Hurt at work in Illinois? Deadlines, weekly benefit and how to file
Tell your employer within 45 days (the date of the accident). File your claim within 3 years.
Temporary total disability (TTD) benefits can pay two-thirds of your gross (before-tax) wages, up to $2,045.63 a week (July 15, 2026 to January 14, 2027).
Your employer's insurer, not the state, usually decides first. If they deny or delay, the free help listed here can explain your options.
In Illinois, TTD pays part of your lost wages while you cannot work because of a work injury, or while you are on light duty your employer cannot give you. Your employer (usually through its insurance company) pays benefits; if there is a dispute, you file a claim at the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission, where an arbitrator holds a trial and decides.
Checked against official sources: October 31, 2026.
Deadlines are strict. If you are near one, call the state agency or free help today.
Free tools for Illinois
Free tools that run in your browser. Nothing you enter is saved or sent until you download, copy or print a document.
Deadline helper
Written notice to your employer
A letter that tells your employer, in writing, that you were hurt or made sick by your work.
Claim checklist: what to gather and do
A printable list of papers to keep and steps to take.
Deadlines in Illinois
- Tell your employer
- 45 days
- File your claim
- 3 years
- Waiting period
TTD is not paid for the first 3 working days you lose, unless you are off work 14 or more days.
Weekly benefit in Illinois
- What it pays
- Two-thirds of your gross (before-tax) wages
- Maximum
- $2,045.63 a week (July 15, 2026 to January 14, 2027)
- Minimum
- $400 a week (July 15, 2026 to January 14, 2027)
- Minimum rule
The minimum is $400 a week for a worker with no spouse or children, and higher with a spouse or children ($460 with 1, $520 with 2, $580 with 3, $600 with 4 or more). If your average weekly wage is lower than the minimum, you receive your average weekly wage instead.
- Applies to
- Accidents from July 15, 2026 through January 14, 2027
Law: 820 ILCS 305/8(b), 305/10
Source: iwcc.illinois.gov
We do not offer a calculator for Illinois: its rule has parts that a simple estimate cannot show. Read the rule above and ask the state agency.
Who is your doctor in Illinois?
- Who chooses
- You choose
- Network
- Preferred Provider Program (PPP), if your employer has an approved one
You generally choose your own doctors. You get two choices of medical providers, plus any providers they refer you to. First aid and emergency care do not count as a choice, and non-emergency care you got before reporting the injury does not count either. After your two choices, the employer selects and pays for further treatment.
Your second choice of doctor (and that doctor's referrals) is your one change. If your employer has a Commission-approved Preferred Provider Program (PPP), it must tell you in writing on the Commission's form; you may then choose two providers in the network, or decline the PPP in writing at any time, which counts as one of your two choices. If you believe your doctor's care is improper or inadequate, you can petition the Commission.
Law: 820 ILCS 305/8(a), 305/8.1a
Source: iwcc.illinois.gov
Who is covered in Illinois
- Size of employer
Most employees in Illinois are covered from the moment they begin their jobs. Employers must buy workers' compensation insurance or get the Commission's approval to self-insure.
- Special rules
- Agriculture: The Act does not apply to a farm (agricultural or aquacultural) business that used less than 400 working days of farm labor per quarter in the preceding calendar year, not counting the employer's spouse and immediate family living with them.
- Household (domestic) workers: A household is covered when it employs domestic workers for a total of 40 or more hours per week for 13 or more weeks during a calendar year.
- Not covered
- Small farms (less than 400 working days of farm labor per quarter in the preceding year)
- Household workers unless employed 40 or more hours a week for 13 or more weeks in a year
- Real estate brokers and salespeople paid by commission only
- Sole proprietors and partners, unless they elect coverage; corporate officers may choose to withdraw
- Workers covered by an exclusive federal program (for example federal employees, railroad workers and seamen)
- Contractors
Whether you are an employee depends on the facts of your work relationship, not only on what your employer calls you. Being an employee on the date of the accident is one of the issues you must prove if your claim is disputed. The Commission takes complaints about misclassification of employees.
- If your employer has no insurance
If your employer has no workers' compensation insurance, give the employer's name and address and the date of injury to the Illinois Department of Insurance, Workers' Compensation Fraud/Insurance Compliance unit. You can still file a claim at the Commission; if an uninsured employer does not pay an award, the Injured Workers' Benefit Fund may pay. An uninsured employer also loses the protection of the Act, so a worker injured while it was uninsured may choose to sue in civil court.
