How long does a landlord have to return a security deposit in Illinois?

45 days. The deadline applies to every residential landlord who holds a security deposit, whatever the size of the building: Public Act 103-224 removed the former five-unit threshold from 765 ILCS 710/1 effective January 1, 2024. To withhold anything for property damage, the landlord must furnish an itemized statement of the damage within 30 days of the date the tenant vacated or within 30 days of the date the tenant's right of possession ends, whichever is later. If no statement and receipts are furnished as required, the full deposit must be returned within 45 days of the date the tenant vacated (765 ILCS 710/1(a)).

What happens if a landlord does not return the deposit on time in Illinois?

A landlord who refuses to supply the required itemized statement, or supplies it in bad faith, and fails or refuses to return the deposit due within the time limits, is liable on a circuit court's finding for twice the amount of the security deposit due, plus court costs and reasonable attorney's fees (765 ILCS 710/1(c)). The Act reaches every residential landlord, whatever the size of the building.

Do landlords have to pay interest on security deposits in Illinois?

Yes — Illinois requires interest on the security deposit to be paid to the tenant. The interest duty reaches only a landlord of residential property with 25 or more units in a single building or in a complex of buildings on contiguous parcels, and only deposits held more than six months; it does not apply to a deposit for public housing. Interest runs from the date of the deposit at the rate the largest commercial bank with its main banking premises in Illinois paid on minimum-deposit passbook savings accounts as of December 31 of the year before the rental agreement began (Security Deposit Interest Act, 765 ILCS 715/1, 715/3). The Department of Financial and Professional Regulation announces that bank's rate each year.

What are the security deposit rules in Illinois?

Verified October 1, 2026 Correction October 2, 2026 All Illinois topics →

Legislative changes ahead — not yet in force. This page reflects the law in force today. The following measure would change Illinois's landlord-tenant law:

SB 1260 (104th General Assembly, 2025-2026) — Would repeal the Rent Control Preemption Act (50 ILCS 825), removing the statewide bar on local rent control. Status: Filed January 28, 2025 and referred to the Senate Committee on Assignments the same day; no committee or floor action since. It dies when the 104th General Assembly's term ends in January 2027. (checked October 1, 2026).

Illinois sets no statewide cap on security deposits for an ordinary residential lease.

Cited to 765 ILCS 710/1 (Security Deposit Return Act) (a)-(c) and 3 more cited sources · Verified October 1, 2026

Every residential landlord, whatever the size of the building, who wants to keep any part of a deposit for damage must send an itemized damage statement with receipts or estimates within 30 days after the tenant moves out or the tenant's right of possession ends, whichever is later; without that statement the full deposit must be returned within 45 days of move-out. A landlord who refuses to supply the statement, or supplies it in bad faith, and does not return the deposit due in time owes twice the deposit plus court costs and attorney's fees. In properties of 25 or more units, deposits held over six months earn interest at the passbook rate the state's largest commercial bank paid on December 31 before the lease began, paid each lease year once it reaches $5, with willful nonpayment penalized at the full deposit amount plus fees. Chicago and suburban Cook County impose much stricter local ordinances, and a mobile home park lease follows its own act, which caps the deposit at one month's rent. When the building is sold or otherwise transferred, the new owner becomes liable for the deposit and the seller remains jointly liable.

