Illegal Tint Removal for a Car That Came Tinted.
What the Statute Asks, What Removal Costs.

If you bought a car with tint that breaks Illinois law, the fix is to bring the windows into compliance, by illegal tint removal or by replacing the film with a legal shade. The statute has no exception for film the last owner put on, and no inspection to pass. At Tint Starz in Elk Grove Village, all-around removal runs $80 to $150.

Every rule below is from 625 ILCS 5/12-503, read on October 8, 2026. The letters in parentheses are its subsections.

Does the Illinois front side rule apply to your car?

It does if the car is registered in Illinois and carries no medical exemption. Subsection (a-5) covers the windows on each side of the driver. Cars properly registered in another state are exempt under (f)(2), and cars with the medical exemption’s plates or sticker are exempt under (g). Everyone else follows the numbers below.

The rear decides the front. With no window behind the driver darker than 35 percent, the front side windows may carry nonreflective film of 35 percent or lighter. With rear film of at least 30 but under 35 percent, or factory tinted rear glass, the limit is 50 percent or lighter. With aftermarket rear film darker than 30, the front gets no film. The rear windows have no limit of their own, with a side mirror on each side.

The windshield of an Illinois registered car may carry nonreflective film only along the top 6 inches. Full windshield film is for cars registered in another state or with the medical exemption.

Know the shades on your car? The Illinois tint law checker tells you if the pair is legal in two picks: the rear, then the front.

Does it matter that the last owner put the tint on?

No. Section 12-503 has no exception for film a previous owner or a dealer installed, and nothing in the windshield or front side rules turns on who put it there. Once the car is yours and registered in Illinois without the medical exemption, its windows have to meet those rules. Nothing in 12-503 bars taking the film off.

What the statute says about the dealer

Subsection (k) says that, apart from (a-3), Section 12-503 gives a buyer no claim against a dealer or manufacturer that sells a car with a window in violation.

Subsection (a-3) covers one thing: a dealer may not let a driver take a car offered for sale or lease off the lot, test drives included, with signs, decals, paperwork or other material on the windshield or front side windows that would block the view in violation of (a). A dealer who breaks it faces the fines in (j).

Beyond that, whether another law gives you a claim is a question for a lawyer.

Is there a tint inspection to pass in Illinois?

No. Section 12-503 sets no tint inspection and no sticker or certificate for ordinary film, so there is nothing to pass. What counts is the glass. An Illinois registered car without the medical exemption has to meet the front side and windshield rules, and the statute allows a 5 percent variance when an officer meters the front side windows.

The variance is room on the meter, not a second legal number: the figures stay 35 and 50.

What a tint ticket costs, and the order that comes with it

Under (j), a first violation is a petty offense, fined no less than 50 and no more than 500 dollars. A second or later violation is a Class C misdemeanor, fined 100 to 500 dollars.

A conviction under (a), (a-5), (b) or (b-5) also comes with an order to alter the nonconforming windows into compliance. The statute names no deadline for that order, so read the terms of your own.

Bought a car registered in another state

If the car is properly registered in another state, (f)(2) exempts it from the windshield, front side, rear and mirror rules: (a), (a-5), (b) and (b-5). The exemption lasts while that registration stands. Once you register the car in Illinois, the Illinois numbers apply.

The medical exemption

Subsection (g) lifts the windshield and front side rules for a car with distinctive plates or a plate sticker issued under Section 3-412(k), owned and driven by a person whose condition requires shielding from direct sun, or carrying such a person who lives at the owner’s address. No front side exemption is granted for a condition that sunglasses or other eye protection can handle.

The owner needs a certified statement from a physician licensed in Illinois, carried in the car, renewed every 4 years, with a copy sent to the Secretary of State. Under (g-7), an installer fits exempt film only once the plates or sticker are on the car.

What illegal tint removal costs

All-around removal, every side window plus the rear glass, runs $80 to $150. The film’s condition and how much adhesive stays on the glass set where your car lands, and the amount of work only becomes clear once removal begins. If the job heads past the estimate, the shop shows you with photos or a video call and confirms the new price before going on.

You may not need every window done. Front side windows with no film are legal whatever is on the rear, so taking the film off the two front doors is one way to fix front tint that is too dark.

Removal and a legal shade, booked together

Want film back on the front doors? Pick the shade your rear allows. Booked together with new tint, removal is priced in your quote, and S5 ceramic on the two front windows starts at $100. Before any film goes on, we check the combination against (a-5) and tell you if it is not legal.

How to get your price

Call the shop with your year, make and model, and say which windows the film is on, or send the quote form and the shop calls you back within minutes during shop hours, Monday to Saturday 9 to 6. Removal is done in the shop on Oakton Street, by appointment, and a $50 deposit holds your spot.

From Itasca the shop is about 13 minutes from Itasca Village Hall outside rush hour: see window tint in Itasca. More on tint removal, and every rule with its subsection on the Illinois window tint law page.