Illinois Retirement Asset Protection Laws

In the land of Lincoln, every type of qualified retirement plan and individual retirement arrangement is protected from most creditors. The anti-creditor protections extend to the following long list of plans:

• self-employed plans, stock bonus, pension, profit sharing, annuity or similar plan or arrangements;
• plans for self-employed individuals and simplified employee pensions (SEPs);
• government and church retirement plans;
• individual retirement annuities or accounts;
• public employee pension plans created under the Illinois Pension Code;
• annuities or benefits under the municipal retirement fund;
• general assembly retirement system benefits;
• benefits from policemen's benefit and annuity funds;
• benefits from the firefighters' retirement fund for cities with 500,000 or less inhabitants;
• firemen's annuity fund benefits;
• benefits for employees, officers, and officials for cities and counties with over 500,000 inhabitants;
• benefits for park and retirement board employees for cities with over 500,000 inhabitants;
• benefits for laborers and retirement board employees for cities with over 500,000 inhabitants;
• sanitary district employees' and trustees' retirement system;
• retirement system benefits of state employees, state universities, teachers, and judges;
• pension fund benefits of public library and house of correction employees; and
• public school teachers' pension and retirement fund benefits in cities with over 500,000 inhabitants.