MEETING RULES: ILLINOIS
Illinois meeting rules,
between elections.
Illinois sets the same notice window in both of its acts: no less than 10 and no more than 30 days before any membership meeting, in a condominium and in a common interest community alike.
Board meetings are open to owners under both acts and noticed at least 48 hours ahead, with six listed reasons for closing part of one and a rule that the vote itself happens in the open.
Our reading, to support your review, not legal advice.
Confirm with your attorney before the board acts.
Reviewed on Oct 12, 2026
NOTICE
Notice for the annual meeting in Illinois
Days below are counted back from the meeting date. Where the statute sets a ceiling as well as a floor, the notice has to land inside the window, not simply before it.
Common interest community
Illinois Common Interest Community Association Act
| Notice | The rule | Section |
|---|---|---|
| Any membership meeting | 10 to 30 days beforeNotice of any membership meeting details the time, place and purpose and goes out no less than 10 and no more than 30 days before the meeting. The membership holds an annual meeting, and a special meeting of the membership may be called by the president, the board, 20% of the membership, or another method the community instruments prescribe.How it travels: A prescribed delivery method under the act. | 765 ILCS 160/1-40(a), (b) |
Condominium
Illinois Condominium Property Act
| Notice | The rule | Section |
|---|---|---|
| Any membership meeting | 10 to 30 days beforeThe bylaws must provide that written notice of any membership meeting gives members no less than 10 and no more than 30 days of notice of the time, place and purpose. The members hold an annual meeting, one purpose of which is electing the board of managers, and a special meeting can be called by the president, the board or 20% of the unit owners.How it travels: Mailed or delivered. By electronic transmission only where the condominium instruments or rules expressly provide for it and the unit owner consented. | 765 ILCS 605/18(b) |
Worked example: a meeting on Dec 1, 2026
- Common interest community, any membership meeting: for a meeting on Dec 1, 2026, notice goes out between Nov 1 and Nov 21, 2026.
- Condominium, any membership meeting: for a meeting on Dec 1, 2026, notice goes out between Nov 1 and Nov 21, 2026.
That is arithmetic on the day counts above, nothing more. Your bylaws may ask for longer, weekends and holidays are not adjusted for, and a date is not a ruling on your meeting.
BOARD MEETINGS
Board meetings in Illinois
Open to owners
Meetings of the board are open to any unit owner. The board may close part of a noticed meeting, or meet separately, for six reasons only: litigation that is pending, probable or imminent, the appointment, employment, engagement or dismissal of an employee or contractor, which in a common interest community also covers third party contracts, interviewing one, violations of the rules, an owner’s unpaid share of common expenses, and consulting legal counsel. Any vote on those matters is taken in a meeting, or the part of one, that is open.
Members may comment
In a common interest community the board must reserve a portion of each board meeting for comments by members. How long that period runs, and where it falls in the meeting, is in the board’s sole discretion.
Recording a board meeting
In a condominium any unit owner may record the open parts of a meeting of the board of managers by tape, film or other means, and the board may prescribe reasonable rules for doing it.
Four board meetings a year
The board of a common interest community association meets at least 4 times annually.
A contract with a board member
A common interest community association may not contract with a current board member, or with a company in which a board member or the member’s immediate family holds 25% or more, unless the members are told within 20 days of the decision. Members then have 20 days to file a petition signed by 20% of the membership for an election to approve or disapprove the contract, and that election is held within 30 days of the petition.
