Probate in Illinois: Independent Administration, Costs & Timeline

Illinois offers two tracks for probate: independent administration — which minimizes court involvement and moves faster — and supervised administration, which requires court approval at each major step. Understanding which track applies, and knowing the Illinois-specific rules around the $4 million state estate tax, the Transfer on Death Instrument for real estate, and the 6-month creditor period, is essential for anyone settling an Illinois estate.

Independent vs. Supervised Administration in Illinois

Illinois probate (755 ILCS 5/) gives estates a choice between two administration tracks. The choice matters significantly for cost and timeline.

Independent administration is available when all interested persons consent, or when the will specifically authorizes it. The independent representative (executor or administrator) can sell estate assets, pay debts, and generally manage the estate without obtaining a court order for each action. The representative still files an inventory and accounting, but court supervision is minimal. This is the faster, less expensive path and the default for most Illinois estates with a will.

Supervised administration applies when there is no will, when interested persons do not consent to independent administration, or when the court determines supervision is needed. Every major action — selling real property, paying attorney fees, making distributions — requires a separate court order. Supervised administration is substantially slower and more expensive, but provides more protection when there are disputes or complex family situations.

How Illinois Probate Works: Step by Step

Probate is filed in the Circuit Court of the county where the deceased was domiciled. Cook County (Chicago) has a dedicated Probate Division; many suburban counties route probate through their general civil docket. The Illinois Probate Act of 1975 (755 ILCS 5/1-1 et seq.) governs the process.

1. 1
   File petition and admit will (Days 1–30)The executor named in the will (or an interested person if there is no will) files a Petition for Probate in the Circuit Court. The original will is filed with the court. Letters of Office are issued after the will is admitted and the executor is qualified — these are the legal authority documents needed to act on behalf of the estate.
2. 2
   Notify heirs and beneficiaries (Within 14 days of appointment)The independent representative must mail notice of the probate proceedings to all known heirs and beneficiaries within 14 days of the Letters of Office being issued. Heirs who are not notified preserve their right to contest the will; timely notice starts the limitation clock running on challenges.
3. 3
   Publish and mail notice to creditors (Month 1–2)Illinois requires publishing a Notice to Creditors in a newspaper of general circulation in the county once a week for three consecutive weeks. Known creditors must also receive direct written notice. The 6-month creditor period runs from the date of death — not from publication. A creditor who misses this period is generally barred from making a claim against the estate (755 ILCS 5/18-3).
4. 4
   Inventory and appraise assets (Within 60 days of appointment)The representative files a verified Inventory of all probate assets with their fair market values as of the date of death. Illinois does not require a formal court-appointed appraiser in most cases, but real property and closely held business interests typically require a professional appraisal to support the inventory values and any estate tax filings.
5. 5
   Pay debts and file tax returns (Months 6–10)After the 6-month creditor period, valid debts are paid in the priority order set by Illinois law. The decedent's final federal and Illinois income tax returns are filed. If the estate earned income during administration, a fiduciary income tax return is filed. If the estate exceeds approximately $4 million, an Illinois estate tax return (Form IL-706) must be filed within 9 months of death. Federal estate tax (if applicable above ~$13.99M) is also filed within 9 months.
6. 6
   File accounting and distribute assets (Months 9–14)In independent administration, the representative prepares a final accounting and distributes assets after all interested persons sign a waiver, or files the accounting with the court for approval. Once approved, assets are distributed to beneficiaries per the will (or intestate succession), signed receipts are collected, and the estate is formally closed.

Small Estate Affidavit: Under $100,000

Illinois allows families to bypass probate entirely for small estates using a small estate affidavit (755 ILCS 5/25-1). The requirements:

• Total probate estate value: $100,000 or less
• A minimum of 40 days must have passed since the date of death
• No probate petition may have been filed or be pending
• The affiant must be an heir or successor of the deceased, or a person with a legal interest in the assets

The affiant presents the signed affidavit directly to each asset holder — banks, investment accounts, vehicle title agencies, and similar institutions. Illinois law requires those institutions to transfer the assets to the affiant within a reasonable time after receiving the affidavit. No court filing, no judge, no attorneys required.

Real property cannot be transferred by small estate affidavit alone — a deed or other recorded document is still required. However, an Illinois Transfer on Death Instrument (TODI) on the property eliminates this issue by passing real estate directly to named beneficiaries without probate.

Illinois Estate Tax: The $4 Million Threshold

Illinois is one of a small number of states with its own estate tax, and the threshold is notably lower than the federal exemption. This is the most significant Illinois-specific issue for estates in Chicago and its suburbs, where real estate values have made many middle-class estates technically taxable by Illinois standards.

For Illinois residents whose estates fall between $4 million and $13.99 million, the situation is clear: no federal estate tax, but Illinois estate tax applies. The Illinois estate tax return (Form IL-706) is due within 9 months of death, with a 6-month extension available upon request. Payments made after 9 months accrue interest.

Married couples can take advantage of the portability of the Illinois exemption between spouses through careful estate planning — a surviving spouse can inherit the unused Illinois exemption of the deceased spouse (through an Illinois Qualified Terminable Interest Property (QTIP) trust or similar mechanism) — but this requires advance planning, not something easily done after death.

