Payday Loans in Illinois
Illinois still has a statutory payday-loan framework, but since the Predatory Loan Prevention Act took effect, covered payday loans are capped at 36% PLPA APR. The state also imposes a 13-day minimum term, a 45-consecutive-day indebtedness limit, borrower-level payment limits, a rollover ban, and an interest-free repayment-plan right.
Illinois legal category: Payday Loan under the Illinois Payday Loan Reform Act · 815 ILCS 122 (Payday Loan Reform Act) together with 815 ILCS 123 (Predatory Loan Prevention Act)
Illinois payday loans at a glance
- Legal status
- Permitted Regulated
- Legal category
- Payday Loan under the Illinois Payday Loan Reform Act
- Maximum amount in this regime
- Illinois does not express the current payday rule as one simple principal maximum. Instead, total payments on all payday loans coming due in the first calendar month may not exceed the lesser of $1,000 or 25% of the consumer’s gross monthly income. A borrower also may not have an outstanding balance on two payday loans and receive another payday loan.
- Term
- 13–45 days
- Regulator
- Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) — Division of Financial Institutions, Consumer Credit Section
- Verified
- 2026-09-06
Choose a loan type by amount
PLS Cash Advance currently presents request amounts from $200 to $5,000. The ranges below are navigation guidance between our state loan guides — not statutory limits, eligibility rules, or a promise of approval.
Payday Loans in Illinois
Preferred routing for smaller short-term requests. Illinois does not use a simple $1,000 principal ceiling: the Payday Loan Reform Act instead limits total payday payments due in the first calendar month to the lesser of $1,000 or 25% of gross monthly income, while the PLPA caps covered loan cost at 36% PLPA APR.
Installment Loans in Illinois
Preferred routing for larger multi-payment requests inside the current PLS Cash Advance selector. Illinois Consumer Installment Loan Act licensees may lend up to $40,000; $5,000 is the site offer boundary, not the statutory maximum.
Amount and term limits
Illinois does not express the current payday rule as one simple principal maximum. Instead, total payments on all payday loans coming due in the first calendar month may not exceed the lesser of $1,000 or 25% of the consumer’s gross monthly income. A borrower also may not have an outstanding balance on two payday loans and receive another payday loan.
A payday loan may not have a minimum term shorter than 13 days. Although the statutory definition covers transactions with terms up to 120 days, the operative loan-term rule prevents a payday loan from causing the consumer to remain indebted to payday lenders for more than 45 consecutive days; after that period a seven-day break generally applies.
Interest, fees and repayment
The post-2021 PLPA replaced the old high-fee payday economics with a 36% PLPA APR ceiling. A payday loan above that ceiling is null and void under Illinois law; this page therefore does not reproduce legacy triple-digit payday fee examples.
Covered payday loans may not exceed 36% PLPA APR. Illinois calculates PLPA APR using the military-APR methodology specified by statute, so fees and charges can affect the legal APR calculation beyond a nominal interest rate.
The ordinary payday obligation is short term. If the borrower still owes on one or more payday loans after 35 days, Illinois provides an interest-free repayment-plan right. The statutory plan permits repayment in at least four equal installments, with at least 13 days between installments, and no additional finance charges, interest, or fees other than a permitted insufficient-funds charge.
Rollovers, refinancing and early payment
- Rollover allowed?
- No
Rollovers are prohibited. A statutory repayment plan is not treated as a rollover. - Prepayment penalty allowed?
- No
A consumer may prepay at any time without cost or penalty. Illinois also provides a right to cancel future payment obligations by the end of the second business day after the payday-loan agreement is executed, if the statutory cancellation requirements are satisfied.
Illinois borrower protections
- Covered payday loans are capped at 36% PLPA APR; a loan made above the PLPA cap is null and void under the Act.
- Total payday-loan payments due in the first calendar month may not exceed the lesser of $1,000 or 25% of gross monthly income.
- A consumer generally may not remain indebted to payday lenders for more than 45 consecutive days, followed by a seven-day break.
- Rollovers are prohibited.
- A consumer can cancel future payment obligations by the end of the second business day when statutory conditions are met.
- After 35 days of payday indebtedness, an eligible borrower is entitled to an interest-free repayment plan with at least four installments and no added finance charges.
Illinois loan cost calculator
How to verify a lender in Illinois
Regulator: Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) — Division of Financial Institutions, Consumer Credit Section.
Payday Lender license under the Payday Loan Reform Act when applicable
Official sources
- Illinois Predatory Loan Prevention Act — 815 ILCS 123/15-5-5 · primary
- Illinois Payday Loan Reform Act — 815 ILCS 122 · primary
- 38 Ill. Adm. Code Part 210 — Payday Loan Reform Act rules · primary
- IDFPR — Consumer Credit Section · primary
- IDFPR — Division of Financial Institutions License Lookup · primary
Last regulatory verification: 2026-09-06. Laws can change; verify current terms and lender status before borrowing. Read our research methodology.