Unclaimed Property in Illinois

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If you own a business in Illinois, you are responsible for keeping unclaimed property, such as employee paychecks. Unclaimed property in Illinois should be held by your business for up to five years. After this time, the property must be reported to the state of Illinois. Businesses that do not report property as required by state law could be subject to an examination by the Illinois Treasurer's Office.

Illinois businesses are required to report any unclaimed property to the state on an annual basis. Illinois currently allows for online reporting of unclaimed property. If your business is not holding any unclaimed property, the state still requires you to file a negative report. If your company is a life insurance company, utility company, or business association, you must file a report on May 1st of each year. If your company is a bank, financial institution, or an other type of insurance company, you must file a report on November 1st of each year. Each report should cover the year five years prior to the filing date.

If you suspect a business is holding some of your unclaimed property and five years has elapsed, you can file a claim through the Illinois State Treasury Department. For more information on unclaimed property in Illinois, browse Business.com and click on the related links.

Making the Most of Unclaimed Property in Illinois

Making the most of unclaimed property in Illinois will require you to determine the holder of the property. Cities and counties may serve as custodians of unclaimed property until certain criteria are met. At that time, custodianship of the property is then turned over to the state. This allows claimants to search for their property in a central location.

Unclaimed property in Illinois can be an inexpensive way to obtain business equipment as companies frequently lose property through misfortune or carelessness. The appropriate agency will require specific forms and procedures in order to approve your claim on the property. Unclaimed property generally falls into one of the following categories:

1. Liquid assets such as uncashed checks, a bank account or the contents of a safe deposit box.

2. Illinois abandoned property that the original owner is unlikely to claim. This is commonly a wrecked vehicle or real estate with delinquent taxes but may also include a treasure trove. Property owners usually have a superior claim to a treasure trove than a trespasser who discovers the property.

3. Illinois treasurer unclaimed property that is confiscated by law enforcement. This is frequently the result of a drug or tax seizure.

Find agencies that handle state of Illinois unclaimed property

Start at the state level if you are looking for property that belongs to a specific person and work down.
Try: The Illinois State Treasurer maintains a database of unclaimed property in the state that you can search by name and city. The Department of Business Affairs and Licensing for Chicago regulates the disposition of unclaimed vehicles in motor vehicle repair shops.

Learn more about the laws regarding Illinois unclaimed properties

Each state has laws regarding the disposition of unclaimed property. These laws should specify the conditions that allow the state to assume custodianship of the property and any conditions that allow the property to revert to the state.
Try: The Illinois General Assembly has the text of Uniform Disposition of Unclaimed Property Act. UPRR specializes in unclaimed property law and has articles on unclaimed property in Illinois.

Buy a vehicle in an Illinois unclaimed property auction

Look at the various auctions that occur regularly throughout Illinois if you are interested in bidding on a car. Vehicles are typically the mainstays of unclaimed property auctions and consist of abandoned vehicles, vehicles seized by law enforcement and surplus vehicles.
Try: The Oswego Police Department holds online auctions of unclaimed property including vehicles. The City of Wheaton puts unclaimed vehicles up for public auction on a regular basis per city ordinance.

The process of turning over Illinois state unclaimed property to the state is called escheatment and legal documents may therefore refer to the property as escheat. Businesses usually encounter escheat in the form of an unclaimed pay check and are generally required to make a good faith effort to find the owner.