The practical impact is significant for families with appreciated Chicago-area real estate. A family home purchased for $300,000 that is now worth $1.5 million, combined with retirement accounts, life insurance, and other assets, can easily push a "modest" estate above the Illinois $4 million threshold. Working with an Illinois estate attorney before death — or with a probate attorney early in the process — is important for estates in this range.

Illinois Intestate Succession: Without a Will

When an Illinois resident dies without a valid will, the Illinois Probate Act (755 ILCS 5/2-1) sets out intestate succession. The rules:

• Surviving spouse only (no descendants): All to the surviving spouse.
• Surviving spouse + descendants: 1/2 to the surviving spouse; 1/2 to all descendants equally (per stirpes — children of a deceased child take that child's share).
• No surviving spouse, descendants survive: All to descendants. If descendants are in equal degree (all children, no predeceased children), divide equally. If unequal degree, per stirpes.
• No surviving spouse, no descendants: To parents equally, or to surviving parent. If no parents, to brothers and sisters and their descendants. If none, to grandparents, then their descendants, then more remote relatives. Ultimately, escheats to the State of Illinois.

Illinois does not recognize common-law marriage established in Illinois (common-law marriages legally created in other states before those states abolished the practice may be recognized). Same-sex marriages are fully recognized for intestate succession purposes.

How to Avoid Probate in Illinois

• Transfer on Death Instrument (TODI). Illinois's TODI (765 ILCS 1020), effective 2012, allows homeowners to name beneficiaries who will receive real estate at death without probate. The TODI is revocable, is recorded in the county recorder's office, and has no effect during the owner's lifetime. The named beneficiary must file an affidavit of survivorship within 2 years of the owner's death. This is the most direct probate-avoidance tool for Illinois real estate — a Lady Bird deed (enhanced life estate deed) is not a distinct Illinois instrument; TODI is the Illinois equivalent. For an overview of how transfer on death deeds work generally, see our guide to what probate is.
• Tenancy by the entirety (homestead only). Illinois recognizes tenancy by the entirety for married couples — but only for homestead real estate (765 ILCS 1005/1c). Homestead property held as tenancy by the entirety passes automatically to the surviving spouse and is also protected from individual debts of either spouse. This is a powerful but narrow protection limited to the primary residence.
• Revocable living trust. Assets transferred into a trust during the owner's lifetime pass to beneficiaries through the successor trustee without probate. Particularly valuable for estates with property in multiple states (avoiding ancillary probate elsewhere), complex beneficiary arrangements, or estates over the $4 million Illinois estate tax threshold where trust structures can help manage the tax.
• Joint tenancy with right of survivorship. Deed or account title must expressly state joint tenancy with right of survivorship. Assets held this way pass automatically to the surviving owner(s).
• Beneficiary designations. Retirement accounts, life insurance policies, and payable-on-death (POD) / transfer-on-death (TOD) accounts and investment accounts pass directly to designated beneficiaries. Illinois also allows TOD registration for brokerage and investment accounts under the Uniform TOD Securities Registration Act.

Will Requirements in Illinois

A valid Illinois will must be (755 ILCS 5/4-3):

• In writing
• Signed by the testator (or by someone else at the testator's direction and in their presence)
• Witnessed by two or more credible witnesses who are present at the same time as the testator signs
• The testator must be at least 18 years old (or married, or a member of the armed forces)

Illinois does not recognize holographic wills. An entirely handwritten, unwitnessed will has no legal effect in Illinois. An Illinois resident who drafts a handwritten will without two witnesses dies intestate — Illinois's intestate succession rules control the estate, not the handwritten document, no matter how clearly written it is.

A will executed in another state is valid in Illinois if it complied with the other state's requirements for a valid will (755 ILCS 5/4-7). Out-of-state wills are commonly admitted to Illinois probate when the testator moved to Illinois later in life after executing a will elsewhere.

Illinois also allows a self-proving affidavit — an additional notarized statement signed by the testator and witnesses at the time of will execution. A self-proving affidavit eliminates the need for witness testimony at probate, which is particularly helpful when witnesses may be difficult to locate years after execution.

Executor and Administrator Compensation

Illinois does not set a statutory percentage for executor (independent administrator) compensation. The Probate Act (755 ILCS 5/27-2) requires that compensation be "reasonable" — based on the complexity of the estate, time and effort required, and local practice. In supervised administration, the court determines reasonable compensation. In independent administration, the interested persons must agree; if they disagree, the court decides.

In practice, Illinois estate attorneys and administrators commonly use 2% to 3% of the gross estate as a starting benchmark, adjusting upward for complex estates (contentious beneficiaries, business interests, multi-state assets, tax issues) and downward for straightforward ones. Attorney fees follow the same reasonableness standard.

Both executor compensation and attorney fees are paid from estate assets and are deductible for Illinois estate tax purposes, which reduces the taxable estate value slightly. In an estate near the $4 million Illinois threshold, these deductions can have a meaningful impact on whether Illinois estate tax is owed.