Common interest community
Illinois Common Interest Community Association Act
| Notice | The rule | Section |
|---|---|---|
| Board meeting | No day count in the statuteThis one is counted in hours: the board gives members notice of every board meeting at least 48 hours before it.How it travels: A prescribed delivery method, or copies posted in entranceways, elevators or other conspicuous places in the common areas. | 765 ILCS 160/1-40(b)(4) |
| Board meeting on the budget or an assessment | 10 to 60 days beforeA board meeting about adopting the proposed annual budget, regular assessments, or a separate or special assessment takes longer notice to the members: 10 to 60 days before the meeting.How it travels: A prescribed delivery method under the act. | 765 ILCS 160/1-40(b)(4) |
Condominium
Illinois Condominium Property Act
| Notice | The rule | Section |
|---|---|---|
| Meeting of the board of managers | No day count in the statuteAlso counted in hours. The bylaws must provide that notice of every meeting of the board of managers reaches every board member at least 48 hours ahead and is posted at least 48 hours ahead. Each unit owner also receives notice of any board meeting about adopting the annual budget and regular assessments or a separate assessment, and a copy of the proposed annual budget at least 25 days before the board adopts it.How it travels: Posted in entranceways, elevators or other conspicuous places in the condominium, and sent to each unit owner who has authorized electronic business in writing. | 765 ILCS 605/18(a)(6), (8), (9) |
MINUTES AND RECORDS
Minutes and records in Illinois
Ten business days in a condominium
A condominium member asks in writing, stating with particularity the records sought. If the board of managers does not make the governing documents, minutes, insurance policies, contracts and books available within 10 business days of receiving the request, that is deemed a denial.
Thirty days in a common interest community
The board makes its records available for examination and copying at convenient hours of weekdays. Where the request is made in writing, failure to provide the record or to respond within 30 days is deemed a denial, and a member who has to go to court and prevails is entitled to reasonable attorney’s fees where the failure was the board’s.
Minutes kept seven years
A common interest community maintains the minutes of all board meetings for not less than 7 years, and a condominium has on hand the minutes of association and board meetings for the immediately preceding 7 years. Ballots and proxies are retained one year, and a condominium also holds its books and records for the current and the 10 preceding fiscal years.
What a copy costs
A common interest community board may charge a reasonable fee for the cost of retrieving and copying records. A condominium may charge its actual cost of retrieving the records and making them available, and its actual cost of reproducing them.
PROXIES AND QUORUM
Proxies and quorum in Illinois
Twenty percent
In a common interest community twenty percent of the membership is a quorum unless the community instruments indicate a lesser amount. In a condominium of 20 or more units the quorum is 20% of the unit owners unless owners holding a majority of the percentage interest provide for a higher percentage.
A proxy lasts eleven months
A member of a common interest community may vote by a proxy executed in writing that bears the date it was signed. Unless the community instruments or the proxy itself provide otherwise, it is not valid for more than 11 months after that date.
Electronic board elections and proxies
Where the board of a common interest community has adopted rules to conduct elections by electronic or other acceptable technological means, members may not vote by proxy in board elections, and the voting instructions go to all members not less than 10 and not more than 30 days before the election meeting.
A condominium board’s proxy form
Any proxy the board of managers distributes for a board election has to let the unit owner designate any person as the proxy holder, and has to let the owner express a preference for any of the known candidates or write in a name.
REMOTE MEETINGS
Meeting by phone or screen in Illinois
Board members by phone or other technology
A condominium’s bylaws must provide that board members may take part in and act at any meeting of the board of managers in person, by telephonic means, or by any acceptable technological means that lets everyone taking part communicate with each other. Taking part that way is attendance and presence in person.
NEXT
What to do with this.
This page adds what the election page does not: The 10 to 30 day window, the 48-hour board meeting notice, the six grounds for closing a board meeting, the comment period, the 10 business day and 30-day records clocks and the seven-year rule for minutes. The ballot rules for Illinois stay where they already are, on vote.direct, and that page is linked below.
Reading a statute is not the same as running a meeting. Send us your roster and we set your community up on the phone, in one sitting. Call or text (512) 222-8191.
THE OTHER STATES
Meeting rules we have read elsewhere.
Same treatment on each: a primary source per fact, a link per citation, and the date the reading happened.
Arizona
Annual meeting notice: 10 to 50 days
California
Annual meeting notice: 10 to 90 days
Colorado
Annual meeting notice: 10 to 50 days
Florida
Annual meeting notice: At least 14 days
Nevada
Annual meeting notice: 15 to 60 days
Texas
Annual meeting notice: 10 to 60 days
Maryland
Annual meeting notice: No day count in the statute
Washington
Annual meeting notice: 14 to 50 days
Virginia
Annual meeting notice: At least 14 days
New York
Annual meeting notice: 10 to 50 days
North Carolina
Annual meeting notice: 10 to 60 days
Pennsylvania
Annual meeting notice: 10 to 60 days
Michigan
Annual meeting notice: 10 to 60 days
South Carolina
Annual meeting notice: 10 to 60 days
Connecticut
Annual meeting notice: 10 to 60 days
Idaho
Annual meeting notice: 10 to 60 days
Wisconsin
Annual meeting notice: At least 10 days
QUESTIONS
Illinois board questions, answered
How much notice does a Illinois association have to give for the annual meeting?
