The Illinois Human Rights Act is a state civil rights law that prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, financial credit, public accommodations, and education based on more than a dozen protected characteristics. It reaches far more employers than federal law, protects categories that federal statutes don’t, and generally gives you two years to file a charge with the Illinois Department of Human Rights (IDHR) or take your case to circuit court.
What the Act Protects Against
The Act prohibits discrimination based on actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, age (40 and older), sex, marital status, order of protection status, disability, military status, sexual orientation, pregnancy, reproductive health decisions, or unfavorable military discharge other than dishonorable.1Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Compiled Statutes 775 ILCS 5/1-103 Sex protection includes pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions. Disability covers physical and mental conditions unrelated to a person’s ability to do the job, qualify for housing, repay a loan, or use a public accommodation.
Two categories were added on January 1, 2025. Reproductive health decisions covers choices about contraception, fertility care, assisted reproductive technology, miscarriage management, and pregnancy-related healthcare. Family responsibilities makes it a violation for employers to discriminate based on an employee’s caregiving obligations.2Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Compiled Statutes 775 ILCS 5/2-102 – Civil Rights Violations, Employment
In employment, the Act also bars discrimination based on citizenship status, work authorization status, and conviction record. Citizenship protection covers U.S. citizens, naturalized citizens, U.S. nationals, and lawfully present noncitizens covered by federal immigration anti-discrimination law.1Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Compiled Statutes 775 ILCS 5/1-103 Conviction record protections prevent employers from automatically disqualifying applicants unless the offense has a substantial relationship to the job or would create an unreasonable safety risk. Arrest records that didn’t lead to conviction, juvenile records, and expunged or sealed records are protected separately.
Which Employers and Situations Are Covered
Federal statutes like Title VII and the Americans with Disabilities Act only apply to employers with 15 or more employees. The Illinois Human Rights Act reaches much further. Any employer with one or more employees working in Illinois during at least 20 calendar weeks in the current or preceding year is covered for most discrimination claims. For disability discrimination, pregnancy discrimination, and sexual harassment, the threshold drops to any employer with at least one employee, regardless of weeks worked. State and local government agencies and public contractors are covered with no minimum employee count.2Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Compiled Statutes 775 ILCS 5/2-102 – Civil Rights Violations, Employment
Outside the workplace, the Act covers:
- The sale, rental, and financing of housing, including lease terms and mortgage lending.
- Financial credit, so lenders and credit issuers can’t deny services or impose worse terms based on a protected trait.
- Public accommodations such as hotels, restaurants, and retail stores.3Illinois Department of Human Rights. Illinois Department of Human Rights – Public Accommodations
- Educational institutions within the state, specifically for sexual harassment claims.
How Long You Have To File
The general deadline for filing a charge is two years from the date of the alleged violation. That two-year window, extended effective January 1, 2025, applies to employment, financial credit, public accommodations, and education charges.4Illinois Department of Human Rights. IDHR Extends Statute of Limitations Period
The 300-day figure you may have seen only applies when you cross-file with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Filing an EEOC charge within 300 days automatically deems it filed with IDHR on the same date.5Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Compiled Statutes 775 ILCS 5/7A-102 Housing claims run on their own clock: one year to file with IDHR, or two years to file directly in circuit court.4Illinois Department of Human Rights. IDHR Extends Statute of Limitations Period
How To File a Charge With IDHR
Filing starts with a Complainant Information Sheet, or CIS. It’s an intake form, not the formal charge. IDHR reviews the CIS to decide whether Illinois law covers your complaint before accepting it as a formal charge, then sends a formal charge document for your signature.6Illinois Department of Human Rights. Complainant Information Sheet There is no filing fee.
The CIS asks for the name and contact information of the person or organization you’re filing against, the specific date of the most recent discriminatory act, and a detailed description of what happened and why you believe it was discriminatory. Supporting materials like emails, performance reviews, or lease agreements help establish the facts, so reference them where they apply.
You can submit the completed CIS by email to IDHR.Intake@illinois.gov, by mail, by fax, or in person at a regional office.6Illinois Department of Human Rights. Complainant Information Sheet It must be signed, dated, and either postmarked or received by IDHR within the filing deadline that applies to your claim.
