To become a real estate agent in Illinois, you complete 75 hours of state-approved pre-license education, pass the two-part broker licensing exam administered by PSI, clear a fingerprint-based background check, line up a sponsoring managing broker, and file a license application with the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR). Illinois does not issue a separate “agent” license. Everyone who helps clients buy, sell, or lease property holds a broker license and works under a managing broker’s supervision.
Most people move from their first class to an active license in a few months. The total cost typically runs between $1,500 and $3,000 before you factor in ongoing brokerage fees.
Who Can Apply
The Real Estate License Act of 2000 sets the floor. You must be at least 18, hold a high school diploma or GED, and meet the state’s “good moral character” standard, which IDFPR evaluates through your background check and the disclosures you make on your application.1Illinois General Assembly. 225 ILCS 454/5-27 – Requirements for Licensure as a Broker You also need a Social Security Number or ITIN on file.
One exception. If you are currently admitted to practice law by the Illinois Supreme Court and in active standing, the statute waives both the education requirement and the high school diploma requirement. You still take the exam and file the full application.1Illinois General Assembly. 225 ILCS 454/5-27 – Requirements for Licensure as a Broker
Complete the 75-Hour Pre-License Course
Before you can test, you finish 75 hours of coursework through an IDFPR-approved education provider. The curriculum has two pieces:2IDFPR. Real Estate Broker 75-Hour Pre-License Curriculum
- 60 hours of Real Estate Topics, split evenly between a general introduction and Illinois-specific laws and practices.
- 15 hours of Applied Real Estate Principles, delivered in a classroom, a live interactive webinar, or approved online distance education.
Save your completion certificates. You upload them with your application. The credits stay valid for two years after you finish. If you don’t pass the exam within that window, the entire 75 hours has to be repeated.3Illinois General Assembly. 225 ILCS 454/5-35 – Examination
Pass the Broker Licensing Exam
PSI runs the exam for IDFPR at testing centers around the state. It has two independently scored sections with different passing thresholds:
- The National portion is 100 scored multiple-choice questions on property ownership, contracts, appraisal, financing, agency law, and real estate math. Passing score: 70.
- The State portion is 40 scored questions on Illinois statutes and regulations. Passing score: 75.
Both sections may add 5 to 10 unscored pretest questions mixed in with the real ones, so answer everything. You have four hours total and get your score report at the testing center.
Fail one section and you retake only that section. Fail the same section four times in a row and you have to redo the full 75 hours of education before testing again. There is also a one-year clock on a passing score: if you don’t file a complete license application within a year of passing, the exam credit expires.3Illinois General Assembly. 225 ILCS 454/5-35 – Examination
Get Fingerprinted
Illinois requires a fingerprint-based background check run through both the Illinois State Police and the FBI.4IDFPR. Fingerprint Background Check Guide You book an appointment with a live scan vendor licensed by IDFPR, and the results are sent to the department electronically.
Watch the calendar. Your fingerprints must be taken within 60 days of submitting your application.4IDFPR. Fingerprint Background Check Guide Out-of-state applicants use an FBI fingerprint card completed by a certifying agency in their state, then submitted through an Illinois vendor that offers card scan. When you finish, hold onto the 16-digit Transaction Control Number from your receipt. You enter it directly in your online application.
Line Up a Sponsoring Managing Broker
Your license cannot go active without a sponsoring managing broker on file. The statute bars you from any licensed activity until the sponsorship is registered with IDFPR.1Illinois General Assembly. 225 ILCS 454/5-27 – Requirements for Licensure as a Broker The sponsoring firm provides the professional supervision required for every newly licensed broker.
Start those conversations early, ideally before you sit the exam. You need the firm’s legal name and the managing broker’s license number for the application. Brokerages differ on commission splits, desk fees, training, and mentorship, so interview a few. This choice shapes your first years more than most newcomers expect.
File Your License Application With IDFPR
Everything is submitted through the IDFPR Online Services Portal. You upload your education certificates, enter your fingerprint Transaction Control Number, provide the sponsoring firm’s details, and answer background disclosure questions covering criminal history, prior professional discipline, and any outstanding child support or tax obligations. Answer them accurately. Inaccurate answers can delay or derail the application.
The non-refundable application fee is $150, paid by credit card or electronic check through the portal.5IDFPR. How to Submit an Online Real Estate Application Processing usually takes a few weeks. If a background disclosure needs review, expect longer. Approved applicants get an email and a digital license.
What Comes After Licensure
Getting licensed is the halfway point on education. Illinois requires new brokers to complete 45 hours of post-license education before their first renewal, delivered as three 15-hour courses on applied brokerage principles, risk management and discipline, and transactional issues.6Illinois General Assembly. Section 1450.410 – Broker Post-License Education Requirements
The deadline depends on your license date. If you were licensed more than 180 days before your first renewal, you complete all 45 hours before that renewal. If you were licensed within 180 days of the first renewal deadline, you have until the second renewal.6Illinois General Assembly. Section 1450.410 – Broker Post-License Education Requirements Miss it and your license cannot be renewed.
After that, licenses renew every two years, with 12 hours of continuing education per cycle: a 6-hour core course and 6 hours of electives that must include sexual harassment prevention training.7IDFPR. 2026 Real Estate Broker License Renewal The renewal fee on the most recent published schedule is $200 on time, $275 late.
Understand Your Tax Status
Pre-license classes barely mention this, but it matters from day one. The IRS treats licensed real estate agents as statutory nonemployees when substantially all of their pay is tied to sales output rather than hours, and a written contract states they will not be treated as employees.8Internal Revenue Service. Licensed Real Estate Agents – Real Estate Tax Tips Virtually every brokerage relationship is set up this way, which makes you self-employed for federal tax purposes.
You owe self-employment tax of 15.3% on net earnings: 12.4% Social Security on the first $184,500 in 2026 and 2.9% Medicare on all net earnings. Single filers earning over $200,000 pay an extra 0.9% Medicare surtax. File Schedule SE with your Form 1040 when net self-employment income reaches $400.9Internal Revenue Service. Self-Employment Tax (Social Security and Medicare Taxes)
No employer withholds tax from a commission check. You make quarterly estimated payments yourself. New agents who skip that step often owe a large balance plus an underpayment penalty in April. Mileage, marketing, office supplies, professional development, and business insurance premiums are commonly deductible.
What It Costs
A realistic budget looks like this:
- Pre-license education, 75 hours: roughly $400 to $800 depending on provider and format.
- Exam fee: about $58 per attempt.
- Fingerprinting: usually $50 to $75 depending on the live scan vendor.
- License application: $150.
- Post-license education, 45 hours: comparable to pre-license course pricing.
- Errors and omissions insurance: not required by state law but required by most brokerages, typically $500 to $700 a year for new agents.
- REALTOR® association dues: optional, often $500 to $1,000 or more annually, and the standard route to MLS access.
Plan on roughly $1,500 to $3,000 to get from your first class to your first active day, before any desk fees or marketing spend. Your first commission may be months away, so a financial cushion is part of the plan, not an afterthought.