# Illinois — Gift card expiration, fee and cash-redemption rules by state

For Illinois, expiration rule is no person shall sell a gift certificate that is subject to: (1) an expiration date earlier than 5 years after the date of issuance; dormancy/service fee rule is no person shall sell a gift certificate that is subject to: (1) an expiration date earlier than 5 years after the date of issuance; or (2) a post-purchase fee; cash redemption threshold is none; covered instruments is The face value of a gift certificate issued on or after January 1, 2008 may not be reduced in value and the holder of a gift certificate issued after January 1, 2008 may not be penalized in any way for non-use or untimely redemption of the gift certificate; statute citation is 815 ILCS 505/2SS(b), recorded from its source on 2026-08-18.

- **State:** Illinois
- **Expiration rule:** no person shall sell a gift certificate that is subject to: (1) an expiration date earlier than 5 years after the date of issuance _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **Dormancy/service fee rule:** no person shall sell a gift certificate that is subject to: (1) an expiration date earlier than 5 years after the date of issuance; or (2) a post-purchase fee _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **Cash redemption threshold:** none
- **Covered instruments:** The face value of a gift certificate issued on or after January 1, 2008 may not be reduced in value and the holder of a gift certificate issued after January 1, 2008 may not be penalized in any way for non-use or untimely redemption of the gift certificate _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **Statute citation:** 815 ILCS 505/2SS(b) _(our reading, not quoted from the source)_

## What the source says

> (b) On or after January 1, 2008, no person shall sell a gift certificate that is subject to: (1) an expiration date earlier than 5 years after the date of issuance; or (2) a post-purchase fee. Any gift certificate issued prior to January 1, 2008 that is subject to a fee must contain a statement clearly and conspicuously printed on the gift certificate stating whether there is a fee, the amount of the fee, how often the fee will occur, that the fee is triggered by inactivity of the gift certificate, and at what point the fee will be charged. The statement may appear on the front or back of the gift certificate in a location where it is visible to any purchaser prior to the purchase. (c) The face value of a gift certificate issued on or after January 1, 2008 may not be reduced in value and the holder of a gift certificate issued after January 1, 2008 may not be penalized in any way for non-use or untimely redemption of the gift certificate.

## Source

- https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/fulltext.asp?DocName=081505050K2SS

Last verified: 2026-08-18. Review by: 2027-08-18.
Part of [Gift card expiration, fee and cash-redemption rules by state](https://referencesource.org/gift-card-consumer-protections-by-state/).