What Happens After You File
Once a formal charge is on file, IDHR has 10 days to serve a copy on the respondent and notify both parties of your right to opt out of the investigation. The respondent then has 60 days to file a position statement and response, and you have 30 days after that to reply.7Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Compiled Statutes 775 ILCS 5/7A-102 Allegations the respondent doesn’t deny within 60 days of being asked may be treated as admitted.
Both sides are typically invited to voluntary mediation early on. If mediation doesn’t resolve the case, an investigator gathers evidence, interviews witnesses, and reviews documentation. IDHR must complete the investigation and issue its report within 365 days of the charge filing, unless the parties agree in writing to extend that timeline.5Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Compiled Statutes 775 ILCS 5/7A-102
The investigation ends in one of two findings. A substantial evidence determination means the case has enough factual support to move forward, and IDHR files a complaint with the Illinois Human Rights Commission for a hearing. A lack of substantial evidence finding results in dismissal, though you can ask the Commission to review that decision.8Illinois Human Rights Commission. How the Process Works
Going to Court Instead
You aren’t locked into the administrative process. Within 60 days of receiving your opt-out notice, you can submit a written request to skip the IDHR investigation and file a civil action in circuit court. The Director must issue an opt-out notice within 10 business days of that request, and you then have 90 days to file suit.5Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Compiled Statutes 775 ILCS 5/7A-102
A second path opens if IDHR takes too long. If the department hasn’t issued its investigation report within 365 days and you haven’t agreed to an extension, you have 90 days to either file your own complaint with the Human Rights Commission or go directly to circuit court.7Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Compiled Statutes 775 ILCS 5/7A-102
Dual Filing With the EEOC
For employment discrimination, IDHR operates as a Fair Employment Practices Agency with a worksharing agreement with the EEOC. A charge filed with one agency is automatically dual-filed with the other if the allegation is covered by both state and federal law, and the agency that receives the initial filing typically keeps the case.9U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Fair Employment Practices Agencies (FEPAs) and Dual Filing
If the EEOC dismisses your charge or decides not to litigate after finding reasonable cause, you get a notice giving you 90 days to file a federal lawsuit.10U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. What You Can Expect After a Charge is Filed You can also request a right-to-sue notice from the EEOC at any point before the investigation ends. IDHR encourages you to withdraw your state charge if you go that route, and will suspend its own investigation if a federal lawsuit is filed on the same issues.11Illinois Department of Human Rights. Complaint Process – Federal Agencies and Courts
To ask the EEOC to review a FEPA determination, submit the request in writing within 15 days of receiving the determination, and explain why review is warranted, such as witnesses not being contacted or evidence being overlooked.9U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Fair Employment Practices Agencies (FEPAs) and Dual Filing
What You Can Recover
When the Human Rights Commission finds a violation, it has broad authority to order relief aimed at putting you in the position you would have been in without the discrimination:
- Actual damages for financial losses and emotional harm.
- Back pay, lost benefits, and interest dating to the violation.
- Hiring, reinstatement, or promotion.
- Reasonable attorney’s fees, costs, and expert witness fees for proceedings before IDHR, the Commission, and any judicial review.
- Admission to a public accommodation, housing, training program, or labor organization from which you were excluded.
The Commission can combine these and order any additional action needed to make you whole.12Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Compiled Statutes 775 ILCS 5/8A-104
Separate civil penalties vindicate the public interest. Before the Commission, penalties reach $16,000 per violation for a first offense, $42,500 with one prior violation within five years, and $70,000 with two or more prior violations within seven years.12Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Compiled Statutes 775 ILCS 5/8A-104 In circuit court the caps are higher: $50,000 for a first violation, $75,000 for a second within five years, and $100,000 for two or more within five years.13Justia Law. Illinois Compiled Statutes Chapter 775, Act 5, Article 10 – Circuit Court Actions The Act does not cap actual damages, only the civil penalty component.
Retaliation Is a Separate Violation
Retaliating against someone who opposes or reports conduct they reasonably believe is discriminatory, files a charge, participates in an investigation or hearing, or requests a reasonable accommodation is itself a civil rights violation under the Act.14Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Compiled Statutes 775 ILCS 5/6-101 Two or more people acting together to retaliate also violate the Act. Retaliation claims follow the same filing process and deadlines as any other charge, so if an employer takes adverse action after you raise a discrimination concern, that is a standalone claim you can pursue through IDHR or in court.