How long does an Illinois medical license take?

IDFPR publishes no processing time for the physician license; it strongly encourages applying at least 8 to 10 weeks before you need it and says a significant factor is how fast you secure the required items. Files that need the Medical Board wait for one of its twice-monthly meetings, and on the compact route IMLCC’s Year 9 averages were 38 days from application to a Letter of Qualification, then 22 days from qualification to issued licenses.

Is Illinois in the IMLC?

Yes. Illinois enacted the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact in 2015, issues licenses through it, and has been able to serve as a state of principal license since 2017. In IMLCC’s Year 9, April 2025 to March 2026, IDFPR approved 453 Letters of Qualification and issued 1,013 licenses through the compact.

Can I use the IMLC if I once held an Illinois license?

Not according to IDFPR’s compact quick reference, dated 2018 and still linked from its physician page: it tells anyone who ever held an Illinois physician license not to apply through the compact and to restore that license instead. Reinstating an expired license costs $230 plus lapsed renewal fees of up to $1,400, and after more than 3 years expired or inactive IDFPR also wants evidence of current competence, such as sworn proof of active practice in another jurisdiction.

Do MDs and DOs apply differently in Illinois?

No. IDFPR issues both the same Physician and Surgeon license through the same application and $500 fee, and the IMLCC lists a single Illinois fee; DOs send COMLEX-USA scores from NBOME, at $65, instead of USMLE scores from FSMB, at $70.

Do I need an Illinois license to treat Illinois patients by telehealth?

Yes, with narrow exceptions. Illinois law requires anyone treating a patient located in Illinois by telehealth to be licensed or authorized to practice in Illinois, and the state has no out-of-state telehealth registration; the Medical Practice Act’s exceptions include periodic consultations with an Illinois licensee, a second opinion for one, and care that follows treatment first given to the patient in the state where you are licensed.

Does Illinois require fingerprints or a jurisprudence exam?

Fingerprints yes, jurisprudence exam no. Every direct applicant completes an Illinois State Police and FBI check through an Illinois-licensed vendor, at $30 plus the vendor’s fee, with prints taken no more than 60 days before applying; out of state, a local agency can roll a card that an Illinois vendor scans. On the compact route, your state of principal license runs the check.

Does Illinois require a state controlled substance license?

Yes, if you will prescribe controlled substances in Illinois: IDFPR issues a separate controlled substance license, a prerequisite for your DEA registration in Illinois. Under a variance signed October 15, 2026 that runs one year, physicians pay $5 to apply and $5 a year at renewal, against $100 and $50 a year in the amended rule, and holding the license means registering with the Illinois Prescription Monitoring Program.

Is FCVS required in Illinois?

No. IDFPR accepts an FCVS profile, which should cover your medical school transcript and diploma, ECFMG certification, postgraduate training, and exam history, but does not require one; it costs $395 and includes your exam transcripts.

When does an Illinois medical license expire?

Every Illinois physician license expires on July 31 every third year, the next time in 2029, and a new license runs until the next of those dates. Renewal costs $543, or $181 if you have held the license 365 days or fewer when you sign, and the first renewal is exempt from the 150 CME hours, though IDFPR applies the 1-hour sexual harassment prevention requirement from the first renewal.

Illinois physician license: fees, timeline, requirements, and common delays

Q: How much does an Illinois medical license cost?

About $600 for an MD and $595 for a DO in published fees: the $500 application fee, a $70 USMLE or $65 COMLEX transcript, and the $30 Illinois State Police and FBI fingerprint fee. The fingerprint vendor’s own fee, which IDFPR does not publish, certifications from your original and current licensing states, and FCVS if you use it come on top. Through the IMLC, fees total $1,200, with $700 to the IMLCC and $500 for Illinois.

