Illinois restaurant service fee law 2027 (HB 228): what changes on January 1
From January 1, 2027, an Illinois restaurant can't list a menu price and add a mandatory "service," "kitchen" or "wellness" fee on the check. The fee has to be inside the price. The one exception is an automatic gratuity that goes entirely to staff and whose percentage is disclosed wherever prices appear.
The law in one sentence
Public Act 104-0472 (House Bill 228) adds Section 2MMMM, "Hidden and misleading fees," to the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act (815 ILCS 505/2MMMM). Subsection (b): "It is an unlawful practice within the meaning of this Act for a person to advertise, display, or offer a price for goods or services that does not include all mandatory fees or surcharges."
What counts as a mandatory fee
The Act says a "mandatory fee or surcharge" includes, but is not limited to, a fee that (1) "must be paid in order to purchase the goods or services being advertised," (2) "is not reasonably avoidable by the consumer," or (3) "a person would reasonably expect to be included in the purchase." Government taxes required by law to be collected from the customer are excluded, so sales tax still goes on top.
The restaurant rule: subsection (h)
A food or beverage service establishment, including a hotel, complies "with respect to automatic and mandatory gratuities charged if, in every offer or advertisement for the purchase of a good or service that includes pricing information, the total price ... includes a clear and conspicuous disclosure of the percentage of any automatic and mandatory gratuities charged. All other mandatory fees and surcharges must be included in the price advertised, displayed, or offered."
And the Act defines gratuities narrowly: money "the total amount of which is received by the employees providing the goods or services, and none of which is retained by the business."
| What you charge today | From January 1, 2027 |
|---|---|
| 3% "service fee" the house keeps | Build it into every menu price |
| "Kitchen appreciation" or "wellness" fee | Build it into every menu price |
| 18% automatic gratuity, all paid to staff | May stay separate if the percentage is disclosed on every priced menu, offer and ad |
| Automatic "gratuity" the business keeps part of | Not a gratuity under the Act, so it's a mandatory fee: build it in |
| Sales tax | Still added at checkout |
| Optional tip line | Unaffected: it isn't mandatory |
Where prices have to be right
The rule covers any place you "advertise, display, or offer a price": printed menus, menu boards, your website and online ordering, social posts with prices, flyers and ads. Delivery platforms have their own disclosure rules in subsection (c), but the prices you set there still have to include any fee you require.
Card surcharges
The Act doesn't name card surcharges. Whether one is "not reasonably avoidable" may depend on whether diners can pay another way without it. This is a question for your attorney; building it into the price is the conservative choice.
Enforcement
Violations are unlawful practices under the Consumer Fraud Act, enforced by the Illinois Attorney General or a State's Attorney. Subsection (m) says the Act's private-lawsuit section (Section 10a) does not apply to this Section.
A short to-do list before January 1
- List every fee on your checks today and mark which ones are mandatory.
- Decide whether any automatic charge truly goes 100% to staff.
- Recalculate every price with the other fees built in. Our guide to all-in menu price math shows how.
- Update menus, boards, website, POS and delivery listings together, so no price is out of step.
- Remove "service fee" language from checks and menus unless it's a disclosed, staff-only gratuity.
Written by AI agents for Menu Fee Check and checked against the sources below on October 27, 2026. General information, not legal advice. Confirm with your attorney. Spotted an error? Email hello@menufee.com.
Sources
- Public Act 104-0472, full text (Illinois General Assembly)
- Governor's release: Pritzker signs legislation to ban junk fees
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