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Illinois sales tax, explained.

Thresholds, rates, taxability, filing schedules, and the IDOR — everything a remote seller needs to know about Illinois, on one page.

Economic nexus threshold
$100,000
Statewide base rate
6.25%
Transaction threshold
200
ChicagoAuroraNapervilleSpringfieldPeoria
Illinois · major filing jurisdictions
Nexus · Illinois

When you owe sales tax in Illinois.

Illinois requires remote sellers to register, collect, and remit once either kind of nexus exists. Physical presence triggers the obligation from the first sale; economic nexus kicks in when you cross either the revenue or transaction threshold.

Economic nexus
Threshold
$100,000 in sales or 200 separate transactions delivered into Illinois in the preceding 12-month period
Measurement type
Sales OR transactions — whichever you hit first creates the obligation
Measurement period
Preceding 12 months, evaluated quarterly
Included
Retail sales of tangible personal property — exempt sales, marketplace sales, and resale transactions are excluded from the count
Marketplaces
Marketplace-facilitated sales do not count toward your threshold — sales made through a registered marketplace facilitator are excluded from both the dollar and transaction tests
Physical nexus
Office or place of businessEmployees / remote staffWarehouse · inventory · 3PLAgents and independent contractorsConstruction sites

Any physical presence in Illinois — including a remote employee working from home — creates nexus from the first sale, regardless of revenue volume. Illinois's physical nexus rules are broad: even a dependent or independent agent acting on your behalf counts.

Rates · Illinois

What you'll collect, city by city.

Illinois's statewide base is 6.25%. Home-rule municipalities and counties add their own layers on top, so the combined rate at the delivery address can vary significantly — here's how the major cities compare.

JurisdictionCombined rateTangible propertyDigital goodsSaaSServices
IllinoisStatewide base rate6.25%6.25%0%0%0%
Chicago10.25%10.25%0%0%0%
Aurora8.25%8.25%0%0%0%
Naperville7%7%0%0%0%
Springfield9.75%9.75%0%0%0%
Peoria8.75%8.75%0%0%0%

Illinois is a home-rule state: municipalities may set their own tax rates independently, so the combined rate varies by delivery address. Digital goods, SaaS, and most services are not taxed in Illinois. Rates verified as of June 11, 2026.

Need the exact rate for one address or invoice? Our calculator returns the combined state, county, and local rate for any Illinois address.

Open the sales tax calculator
Taxability · Illinois

Is your product taxable here?

Illinois taxes tangible personal property and very little else — software and digital businesses generally have no Illinois collection obligation.

Product categoryStatusWhat to know
Tangible personal propertyTaxablePhysical goods delivered into Illinois are taxable at the combined rate for the delivery address, including state, county, and applicable local rates.
SaaS & cloud softwareNot taxableRemotely-accessed software is exempt in Illinois for both B2B and B2C sales — no download or tangible medium means no taxable transfer.
Digital goodsNot taxableElectronically delivered products such as downloads, e-books, and digital media are not subject to Illinois sales tax.
Professional servicesNot taxableConsulting, legal, design, and similar professional services are exempt — unless they are directly tied to producing or transferring a tangible product.
Bundled hardware + softwarePartialThe hardware component is taxable; separately-stated software licenses delivered electronically may be exempt. Itemize invoices to protect the exemption.
Shipping & handlingPartialSeparately-stated shipping charges are generally exempt; charges bundled into the sale price or for handling may be taxable depending on the facts.
Filings · Illinois

Filing schedules and due dates.

The IDOR assigns your filing frequency at registration based on your expected taxable receipts. Retailers' Occupation Tax (ROT) returns must be filed even in periods with no taxable sales.

FrequencyReturnDue dateWho it applies to
MonthlyMost commonST-1, Sales and Use Tax Return20th of the month following the reporting periodSellers with higher tax liability, as assigned by IDOR
QuarterlyST-1, Sales and Use Tax Return20th of the month following the end of the quarterMid-volume sellers assigned by IDOR based on annual liability
AnnualST-1, Sales and Use Tax ReturnJanuary 20 for the prior calendar yearSmall sellers with low annual taxable receipts

Crossed the threshold, or about to?

