Free Illinois Bill of Sale Template & Generator

Illinois Bill of Sale Requirements

Additional Forms Required in Illinois

• Form VSD 190 (Application for Vehicle Transaction)
• Form RUT-50 (Private Party Vehicle Use Tax)

The most important thing to understand about buying a car privately in Illinois is that you do not pay a 6.25% sales tax on it. That percentage is the dealer rate (Form RUT-25). Private-party sales use Form RUT-50, and the tax is a flat dollar amount from a state table, not a percentage of the price. For a vehicle priced under $15,000, the amount is set by the vehicle's model-year age: $100 for a car 2015 or older, scaling up to $465 for the newest model year. Only when the price reaches $15,000 does a second table kick in, with flat amounts by price bracket — $850 for $15,000–$20,000, rising in steps to $10,100 for vehicles over $1 million.

That structure produces some very buyer-friendly results. A motorcycle, motor-driven cycle, or ATV is a flat $25 no matter what. A family transfer between a spouse, parent, child, or sibling is a flat $15. And a privately acquired trailer is exempt from the tax altogether, with no RUT-50 required. Getting this right can be the difference between paying $100 and wrongly budgeting for a $1,000-plus "sales tax" that Illinois simply does not charge on a private sale.

Illinois runs two clocks. The buyer must apply for the title within 20 days of purchase at a Secretary of State facility using Form VSD 190, while the RUT-50 use-tax return is due within 30 days — different deadlines that trip people up. The seller's job is to file a Seller's Report of Sale with the Secretary of State to release liability, and to keep a copy of the bill of sale.

Notarization is not required anywhere in an Illinois private sale. Emissions testing applies in the Chicago and Metro-East regions on 1996-and-newer gas vehicles, but much of downstate Illinois is exempt. Because the whole tax turns on the price and the vehicle's age, a clear, dated bill of sale is the document that keeps your RUT-50 accurate.