Illinois · DUI

Illinois DUI laws and penalties

Illinois's legal BAC limit is 0.08%. For a first offense, Illinois's statute provides jail of less than 1 year and a fine of $75 to $2,500. The license hearing, the ignition interlock rule and the statute behind every figure are below.

Figures read from official pages on Oct 26, 2026.

Legal BAC limit: 0.08%; Standard US limit
Enhanced penalty BAC: 0.16%; Where the penalties step up
Zero tolerance (under 21): 0.00%; Any trace may result in DUI
Lookback period: Lifetime; Prior DUI offenses that count

License hearing: ask within 90 days

Within 90 days of the notice you can ask the circuit court for a hearing on the summary suspension. It is a court hearing, not an agency hearing, and it does not stop the suspension. Count the days with the license-hearing window calculator.

Ignition interlock required in some cases

Higher BAC level. A first offense at 0.16 or more adds at least 100 hours of community service and a $500 minimum fine.

Ignition interlock. Not imposed on every first conviction: to drive during the summary suspension you need a monitoring device driving permit, which requires an interlock.

Lookback. No time limit: a second offense counts however long ago the first was.

A first offense is a Class A misdemeanor with no mandatory jail; a second offense (no look-back limit) carries a mandatory 5 days of jail or 240 hours of community service, and a third is a felony. A first offense at 0.16 or more adds 100 hours of community service and a $500 minimum fine; the driver's challenge to the statutory summary suspension goes to circuit court within 90 days, not to an administrative hearing.

01Penalties

Illinois DUI penalties

Statutory ranges for standard DUI convictions (no accident, no minor in vehicle).

Illinois statutory DUI penalties, first and second offense
Penalty	1st offense	2nd offense
Jail (minimum)	None	5 days
Jail (maximum)	Less than 1 year	Less than 1 year
Fine (minimum)	$75	$75
Fine (maximum)	$2,500	$2,500
License suspension	Revocation; may not apply for a new license until 1 year after the revocation takes effect	Revocation; may not apply for a new license until 5 years after the most recent revocation takes effect (second violation within 20 years)

Statutory ranges only. Actual outcomes vary by county, judge, and attorney. Does not include court fees, surcharges, or program costs.

02Compare

How Illinois compares

Of the 49 states with a confirmed BAC limit, 48 (Illinois among them) use 0.08%; Utah has 0.05%.

On this site's reading of the statutes, of the 49 states with a confirmed rule, 21 require an ignition interlock after every first conviction, 18 in some cases and 8 leave it to the judge; 2 do not require one. Illinois requires one in some cases.

The 40 states with a fixed deadline give from 6 to 90 days to ask for a license hearing (the middle one is 10); Illinois gives 90.

Illinois and the states that border it, first-offense figures side by side
State	BAC limit	Hearing request	Interlock, first offense	Jail, first offense	Fine, first offense	License, first offense
Illinois (this page)	0.08%	90 days	In some cases	Less than 1 year	$75 to $2,500	Revocation; may not apply for a new license until 1 year after the revocation takes effect
Indiana	0.08%	No fixed deadline	At the judge's discretion	Up to 60 days	Up to $500	Up to 60 days
Iowa	0.08%	10 days	In some cases	48 hours to 1 year	$1,250	180 days to 1 year revocation
Kentucky	0.08%	No fixed deadline	In some cases	48 hours to 30 days	$200 to $500	6 months suspension
Missouri	0.08%	15 days	In some cases	Up to 6 months	Up to $1,000	30 days suspension, then 60 days restricted driving privilege
Wisconsin	0.08%	10 days	In some cases	None	$150 to $300	6 to 9 months

Every figure is the statute's own, read from the same kind of page. See DUI laws and penalties for all 50 states.

03The process

How a DUI case moves through the system in Illinois

The typical sequence, in general terms. Timing and details differ by county and by case.

Arrest and booking
Police arrest a driver on suspicion of DUI and take the person to the local jail, where booking records the arrest, the charge and the times.
Release
A person is released after posting bail, on their own recognizance, or after a hold. Amounts and timing differ by county.
License action
Within 90 days of the notice you can ask the circuit court for a hearing on the summary suspension. It is a court hearing, not an agency hearing, and it does not stop the suspension.
Arraignment
The first court appearance, where the charge is read and a plea (guilty, not guilty or no contest) is entered.
Pretrial resolution
A case can end in a plea to a reduced charge, in a diversion or deferred program where the state has one, in a trial, or in a dismissal, depending on the state and the facts.
Sentencing or trial
For a first offense, Illinois's statute provides jail of less than 1 year and a fine of $75 to $2,500. See the penalties table above.

04Counties

Counties in Illinois

One county has a page here, with the state's arrest counts where it publishes them.

County pageCook CountySample figures only

05Sources

Where Illinois's figures come from

Each figure was read on the official page linked here on Oct 26, 2026, and the quoted words were checked against the page the day it was read. The exact words are below so you can check them. Found a mistake? Write to hello@duiarrested.com with the state and the figure.

