Concealed Carry in Illinois: CCL, Training, and Penalties

To carry a concealed handgun in Illinois, you need two things from the Illinois State Police: a Firearm Owner’s Identification (FOID) card and a Concealed Carry License (CCL). Concealed carry in Illinois is tightly regulated. You must be at least 21, complete 16 hours of certified training, pass state and federal background checks, pay $150, and wait 90 to 120 days for a decision. Illinois does not recognize concealed carry permits issued by any other state, so out-of-state permit holders cannot carry here on their home license.

Get a FOID Card First

You cannot apply for a CCL without a valid FOID card, which is also the baseline requirement for owning any firearm or ammunition in Illinois. You apply through the Illinois State Police with a valid Illinois driver’s license or state ID and a recent photograph. The fee is $10.¹

The FOID background check screens for felony convictions, involuntary mental health commitments, active orders of protection, domestic battery convictions, dishonorable military discharges, and recent drug-related issues, among other disqualifiers.¹ If your FOID is later revoked, your CCL goes with it.

Who Qualifies for a CCL

Section 25 of the Firearm Concealed Carry Act sets the eligibility floor. You must:

Be at least 21.
Hold a valid FOID card and currently meet all FOID eligibility requirements.
Have no violent misdemeanor convictions in the past five years.
Have no more than one DUI conviction in the past five years; two or more disqualify you.
Have no pending arrest warrants or pending prosecution for an offense that could disqualify you from firearm ownership.
Not have been in residential or court-ordered treatment for alcohol or drug issues in the past five years.
Complete the required firearms training.

Even if you clear every box above, the State Police must separately determine that you do not pose a danger to yourself or others. When local law enforcement files an objection to an application, the Concealed Carry Licensing Review Board decides whether to issue the license.²

How to Apply

Applications go through the Illinois State Police. You submit the completed application, proof of training, and a $150 fee. Fingerprints are optional but worth it: if you submit them, the ISP must act within 90 days. Without them, the window stretches to 120 days.³

While your application is pending, the ISP runs federal and state background checks and notifies local law enforcement in your area. Local police who believe you pose a public safety risk can object, which sends the application to the Review Board for a final decision.²

Training

Illinois requires 16 hours of instruction from a state-certified firearms instructor. The curriculum covers firearm safety, basic marksmanship, cleaning and handling a handgun, state and federal firearm laws, and how to interact lawfully with law enforcement while carrying. Live-fire range qualification is part of the course.⁴

Veterans and active-duty service members get an eight-hour credit and only need the second half of the course. Veterans must present a DD-214 showing they completed basic training; active-duty members must show a military ID.⁴ Expect the full course to run roughly $225 to $350, depending on the provider.

Where You Cannot Carry

A CCL does not let you carry everywhere. Section 65 of the Concealed Carry Act bars firearms from a long list of places, including:

Any building, grounds, or parking area controlled by a public or private school, preschool, or childcare facility.
Properties controlled by the executive or legislative branch, local government offices, and courthouses.
Any bus, train, or transit facility funded with public money.
Hospitals and nursing homes.
Jails, prisons, and detention facilities.
Bars where alcohol sales account for more than 50 percent of gross receipts over the prior three months.
Nuclear facilities, airports, and stadiums, among other locations named in the statute.

Private property owners can also ban firearms by posting signage that meets state specifications. If the sign is up, you must comply.⁵

The Parking Lot Exception

If you drive to a prohibited location, you can keep your firearm in the parking area as long as it stays out of plain view in a locked vehicle or a locked container. A locked glove compartment, console, or trunk all qualify. You may briefly step out of the vehicle to move the firearm to the trunk, and that is the extent of the exception.⁵ The exception does not apply at nuclear energy facilities or at certain properties designated under paragraphs (22) and (23) of the statute.

Dealing with Police While Carrying

Illinois does not require you to volunteer that you are carrying during a traffic stop. If an officer asks, however, you must disclose that you have a firearm, say where it is, and allow the officer to secure it for the duration of the stop. Passengers with a CCL face the same rule.⁶ The trigger is the officer’s question. Staying silent until asked is not a violation; refusing to answer or refusing to let the officer secure the weapon is.

Magazine Capacity

The Protect Illinois Communities Act, in effect since January 2023, restricts magazine capacity. You cannot buy, sell, or possess a magazine that holds more than 15 rounds for a handgun or more than 10 rounds for a long gun.⁷ If you legally owned a higher-capacity magazine before January 11, 2023, you may keep it, but only at your home, a licensed shooting range, a licensed dealer’s premises, or while traveling between those places.

