This is not legal advice. This article summarizes public laws and regulations as of the date below, with links to the official texts. Laws in this area change often; check the current text and talk to your counsel before acting on anything here.
Two Illinois laws address artificial intelligence in hiring. HB 3773, Public Act 103-0804, added AI to the Illinois Human Rights Act and took effect on January 1, 2026. The Artificial Intelligence Video Interview Act has applied since January 1, 2020 to employers that use AI to analyze recorded video interviews. This page summarizes both, with quotes from the statute text. Last reviewed 11 November 2026.
HB 3773 at a glance
| What the law says | |
|---|---|
| Effective | January 1, 2026 ("This Act takes effect January 1, 2026."). Signed August 9, 2024. |
| Where | Illinois Human Rights Act, 775 ILCS 5/2-102(L), with definitions in 5/2-101. |
| What it prohibits | Using AI that "has the effect of subjecting employees to discrimination on the basis of protected classes", or using "zip codes as a proxy for protected classes". |
| What it requires | Notice "to an employee that the employer is using artificial intelligence" for those purposes. The details were left to rules that have not been adopted (see below). |
| Who enforces | The Illinois Department of Human Rights, through the Act's charge process. |
What counts as artificial intelligence
The definition is broad: "a machine-based system that, for explicit or implicit objectives, infers, from the input it receives, how to generate outputs such as predictions, content, recommendations, or decisions that can influence physical or virtual environments." It expressly "includes generative artificial intelligence", which the law defines separately as a system that produces outputs that "simulate human-produced content", such as text, images, audio or video.
What it prohibits
The prohibition covers the whole employment cycle, not only the hiring decision. It is a civil rights violation, "with respect to recruitment, hiring, promotion, renewal of employment, selection for training or apprenticeship, discharge, discipline, tenure, or the terms, privileges, or conditions of employment, for an employer to use artificial intelligence that has the effect of subjecting employees to discrimination on the basis of protected classes under this Article or to use zip codes as a proxy for protected classes under this Article."
Two points stand out in the wording. The test is whether the AI "has the effect of" discriminating, and the provision does not mention intent. And it names zip codes specifically: using them "as a proxy for protected classes" is a violation in its own right.
The notice requirement
It is also a civil rights violation "for an employer to fail to provide notice to an employee that the employer is using artificial intelligence for the purposes described in paragraph (1)." The statute does not say what the notice must contain, when it is due or how it is given. It tells the Department of Human Rights to adopt rules "on the circumstances and conditions that require notice, the time period for providing notice, and the means for providing notice."
Those rules do not exist yet. The Department proposed them in the Illinois Register on May 15, 2026; the proposal would have required notice to "current and prospective employees", in job postings for applicants and at least 30 days in advance for current employees, and would have extended record keeping to three years. The Department withdrew the proposal in June 2026 "to further consult and collaborate with other State agencies", and no refiling appears in the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules' weekly reports we checked through November 6, 2026. The statutory duty to give notice has applied since January 1, 2026 regardless.
One open question is who must receive the notice. The statute says "employee", which the Act defines as an individual performing services for an employer in Illinois, an apprentice, or an applicant for an apprenticeship. The withdrawn rules would have included job applicants. Whether ordinary job applicants are owed notice under the statute alone has not been settled by an adopted rule; ask your counsel.
Which employers are covered
The Human Rights Act's general definition of employer is "any person employing one or more employees within Illinois during 20 or more calendar weeks within the calendar year of or preceding the alleged violation". Public employers and parties to a public contract are covered regardless of size.
Enforcement
A charge can be filed with the Department of Human Rights "within 2 years after the date that a civil rights violation allegedly has been committed". The Department investigates, and the complainant can then file a complaint with the Human Rights Commission or "commence a civil action in the appropriate circuit court".
The AI Video Interview Act
The older law is narrow. It applies to "an employer that asks applicants to record video interviews and uses an artificial intelligence analysis of the applicant-submitted videos", for positions based in Illinois. Before asking for the video, the employer must:
- notify the applicant "that artificial intelligence may be used to analyze the applicant's video interview and consider the applicant's fitness for the position";
- explain "how the artificial intelligence works and what general types of characteristics it uses to evaluate applicants"; and
- obtain the applicant's consent. "An employer may not use artificial intelligence to evaluate applicants who have not consented."
Videos may be shared only "with persons whose expertise or technology is necessary in order to evaluate an applicant's fitness for a position", and on an applicant's request the employer must delete the applicant's interviews within 30 days and instruct anyone who received copies to delete them too, including backup copies. An employer that "relies solely upon an artificial intelligence analysis of a video interview" to decide who gets an in-person interview must also report the race and ethnicity of applicants to the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity each year by December 31.
The Act speaks of recorded video interviews. Whether a tool that does not analyze video falls under it is a question for your counsel.
Questions to raise with your counsel
- Which of our recruiting, screening or employee-management tools are "artificial intelligence" under the Act's definition?
- Who do we notify, how and when, while the Department's notice rules are pending?
- Can we show that our AI tools do not have a discriminatory effect, and do any of them use location data such as zip codes?
- Do we use AI to analyze recorded video interviews, and if so, do our notice, consent, sharing and deletion steps follow the Video Interview Act?
For the other states and cities with laws on AI in hiring, see AI hiring laws for healthcare employers.
Sources
- Illinois General Assembly, Public Act 103-0804 (HB 3773), approved August 9, 2024, read 11 November 2026.
- Illinois General Assembly, Illinois Human Rights Act, 775 ILCS 5, Article 2, current text, read 11 November 2026.
- Illinois General Assembly, Illinois Human Rights Act, 775 ILCS 5/7A-102, read 11 November 2026.
- Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Flinn Report, May 15, 2026 (proposed rules) and Flinn Report, June 26, 2026 (withdrawal), read 11 November 2026.
- Illinois General Assembly, Artificial Intelligence Video Interview Act, 820 ILCS 42, read 11 November 2026.
Frequently asked questions
When did Illinois HB 3773 take effect?
January 1, 2026. Public Act 103-0804 was signed on August 9, 2024 and amends the Illinois Human Rights Act.
Does Illinois require employers to give notice when they use AI in hiring?
The statute makes it a civil rights violation for an employer to fail to provide notice to an employee that it is using artificial intelligence for recruitment, hiring and other employment decisions. The Department of Human Rights was to set the details by rule; it proposed rules in May 2026 and withdrew them in June 2026, and no refiling appears in the reports we checked through November 6, 2026.
Does HB 3773 require proof that the employer intended to discriminate?
The provision prohibits using artificial intelligence that "has the effect of" subjecting employees to discrimination on the basis of protected classes, and it does not mention intent. It also prohibits using zip codes as a proxy for protected classes.
What is the Illinois AI Video Interview Act?
A 2020 law for employers that use AI to analyze recorded video interviews for Illinois-based positions. It requires notice, an explanation of how the AI works and the applicant's consent before the interview, limits sharing of the videos, and requires deletion within 30 days of the applicant's request.
