About Library Membership
You are eligible for membership at any age if you live, work, teach or go to school in any participating Burlington County municipality.
Membership is established through issuance of library cards that provide access to library materials for checkout or download, online resources and use of technology.
BCLS defines membership based upon residency or affiliation. The library operates via a dedicated county library tax collected from Burlington County households in its 37 participating communities. Cards are offered to residents of the participating communities. In addition, many county residents who are ineligible via residency but who work, teach or attend school in participating communities may apply for membership. For more information see below for types of memberships.
- Non-participating municipalities are: Moorestown, Mount Laurel and Willingboro.
As a Member You Can...
With a BCLS library card, you are opening the door to worlds of possibilities. Here are just a few ways to use your library card:
- Borrow books, technology and more from our collection of nearly 800,000 items.
- Browse from over 50,000 titles in our digital library and download books, magazines and audiobooks through Libby.
- Access premium online resources like Thomson Reuters Westlaw, Scholastic's Teachables and learning tools like Udemy.
- Stream movies on Kanopy from a collection of more than 30,000 films.
- Gain free admission to more than 30 museums and attractions by taking advantage of our Museum Pass Program.
You may submit an application based on type of membership and be ready to provide support documentation. While most applications will be general membership, we also offer library cards to special groups and affiliations.
Types of Membership
General Membership
Applicants of our 37 participating county municipalities must provide photo identification and proof of residency.
Applicants may apply for membership at any library location or by submitting an online application. Applicants submitting an online application must provide identification and proof of residency within 60 days of the application date at a branch.
About Borrowing
Use this guide to learn about borrowing items from our collection.
Borrowing Items
When you’ve selected items in our catalog and you are at a branch location ask for guidance to locate it on the shelf. Take the item with you to a circulation desk to check it out to your account. You will be given a due date letting you know when to return the item.
| Borrowed Material | Loan Period | Max. Allowed | Max. Renewal | Overdue Fine |
| Books, magazines, CD audiobooks, DVDs | 28 days | 35 | 2 | None |
| Video Games | 7 days | 2 | 2 | None |
| Digital Collection on Overdrive/Libby | 7, 14, or 21 days | 10 | No limit (if there are no holds) | None |
| Technology on Loan | 21 days | 3 | 1 renewal for 2 weeks | None |
| Interlibrary Loan (ILL) | 21 days | 3 | No renewals | 25¢ |
| Museum Passes | 3 days | 1 | No renewals | $25 |
| Borrow a Book Club Bags | 8 weeks | 1 | No renewals | $1 |
| Classroom Kits | 6 weeks | 1 | No renewals | $1 |
Account FAQ's
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You are eligible for membership at any age if you live, work, teach or go to school in any participating Burlington County municipality. BCLS defines membership based upon residency or affiliation. The library operates via a dedicated county library tax collected from Burlington County households in its 37 participating communities. Cards are offered to residents of the participating communities. In addition, many county residents who are ineligible via residency but who work, teach or attend school in participating communities may apply for membership. For more information see below for types of memberships.
- Non-participating municipalities are: Moorestown, Mount Laurel and Willingboro.
To get a card, you may apply for membership at any library location or by submitting an online application. Applicants submitting an online application must provide identification and proof of residency within 60 days of the application date at a branch. Learn more.
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Please visit the library location you selected during the application process within 60 days to activate your card. We ask that you bring government issued photo identification and proof of residency (recent phone/utility/bank statement) if your identification does not display a current address, alongside military identification if applicable.
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We do not charge fines for most overdue materials such as books, CDs, DVDs, magazines, video games, and technology-on-loan. However, overdue fines on select library items such as Museum Passes, Borrow-A-Book-Club sets, interlibrary loan items, and Classroom Kits will accrue daily fines.
When library material is lost or damaged while on loan, the borrower will be sent a bill letter showing the non-refundable replacement cost for the item. The price of lost items will be set by current list price or out-of-print average replacement price. Borrowing privileges will be suspended until the item is returned or paid for.
Please review our Lending & Access Policy for more information.
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Yes, our libraries are open to the general public. You are free to browse our collection, attend events, and even use a computer with a guest pass.
BCLS also participates in Reciprocal Agreements with several other counties in New Jersey. For more information, click here.
Borrowing FAQ's
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You are eligible for membership at any age if you live, work, teach or go to school in any participating Burlington County municipality. BCLS defines membership based upon residency or affiliation. The library operates via a dedicated county library tax collected from Burlington County households in its 37 participating communities. Cards are offered to residents of the participating communities. In addition, many county residents who are ineligible via residency but who work, teach or attend school in participating communities may apply for membership. For more information see below for types of memberships.
- Non-participating municipalities are: Moorestown, Mount Laurel and Willingboro.
To get a card, you may apply for membership at any library location or by submitting an online application. Applicants submitting an online application must provide identification and proof of residency within 60 days of the application date at a branch. Learn more.
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No!
Overdue fines for most library items, including books, DVDs, CDs, magazines, movies, video games and technology-on-loan do not accrue overdue fines*. We want you to read more and worry less, so if you keep a book out for longer than its due date, you will not see daily fines on your account.
However, we encourage you to be courteous to your fellow library user and return your items on time**. Others may be waiting to borrow them and we want to make sure they enjoy library materials as much as you do! Borrowed items are still due back on a set date and we expect items to be returned on time. Be respectful of your fellow library users who may be waiting for items to be returned.
How It Works
- Item is borrowed and a due date is established.
- If there are no holds, the item is renewed automatically, establishing a new due date after each renewal.
- Item reaches the maximum number of auto-renewals (this varies by item) and enters a 7-day grace period.
- At end of the grace period, the item is set to “lost” status and a replacement fee is added to the account.
- Account-holder is ineligible to borrow items until the outstanding item is returned or the lost fee is paid.
*Overdue fines will continue to accrue for select library items, such as Museum Passes, Borrow-A-Book-Club sets, Interlibrary Loan items and Classroom Kits.
**Accounts with unreturned items that go into a lost status will be locked until the items are returned or replacement fees are paid. Cardholders will be unable to borrow more items or download books or magazines in Overdrive/Libby.
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We welcome suggestions for purchase as we strive to craft a well-rounded and representative collection to meet the needs of our diverse community. Your suggestion for purchase will be reviewed and if warranted the item purchased upon review by our team of librarians. However, we cannot guarantee the title will be added to our collection. As an alternative to purchasing the item for you, you may consider obtaining it via our interlibrary loan service.
To learn more about our approach to managing our collection, visit Collection Management.
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Yes. Borrowed material can be returned to any library location. Book returns are available at each library location when libraries are closed. A community book return is also available in the entrance lobby of the Marlton Shop Rite.
Items borrowed on Libby are automatically returned at the end of the checkout period.