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Illinois public records: who holds what

In Illinois, deeds are recorded by the Recorder of Deeds or County Clerk; birth and death certificates come from the County Clerk / Illinois Department of Public Health, Division of Vital Records; and requests for other government records fall under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act. Below: who holds every other record, what copies cost and the official link for each office.

Last checked against official sources on .

On this page
  1. Who holds what in Illinois
  2. Public records law in Illinois
  3. Probate records and wills in Illinois
  4. How Illinois organizes its records
  5. Other records: background checks, voters, businesses, maps
  6. Counties in Illinois
  7. Warnings from official sources
  8. Official copies vs look-alike sites
  9. Official directories
  10. Sources

Who holds what in Illinois

The office that keeps each record, and the fee the law or the office sets for a copy. Open a record type for the full rules, ordering steps and older records.

RecordWho holds itCopy fee
DeedsCounty Recorder of Deeds or the County Clerk (recorder functions) in each of Illinois's 102 counties; in Cook County, the Cook County Clerk's Recordings Division1Cook County: non-certified paper copy $27.50; non-certified electronic download $52
Property recordsCook and St. Clair: county assessor; 17 commission counties: supervisor of assessments; other 83 counties: township or multi-township assessors, supervised by the chief county assessment officer3—
Court recordsIllinois Supreme Court, Appellate Court and Circuit Courts; the circuit court (25 judicial circuits) is the court of original jurisdiction; in each county voters elect a Circuit Clerk (4-year term) who maintains the records of all cases4—
Marriage recordsCounty clerk of the county where the marriage occurred (certified copies)5$55
Divorce recordsClerk of the Circuit Court in the county where the dissolution was granted6$56
Birth certificatesIDPH Division of Vital Records (Springfield) and the county clerk of the county of birth7IDPH: $15 long-form certified (information collected at birth) or $10 short-form certified; $2 each additional copy of same certificate at same time; $10 genealogical copy7
Death certificatesIDPH Division of Vital Records and the county clerk of the county of death8IDPH: $19 certified, $4 each additional; $10 genealogical, $2 each additional; $10 research copy8
Probate and willsClerk of the Circuit Court (probate division/cases) in the county9—

Public records law in Illinois

Illinois Freedom of Information Act (5 ILCS 140) Read the law10

This law covers records that agencies hold, such as a county office's correspondence or a property file. Recorded deeds, vital records and court files usually have their own rules, set out in each record section.

Who can ask
Anyone; no residency requirement; public body may not ask why except to decide commercial purpose or fee waiver11
Response time
5 business days after receipt (day 1 = first business day after receipt); may be extended once by 5 more business days with written notice; 21 business days for commercial requests11
Copy fees
First 50 pages of black-and-white letter/legal copies free; additional pages max $0.15/page; color or abnormal sizes at actual cost; electronic copies at cost of recording medium; no search fee except commercial requests (up to $10/hour after first 8 hours)11
If a request is refused
Request for Review with the Attorney General's Public Access Counselor within 60 calendar days of denial, or lawsuit in circuit court; no response within 5 business days = denial11
What is exempt
Private information (SSN, driver's license no., financial, medical, home phone/email, home address), clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy, certain law-enforcement records, safety, preliminary drafts, trade secrets, bids until award, unduly burdensome requests11
More on the Illinois Freedom of Information Act
Response time commercial
21 business days11
Fees commercial search
Up to $10/hour for search/retrieval/redaction, first 8 hours free (commercial requesters only)11
Request format
Written request; no specific form may be required; mail, personal delivery, fax, email accepted11
Who handles complaints
Public Access Counselor, Office of the Attorney General, 500 S. 2nd Street, Springfield, IL 62701; (877) 299-3642; [email protected]12
Courts
Judicial branch, including circuit clerks' offices, is not subject to FOIA; court records are open under other laws11

How to write a public records request

Probate records and wills in Illinois

Who holds it
Clerk of the Circuit Court (probate division/cases) in the county9
Remote access
Probate case documents are not remotely viewable by the general public; original wills deposited with the court are excluded from remote access13
Cook (example)
Cook County Circuit Court Probate Division handles wills and estates under the Probate Act of 1975 (755 ILCS 5)14

How this works in other states: probate records and wills by state.

How Illinois organizes its records

  • Cook County consolidated clerk. Cook County Clerk handles recordings (deeds), vital records, assumed names and suburban elections; Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County is a separate office for court, divorce and probate records.9
  • Township assessors. In 83 township counties, property is assessed by elected township or multi-township assessors (900+ positions), not by a county office.3
  • Courts outside FOIA. Circuit clerks are not 'public bodies' under FOIA; court records are requested from the clerk under court rules.11

Other records: background checks, voters, businesses, maps

Criminal history checks

State repository
Illinois State Police, Bureau of Identification (Joliet)15
Who may order
Anyone may obtain conviction information under the Uniform Conviction Information Act (20 ILCS 2635); only convictions are released to the public16
Fee
UCIA name-based inquiry: $16.00 manual/paper, $10.00 electronic; UCIA fingerprint card $20.00 paper / $15.00 Live Scan17
How to request
Electronic name-based UCIA searches through ISP CHIRP (chirp.isp.illinois.gov/CHIRP/login.action)15
Your own record
Own full record: Access & Review via Live Scan fingerprinting, no charge17

Sex offender registry

Official registry
sor.isp.illinois.gov/sorpublic (Illinois State Police Offender Registry; also Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth registry)18

Inmate and jail lookups

State prisons
Illinois Department of Corrections Individual in Custody Search: idoc.illinois.gov/…19

