Motorcycle License in Illinois
Verified against Illinois Secretary of State, Driver Services ·
Compiled and verified against primary state DMV/DPS/BMV sources by GetMotorcycleLicense Research Team — cite-or-deny, with no invented figures. How we source & verify →
Illinois adds a motorcycle classification to an existing driver's licence: Class L for a motor-driven cycle under 150cc and Class M for any motorcycle. The state runs the Cycle Rider Safety Training Program, whose courses are free to Illinois residents 16 and older and whose completion card removes both the written and the riding exam for graduates 18 and older. Illinois has no motorcycle helmet requirement, although eye protection is required by statute.
Illinois's motorcycle license requirements — including a $5 fee to add the endorsement, a minimum age of 18, and a training course completion that can waive the skills test if age 18+ and within 12 months — are verified against Illinois Secretary of State, Driver Services (see 625 ILCS 5/6-118 (licence and permit fee schedule)), current as of 2026-07-28.
Illinois Motorcycle License Requirements at a Glance
| Permit | Class M or Class L Instruction Permit |
|---|---|
| Permit minimum age | 16 |
| Permit fee | — |
| Permit validity | 365 days (730 days for ages 16–17) |
| Minimum age (unrestricted) | 18 |
| License fee | $5 |
| Renewal | $5 / 4 years |
| Knowledge test | Required |
| Skills test | Required |
A driver's licence expires four years from the date of issue, so the motorcycle classification it carries renews on the same cycle. An eight-year option must be offered to qualified applicants no later than 1 July 2027.
Completing Illinois's motorcycle safety course waives the state's motorcycle skills test if age 18+ and within 12 months. See Illinois’s motorcycle safety course.
Engine-size tiers
- Class L (motor-driven cycle under 150cc) (up to 149cc, separate credential) — Class L covers a motor-driven cycle of less than 150cc. Class M covers any motorcycle.
Illinois helmet law
No helmet requirement
Section 11-1404 is the Illinois Vehicle Code provision setting the special equipment persons riding motorcycles must wear, and it requires eye protection only. No helmet requirement appears in it or elsewhere in the Code, so Illinois riders and passengers of any age may ride without a helmet.
625 ILCS 5/11-1404 · verified 2026-07-28
Source Notes
Where a source is stale, conflicting, or required a judgment call, we document it here rather than presenting a single confident-sounding number. See our methodology for how these calls are made.
- Licence classes, ages, permits and fees come from the Illinois Vehicle Code and the Illinois Secretary of State. Training facts come from the Cycle Rider Safety Training Act and the Illinois Department of Transportation, which runs the programme. The absence of a helmet requirement is stated on the authority of the Illinois Vehicle Code's motorcycle equipment section.
- Cycle Rider Safety Training Program courses are free. A provider may take a registration fee set by the Department — currently $20 — which is refunded when the course is completed.
- Illinois is changing how this training is delivered. Public Act 104-0408 took effect on 1 January 2026 and opened the programme to a wider range of providers in place of the previous regional centres, and the Department has an open funding opportunity for new administering partners. Course locations and the administering organisation may change during 2026.
means no primary source publishes that figure — left blank on purpose rather than estimated or copied from an unverified aggregator.
Sources
- 625 ILCS 5/6-118 (licence and permit fee schedule)
- 625 ILCS 5/6-107.1 (instruction permit for a minor)
- 625 ILCS 5/6-103 (what persons shall not be licensed or granted permits)
- 625 ILCS 5/6-105 (instruction permits, 18 and older)
- 625 ILCS 5/6-115 (expiration of driver's license)
- 625 ILCS 5/1-145.001 (definition of a motor driven cycle — the 150cc line)
- Illinois Department of Transportation — Motorcycle Training (Class L and Class M classifications)
Data last verified: 2026-07-28 (verified by: agent) | Source: 625 ILCS 5/6-118 (licence and permit fee schedule)