Works published on paper are subject to legal deposit. This covers, for example, all books, sheet music, reports, brochures, all journals and newspapers, newsletters, maps and much more. The works may be printed, duplicated or copied in any other way.
How many copies must be delivered?
Works published on paper must be delivered in four copies. The Library keeps three copies and Amtsbókasafnið á Akureyri (the Akureyri municipal library) one.
Works published in 50 copies or fewer must be delivered in two copies.
New editions are subject to legal deposit, and so are reprints (when the work states that it is a reprint, or when a new printing involves a change in the work’s make-up, such as its cover, binding or type of paper).
When a work is published both hardbound and as a paperback, four copies of each version must be delivered.
Accompanying material, such as CDs, diskettes, cassettes, maps and videos, is subject to legal deposit, and material that belongs together must be delivered together.
Who must deliver the material?
The duty to deposit rests with the producer , that is, whoever delivers the finished work, such as the printer, the copy shop or the bookbinder, when works are produced in Iceland. If it is not clear who the producer is, or the producer fails to deliver, the receiving library may require the publisher or whoever distributes the works to fulfil the duty to deposit.
When a work is produced abroad, the duty to deposit rests with the publisher.
Note that material produced in public institutions, such as schools, hospitals, social services and research institutions, is also subject to legal deposit.
How to deliver
Material can be posted or handed in at the Library’s service desk, marked “skylduskil” (legal deposit).
A deposit list must come with the material: a simple form giving the publisher, the titles and the number of copies delivered. Here you can find a deposit list to fill in and print.
You can also get a legal deposit form at the Library’s service desk and fill it in there.