REQUIREMENTS

  1. Must hold a bachelor’s degree or higher from a regionally accredited institution of higher education.
  2. Substitute licenses are valid for five years, and must be renewed every five years to remain valid.

TO APPLY FOR A SUBSTITUTE LICENSE

  1. Submit an application online in the Educator Licensure Information System (ELIS). View this video to help you create an account.
  2. A $50.00 application fee and $1.18 processing fee will be assessed electronically when the application is submitted (please have a credit card available). To complete the process after the license is issued, there is a registration fee assessed electronically of $60.00 plus $1.41 processing fee to validate the license for the remainder of the school fiscal year plus the next five years.
  3. Send an official* transcript showing an awarded Bachelor’s Degree to the following mailing address or email address:

Illinois State Board of Education 
Educator Licensure Division
100 N. First Street
Springfield, IL 62777-0001

[email protected]

*Note: To be official, transcripts must be submitted in the sealed envelope from the college or university or be sent directly by the institution. Emailed transcripts can only come directly from the college or university. Transcripts received that are not in a sealed envelope from the university or sent directly from the university will be considered unofficial and cannot be used for evaluation purposes.

If you have any further questions, please contact your Regional Office of Education.

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