Illinois Form RUT-75, the Aircraft/Watercraft Use Tax Transaction Return, is how you report and pay the 6.25 percent use tax after acquiring a plane or boat through a private sale, gift, donation, or any other non-retail transaction. You have 30 days from the date you acquired the craft (or brought it into Illinois) to file and pay, and you cannot register the aircraft or watercraft until the tax clears or an exemption is accepted. The fastest way to file is electronically through MyTax Illinois; paper filing is still available through the Department of Revenue’s forms line.
One boundary first, because people land on this form by mistake: RUT-75 does not cover cars, trucks, motorcycles, or vans. Private-party motor vehicle purchases use Form RUT-50 instead.1Illinois Department of Revenue. Aircraft, Vehicles, and Watercraft Sales and Use Tax Forms The two forms go to different agencies on different tax schedules, so using the wrong one will stall your registration.
When You Have to File RUT-75
You file RUT-75 any time you acquire an aircraft or watercraft from someone who is not in the business of selling them at retail. That covers private-party purchases, gifts, donations, and transfers. If you bought from a licensed dealer, the dealer collects sales tax and you do not use this form.2Illinois Department of Revenue. RUT-75 Instructions for Aircraft/Watercraft Use Tax Transaction Return
For watercraft, the form applies to Class 2, Class 3, and Class 4 watercraft as defined in the Boat Registration and Safety Act, plus personal watercraft such as jet skis and wave runners. Canoes and kayaks are excluded. If you acquired a watercraft outside Illinois and later brought it into the state, the tax is still due, and the 30-day clock runs from the date the craft enters Illinois.
What You Need Before You Start
Gather everything before opening the form. Missing attachments are the most common reason filings bounce back, and every day of delay counts against the 30-day deadline.
- Your Social Security number (or FEIN for a business), name, address, and phone. Individual filers also need the Adjusted Gross Income from their prior-year IL-1040.3Illinois Department of Revenue. Form RUT-75, Aircraft/Watercraft Use Tax Transaction Return
- The seller’s name, address, and phone.
- For an aircraft: FAA registration number (N-number), year, make, model, and acquisition date.
- For a watercraft: hull identification number, type (open, cabin, pontoon, sailboat, PWC, houseboat, or other), length, and acquisition date. If a motor was sold with the boat, its value is part of the taxable purchase price.
- The purchase price or fair market value, whichever is higher. For gifts or even trades, use fair market value.
Required Attachments
The form by itself will not be processed. You must include:
- For aircraft, a copy of the FAA bill of sale and a copy of the purchase agreement or invoice showing the selling price and any tax previously paid, clearly and separately stated.
- For watercraft, a copy of the purchase agreement or invoice with the purchase price and any prior tax clearly and separately stated.
- If you are claiming credit for tax paid in another state, proof of that payment. Credit is allowed only when the other state’s tax was properly due and separately stated.
How Much Tax You Owe
The rate is a flat 6.25 percent of the purchase price or fair market value, whichever is greater.4Illinois Department of Revenue. Use Tax Rates A $20,000 boat produces $1,250 in tax. A plane with a fair market value of $85,000 produces $5,312.50, even if you paid less than that in cash.
The valuation date is whichever is later: the date you acquired the craft, or the date you brought it into Illinois. There is no trade-in allowance under the watercraft use tax; the full value is taxable regardless of what you traded in.
If you lawfully paid use or sales tax to another state on the same craft, you can claim a credit against the Illinois tax, up to the amount of Illinois tax due. Proof of payment has to be attached.
When No Tax Is Due
Several transactions are exempt. Check the appropriate box in Step 4 of the form and attach any required documentation:
- Purchases by charitable, religious, educational, or governmental organizations that hold an active Illinois Department of Revenue exemption number.
- Craft used as rolling stock to haul persons or commodities in interstate commerce. For aircraft, provide your FAA certificate of authority number.
- Craft inherited by a surviving spouse through an estate.
- Craft acquired outside Illinois, brought in temporarily, and used solely outside the state.
- Craft used primarily in production agriculture under the farm machinery exemption.
- Watercraft that will not be used on Illinois waters for more than 30 days in a calendar year, and watercraft owned by government entities for official use.
Watercraft Gifts Between Family Members
Genuine gifts of watercraft between immediate family members (spouse, parent, brother, sister, or child) are not taxed. Check the box indicating a transfer between immediate family members. The Department of Revenue reviews these claims, and if it concludes the primary motivation was avoiding the tax rather than making a true gift, it will bill you for the full tax plus penalties and interest. A below-market “sale” to a sibling at a suspiciously zero price is exactly the kind of transfer that invites a closer look.
How and Where to File
You have 30 days from acquisition, or 30 days from bringing the craft into Illinois, to file and pay. Registration is blocked until the tax is paid or an exemption is accepted.
Electronic Filing Through MyTax Illinois
File at mytax.illinois.gov and upload the bill of sale, purchase agreement, and any proof of prior tax paid. Payment goes directly from a checking or savings account, so have your bank’s routing number and your account number ready. Allow one business day for processing before applying for registration, and three to five business days for the electronic payment to clear.
Paper Filing
Paper RUT-75 forms are carbon-copy documents with unique transaction numbers. Do not photocopy a blank form; duplicated numbers cause processing delays. Pick up an original at the appropriate state agency when you register your craft, or order one by calling the Department of Revenue’s 24-hour Forms Order Line at 1-800-356-6302.
Mail the completed form, attachments, and payment to the registering agency:
- Aircraft: Department of Transportation, Division of Aeronautics, Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport, 1 Langhorne Bond Drive, Springfield, IL 62707-8415.
- Watercraft: Department of Natural Resources, PO Box 19226, Springfield, IL 62794-9226.
Make the tax payment payable to the Illinois Department of Revenue. Any title or registration fees are paid separately to IDOT for aircraft or IDNR for watercraft.5Illinois Department of Revenue. Illinois Tax Requirements for Watercraft and Snowmobiles
What Happens If You File Late
Missing the 30-day window triggers two separate penalties plus interest, and they stack.
The late-filing penalty is 2 percent of the tax due, capped at $250. If you still have not filed within 30 days after the Department of Revenue sends a nonfiling notice, an additional penalty applies: the greater of $250 or 2 percent of the tax, up to $5,000.6Illinois Department of Revenue. Pub-103, Penalties and Interest for Illinois Taxes
Late-payment penalties are steeper. Pay within 30 days of the due date and the penalty is 2 percent. After 30 days it jumps to 10 percent. Pay only after an audit begins and the rate climbs to 20 percent.
Interest accrues as simple daily interest. Through June 30, 2026, the underpayment rate is 7 percent annually, reviewed every January 1 and July 1 against the federal underpayment rate.7Illinois Department of Revenue. Interest Rates
Keep a copy of the completed form, your payment confirmation, and every attachment. If the state later questions the fair market value you reported or the exemption you claimed, the purchase agreement and bill of sale in your own file will settle it faster than anything else.