§ 12-1001 — Personal property exempt

The following personal property, owned by the debtor, is exempt from judgment, attachment, or distress for rent: (a) All household goods, including but not limited to, the debtor's and the debtor's dependents' food, eating and cooking utensils, bedding, furniture, books, refrigerator, stove, microwave oven, kitchen appliances, necessary provisions, washing machine, clothes dryer, vacuum cleaner, yard equipment and household equipment and tools, all personal possessions, including, but not limited to, clothing, pets, personal health aids, medications, computers or similar electronic devices and telephones, except that a creditor may obtain court permission to levy on any item of furniture, appliance, electronic device, yard equipment, precious item, utensils, set of utensils, or any other item exempt under this subsection that has a resale value of more than $5,000 unless that item is exempt under another provision of this Section. The debtor may exempt one piece of jewelry up to a value of $5,000; (b) The debtor's equity interest, not to exceed $4,000 in value, of which $1,000 is an automatic exemption pursuant to Section 12-1001.1, in any other property; (c) The debtor's interest, not to exceed $3,600 in value, in any one motor vehicle; (d) The debtor's equity interest, not to exceed $2,250 in value, in any implements, professional books, or tools of the trade of the debtor; (e) Professionally prescribed health aids for the debtor or a dependent of the debtor; (f) All proceeds payable because of the death of the insured and the aggregate net cash value of any or all life insurance and endowment policies and annuity contracts payable to a wife or husband of the insured, or to a child, parent, or other person dependent upon the insured, or to a revocable or irrevocable trust which names the wife or husband of the insured or which names a child, parent, or other person dependent upon the insured as the primary beneficiary of the trust, whether the power to change the beneficiary is reserved to the insured or not and whether the insured or the insured's estate is a contingent beneficiary or not; (g) The debtor's right to receive: (1) a social security benefit, unemployment compensation, or public assistance benefit; (2) a veteran's benefit; (3) a disability, illness, or unemployment benefit; and (4) alimony, support, or separate maintenance, to the extent reasonably necessary for the support of the debtor and any dependent of the debtor. (h) The debtor's right to receive, or property that is traceable to: (1) an award under a crime victim's reparation law; (2) a payment on account of the wrongful death of an individual of whom the debtor was a dependent, to the extent reasonably necessary for the support of the debtor; (3) a payment under a life insurance contract that insured the life of an individual of whom the debtor was a dependent, to the extent reasonably necessary for the support of the debtor or a dependent of the debtor; (4) a payment, not to exceed $22,500 in value, on account of personal bodily injury of the debtor or an individual of whom the debtor was a dependent; and (5) any restitution payments made to persons pursuant to the federal Civil Liberties Act of 1988 and the Aleutian and Pribilof Island Restitution Act, P.L. 100-383. For purposes of this subsection (h), a debtor's right to receive an award or payment shall be exempt for a maximum of 2 years after the debtor's right to receive the award or payment accrues; property traceable to an award or payment shall be exempt for a maximum of 5 years after the award or payment accrues; and an award or payment and property traceable to an award or payment shall be exempt only to the extent of the amount of the award or payment, without interest or appreciation from the date of the award or payment. (i) The debtor's right to receive an award under Part 20 of Article II of this Code relating to crime victims' awards. (j) Moneys held in an account invested in the Illinois College Savings Pool of which the debtor is a participant or donor and funds invested in an ABLE Account as defined by Section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code, except the following non-exempt contributions: (1) any contribution to such account by the debtor as participant or donor that is made with the actual intent to hinder, delay, or defraud any creditor of the debtor; (2) any contributions to such account by the debtor as participant during the 365 day period prior to the date of filing of the debtor's petition for bankruptcy that, in the aggregate during such period, exceed the amount of the annual gift tax exclusion under Section 2503(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, in effect at the time of contribution; or (3) any contributions to such account by the debtor as participant during the period commencing 730 days prior to and ending 366 days prior to the date of filing of the debtor's petition for bankruptcy that, in the aggregate during such period, exceed the amount of the annual gift tax exclusion under Section 2503(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, in effect at the time of contribution. For purposes of this subsection (j), "account" includes all accounts for a particular designated beneficiary, of which the debtor is a participant or donor. Money due the debtor from the sale of any personal property that was exempt from judgment, attachment, or distress for rent at the time of the sale is exempt from attachment and garnishment to the same extent that the property would be exempt had the same not been sold by the debtor. If a debtor owns property exempt under this Section and he or she purchased that property with the intent of converting nonexempt property into exempt property or in fraud of his or her creditors, that property shall not be exempt from judgment, attachment, or distress for rent. Property acquired within 6 months of the filing of the petition for bankruptcy shall be presumed to have been acquired in contemplation of bankruptcy. The personal property exemptions set forth in this Section shall apply only to individuals and only to personal property that is used for personal rather than business purposes. The personal property exemptions set forth in this Section shall not apply to or be allowed against any money, salary, or wages due or to become due to the debtor that are required to be withheld in a wage deduction proceeding under Part 8 of this Article XII.

Legislative History

(Source: P.A. 104-120, eff. 1-1-26 .)