Illinois

$15.00 / hour

Guarantees a minimum wage of $15.00 per hour for workers 18 years of age and older. Cook County's own minimum wage ordinance sets a higher rate than the state ($15.40/hour beginning July 1, 2026), and the City of Chicago has a separate ordinance of its own.

Checked

2026-08-09

Overtime must be paid after 40 hours of work per week at time and one-half the regular rate. Overtime at 1.5x the regular rate after 40 hours of work per week

Checked

2026-08-09

An individual performing services for a contractor is considered to be an employee except if it is shown: the individual has been and will continue to be free from control or direction over the performance of service; the service performed is outside the scope of the usual course of services performed by the contractor; and the individual is engaged in an independently established trade or business or is deemed a legitimate sole proprietor or partnership under subsection c of Section 185/10 (IDOL, Employee Classification Act FAQ). Employee Classification Act (construction): an individual performing services for a contractor is an employee unless free from control or direction, the service is outside the usual course of the contractor’s services, and the individual has an independently established trade or is a legitimate sole proprietor/partnership under 820 ILCS 185/10(c)

Checked

2026-08-09

Wages must be paid at least semi-monthly; executives, administrative and professional employees may be paid once per month. Wages due at least semi-monthly; executive, administrative and professional employees may be paid once per month

Checked

2026-08-09

Final compensation must be paid no later than the next regularly scheduled payday for such employee. Final compensation due no later than the next regularly scheduled payday after separation

Checked

2026-08-09

Each employee shall be furnished with an itemized statement of deductions for each pay period. An itemized statement of deductions is required for each pay period

Checked

2026-08-09

Deductions from wages or final compensation are permitted when required by law, to the employee's benefit, in response to a valid wage assignment or order, or with the employee's express written consent freely given at the time of deduction.

Checked

2026-08-10

An employer must pay wages in a form the employee may readily convert into cash without a personal bank account unless the employee volunteers for direct deposit; cash is lawful with a signed receipt, and an employee must be offered the choice of payment by check.

Checked

2026-08-10

Employees must be permitted a meal break for every 7.5 hours worked no later than 5 hours after the start of the shift, with an additional 20-minute meal break for a 12-hour shift or longer; the Act also allows at least 24 hours of rest every seven consecutive days.

Effective

2023-01-01

Checked

2026-08-10

When a day or temporary labor service agency provides required general awareness safety training about recognized industry hazards, the worker must be paid for the time spent in that training.

Checked

2026-08-10

No general predictive scheduling requirement for private employers was located in IL's official sources as of 2026-08-13. This records the result of a documented search of 2 official sources, not a statement that no such law exists. Federal requirements continue to apply where applicable.

Checked

2026-08-13

An employer must reimburse an employee for all necessary expenditures or losses incurred within the employee's scope of employment and directly related to services for the employer; a reimbursement request ordinarily must be submitted within 30 calendar days.

Effective

2019-01-01

Checked

2026-08-10

Final compensation includes earned commissions and must be paid no later than the next regularly scheduled payday; commissions during employment may be paid at least monthly.

Checked

2026-08-10

Final compensation includes earned bonuses and must be paid no later than the next regularly scheduled payday after separation.

Checked

2026-08-10

An employee is entitled to severance pay only if there is an agreement between employee and employer providing for payment of severance pay and the conditions have been met.

Checked

2026-08-10

Illinois law does not require time-and-one-half or double-time pay solely for work on a holiday or Sunday, unless the hours cause a covered employee to exceed 40 in the workweek.

Checked

2026-08-10

On covered public works, contractors and subcontractors must pay laborers, workers, and mechanics no less than the general prevailing rate, including the cash wage and fringe-benefit amount, for similar work in the county.

Checked

2026-08-10

Workers earn one (1) hour of paid leave for every 40 hours they work. Paid Leave for All Workers Act: workers earn 1 hour of paid leave per 40 hours worked, up to 40 hours per year

Checked

2026-08-09

No general paid family medical leave requirement for private employers was located in IL's official sources as of 2026-08-13. This records the result of a documented search of 2 official sources, not a statement that no such law exists. Federal requirements continue to apply where applicable.

Checked

2026-08-13

Covered employees may take unpaid, job-protected leave while their child is a patient in a neonatal intensive care unit; employers with 16 to 50 employees provide up to 10 days and employers with 51 or more provide up to 20 days.

Effective

2026-06-01

Checked

2026-08-10

4.95 percent of net income is required to be withheld from employee compensation. Illinois withholds a flat 4.95% individual income tax from employee compensation

Effective

2017-07-01

Checked

2026-08-09

An employee subject to Illinois withholding must complete Form IL-W-4 on or before the date employment begins; if the employee does not submit the form, the employer withholds on all compensation without allowances.

