Form CPP-1 Illinois Installment Payment Plan Request: Step-by-Step

To fill out Form CPP-1, the Illinois Department of Revenue’s installment payment plan request, work through its four steps in order: identify yourself or your business, describe the debt and propose a payment schedule, authorize bank withdrawals, and sign. Before you open the form, confirm every tax return is filed through the current date, pull your most recent notice so you have the exact tax periods, and decide what you can realistically pay each cycle.¹

What to Have Ready Before You Start

The department won’t process a CPP-1 if you have unfiled returns. File those first. All outstanding liabilities are rolled into a single plan, so you can’t pick and choose which debts the agreement covers.¹

Have these in front of you:

Your most recent IDOR notice, which lists the exact tax periods you owe for
Social Security number (and spouse’s, if filing jointly) or, for a business, your FEIN and Illinois account ID
Bank routing and account numbers for the account you want debited
A payment amount and frequency you can actually sustain

Before committing to the paper form, know that MyTax Illinois offers a pre-approved plan option. If the pre-set terms work, you’re approved immediately. A custom request through MyTax goes to Collections for review, and a mailed paper CPP-1 always gets a manual review.¹

Step 1: Identify Yourself

Individuals complete the top portion: Social Security number, full name, mailing address, email, and phone number. If you’re filing jointly, add your spouse’s Social Security number and name.

Businesses use the business section of the same step. Enter the Federal Employer Identification Number, Illinois account ID, legal business name, any DBA, and the name and phone number of the person responsible for making the payments.²

Step 2: Describe the Debt and Propose a Plan

This is the step where mistakes slow things down most often. Work line by line.

Line 1 — Tax periods. List the specific periods covered by the agreement. Copy them from your most recent notice; a mismatch here forces a kickback.

Line 2 — Down payment. Optional, but a good-faith amount signals to the reviewer that you’re serious. A larger down payment also reduces the balance that interest accrues against for the rest of the plan.

Line 3 — Remaining balance. The amount left after any down payment, to be covered by installments.

Line 4 — First payment. Enter the date of your first installment and the dollar amount per payment.

Line 5 — Frequency. Choose once per month (and pick the date), once per week (and pick the day), or every other week (and pick the day).²

Pick a payment amount you can keep paying every cycle without fail. Interest keeps running on the unpaid balance for the life of the plan — the current underpayment rate is 7% per year through June 30, 2026 — so a payment that’s too small costs you more over time, and one that’s too large risks a default.³

Step 3: Bank Account Information

The department pulls installments by ACH debit, so Step 3 collects your bank’s name, address, routing number, account number, and whether the account is checking or savings. Your signature at the end of the form authorizes those withdrawals on the frequency you chose in Step 2.

If you don’t have a bank account, check the box provided. Expect a follow-up call to discuss an alternative arrangement — the form doesn’t define what that will look like.²

Step 4: Sign and Date

Sign and date the form. For a business, the person responsible for remitting payments signs, and includes their title. An unsigned CPP-1 is not processed, and the department may continue collection activity while it waits for a corrected copy.⁴

If You Owe More Than $15,000, Attach a Financial Statement

When your total unpaid liability — including penalties and interest — exceeds $15,000, CPP-1 alone isn’t enough. You must also complete and attach a financial disclosure. Individuals file Form EG-13-I; businesses file Form EG-13-B.¹

EG-13-I asks for employment details, household income, and an itemized breakdown of living expenses. EG-13-B asks a business for a full statement of assets and liabilities. Both carry a perjury statement, and the department can request supporting documentation for any amount reported.⁵⁶ This disclosure is the main document the department uses to decide whether your proposed payment is realistic — fill it out carefully.

Where to Submit the Form

The quickest route is MyTax Illinois. Log in and click Set up a Payment Installment Plan with IDOR. If you don’t have an account, use the Sign Up! button on the MyTax Illinois homepage first.¹

If you’re mailing the paper CPP-1, send it with any required attachments and your down payment check to:

Installment Contract Unit
Illinois Department of Revenue
PO Box 19035
Springfield, IL 62794-9035¹

What Happens After You Submit

If something’s missing or unclear, a representative will contact you. If the department’s review concludes you can actually pay the full balance, it will require you to do so instead of granting installments. If you qualify, the department mails a letter of approval setting out the conditions of your plan. If it wants to modify your proposed terms or denies the request, it will contact you to discuss alternatives.⁴

The instructions don’t commit to a processing timeline. An incomplete application can add weeks, so don’t plan around a specific response date.

Keeping the Plan in Good Standing

Approval comes with ongoing conditions. You need to make every scheduled payment, file all future returns on time, and pay any new tax when it’s due. The form itself spells out the consequences of falling short: the department may cancel the plan, your entire unpaid balance becomes due immediately, and the department may take enforcement action, including levying your bank account or wages.²

A missed payment, an unfiled return, or an unpaid balance on a new tax year can unravel the agreement. The department doesn’t issue warnings before canceling. If you know a payment is going to miss, call the department before the due date — that’s the only realistic way to avoid a default.

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Illinois Department of Revenue. Payment Plan Information
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Illinois Department of Revenue. CPP-1 Installment Payment Plan Request
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Illinois Department of Revenue. Interest Rates
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Illinois Department of Revenue. CPP-1 Installment Payment Plan Request Instructions
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Illinois Department of Revenue. EG-13-I Financial and Other Information Statement for Individuals
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Illinois Department of Revenue. EG-13-B Financial and Other Information Statement for Businesses