Illinois licenses MD and DO physicians through one agency, the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), and is an IMLC member that can be your state of principal license. Applying by endorsement, an MD pays about $600 and a DO $595: the $500 application fee, a $70 USMLE or $65 COMLEX transcript, and the $30 Illinois State Police and FBI fingerprint fee, plus the fingerprint vendor’s own fee. Through the compact, fees are $700 to the IMLCC plus $500 for Illinois. IDFPR publishes no processing time and advises applying at least 8 to 10 weeks before you need the license. The friction is fingerprints: only an Illinois-licensed vendor can submit them, from prints taken no more than 60 days before applying.

Illinois at a glance.

License: Licensed Physician and Surgeon (MD or DO), renewed every three years
MD and DO: One agency, IDFPR, with one license, application, and fee for both
IMLC: Member state, issuing licenses. Illinois can be the SPL; $700 IMLCC fee plus $500 for Illinois
FCVS: Accepted, not required
Uniform Application: Not used
Fingerprints: Required: Illinois State Police and FBI, through an Illinois-licensed vendor
Jurisprudence exam: None
Interview: Not routine; possible if documents conflict
Board fee: $500 application fee, nonrefundable
Renewal: Every three years on July 31: $543, or $181 for a license held a year or less
CME: 150 hours every three years, at least 60 formal

Which route fits.

MD and DO applicants file the same application, for the same $500 fee, with IDFPR, and the IMLC is a second way to a full Illinois license. Illinois has no out-of-state telehealth registration: state law requires anyone treating a patient located in Illinois by telehealth to be licensed or authorized to practice in Illinois.

Licensure by endorsement.

Who it fits: Any MD or DO actively licensed in another state, US jurisdiction, or country: it is IDFPR’s route for physicians already licensed elsewhere, and it suits those the compact excludes, such as physicians without board certification. Illinois law gives service members and spouses who are stationed in, live in, or are moving to Illinois a decision within 30 days after IDFPR has every required document.
The trade-off: The full Illinois file: your school, each training program, certifications from your original and current licensing states, and fingerprints through an Illinois-licensed vendor, with no published processing time. It costs less than the compact: about $600 for an MD or $595 for a DO, plus the vendor’s fingerprint fee.

Licensing board: Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.

The IMLC.

Who it fits: Physicians whose state of principal license is another member state and who meet the compact’s terms, which include specialty certification. IDFPR’s compact quick reference, dated 2018 and still linked from its physician page, says anyone who ever held an Illinois physician license cannot receive another through the compact and must restore it instead. Illinois can also be your state of principal license, to add other member states.
The trade-off: It costs more: $700 to the IMLCC plus $500 for Illinois, none of it refundable, for a separate Illinois license, against about $600 in published fees to apply directly. Adding Illinois to a Letter of Qualification still within its 365 days costs $600, a $100 handling fee plus the $500.

Restoring a former Illinois license.

Who it fits: Physicians whose Illinois physician license has expired or been placed on inactive status: Illinois reinstates that license rather than issuing a new one, and IDFPR’s 2018 compact quick reference sends former licensees here rather than to the compact.
The trade-off: Reinstating an expired license costs $230 plus lapsed renewal fees of up to $1,400. After more than 3 years expired or inactive, IDFPR also wants evidence of current competence, such as sworn proof of active practice in another jurisdiction, and it can call an oral interview before the Medical Board when documents are questioned.

What it costs.

MD license by endorsement
Application fee	$500
USMLE transcript (FSMB)	$70
Fingerprint check, Illinois State Police and FBI	$30 plus vendor fee
All-in	$600 plus the fingerprint vendor’s fee
Our service fee	Quoted with your plan

DO license by endorsement
Application fee	$500
COMLEX-USA transcript (NBOME)	$65
Fingerprint check, Illinois State Police and FBI	$30 plus vendor fee
All-in	$595 plus the fingerprint vendor’s fee
Our service fee	Quoted with your plan

MD or DO license through the IMLC
IMLCC application fee	$700
Illinois license fee, from the IMLCC fee table	$500
All-in	$1,200
Our service fee	Quoted with your plan

The $500 goes to IDFPR with the application, and the Medical Practice Act makes it nonrefundable. The $30 is the Illinois State Police fee for the state and FBI check; the vendor that takes or scans your prints adds its own fee. Transcript fees go to FSMB or NBOME, and an FCVS profile already includes your transcripts. On the IMLC route, the $700 goes to the IMLCC, which lists every compact fee as non-refundable; adding Illinois to a Letter of Qualification still within its 365 days costs a $100 handling fee plus the $500.