Checked

2026-08-10

An employer must file Form IL-941 when it pays amounts subject to Illinois withholding income tax, including wages and other employee compensation such as bonus, overtime, and commission pay.

Checked

2026-08-10

Illinois generally requires withholding for services performed in Illinois, but residents of Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, and Wisconsin may claim reciprocity; certain nonresidents working in Illinois for 30 or fewer days are exempt, with allocation required after the threshold is exceeded.

Checked

2026-08-10

No general local taxation requirement for private employers was located in IL's official sources as of 2026-08-13. This records the result of a documented search of 2 official sources, not a statement that no such law exists. Federal requirements continue to apply where applicable.

Checked

2026-08-13

Year 2026: wage base $14,250; minimum rate 0.750%; maximum rate 7.050%; standard (ineligible) rate 3.350%. All rates include the Fund Builder. UI for 2026: taxable wage base $14,250; rates from 0.750% to 7.050% (including Fund Builder); standard rate 3.350%

Checked

2026-08-09

No general disability insurance requirement for private employers was located in IL's official sources as of 2026-08-13. This records the result of a documented search of 2 official sources, not a statement that no such law exists. Federal requirements continue to apply where applicable.

Checked

2026-08-13

Almost every Illinois employer must purchase workers' compensation insurance or obtain permission to self-insure, and the employer may not charge any portion of the premium or benefit cost to employees.

Checked

2026-08-10

First-time taxpayers and taxpayers reporting $12,000 or less during the look-back period are assigned monthly payments; those reporting more than $12,000 are assigned semi-weekly payments, and exceeding $12,000 during a quarter requires semi-weekly payments beginning the following quarter.

Checked

2026-08-10

Form IL-941 is filed quarterly and is due by the last day of the month following the quarter; Illinois requires electronic filing and Schedule P reporting with the return.

Effective

2026-01-01

Checked

2026-08-10

Illinois employers must file Forms W-2 electronically with the Department of Revenue by January 31 of the year following the calendar year reported.

Checked

2026-08-10

All employers must report new employees to the Illinois New Hire Directory within 20 days of the employee's first day on payroll; the reporting program also covers independent contractors and qualifying rehires.

Checked

2026-08-10

15%

For an Illinois tax wage levy, the employer must deduct up to 15 percent of the gross amount to pay past-due tax and continue to withhold the additional amount until the Department releases the levy.

Checked

2026-08-10

Employers may not pay an employee less because of sex or because the employee is African American for the same or substantially similar work requiring substantially similar skill, effort, and responsibility under similar working conditions, except for lawful statutory factors.

Checked

2026-08-10

Beginning January 1, 2025, an employer with 15 or more employees must include the pay scale and benefits in a covered job posting for work performed in Illinois or reporting to an Illinois supervisor or office; promotion opportunities must generally be announced within 14 days of an external posting.

Effective

2025-01-01

Checked

2026-08-10

An employer may not request or require an applicant's wage or salary history as a condition of consideration or employment and may not screen or set compensation based on that history.

Checked

2026-08-10

Acceptance of a disputed paycheck does not release the employee's claim for the balance, and a restrictive endorsement stating that the payment is full satisfaction is void under Illinois wage-payment rules.

Checked

2026-08-10

All Illinois employers require the Your Rights Under Illinois Employment Laws poster, which covers wage payment, child labor, minimum wage, equal pay, VESSA, and weekly rest, and the Paid Leave for All Workers Act notice.

Checked

2026-08-10

For workers under 16, Illinois requires employment certificates, prohibits work in hazardous occupations, and limits working hours: work before 7 a.m. and after 7 p.m. is prohibited, although work until 9 p.m. is allowed from June 1 through Labor Day.

Checked

2026-08-10

Illinois does not require employers to use E-Verify beyond federal requirements and state or local government may not require it; an employer that voluntarily uses E-Verify must comply with state safeguards.

Effective

2025-01-01

Checked

2026-08-10

A newly created employing unit must register with the Illinois Department of Employment Security within 30 days of start-up.

Checked

2026-08-10

Each employing unit shall keep such true and accurate records ... as may be required by the rules and regulations of the Director. Records ... may be destroyed not less than five years after the making of such records (820 ILCS 405, Secs. 1800-1801). UI records: employing units must keep the records the IDES Director requires and may destroy them no earlier than five years after they are made (820 ILCS 405/1800-1801)

Checked

2026-08-09

5%

An employee not timely paid wages or final compensation is entitled to recover the amount of the underpayment plus damages of 5 percent of that amount for each month the underpayment remains unpaid.

Checked

2026-08-10

A wage claim filed with the Illinois Department of Labor under the Wage Payment and Collection Act must be filed within one year after the wages or final compensation were due.

Checked

2026-08-10