status of your request by signing in to MNLINK, opens a new window with your library card number and password.

Click on Request History under Your Account to view past requests.

Request Sent: This is a brand new request that hasn't been seen by other libraries yet.

Expects to Supply: Owning libraries are checking to see if the item is available.

Shipped: The item has been shipped to the Saint Paul Public Library.

In Local Circulation Process: The item has arrived at the Saint Paul Public Library system, and we will notify you when it is ready for pickup at your location. You can also check your patron record to see if it is ready for pickup.

Overdue: This is a status used internally between libraries. You will be issued a due date by your local library when you check out your material.

Returned: Your item is being shipped back to the supplying library and no longer counts against your ten request limit. 

Complete: Your request has been returned and received by the supplying library. Your request is no longer active.

Invalid Patron: Your account is unable to place requests in MNLINK. Please contact your library to determine why.

Request Over Limit: This request has exceeded the limit set by your library system. The request will be cancelled.

Requires Review - Blank Form: You used the “Title not found? Request here” option on your account. Once your library has reviewed the request, it will move on to find a potential supplier.

Requires Review - Locally Available: The item you requested is likely owned at your library system. Staff at your library will review this request and determine if the request should be cancelled and a local hold placed, or it should be filled through MNLINK.

Requires Review - Possible Duplicate: A request you made has been identified as being a duplicate of a previous request you made. Your library will likely cancel the duplicate request.

Cancel Pending: A cancellation for your request has been submitted, but still needs to be acknowledged by the potential supplying library. Once they have accepted the cancellation, it will be fully cancelled and no longer active. 

Cancelled: Your request has been cancelled and is no longer active.

End of Rota: We were unable to find a supplier for your request at this time and your request is no longer active. If you are looking for a new item, you can make a suggestion for purchase. If you are looking for an older item, consider placing a national request to borrow the item from outside of the region.

Please see MNLINK's glossary of Request Status Definitions, opens a new window for an alphabetical list of request status terms.

Please ask library staff for assistance with canceling requests.

Please do not attempt to cancel requests that you have already returned.
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If you are at your limit of 10 requests and cancel one, it will not immediately free up another request for you. The cancellation has to be acknowledged by the lender before it will cease to count toward your 10 item limit.

You will receive an e-mail notice if you have an e-mail address in your Saint Paul Public Library account. You can track your requests through MNLINK, opens a new window, or you can contact the librarians at your local branch and ask them to check your MNLINK record for you. 

You will be notified by email or phone when your item has been received and is ready for you to check out. It typically takes anywhere from 7 to 48 days to obtain an item, depending on a number of factors.

Sometimes items arrive that don't match the request. Return the item you have received in error and re-submit your request.

If necessary, when re-submitting the request, please amend the request data to include any relevant information that will help identify the right item or version in the Patron Notes field (for example, "4th Edition only, please").

This is because many libraries catalog each volume separately. If an item is catalogued by the owning library with two or more separate barcodes, they must be requested one volume at a time. Please submit separate requests for each individual volume, with “Volume Two” “Volume Three” and so forth entered in the TITLE field, after the title. 

Even if you have selected a MNLINK record for an entire television season or CD box set, if the set is catalogued by the owning library with two or more separate barcodes, they must be requested one disc at a time. Please submit separate requests for each disc, with “Disc Two” “Disc Three” and so forth entered in the TITLE field, after the title. 

Example:   “Title: The X-files, the complete first season  DISC TWO” 

Requests are manually removed from patron records if they are for items available in the Saint Paul Public Library system, and we will place a hold on a Saint Paul Public Library item for you.

If you return your ILL item missing the sticker on the front, or missing the attached paperwork, your item will not be handled as an ILL and will not get checked in. Contact the library where you returned it for help, or you can contact the ILL department at interlibraryloan@ci.stpaul.mn.us or 651-501-6306.

If you have not returned an ILL item that was checked out prior to November 2020, a default charge of $100 was applied to your account. This is a placeholder amount and does not necessarily reflect the actual cost of the item.

We won't know how much is actually owed until the library system that loaned the item to us sends us a bill. The amount of time before a bill is generated varies from library system to library system. Please do not pay for billed interlibrary loans until we have amended the $100 charge to reflect the actual price of the item.