625 ILCS 5/11-501 (ilga.gov)Main statute · BAC limit, age 21 and over · Higher BAC level · BAC limit under 21 · Lookback period · First offense: jail, minimum · Second offense: jail, minimum
625 ILCS 5/2-118.1(b) (ilga.gov)License hearing request
625 ILCS 5/6-206.1(a-1) (ilga.gov)Ignition interlock, first offense · First offense: license · Second offense: license
730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-55(a); 625 ILCS 5/11-501(c)(1) (ilga.gov)First offense: jail, maximum · First offense: fine, minimum · First offense: fine, maximum · Second offense: jail, maximum · Second offense: fine, minimum · Second offense: fine, maximum

Show the exact words behind each figure

Main statute

625 ILCS 5/11-501

Sec. 11-501. Driving while under the influence of alcohol, other drug or drugs, intoxicating compound or compounds or any combination thereof.

BAC limit, age 21 and over

0.08%

625 ILCS 5/11-501(a)(1)

other bodily substance, or breath is 0.08 or more based on the definition of blood and breath units in Section 11-501.2

Higher BAC level

0.16%

625 ILCS 5/11-501(c)(4)

if the alcohol concentration in his or her blood, breath, other bodily substance, or urine was 0.16 or more based on the definition of blood, breath, other bodily substance, or urine units in Section 11-501.2, shall be subject, in addition to any other penalty that may be imposed, to a mandatory minimum of 100 hours of community service and a mandatory minimum fine of $500.

BAC limit under 21

0.00%

625 ILCS 5/11-501.8(d)

(d) If the person refuses testing or submits to a test that discloses an alcohol concentration of more than 0.00, the law enforcement officer shall immediately submit a sworn report to the Secretary of State

Lookback period

Lifetime

625 ILCS 5/11-501(c)(2), (e)

(c) Penalties. (1) Except as otherwise provided in this Section, any person convicted of violating subsection (a) of this Section is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor. (2) A person who violates subsection (a) or a similar provision a second time shall be sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of either 5 days of imprisonment or 240 hours of community service in addition to any other criminal or administrative sanction.

License hearing request

90 days

625 ILCS 5/2-118.1(b)

Within 90 days after the notice of statutory summary suspension or revocation served under Section 11-501.1, the person may make a written request for a judicial hearing in the circuit court of venue.

Ignition interlock, first offense

Required in some cases

625 ILCS 5/6-206.1(a-1)

A person issued a MDDP may drive for any purpose and at any time, subject to the rules adopted by the Secretary under subsection (g). The person must, at his or her own expense, drive only vehicles equipped with an ignition interlock device

First offense: jail, minimum

None

625 ILCS 5/11-501(c)(1)

(c) Penalties. (1) Except as otherwise provided in this Section, any person convicted of violating subsection (a) of this Section is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor. (2) A person who violates subsection (a) or a similar provision a second time shall be sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of either 5 days of imprisonment or 240 hours of community service in addition to any other criminal or administrative sanction.

First offense: jail, maximum

Less than 1 year

730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-55(a); 625 ILCS 5/11-501(c)(1)

(a) TERM. The sentence of imprisonment shall be a determinate sentence of less than one year.

First offense: fine, minimum

$75

730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-55(e); 625 ILCS 5/11-501(c)(1)

(e) FINE. Unless otherwise specified by law, the minimum fine is $75. A fine not to exceed $2,500 for each offense or the amount specified in the offense, whichever is greater, may be imposed.

First offense: fine, maximum

$2,500

730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-55(e); 625 ILCS 5/11-501(c)(1)

Same passage as above.

First offense: license

Revocation; may not apply for a new license until 1 year after the revocation takes effect

625 ILCS 5/6-205(a)(2); 625 ILCS 5/6-208(b)(1)

the person may make application for a license (A) after the expiration of one year from the effective date of the revocation

Second offense: jail, minimum

5 days

625 ILCS 5/11-501(c)(2)

provision a second time shall be sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of either 5 days of imprisonment or 240 hours of community service in addition to any other criminal or administrative sanction.

Second offense: jail, maximum

Less than 1 year

730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-55(a); 625 ILCS 5/11-501(c)(1)

(a) TERM. The sentence of imprisonment shall be a determinate sentence of less than one year.

Second offense: fine, minimum

$75

730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-55(e); 625 ILCS 5/11-501(c)(2)

(e) FINE. Unless otherwise specified by law, the minimum fine is $75. A fine not to exceed $2,500 for each offense or the amount specified in the offense, whichever is greater, may be imposed.

Second offense: fine, maximum

$2,500

730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-55(e); 625 ILCS 5/11-501(c)(2)

Same passage as above.

Second offense: license

Revocation; may not apply for a new license until 5 years after the most recent revocation takes effect (second violation within 20 years)

625 ILCS 5/6-208(b)(2)

until after the expiration of 5 years from the effective date of the most recent revocation. The 20-year period shall be computed by using the dates the offenses were committed and shall also include similar out-of-state offenses

06Related

MapUS DUI Arrest Rate MapEvery state as one tile, colored by DUI arrests per 100,000 residents.
CalculatorDUI License-Hearing WindowThe hearing request window listed for each state, counted from a date you enter.

Note: This page summarizes state statutes and published figures. It is general information, not legal advice, and it may be out of date or incomplete. Penalty ranges are statutory ranges; actual outcomes depend on the case. See the Disclaimer.

Illinois DUI laws at a glance