Left out of every total: the fingerprint vendor’s own fee, which IDFPR does not publish, and, for a card rolled out of state, the local agency’s fee; certifications from your original and current licensing states, at each board’s own fee; FCVS if you choose it ($395), which replaces the separate exam transcript; for international graduates, ECFMG’s $70 certification status report and notarized translations of any foreign-language documents; and, for prescribers, the Illinois controlled substance license ($5 under a temporary variance, $100 under the amended rule) and the $888 DEA registration. On the IMLC route, fingerprints and verifications run through your state of principal license, at its fees.

Fees change; verified October 25, 2026.

How long it takes.

Twice a monthMedical Board review, for files that need itThe Medical Board meets on the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of each month and reviews files such as training from a program outside the approved list; for an exam time-limit variance, IDFPR asks applicants to allow at least 2 weeks after the meeting for a final decision.Board-published
60 daysFingerprint window before you applyIDFPR’s rules and fingerprint guide require prints taken no more than 60 days before the application is submitted.Board-published
30 daysDecision for service members and spousesIllinois law requires IDFPR to review and decide a qualifying service member’s or spouse’s application within 30 days after it receives all necessary documentation, state and federal records included.Statutory deadline
38 daysIMLC application to Letter of QualificationIMLCC’s Year 9 average across the compact, April 2025 to March 2026; 55% received the letter in 30 days or less.IMLCC average
22 daysIMLC qualification to licenses issuedIMLCC’s Year 9 average for the next stage, from qualification to the requested state licenses; 47% received them in 7 days or less. The two stages are separate averages, not a total.IMLCC average

IDFPR publishes no processing time for the physician license, and Illinois sets no general deadline for acting on an application. IDFPR strongly encourages applying at least 8 to 10 weeks before you need the license and says a significant factor is how fast you secure the required items. An application left incomplete for 3 years is denied and its fees forfeited, and no board guarantees a date.

What the file involves.

A typical Illinois file by endorsement moves between 7 parties, more if your training spans several programs, and 7 core document types: IDFPR, your medical school, each training program, FSMB or NBOME for your scores, the boards of the state where you were first licensed and of your current state of licensure, and an Illinois-licensed fingerprint vendor that sends your prints to the Illinois State Police and the FBI. When your first and current states are the same, it is 6 parties. International graduates add ECFMG and their undergraduate college, and on the IMLC route the Illinois file involves 3 parties: the IMLCC, your state of principal license, and IDFPR.

IDFPR, advised by the Illinois State Medical BoardTakes the application and fee, checks your licensure and disciplinary history through FSMB, and issues the license.
Your medical schoolSends an official transcript from the program that granted your degree.
Each postgraduate training programCertifies the training that makes up your 24 months, with its start and end dates.
FSMB or NBOMESends your USMLE or COMLEX-USA scores as proof of your licensing exam.
The board of the state where you were first licensedCertifies that license: its issue date and status, the exams behind it, and any disciplinary record.
The board of your current state of licensureSends the same certification for your current license, unless that is the state where you were first licensed.
An Illinois-licensed fingerprint vendorSends your prints electronically to the Illinois State Police and the FBI; out of state, it can scan a card a local agency rolled.