Illinois security deposits at a glance

Maximum deposit	No statutory cap
Return deadline	45 days
Deadline conditions	The deadline applies to every residential landlord who holds a security deposit, whatever the size of the building: Public Act 103-224 removed the former five-unit threshold from 765 ILCS 710/1 effective January 1, 2024. To withhold anything for property damage, the landlord must furnish an itemized statement of the damage within 30 days of the date the tenant vacated or within 30 days of the date the tenant's right of possession ends, whichever is later. If no statement and receipts are furnished as required, the full deposit must be returned within 45 days of the date the tenant vacated (765 ILCS 710/1(a)). The statement must attach paid receipts or, if repairs are not complete, give estimated costs followed by paid receipts within 30 days of the date the estimate was furnished. Delivery may be personal, by postmarked mail to the last known address, or by e-mail to a verified e-mail address the tenant provided. A landlord is not liable for damages or penalties that result from the tenant's failure to provide a mailing or e-mail address.
Itemization required	Yes
Itemization rules	An itemized statement of the damage allegedly caused, with the estimated or actual cost of repairing or replacing each item, attaching paid receipts or copies; where estimated costs are given, paid receipts must follow within 30 days of the date the statement was furnished. A landlord who does the work may include the reasonable cost of the landlord's own labor. Where a written lease specifies the cost of cleaning, repair or replacement of a component of the premises, or of a component of the building or common areas that will not be replaced if damaged, the landlord may withhold that amount; such lease-specified costs must be for damage beyond normal wear and tear and reasonable to restore the premises to their condition when the lease began, and the statement must reference the lease amount and include a copy of that part of the lease. A landlord who, through no fault of its own, cannot produce receipts must give an itemized list of the costs, any other evidence of cost, and a verified statement explaining why (765 ILCS 710/1(a), (b)). Applies to every residential landlord, whatever the size of the building.
Separate account required	No
Interest owed to tenant	Yes
Account & interest rules	The interest duty reaches only a landlord of residential property with 25 or more units in a single building or in a complex of buildings on contiguous parcels, and only deposits held more than six months; it does not apply to a deposit for public housing. Interest runs from the date of the deposit at the rate the largest commercial bank with its main banking premises in Illinois paid on minimum-deposit passbook savings accounts as of December 31 of the year before the rental agreement began (Security Deposit Interest Act, 765 ILCS 715/1, 715/3). The Department of Financial and Professional Regulation announces that bank's rate each year. Within 30 days after the end of each 12-month rental period the landlord must pay interest that has accumulated to $5 or more, in cash or as a credit against rent, except while the tenant is in default under the lease, and all accumulated interest, whatever the amount, is due when the tenancy ends. On a court finding that the landlord willfully failed or refused to pay, the landlord is liable for an amount equal to the deposit plus court costs and reasonable attorney's fees (765 ILCS 715/2). Below 25 units state law requires no interest, and outside mobile home parks (765 ILCS 745/18(c)) no state statute requires a separate deposit account. Chicago's own ordinance imposes a stricter local interest rule, out of scope for this state-level record.
Pet deposits	No statute addresses a pet deposit, and no general deposit cap exists for one to count against. The pet-deposit rule, pet rent and fees, and the assistance-animal rules are on the pets and assistance animals page.
Non-refundable fees allowed	Not addressed by statute
Penalty for violation	A landlord who refuses to supply the required itemized statement, or supplies it in bad faith, and fails or refuses to return the deposit due within the time limits, is liable on a circuit court's finding for twice the amount of the security deposit due, plus court costs and reasonable attorney's fees (765 ILCS 710/1(c)). The Act reaches every residential landlord, whatever the size of the building. Separately, failing to furnish the 30-day itemized statement with receipts forfeits the right to withhold anything and triggers the 45-day full-refund duty. A landlord is not liable for damages or penalties that result from the tenant's failure to provide a mailing or e-mail address.
Tenant forwarding-address duty	Not addressed by statute

Cite this page: "Landlord Atlas, Illinois Security Deposit Laws (verified October 1, 2026), landlordatlas.com/laws/security-deposits/illinois/" — free to cite and quote with a link (how these records are verified). Everything above is cited in the citations section below.

Generate a Illinois security-deposit return letter — free, no signup, built on the same verified Illinois law as this page.

Editable Illinois deposit kit — the deposit disposition letter, the move-in receipt with the custody and interest statements, a deposits-held register with the return deadline computed, and the rules fact sheet built on the verified Illinois rules on this page, in Word, fillable PDF and Excel.

Notes and caveats

Building size matters for interest, not for deposit return — Since January 1, 2024 the state deposit-return rules apply to every residential landlord, whatever the size of the building: Public Act 103-224 removed the five-unit threshold from 765 ILCS 710/1. Building size still decides interest: the state interest requirement reaches only property of 25 or more units (765 ILCS 715/1).
Chicago and Cook County are far stricter — Chicago's Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance requires deposit segregation, yearly interest and receipts. Suburban Cook County's Residential Tenant and Landlord Ordinance requires the deposit to be held in a federally insured Illinois account, not commingled, with a receipt, caps it at one and a half months' rent and requires its return within 30 days, but sets no interest requirement. Those local ordinances are out of scope for this state-level record, but landlords there operate under much tighter rules than state law implies.
Why there is no deposit cap or account rule here — No Illinois statute caps deposit amounts on an ordinary residential lease, and no state statute requires a separate or segregated account for such a deposit, which is why no cap is shown and the separate-account answer is 'no' rather than a gap in the data. Mobile home park leases are the exception: their act caps the deposit at one month's rent and requires the park owner to hold it in trust in an insured account, not commingled (765 ILCS 745/12(b), 745/18(c)).
No forwarding-address duty on the tenant — The statute directs delivery of the itemized statement to the tenant's last known address, or by e-mail to a verified address the tenant provided, without imposing any duty on the tenant to supply a forwarding address, so no duty is shown. It does protect the landlord: if the tenant fails to provide a mailing or e-mail address, the landlord is not liable for any damages or penalties that result from that failure (765 ILCS 710/1(a)).
A radon-related limit on withholding — One narrow limit sits outside the deposit statutes. Where a landlord did not give a tenant the radon pamphlet, records and disclosure form the Radon Awareness Act requires, the tenant tested and found a radon hazard, and the landlord declined to dispute the result or did not mitigate the hazard, the tenant may end the lease within 60 days, and the landlord may not keep any part of the security deposit to pay for radon testing or mitigation. The one exception is a tenant who had a mitigation system installed without the landlord's consent that was not properly installed by a licensed radon contractor. If any part of the deposit is kept, the landlord must give the tenant an itemized statement. This applies to leases entered into on or after January 1, 2024 (420 ILCS 46/26(e), 46/30(c), (d)).