Law: 820 ILCS 305/1(b), 305/3(17)-(19), 305/4(a), 305/4(d)
Source: iwcc.illinois.gov
If your claim is denied or delayed in Illinois
- First step
Contact your employer or its insurer to find out why benefits are not being paid. If they still do not pay, file an Application for Adjustment of Claim with the Commission in CompFile.
Fired or punished for filing in Illinois
It is illegal for an employer, insurance company or adjustment company to interfere with, restrain or coerce you in using your workers' compensation rights, or to fire you, threaten to fire you, refuse to rehire or recall you, or discriminate against you because you used those rights. An employee with a pending claim may still be disciplined or fired for other valid reasons.
- The law
- 820 ILCS 305/4(h)
- What you may get
Such conduct may give you the right to file a separate lawsuit for damages in circuit court.
- Where to file
Circuit court (a separate lawsuit, not a filing at the Commission).
Law: 820 ILCS 305/4(h)
Source: iwcc.illinois.gov
Lawyers' fees and other benefits in Illinois
You do not need an attorney to file a claim. If you hire one, the fee is limited by law: generally no more than 20% of the compensation recovered (with an overall cap tied to 364 weeks of the maximum TTD rate) unless the Commission approves more after a hearing; no fee may be charged on benefits the employer paid voluntarily and on time; and the fee must be stated on the Commission's Attorney Representation Agreement form and approved by the Commission.
Illinois workers' compensation also provides medical care, temporary partial disability (TPD) for lower-paid light duty, vocational rehabilitation with maintenance benefits, permanent partial disability (including wage differential awards), permanent total disability, and death benefits for survivors.
Free help in Illinois
State agency
Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission (IWCC)
- Phone
- 312-814-6500
- Address
- 69 W. Washington Street, Suite 900, Chicago, IL 60602
Free help
Good to know in Illinois
- Workers' compensation benefits are not taxable under state or federal law.
- While your case is pending at the Commission, a medical provider may not try to collect from you once you tell it you have filed a claim.
- Since April 21, 2021, all cases and documents, including those of workers without an attorney, must be filed electronically in CompFile (IWCC).
Changes in 2024–2026
The TTD maximum rose to $2,008.60 for accidents from January 15, 2026 and to $2,045.63 for accidents from July 15, 2026. The TTD minimums rose when the Illinois minimum wage reached $15.00 an hour on January 1, 2025 (for example, $400 a week for a worker with no spouse or children). Public Act 104-792 (House Bill 5228, 2026) changed utilization review (reviewer qualifications, physician review of appeals, how long an approval lasts) and requires an employer's examining doctor who questions proposed treatment to report within 90 days.
Questions about workers' comp in Illinois
How long do I have to tell my employer about a work injury in Illinois?
Tell your employer about the accident as soon as practicable, and no later than 45 days after the accident.
How long do I have to file a workers' comp claim in Illinois?
You report the injury to your employer, but the Commission does not get involved unless you file a claim there.
How much does workers' comp pay in Illinois?
Temporary total disability (TTD) benefits can pay two-thirds of your gross (before-tax) wages, up to $2,045.63 a week (July 15, 2026 to January 14, 2027).
Can I choose my own doctor for a work injury in Illinois?
You generally choose your own doctors. You get two choices of medical providers, plus any providers they refer you to.
Can my employer fire me for filing a workers' comp claim in Illinois?
It is illegal for an employer, insurance company or adjustment company to interfere with, restrain or coerce you in using your workers' compensation rights, or to fire you, threaten to fire you, refuse to rehire or recall you, or discriminate against you because you used those rights.
What if my workers' comp claim is denied in Illinois?
Contact your employer or its insurer to find out why benefits are not being paid. If they still do not pay, file an Application for Adjustment of Claim with the Commission in CompFile.
Not about a work injury?
Not about a work injury? Unpaid wages → Wage Claim Map · Hurt in a car crash → Accident Claim Map · A medical bill → Medical Bill Map · Unemployment benefits → Unemployment Claim Map · Other problems → robinclaim.com
Nearby states
Sources
- IWCC Handbook on Workers' Compensation and Occupational Diseases
- IWCC Benefit Rates (SAWW, TTD maximum and minimum tables)
- IWCC Resources for Pro Se
- IWCC Forms
- IWCC attorney referral services list
- Illinois Workers' Compensation Act, 820 ILCS 305 (ILGA)
- Illinois Workers' Occupational Diseases Act, 820 ILCS 310 (ILGA)