Fees and fines

Fees in connection with using the libraries in Aarhus

Adults (from age 14 and up) 

1-7 days 20 kr.
8 -14 days 70 kr.
15 -30 days 120 kr.
Over 30 days 230 kr.

These fines apply both to regular loans with a loan period of one month, and to loans with a special loan period, e.g., 7-day and 14-day loans. Example: If you wait three weeks to return a book with a loan period of 7 days, the fee is 120 kr.

Receive a text message or email 

You can sign up to receive a reminder three days before the due date, either via email or text message, and it is free. If you would like a reminder, go to your profile on the library website and write your mobile phone number and/ or your email under “Indstillinger” (settings).

Only one reminder

Please be aware that the library will only send one reminder regarding overdue materials. We will send the reminder approximately 18 days after the due date. You must always pay a late return fine if you return materials after their due date – even if you have not received a reminder. 

Keep a check on your dates! 

You must pay one or several late return fines when returning or renewing books and materials which are overdue. If your books and materials have different due dates then you must pay a late return fine for each overdue material. Ten overdue books with five different due dates will result in five late return fines. If your books or materials have the same due date, however, and you return or renew them all at the same time, you will only have to pay one late return fine.

Sign up for our text message and email service and you will receive a reminder three days before the due date (see section 'Receive a text message or email' above). 

Renew borrowed books via the website or your mobile phone

It is possible to renew books and other materials even if they are overdue, but only if the materials have not been reserved by others and if they are the type of materials which can be renewed. Materials can only be renewed 7 days before the delivery deadline. 
You can renew the materials on the website aakb.dk or via the library’s app.

Damages and replacement fees

  • If a book, or some other material that you have borrowed, is damaged, you will be charged the library’s full replacement purchase price. 
  • If you have not returned your borrowed materials five weeks after the end of the loan period, they will be considered as lost and a replacement fee notice will automatically be sent to you. Besides the replacement amount, there is a fee for exceeding the loan period of the book
  • The replacement fee for lost or damaged materials will be the library’s replacement purchase price, including VAT. Apart from this fee, you will be required to pay expenses connected, e.g., with binding and licence rights. For multimedia such as DVDs, CDs, etc., your fee will typically exceed the retail price of the item, because the library’s price includes copyright owner charges for the right to lend the book to library users. However, the maximum replacement cost for DVDs, CDs, etc., is 350 kr. This does not apply to games. 
  • If the actual purchase price cannot be determined, the library will use a number of standard fees:

Damages and replacement fees

  • Book, 200 kr.
  • Cartoon, 70 kr.
  • Periodicals, 50 kr.
  • Bound volumes of periodicals, 500 kr.
  • Console games, CD-ROMs and DVD-ROMS, 675 kr.
  • CDs and cassette tapes, 100 kr.
  • CDs and cassette tapes that contain more than one CD/one cassette tape, 260 kr.
  • DVD, 350 kr.
  • Music DVD, 200 kr.
  • Book and tape, 300 kr.
  • Language stimulation materials, 400 kr.
  • Materials with multiple parts, 250 kr.
  • Language courses, 550 kr.
  • Language courses with DVD/video, 1,000 kr.
  • Audio books – per cassette tape/CD,175 kr.

These fees may be regulated by the Municipality’s general price adjustments.

Debts and refunds

Debts related to replacement fees and fines will be collected by the Aarhus Municipality Accounts Department, which is entitled to send out debt reminders if the payment date is exceeded, and to refer the debt to the Danish Debt Collection Agency (Gældsstyrelsen).

  • Replaced material still belongs to the library. If lost material is found within one year, you must hand it in.
  • If replaced material is found, the compensation amount can be refunded within a one-year period from payment date. Please contact your local library for further information. You must present your receipt for payment of compensation.

Please note: if the loan period has been exceeded, a late return fine will be charged. A further, administrative fee will be charged for notifying the user of the fine. Read more below.

Special rules

In the case of a work consisting of several volumes, the library may require a complete replacement even though only part of the work is lost or damaged.

Reservation – receive free notification 

The library will notify you when you can pick up reserved materials. Notifications are free if you choose to be notified via email. If you choose to be notified via surface mail, you must pay for postage. Even if you do not pick up the reserved material, a postage charge will be added. 

Copying and printing

  • Black/white – A4 or A3, 2 kr. each
  • Colour copy/print – A4 or A3, 2 kr. each

Special services

  • The library may charge for special services when it is evident that those services have been commissioned.
  • The City Council has determined the payment rate for special services, as well as the procedure for collecting it.