The Illinois Department of Revenue is offering an amnesty program between October 1, 2019 and November 15, 2019. If eligible tax liabilities are paid in full during this period, applicable interest and penalties will be waived. Eligible liabilities are taxes due from periods ending after June 30, 2011 and prior to July 1, 2018. Some taxes are excluded from the amnesty program, including: taxes not collected by the Department of Revenue, such as property, estate, franchise and insurance taxes, and local taxes paid directly to local government agencies; any balance due on returns for periods ending on or before June 30, 2011, and on or after July 1, 2018; IFTA liabilities; motor fuel use tax, and any liabilities that are not considered taxes (i.e., licensing fees, tire user fees, motor fuel violations, permits and some surcharges). For more information, review Informational Bulletin FY 2020-05, 2019 Illinois Tax Delinquency Amnesty Act
Businesses who are interested in taking advantage of this amnesty program should act quickly since there is a limited amount of time to file returns, make corrections and pay the tax due. Amnesty programs are not always the best option for businesses despite the benefits of waiving interest and penalties on tax liabilities. If you have questions about this program and potential advantages and disadvantages of amnesty, you can contact a member of our State and Local Tax team using the Contact Form below. Be sure to indicate “Illinois Amnesty” in Your Message and a member of our team will contact you to discuss your questions.