Notice of any membership meeting details the time, place and purpose and goes out no less than 10 and no more than 30 days before the meeting. The membership holds an annual meeting, and a special meeting of the membership may be called by the president, the board, 20% of the membership, or another method the community instruments prescribe. For a meeting on Dec 1, 2026, that puts the notice between nov 1 and nov 21, 2026. That is arithmetic on the statute, not a ruling on your meeting. 765 ILCS 160/1-40(a), (b). Our reading, to support your review, not legal advice. Confirm with your attorney before the board acts.
Are Illinois HOA board meetings open to homeowners?
Meetings of the board are open to any unit owner. The board may close part of a noticed meeting, or meet separately, for six reasons only: litigation that is pending, probable or imminent, the appointment, employment, engagement or dismissal of an employee or contractor, which in a common interest community also covers third party contracts, interviewing one, violations of the rules, an owner’s unpaid share of common expenses, and consulting legal counsel. Any vote on those matters is taken in a meeting, or the part of one, that is open. 765 ILCS 160/1-40(b)(5); 765 ILCS 605/18(a)(9). Our reading, to support your review, not legal advice. Confirm with your attorney before the board acts.
Can an owner speak at a Illinois board meeting?
In a common interest community the board must reserve a portion of each board meeting for comments by members. How long that period runs, and where it falls in the meeting, is in the board’s sole discretion. 765 ILCS 160/1-40(b)(6). Our reading, to support your review, not legal advice. Confirm with your attorney before the board acts.
How much notice does a Illinois board meeting need?
This one is counted in hours: the board gives members notice of every board meeting at least 48 hours before it. 765 ILCS 160/1-40(b)(4). Our reading, to support your review, not legal advice. Confirm with your attorney before the board acts.
How fast does a Illinois association have to answer a records request?
A condominium member asks in writing, stating with particularity the records sought. If the board of managers does not make the governing documents, minutes, insurance policies, contracts and books available within 10 business days of receiving the request, that is deemed a denial. 765 ILCS 605/19(b). Our reading, to support your review, not legal advice. Confirm with your attorney before the board acts.
How long does a Illinois association have to keep its records?
A common interest community maintains the minutes of all board meetings for not less than 7 years, and a condominium has on hand the minutes of association and board meetings for the immediately preceding 7 years. Ballots and proxies are retained one year, and a condominium also holds its books and records for the current and the 10 preceding fiscal years. 765 ILCS 160/1-30(i); 765 ILCS 605/19(a). Our reading, to support your review, not legal advice. Confirm with your attorney before the board acts.
Can a Illinois association hold its meeting online?
A condominium’s bylaws must provide that board members may take part in and act at any meeting of the board of managers in person, by telephonic means, or by any acceptable technological means that lets everyone taking part communicate with each other. Taking part that way is attendance and presence in person. 765 ILCS 605/18(a)(9). Our reading, to support your review, not legal advice. Confirm with your attorney before the board acts.
Do proxies count toward a quorum in Illinois?
In a common interest community twenty percent of the membership is a quorum unless the community instruments indicate a lesser amount. In a condominium of 20 or more units the quorum is 20% of the unit owners unless owners holding a majority of the percentage interest provide for a higher percentage. 765 ILCS 160/1-40(b)(1); 765 ILCS 605/18(b)(1). Our reading, to support your review, not legal advice. Confirm with your attorney before the board acts.
Does governance.center tell us our Illinois meeting was properly noticed?
No, and it never will. We show you the statute, the date the arithmetic produces and the section it came from, so your board and your attorney can check our work. Your bylaws may set a longer period than the state does, and where they do, the bylaws govern. We never tell a board that it is compliant.
Our reading, to support your review, not legal advice.
Confirm with your attorney before the board acts.
Your bylaws may ask for a longer period than the state does, and where they do, the bylaws govern. We never tell a board that it is compliant. If something here does not match what your attorney reads, call (512) 222-8191 and tell us. We will correct it.