Common questions: Illinois security deposits

Each answer is the verified value from the table above, restated as a direct answer. Free to quote with a link to this page.

How much can a landlord charge for a security deposit in Illinois?: No statutory cap.
How long does a landlord have to return a security deposit in Illinois?: 45 days. The deadline applies to every residential landlord who holds a security deposit, whatever the size of the building: Public Act 103-224 removed the former five-unit threshold from 765 ILCS 710/1 effective January 1, 2024. To withhold anything for property damage, the landlord must furnish an itemized statement of the damage within 30 days of the date the tenant vacated or within 30 days of the date the tenant's right of possession ends, whichever is later. If no statement and receipts are furnished as required, the full deposit must be returned within 45 days of the date the tenant vacated (765 ILCS 710/1(a)).
What happens if a landlord does not return the deposit on time in Illinois?: A landlord who refuses to supply the required itemized statement, or supplies it in bad faith, and fails or refuses to return the deposit due within the time limits, is liable on a circuit court's finding for twice the amount of the security deposit due, plus court costs and reasonable attorney's fees (765 ILCS 710/1(c)). The Act reaches every residential landlord, whatever the size of the building.
Do landlords have to pay interest on security deposits in Illinois?: Yes — Illinois requires interest on the security deposit to be paid to the tenant. The interest duty reaches only a landlord of residential property with 25 or more units in a single building or in a complex of buildings on contiguous parcels, and only deposits held more than six months; it does not apply to a deposit for public housing. Interest runs from the date of the deposit at the rate the largest commercial bank with its main banking premises in Illinois paid on minimum-deposit passbook savings accounts as of December 31 of the year before the rental agreement began (Security Deposit Interest Act, 765 ILCS 715/1, 715/3). The Department of Financial and Professional Regulation announces that bank's rate each year.
Can a landlord charge a non-refundable fee in Illinois?: Not addressed by statute.

Changes since last full verification

The Verified date above (October 1, 2026) marks the last time every figure on this page was verified end-to-end against official sources. The changes below were published since then, each verified against the official source it names (what these dates mean).

Correction, October 2, 2026 — Chicago (correction): the heat page had said that in a building using the same equipment for heating and cooling the minimum is 64 degrees "at all hours" in the two shoulder periods; the ordinance passed May 20, 2026 struck those words (Municipal Code 14X-8-802.2.2). The Chicago page now states that the April 15, 2026 notice amendment took effect on passage and publication, and adds the Jackson Park pilot (Municipal Code 5-12-135, passed September 25, 2025): inside the pilot area a landlord must give 90, 120 or 180 days' notice by length of tenancy, and the pilot ends no later than January 31, 2029. The deposit pages for Chicago and Illinois now state the exclusion of owner-occupied buildings of six or fewer units (5-12-020(a)) and the student-housing exclusions, and a sentence about a former rent control chapter is limited to what the October 3, 2001 repeal ordinance shows.

Citations

765 ILCS 710/1 (Security Deposit Return Act) · (a)-(c) (verified 2026) Official source
765 ILCS 710/1.1 (deposit liability on sale or other transfer) (verified 2026) Official source
765 ILCS 715/1-2 (Security Deposit Interest Act) (verified 2026) Official source
420 ILCS 46/30(c) (Radon Awareness Act; security deposit after a radon-based termination) · (c), (d) (verified 2026) Official source

How this record was verified: Web verification against ilga.gov (official Illinois General Assembly ILCS database) for the Security Deposit Return Act (765 ILCS 710), Security Deposit Interest Act (765 ILCS 715), Landlord and Tenant Act (765 ILCS 705), Rent Control Preemption Act (50 ILCS 825), and 735 ILCS 5/9-207, with statute text confirmed via current-year compiled-statute mirrors of the ilga.gov database and IDFPR official guidance on deposit interest rates. September 5, 2026 addendum: the decisive figures touched by the 2025-2026 enactments reviewed that day were re-read on the official host — 735 ILCS 5/9-106 and 5/9-121 and the Landlord Retaliation Act, 765 ILCS 721, on ilga.gov; the earlier reads stand as recorded. October 1, 2026: every section the security deposit, rent increase, late fee and entry answers rest on was read again on ilga.gov, with each section's source line and the Public Acts of the 104th General Assembly through Public Act 104-0854: the Security Deposit Return Act, the Security Deposit Interest Act, the Landlord and Tenant Act, the Mobile Home Landlord and Tenant Rights Act (765 ILCS 745), the Rent Control Preemption Act, 735 ILCS 5/9-207 and 5/9-213, and 420 ILCS 46/26 and 46/30. That reading found that Public Act 103-224 removed the five-unit threshold from the Security Deposit Return Act effective January 1, 2024; these pages had still stated the threshold and were corrected the same day. No act of the 104th General Assembly amends the deposit, interest or preemption acts; Public Act 104-479 adds 765 ILCS 705/35 from January 1, 2027.