Postgraduate training: 24 months of approved postgraduate clinical training, including a completed second year, for US and international graduates alike. ACGME, AOA, and Royal College or CFPC programs count, other programs need Medical Board approval, and some physicians first licensed elsewhere before 1988 may qualify with 12 months.
Exam time limits: Every USMLE step or COMLEX-USA level passed within ten years of passing the first, or twelve for MD/PhD and DO/PhD graduates, under the rule amended in December 2024, and no more attempts than the exam programs allow, now four per step or level. IDFPR’s physician FAQ, last revised in April 2024, still gives seven years for USMLE.
Time out of practice: Physicians who have not practiced or trained in the 2 years before applying must show professional capacity to the Medical Board, which can require more testing, training, or remedial education; since August 2026, completing a re-entry course is one of the criteria it weighs.
International graduates: ECFMG certification or a Fifth Pathway, 2 years of undergraduate education, at least 4 years of medical education, and the same 24 months of approved training.
Board certification: Not required for an Illinois license by endorsement. The IMLC requires specialty certification, or a time-unlimited certificate, recognized by the ABMS or the AOA’s Bureau of Osteopathic Specialists.

We run the Illinois file.

We do

Check your IMLC eligibility, and whether a past Illinois license points you to restoration instead, before any compact fee is paid.
Prepare the Illinois application and check every answer against IDFPR’s current requirements before it goes in.
Request and chase every verification: your school, each training program, your exam scores, and your original and current licensing states, through FCVS where you use it.
Route your fingerprints through an Illinois-licensed vendor, by live scan or mailed card, inside the 60-day window.
Answer every IDFPR request and follow the file until the license issues.

You do

Share your credentials and license history once, in our secure portal.
Approve your application answers and sign the attestations.
Sign IDFPR’s third-party authorization before a witness and a notary; without it, the Department will not discuss your file with anyone acting for you.
Get fingerprinted, at an Illinois vendor or on a card rolled near you.

Get My Licensing Plan

Staying licensed.

Renewal cycle: Every three years: every Illinois physician license expires on July 31, the next time in 2029, and a new license runs until the next of those dates. Renewal costs $543, or $181 if you have held the license 365 days or fewer when you sign.
CME: 150 hours every three years, at least 60 of them in formal programs; licensees who live and practice in other states owe them too, though CME that meets another state’s requirement can count. The first renewal is exempt from the hours. Mandatory topics, each of which can count toward the 150: 1 hour of sexual harassment prevention every renewal, which IDFPR applies from the first; 1 hour of implicit bias training every renewal that requires CE, with maternal health content from July 1, 2026 for physicians who report providing maternal care; 1 hour each of cultural competency and, if you treat adults 26 or older, Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias, before the first renewal that requires CE and then every six years; 1 hour of safe opioid prescribing each renewal period if you are licensed to prescribe controlled substances; and mandated reporter training at least every six years if you work with children.
State controlled-substance registration: Required to prescribe controlled substances in Illinois: an IDFPR controlled substance license, a prerequisite for your DEA registration in Illinois, which must carry the same address. Under an IDFPR variance signed October 15, 2026 that expires a year after signing, physicians pay $5 to apply and $5 a year at renewal, against $100 and $50 a year in the amended rule. The license expires with your physician license, and prescribing at several locations does not take a separate one for each.
Prescription monitoring: Register with the Illinois Prescription Monitoring Program, run by the Department of Human Services, once you hold an Illinois controlled substance license. When you write an initial prescription for a Schedule II narcotic such as an opioid, document an attempt to check it, except in oncology or palliative care or for a hospital emergency department supply of 7 days or less for an acute, traumatic condition; from January 1, 2027, the check also covers initial Schedule II stimulant prescriptions and every Schedule II opioid and Schedule IV benzodiazepine prescription.
DEA registration: $888 for three years, with a separate registration for Illinois.
E-prescribing: Required for Schedule II to V controlled substance prescriptions since January 1, 2024, with listed exemptions, among them prescribers who certify they will issue no more than 150 in 12 months (50 from January 1, 2029).
Physician profile: Complete your IDFPR physician profile within 60 days of licensure; IDFPR processes no renewal until it is complete.
Reporting duties: Report to IDFPR within 60 days any adverse action against you by another jurisdiction, a peer review body, an institution, or a court, a surrender while under investigation, and adverse liability judgments or settlements. From January 1, 2027, physicians must also report sexual or intimate conduct by a health professional within 24 hours of witnessing it, having reasonable cause to believe it occurred, or hearing of it from a patient.