Illinois 5-Day Notice PDF: Serve, Count Days, and File

The Illinois 5-day notice PDF is a free, court-approved form titled “Notice of Termination for Non-Payment of Rent,” downloadable from the Illinois Courts website and required in every circuit court in the state for evictions based on unpaid rent.¹ Using a homemade version, or skipping a step in how it’s filled out and served, can end the eviction before a judge ever hears it.

Where to Download the Form

The standardized PDF lives on the Illinois Courts website under “Eviction” in the approved forms library. Look for “Notice of Termination for Non-Payment of Rent,” approved in December 2021.¹ County-specific versions are no longer valid; the statewide form replaced them, and all Illinois courts must accept it.

While you’re on that page, download the “Affidavit of Service of a Demand or Notice” too. Whoever delivers the notice needs to complete that affidavit right after service, and you’ll need it later when you file the eviction complaint.²

What to Put on the Notice

Under 735 ILCS 5/9-209, the notice is a written demand telling the tenant that unless the full amount is paid within at least five days after service, the lease will terminate.³ The PDF has fields for each required item.

Every adult tenant’s name. Missing one can create problems when you file the complaint.
The full property address, including any unit or apartment number.
The exact dollar amount of past-due rent, broken down by the months or periods it covers.
Only rent. Late fees, utility charges, and other amounts don’t belong on the 5-day notice unless the lease explicitly defines them as “additional rent.” Including unauthorized charges is one of the fastest ways to get the notice thrown out.

Check every figure against your records. If the amount on the notice doesn’t match what you can prove in court, a judge may dismiss the case.

The Full-Payment Language the Statute Requires

This is the detail landlords miss most often. Illinois law requires the notice to prominently state that only full payment will waive the landlord’s right to terminate. The statutory wording reads: “Only FULL PAYMENT of the rent demanded in this notice will waive the landlord’s right to terminate the lease under this notice, unless the landlord agrees in writing to continue the lease in exchange for receiving partial payment.”³

The standardized PDF already contains this language, which is one of the strongest reasons to use it. With the language in place, accepting a partial payment during the notice period doesn’t kill the case. Without it, taking any partial rent could be treated as waiving the right to proceed.³

How to Serve It

A well-drafted notice is worthless if service is wrong. Under 735 ILCS 5/9-211, only four delivery methods are authorized:³

Personal delivery to the tenant.
Substitute service by leaving the notice with someone at the property who is at least 13 years old and lives there or is in possession.
Certified or registered mail with return receipt requested. Keep the green card as proof of delivery.
Posting on the premises, allowed only when no one is in actual possession of the property.

Email and text messages are not authorized. A notice delivered by email alone has no legal effect. As soon as the notice is served, the person who delivered it should fill out the Affidavit of Service, recording when, where, and how it was served.²

Counting the Five Days

The clock starts the day after service, not the day the notice is handed over or mailed. Serve on a Monday, and day one is Tuesday.⁴ The tenant has until midnight of the fifth day to pay the full amount owed.

If day five lands on a Saturday, Sunday, or court holiday, the period extends through midnight of the next day that isn’t a weekend or holiday.⁴ Illinois courts observe more holidays than many people realize. For 2026, court closings include New Year’s Day (January 1), Martin Luther King Jr. Day (January 19), Lincoln’s Birthday (February 12), Presidents Day (February 16), Casimir Pulaski Day (March 2), Memorial Day (May 25), Juneteenth (June 19), Independence Day observed (July 3), Labor Day (September 7), Columbus Day (October 12), Veterans Day (November 11), Thanksgiving and the day after (November 26–27), and Christmas Day (December 25).⁵ If any of those dates falls on day five, the deadline rolls forward.

You can file the eviction complaint the day after the notice period expires. Filing one day early gives the tenant grounds for dismissal, and you’d have to start over with a fresh notice.

If the Tenant Pays During the Notice Period

Full payment within the five days ends the matter. You must accept it, and you cannot file the eviction complaint on that notice.⁴ The notice cured the default. If the tenant pays in full after the five days but before you file, you may accept the money, but doing so gives up the right to file on that notice.

Partial payment is different. As long as the notice includes the mandatory full-payment language, accepting part of the balance doesn’t waive the right to proceed. Without that language, a partial payment can be read as an agreement to continue the lease.³ If a tenant tries to hand over full payment after the eviction complaint is already filed, don’t cash the check without first asking the judge how to handle it.

Filing the Complaint After the Deadline

Once the notice period expires with the balance unpaid, the next step is filing an eviction complaint (formally a “Forcible Entry and Detainer” action) at the circuit clerk’s office. Bring:

The completed Eviction Complaint form, another standardized form from the Illinois Courts approved forms page.¹
A copy of the 5-day notice you served.
The completed Affidavit of Service.²

You choose what to seek. A possession-only case asks the court for the unit back. A joint action asks for possession and a money judgment for the unpaid rent.⁶ Filing fees run higher for joint actions; expect roughly $140 to $190 for possession only and $290 to $380 or more for a joint action, depending on the county and the amount claimed. After the fee is paid, the clerk issues a summons that must be served on the tenant.

Mistakes That Get Cases Dismissed

A few errors show up repeatedly, and any one of them can force a landlord to serve a new notice and restart the timeline.

Defective Notice

Wrong dollar amount, non-rent charges included, missing tenants, improper service method, or missing full-payment language. Any of these can get the case dismissed on the tenant’s motion.

Premature Filing

Filing before the full five-day period ends, even by a day, results in dismissal. The same happens when a weekend or court holiday inside the notice period is miscounted.

Repair and Deduct

Under the Residential Tenants’ Right to Repair Act (765 ILCS 742), a tenant who gave written notice of a needed repair and waited at least 14 days can hire a licensed tradesperson and deduct the cost from rent, up to the lesser of $500 or half the monthly rent. A tenant who followed every step has a valid defense to the deducted amount. Tenants who skipped the written notice, hired an unlicensed contractor, or caused the damage themselves cannot use the defense, and the act does not apply to public housing, condominiums, or owner-occupied buildings with six or fewer units.⁷

Self-Help

No matter how far behind a tenant is, a landlord cannot change the locks, remove belongings, or shut off utilities to force a move-out. Illinois law requires a court order before anyone is physically removed, and the Illinois Attorney General’s office states plainly that a landlord must file a lawsuit to evict.⁸ A lockout exposes the landlord to a tenant lawsuit for damages.

1
Office of the Illinois Courts. Eviction
2
Illinois Courts. Affidavit of Service of a Demand or Notice
3
Justia. Illinois Code 735 ILCS 5 Article IX – Eviction
4
Illinois Courts. How to File and Present an Eviction Case
5
Circuit Court of Cook County. Legal Court Holidays
6
Illinois Courts. How to Use Different Types of Orders in Eviction Cases
7
Justia. Illinois Code 765 ILCS 742 – Residential Tenants Right to Repair Act
8
Illinois Attorney General. Landlord and Tenant Rights and Laws