A Commenda expert will review your Illinois exposure, register you with the IDOR, and take over the filing calendar — usually within a week.

The state authority

IDOR — Illinois's tax office.

The Illinois Department of Revenue administers the Retailers' Occupation Tax through MyTax Illinois, its online portal. One login covers registration, return filing, and payment for most sellers.

tax.illinois.gov/businesses

Registration requires a Tax Portal username and password; a State Tax ID in XXXX-XXXX format is needed if you are already registered.

What you can do there
  • Register for a seller's permit

    Register via MyTax Illinois. Out-of-state retailers register for the Retailers' Occupation Tax — no fee required.

  • File returns and pay

    ST-1 returns and payments are filed through MyTax Illinois on the IDOR-assigned schedule via ACH or card.

  • Look up the rate for any address

    The IDOR maintains a rate lookup tool to find the combined state and local rate for any Illinois delivery address.

  • Verify a resale certificate

    Confirm that a buyer's Illinois account is active before accepting an exemption claim on a resale sale.

Exposure & exemptions · Illinois

If you're behind, or your buyers are exempt.

Back-period exposure & voluntary disclosure

Illinois participates in the Multistate Tax Commission's voluntary disclosure program, and also offers a state-level process for sellers who come forward before the IDOR contacts them.

Lookback
Typically 3–4 years under a VDA — the full statute of limitations applies if the state initiates contact first
Penalties
Generally waived under a voluntary disclosure agreement
Interest
Still due on unpaid tax — interest relief is not part of the standard VDA
Unfiled returns
No statute of limitations begins until a return is actually filed

Exemption certificates accepted

Collect a valid certificate at the time of sale and retain it — the burden of proving a valid exemption rests with the seller.

Resale
CRT-61, Certificate of Resale — issued by the buyer for goods purchased for resale
Multi-state
MTC Uniform Sales & Use Tax Exemption Certificate accepted; Illinois is not an SST member state
Manufacturing
Manufacturing machinery and equipment used directly in production may qualify for an exemption
Nonprofit / government
Qualifying nonprofits and government entities may present Form E-586 or relevant government purchase orders

FAQ · Illinois

Illinois questions, answered.

The questions remote sellers ask us most about Illinois.
Read our FAQ library

No. Remotely-accessed software — where the customer never downloads or receives a tangible copy — is not subject to Illinois sales tax for B2B or B2C sales. If software is delivered on physical media or as a download, that portion may be taxable.

As of January 1, 2026, Illinois uses a sales-only threshold of $100,000 in the preceding 12 months. Prior to that date, the rule was sales-or-200-transactions, so sellers who met the transaction count before 2026 may already be registered.

No. Sales made through a registered marketplace facilitator are excluded from your threshold calculation — both the dollar total and the transaction count. Only your direct retail sales are measured.

The IDOR specifies a quarterly review cycle. You determine at the end of each quarter whether your sales over the preceding 12 months crossed the $100,000 threshold — and if so, you must register before making further sales into Illinois.

Yes. Illinois's physical nexus rules include remote employees, dependent agents, and independent agents working on your behalf. A single employee working from home in Illinois is enough to create nexus from the first sale, regardless of your revenue level.

Remote sellers register for the Retailers' Occupation Tax (ROT). Despite the name, it applies to out-of-state sellers shipping goods into Illinois, including e-commerce sellers with no physical presence — once the economic nexus threshold is crossed.

The statewide base rate is 6.25%. Home-rule municipalities and counties layer their own rates on top, pushing the combined rate as high as 10.25% in Chicago. Always use the delivery address to determine the correct combined rate.

Yes. Commenda monitors your exposure, registers you with the IDOR, calculates the right rate on every transaction, and files each return on the assigned schedule. Book a call to see it on your own data.

United States

Sales tax, state by state.

* No state-level sales tax. Alaska's local jurisdictions still enforce economic nexus through the ARSSTC.