IL consumer installment loan bonds.
$250.

Illinois requires every consumer installment loan applicant and licensee to maintain a $25,000 surety bond running to the Director under the Consumer Installment Loan Act — filed with the license the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation administers through NMLS. Our premium is 1% of the bond amount, $100 minimum — $250 for this statutory $25,000 bond, and it issues the moment you pay. Any credit screen is a soft pull only — it never affects your score.

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Required for the Illinois consumer installment loan license under 205 ILCS 670/2

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Statutory amount, checkout-priced — $25,000 bond, 1% premium, $250 at checkout

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Multi-year terms available — set it up once for up to 3 years

A-ratedA.M. Best carriersInstantissuance at checkout1% rate$100 minimum

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How it works

Three steps. One sitting.

The bond is one line on your NMLS checklist — and the easiest one to clear. Here's the entire process:

NOW · ONLINE

Apply online

Business details, an effective date, and a term. That is the entire application — any credit screen is a soft pull that never shows as a hard inquiry.

INSTANTLY

Pay & e-sign

This bond is checkout-priced at 1% — $250 for the $25,000 amount — so it issues the moment you pay. Your executed bond and power of attorney generate on the spot.

SAME DAY

File with IDFPR through NMLS

Your executed bond arrives by email, ready to satisfy the bond line on your Illinois consumer installment loan license record in NMLS. Wet-ink original mailed on request.

About this bond

What it is and who needs it.

What the bond actually guarantees

Illinois licenses consumer installment lenders under the Consumer Installment Loan Act, administered by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation's Division of Financial Institutions through the Nationwide Multistate Licensing System (NMLS). Every applicant and licensee must maintain a surety bond in the principal sum of $25,000, issued by a bonding company authorized to do business in Illinois and approved by the Director.

It's a three-party arrangement: you (the principal), the surety carrier, and the Director (the obligee). The statute makes the bond run for the benefit of any consumer who incurs damages from a violation of the Act or its rules — the interest-rate, fee, and conduct protections that govern installment lending in Illinois.

It is not insurance for you — if the surety pays a claim, you repay the surety. And if the Director ever finds a bond insufficient, insecure, or exhausted, an additional bond can be demanded within 30 days — so the base bond has to stay continuously in force. We track the term and send renewal notices 60 and 30 days out.

205 ILCS 670/2Section 2 of the Consumer Installment Loan Act requires every applicant and licensee to maintain a surety bond in the principal sum of $25,000, issued by a bonding company authorized to do business in Illinois and approved by the Director. The bond runs to the Director for the benefit of any consumer who incurs damages from a violation of the Act or rules, and the Director may demand an additional bond within 30 days if a bond is found insufficient, insecure, exhausted, or otherwise doubtful.

You need this bond if you're

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Applying for an Illinois consumer installment loan license — the bond files with your NMLS application

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Renewing your CILA license — the $25,000 bond must stay continuously on file

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A multi-state installment lender adding Illinois to your NMLS footprint

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Answering a Director demand for a replacement or additional bond

One application, issued instantly.

These are the actual issuing fields — business details, an effective date, and a term. That is the entire application.

Start the application →

FAQ

Common questions.

How much is the Illinois consumer installment loan bond?The premium is 1% of the bond amount, $100 minimum. The amount is fixed at $25,000 by 205 ILCS 670/2, so the premium works out to $250 — the same for every licensee, with no quote process.

Do I pay the $25,000?No. You pay $250. The $25,000 is the surety's maximum liability if a valid claim is made against the bond — not a deposit, and nobody holds your money.

How does the bond get to IDFPR?The Illinois consumer installment loan license is administered through NMLS, and the bond satisfies the surety-bond line on your license record. Your e-signed bond arrives by email the moment you pay, ready to file.

Can the state require more than $25,000?Yes — if the Director finds a bond insufficient, insecure, exhausted, or otherwise doubtful, an additional bond in an amount the Director determines must be filed within 30 days of written demand. The $25,000 bond is the statutory baseline every licensee carries.

Is there a credit check?If a credit screen runs on this bond, it is a soft pull only — never a hard inquiry, and it never affects your score.

Related bonds

Other Illinois bonds.

Clear the bond line on your NMLS checklist today.

$250 for the statutory $25,000 bond, issued the moment you pay, soft pull only. Free until issued.

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Your price$250

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