Penalties for Carrying Without a License

How Illinois charges unlicensed concealed carry depends heavily on the condition of the firearm when police find it.

Unlawful Possession of Weapons

Under 720 ILCS 5/24-1, carrying a concealed firearm on your person or in a vehicle without a valid license is a Class A misdemeanor on a first offense: up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $1,500.⁸ A second or subsequent conviction is a Class 3 felony, carrying two to five years in prison.

Aggravated Unlawful Use of a Weapon

If the firearm is uncased, loaded, and immediately accessible, the charge escalates to aggravated unlawful use of a weapon under 720 ILCS 5/24-1.6. A first offense is a Class 4 felony with one to three years in prison. A second offense is a Class 2 felony with three to seven. A prior felony conviction turns even a first aggravated UUW offense into a Class 2 felony.⁹ Prosecutors reach for this statute most often in concealed-carry cases because the “loaded and accessible” threshold is easy to meet during a traffic stop.

Penalties for CCL Holders Who Break the Rules

License holders who violate the Concealed Carry Act face a separate penalty structure under 430 ILCS 66/70. A first violation, such as carrying into a prohibited location, is a Class B misdemeanor: up to six months in jail, a fine of up to $1,500, and a mandatory $150 fee deposited into the Mental Health Reporting Fund.¹⁰ A second or subsequent violation is a Class A misdemeanor with up to a year of jail time.

Carrying while under the influence has its own escalation. The statute borrows the impairment standard from Illinois DUI law. A first offense draws the base penalty, a second offense can trigger a six-month license suspension, and a third leads to permanent revocation.¹⁰

Revocation and Appeals

The ISP will revoke your CCL if you become ineligible at any point: a new felony conviction, an order of protection, a mental health adjudication, or revocation of your underlying FOID card. Three or more violations of the prohibited-areas rules also trigger permanent revocation.¹⁰

You have 48 hours after receiving a revocation notice to surrender your license to your local law enforcement agency. Failing to comply is itself a Class A misdemeanor.¹¹ To challenge a denial or revocation issued by the Concealed Carry Licensing Review Board, you file in the circuit court in the county where you live, not through an administrative hearing.¹²

Renewing Your License

An Illinois CCL is valid for five years. The ISP sends a renewal reminder 180 days before expiration. Renewal requires a three-hour refresher course, a new background check, and the $150 fee. Fingerprints are not required again.¹³ If you let the license lapse, you cannot legally carry until the renewal is processed, so start early.

Out-of-State Residents and Visitors

Illinois does not recognize concealed carry permits from any other state. If you live elsewhere and want to carry concealed in Illinois, you need an Illinois non-resident CCL.³

Non-resident applications are available only to residents of states the ISP has deemed to have “substantially similar” firearm laws. The process mirrors a resident application, including the full 16-hour training course, but the fee is $300 rather than $150. Because non-residents do not hold a FOID card, the ISP requires equivalent documentation proving you would meet FOID eligibility standards if you lived in Illinois.¹⁴

One narrow exception helps out-of-state visitors passing through. If you hold a valid concealed carry permit from your home state, you may transport a concealed firearm inside your vehicle in Illinois as long as the gun stays in the vehicle. If you leave the vehicle unattended, the firearm must be locked and out of plain view, following the same storage rules that apply to Illinois licensees at prohibited locations.¹⁴

1
Illinois State Police. Firearm Owners Identification (FOID)
2
Justia Law. Illinois Code 430 ILCS 66 – Firearm Concealed Carry Act
3
Illinois State Police. Concealed Carry License
4
Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 430 ILCS 66/75 – Firearms Training
5
Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 430 ILCS 66/65 – Prohibited Areas
6
Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 430 ILCS 66/10 – Issuance of Licenses
7
Illinois State Police. Protect Illinois Communities Act, Regulation on Assault Weapons
8
Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 720 ILCS 5/24-1 – Unlawful Possession of Weapons
9
Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 720 ILCS 5/24-1.6 – Aggravated Unlawful Use of a Weapon
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Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 430 ILCS 66/70 – Violations
11
Illinois State Police. Firearm Owner Identification (FOID) and Concealed Carry License (CCL) Revocation
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Illinois State Police. CCL Appeals
13
Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 430 ILCS 66/50 – Renewal
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Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 430 ILCS 66/40 – Non-Resident License Applications