What is legal deposit
Legal deposit is a statutory requirement for publishers to deposit their publications with the legal deposit libraries in the jurisdiction where they publish. In Australia, it operates nationally as well as in most states and territories. Examples of legal deposit libraries include the National Library of Australia, the relevant state or territory library, and selected university libraries.
In accordance with the Library Act 1939 (NSW), all NSW non-government publishers must offer a copy of all print publications to the University of Sydney Library. This requirement includes independent and self-publishers. Publications only available in digital format are to be deposited into the National eDeposit.
How to deposit at the University of Sydney Library
The University of Sydney Library was established as one of the first legal deposit libraries in Australia in 1879. As a legal deposit library, we are committed to connecting our users with locally published works and preserving them for future generations.
If you have published a new print work in New South Wales, please submit details of your publication(s) to legal.deposit@sydney.edu.au and we will advise you of your deposit requirements. You may also be required to deposit publications with the National Library of Australia, the State Library of NSW, or the NSW Parliamentary Library. To find out about these requirements, contact the National Library of Australia, collections@parliament.nsw.gov.au or legal.deposit@sl.nsw.gov.au.