Voter records

Public or restricted
Restricted: electronic voter registration records only to political committees and government entities20
Check your registration
Check your own registration with your local election authority (county clerk or board of election commissioners); e.g. Cook County Clerk 'What Is My Registration Status'21
State agency
Illinois State Board of Elections (elections.il.gov); statewide 'Am I Registered To Vote In Illinois?' lookup: ova.elections.il.gov/…22

Business names (DBA)

DBA at county
Sole proprietorships, general partnerships and professional service corporations register assumed names with the county clerk23
Entities at Secretary of State
LLCs, LLPs, LPs and corporations are not required to register assumed names with the county clerk; LLCs and LLPs maintain registration with the Secretary of State23
Fee (Cook example)
Cook County: $50 registration fee23
Secretary of State search
Illinois Secretary of State, Department of Business Services - Business Entity Search: apps.ilsos.gov/businessentitysearch (corporations, not-for-profits, LPs, LLCs, LLPs; individual searches only)24

Liens and UCC filings

UCC central
Illinois Secretary of State, Uniform Commercial Code Division (501 S. Second St., Rm. 350W, Springfield, IL 62756; 217-782-7518); online UCC/Federal Tax Lien Database Search: apps.ilsos.gov/uccsearch25
Liens at the county
State/federal tax liens, mechanic's liens and UCC fixture-related filings recorded with the county recorder/clerk (Cook example: tax liens $38, mechanic's lien $64)2
County UCC (Cook)
Cook County: UCC name search $10; UCC copy $1/page2

GIS and parcel maps

State GIS portal
Illinois Geospatial Data Clearinghouse (Illinois State Geological Survey): clearinghouse.isgs.illinois.edu26

Historical and genealogy records

State archives
Illinois State Archives (Secretary of State; Norton Building, Springfield) plus 7 Illinois Regional Archives Depositories (IRAD) on state university campuses; IRAD page: ilsos.gov/departments/archives/irad.html27
Indexes
Statewide Marriage Index 1763-1900; Death Certificates Index 1916-19728
Vital records for genealogy
Births 75+ years old and deaths 20+ years old available as uncertified genealogical copies28
Death cert copies
State Archives holds microfilm of death certificates for 1916-1947 only (copies in person at the Reference Room); IDPH or the county clerk for other years; pre-1916 deaths from the county clerk or IRAD29

Counties in Illinois

20 counties with a full guide

Each guide lists the office for every record type, the official online searches, copy fees, phones and hours.

All 102 counties

Names in bold open our guide. Names with an arrow go to the county's own website, where the US Census Bureau lists one and it opened when we checked.30

Warnings from official sources

  • Home title theft / deed fraud; avoid paid 'title lock' services. AG warns of deed fraud and says paid title-lock monitoring duplicates free county property fraud alerts (Illinois Attorney General)1
  • Cook County free Property Fraud Alert. Free alert when a document is recorded against your property (Cook County Clerk)31

Official copies vs look-alike sites

A certified copy comes only from the office that holds the record; reports and "research copies" sold by commercial sites are not issued by any Illinois office. How to tell an official record source from a paid look-alike.

Official directories

Lists that name the office in every county.

Sources

Every fact above links to the official page it comes from; all 33 sources were checked on November 4, 2026. Fees and rules change, so check the office's own page before you pay or travel.

  1. Beware of the Home Title Theft Scam (fact sheet)Office of the Illinois Attorney General
  2. Recording FeesCook County Clerk's Office
  3. PTAX-1004 The Illinois Property Tax System: A general guide to the local property tax cycleIllinois Department of Revenue
  4. The Circuit Court of IllinoisIllinois Courts
  5. Marriage RecordsIllinois Department of Public Health
  6. Dissolution of Marriage RecordsIllinois Department of Public Health
  7. Obtain a Birth CertificateIllinois Department of Public Health
  8. Obtain a Death CertificateIllinois Department of Public Health
  9. Recording FAQsCook County Clerk's Office
  10. 2025 Public Access Counselor Annual ReportOffice of the Illinois Attorney General
  11. Illinois Freedom of Information Act Frequently Asked Questions By the PublicOffice of the Illinois Attorney General (Public Access Counselor)
  12. Public Access CounselorOffice of the Illinois Attorney General
  13. Illinois Supreme Court Remote Access PolicySupreme Court of Illinois (hosted on efile.illinoiscourts.gov)
  14. Probate DivisionClerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County
  15. Bureau of IdentificationIllinois State Police
  16. Bureau of Identification - Background ChecksIllinois State Police
  17. Criminal History Fee ScheduleIllinois State Police
  18. Illinois State Police Offender RegistryIllinois State Police
  19. Individual in Custody SearchIllinois Department of Corrections
  20. Registration File RequestsCook County Clerk's Office
  21. Your Voter InformationCook County Clerk's Office
  22. Am I Registered To Vote In Illinois? (Registration Lookup)Illinois State Board of Elections
  23. Assumed Business Name RegistrationCook County Clerk's Office
  24. Business Entity SearchIllinois Secretary of State
  25. Uniform Commercial CodeIllinois Secretary of State
  26. About - Illinois Geospatial Data ClearinghouseIllinois State Geological Survey
  27. Illinois State ArchivesIllinois Secretary of State
  28. GenealogyIllinois Department of Public Health
  29. Illinois Death Certificates, 1916-1972Illinois Secretary of State / State Archives
  30. Government Units List 2026US Census Bureau
  31. Property Fraud UnitCook County Clerk's Office
  32. Circuit Court ClerksIllinois Courts
  33. Property Tax Number Information - County Contact InformationIllinois Department of Revenue