Not all documents have yet been described in the online catalogue. Do you know in which department the document can (probably) be found? If so, you can contact the department. The more information you include, the faster we can send you a response.

Reformulating can help. Read the 10 tips for a good search query.

Most of the collections are described in the online catalogue. For collections dating from before 1985 it is also a good idea to look through the card catalogue (classed by name, subject or title). Read the search tips for these catalogues.

You can find the overview here.

You can find all digitised items of KBR on Belgica. There are different ways to search the collection. The general catalogue also includes all digitised documents in the search results.

You can look at the images in detail with the viewer, but downloading is not allowed because of author’s rights. Do you need images in high quality and/or for a publication? If so, order a reproduction. We would like to remind you to request publication rights if needed.

You can find an alphabetical list of electronic resources here, and a thematical list here.

Unfortunately, this is not yet possible. You have to search in the database itself.

To access the databases you only need a free MyKBR account. It gives you access from home to most databases. Some are for legal reasons only accessible within KBR. Those have been marked with an asterisk (*) in the alphabetical list on our website.

You can search the digitised newspapers in full-text on www.belgicapress.be.

That’s because only those newspapers are free from author's rights. Belgian law on author’s rights is very strict: all newspapers that are still subject to them can only be consulted in KBR.

If the newspaper is less than 100 years old, that is indeed the only option. See the previous question for more information. However, there is an exception in the law for educative purposes and research. Therefore, those newspapers are also accessible from within the network of Belgian universities and colleges. Please inquire at your institution.

Click on MY KBR in the upper right corner of the page. A pop-up window appears. Then click on 'Register now'.
You can also simply pass by the KBR subscription desk to buy a reader's card; it will automatically create your account on the website. Use your card number to access your profile.
After signing in for the first time you should add your email address and modify your password.

Click on the MY KBR button in the upper right corner. Type your login and password and click 'Sign in'.
Or click here.

The account is free but you have to pay for a reader's card. With your free account you can already reserve documents, save search results and create personal selections. You need a reader's card to access the reading rooms and consult your documents. You can buy your reader's card at the subscription desk in the Royal Library.

Registering makes it easier to use the site, as you only need to fill in your personal information once. When you request a consultation or reproduction, your information will be filled in automatically. It also allows you to save your search queries and results.

You can contact us here.

‘My favourites’ is a tool in which you can save bibliographical descriptions that are of interest to you or are useful for future reference. You can add a description or document to your favourites by clicking on the icon at the top right corner of the description.
'My favourites' is a useful tool for you to compile a bibliography. You can also create folders to organise certain documents and bibliographical descriptions into different folders by theme for example.

Attention : 'My favourites' has a different purpose to the 'My basket' tool in the previous KBR catalogue. ‘My favourites’ is not a tool to make reservations. For reservations please click on 'Request' or 'Reserve item'.

This tab shows you all of your saved searches and scenarios. You can save a search query by clicking the icon at the top of your search page. Saving your search queries can be useful if you need to perform a similar search about a certain theme, time period or subject regularly or when you wish to save the search results of a very specific filtered search query.

1. 1. Sign in to your MY KBR account.
2. 2. Find the document in the catalogue.
3. 3. In the record, click 'Consultation'.

Your request information is filled in automatically.

If you request a document on the premises in the reading room, you will be able to consult it the same day. However, you need to take into account fixed distribution hours of documents in every reading room.

The documents that you request in advance online will be available for you two days after reservation, at least if you didn't pick a specific date. You can follow your reservation in your MY KBR-account.

Use the special request form for this.

• General reading room + special reading rooms
You can request 5 documents at the most. You have to consult those documents within 6 working days following the confirmation.

• Newspapers and Contemporary media reading rooms
You can request 2 volumes at the most. You have to consult them within 8 working days following the confirmation.

Certainly : if you put in your reservation request beforehand, the books will be ready for you when you arrive. You won’t have to wait anymore. Naturally, you can still request documents in the reading room during your visit, but bear in mind that you will have to wait until they have been retrieved from the stacks. You also have to take into account the fixed distribution hours.

You can find all the information on interlibrary loan (ILL) on our website.

Fill in the form.

1. 1. Sign in to your MY KBR account.
2. 2. Find the document in the catalogue.
3. 3. In the record, click 'Reproduction'. Record information will be filled in automatically.
4. 5. Choose the type of reproduction that you need and click 'Send'.

You will always get a confirmation email.

Use the general form for reproductions. Attention: you will have to fill in all information yourself. You can always ask a librarian for more information.