June 24, 2026
Illinois Offers Amnesty Program For Remote Sellers
The 2025 Illinois Tax Delinquency Amnesty Act authorized the Illinois Department of Revenue to offer up two amnesty programs, allowing taxpayers who need to triage historical liabilities – either due to underreporting or non-reporting – to come forward and establish a clean slate with the state. This alert covers the second program, which is designed specifically for remote sellers. Illinois ran the first of those two programs last year.
Unlike other amnesty programs, the upcoming Illinois amnesty offers a powerful incentive: not only will the state waive penalties, but it will also waive any interest that otherwise would have accrued on the disclosed liabilities if the liabilities are paid in full during the 2026 amnesty window.
In contrast to many other amnesty programs, it also allows for a repayment plan of up to 24 months. The program also establishes a simplified tax rate of 9%, which covers both state and local taxes, removing the difficulty of sourcing sales to specific addresses within the state.
The 2026 Amnesty Program
The 2026 Amnesty Program opens on August 1 and runs through October 31, 2026. Eligible companies who participate will receive the amnesty penalty and interest waiver if they:
- File the Remote Retailer Amnesty application electronically through MyTaxIllinois; and
- Arrange payment:
- Pay all outstanding eligible tax liabilities for the amnesty period by October 31, 2026; or
- Request and receive approval for a repayment plan. A down payment will be required for payment plans. While Illinois will waiver all interest accrued to date for companies that ask for a payment plan, additional interest will begin to accrue during the pendency of the payment plan.
Liabilities for reporting periods between January 1, 2021 and June 30, 2026 are eligible for the program. The program covers both state sales tax and local sales taxes that are administered by the Illinois DOR.
Remote retailers who have not filed any tax return for a tax period covered by the program, or who underreported the taxes due on a return filed for an eligible period are open to participate. Unregistered companies must register before participating, following the special instructions. We recommend that companies register as soon as possible to ensure they have time to complete the amnesty process prior to the October 31 deadline.
Companies who participate in the amnesty program must submit their payments electronically with their Remote Retailer Amnesty Application. Those requiring a payment plan should select “payment plan” as their payment method. Interest will begin to accrue on the liability starting on November 1, 2026 for those choosing a payment plan.
Companies who were recently under audit, or who are wrapping up a current audit should contact their Illinois DOR auditor for guidance on filing and paying amnesty liabilities. Please let us know if you’d like Brann & Isaacson to initiate this contact to ensure that audit liabilities receive fair treatment under this program.
If you have a verified sales/use tax overpayment or sales/use tax credit memorandum on your account, you may contact Illinois DOR to have those amounts treated as qualified payments toward amnesty liabilities that are disclosed. More details about eligibility can be found here.
If you have questions or would like to discuss whether this amnesty program is right for your company, please reach out to a member of our tax team.
Martin Eisenstein | meisenstein@brannlaw.com
David Swetnam-Burland | dsb@brannlaw.com
Nat Bessey | nbessey@brannlaw.com
Jamie Szal | jszal@brannlaw.com