A Class 4 felony in Illinois is the state’s lowest felony classification, and it carries a standard sentence of one to three years in prison, fines of up to $25,000, and one year of mandatory supervised release after any prison term. Common charges in this class include possession of a controlled substance, aggravated assault, stalking, aggravated DUI, and certain driving-on-a-revoked-license offenses. For many first-time defendants, probation or a special first-offender program is realistic, and completing one of those programs can leave you with no felony conviction at all.
Prison Time and Mandatory Supervised Release
The standard sentence is one to three years in the Illinois Department of Corrections.1Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-45 – Class 4 Felonies Sentence The judge has room within that range to weigh the seriousness of the offense, your background, and any mitigating circumstances.
If statutory aggravating factors apply, the judge can impose an extended term of three to six years.1Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-45 – Class 4 Felonies Sentence Extended-term eligibility is governed by a separate section of the sentencing code, and if the case is resolved by guilty plea, the defendant must have known an extended term was possible before entering it.2Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 730 ILCS 5/5-8-2 – Extended Term In practice, extended terms come up most often when the defendant has a significant criminal history or the conduct was unusually harmful.
Here is the piece most people miss until sentencing day. If you serve prison time, you don’t simply walk free when the term ends. Illinois requires one year of mandatory supervised release, the state’s version of parole, after you leave prison.1Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-45 – Class 4 Felonies Sentence During that year, you’ll report to a parole agent, face travel restrictions, and may be subject to drug testing. A violation can send you back inside.
Fines, Court Costs, and Restitution
A Class 4 felony conviction can carry a fine of up to $25,000.3FindLaw. Illinois Code 730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-50 – General Recidivism Provisions Courts consider your ability to pay, and the ceiling is rare for lower-level offenses. Fines are only part of the financial picture though.
On top of any fine, expect mandatory court costs and fees: filing fees, court security assessments, document storage fees, automation fees, and others depending on the offense. Illinois clerks can add late fees if you fall behind, starting at five percent after 30 days and climbing to 15 percent after 60 days. If the State’s Attorney’s office takes over collection on a defaulted balance, a 30 percent collection surcharge plus nine percent annual interest can be added.4Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority. The Cost of Justice: The Impact of Criminal Justice Financial Obligations on Individuals and Families A modest fine can grow into thousands of dollars in total obligations very quickly.
If the offense caused a financial loss to a victim, the court can also order restitution. Restitution is separate from the fine and is calculated based on the victim’s actual losses. The court considers your financial situation when setting a payment schedule, but the obligation doesn’t disappear because you can’t pay it right away.
Probation as an Alternative to Prison
For many Class 4 felony defendants, especially first-time and nonviolent offenders, probation is the most realistic outcome. Probation can run up to 30 months and lets you stay in the community under court supervision.1Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-45 – Class 4 Felonies Sentence Conditions typically include regular check-ins with a probation officer, drug testing, community service, and sometimes counseling or treatment.
Violations are taken seriously. You’re entitled to a hearing, but the rules differ from a trial: no jury, relaxed evidentiary rules, and a prosecution burden of only “more likely than not.” If the judge finds a violation, the original prison sentence can be imposed.
Programs That Can Avoid a Conviction Entirely
Illinois has two programs that, when completed successfully, leave no felony conviction on your record. For a Class 4 charge, these are often the best possible outcome short of dismissal or acquittal.
Section 410 Probation for Drug Offenses
If you have no prior felony drug conviction and you’re charged with possession of a controlled substance below the higher-tier weight thresholds, you may qualify for what’s called Section 410 probation. The court places you on 24 months of probation without entering a conviction. During that period you must stay out of trouble, submit to drug testing at least three times, and complete at least 30 hours of community service. Successful completion results in dismissal of the charge.5Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 720 ILCS 570/410 – Probation No felony conviction ever appears on your record for that offense.
First Offender Probation Under Section 5-6-3.4
A broader first-offender program covers several Class 4 offenses beyond drug possession, including theft, retail theft, forgery, criminal damage to property, and certain other nonviolent charges. Like Section 410, it requires no prior felony convictions, plus consent from both you and the prosecutor. Completing the program with all conditions met results in dismissal.6Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 730 ILCS 5/5-6-3.4 – First Offender Probation Not every prosecutor agrees, and not every defendant qualifies, but where it’s available it’s the clearest path to keeping a felony off your record.
Which Offenses Fall Into Class 4
Illinois places a wide range of conduct in Class 4. The specific facts of each case determine the classification, and the line between misdemeanor and Class 4 felony often turns on prior convictions, the location of the offense, or whether someone was injured.
Drug Possession
Possession of a Schedule I or II controlled substance like cocaine or heroin in an amount below the statute’s higher thresholds is a Class 4 felony. Less than 15 grams of heroin or cocaine lands here; 15 grams or more jumps to a Class 1 felony carrying a mandatory four to fifteen years.7Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 720 ILCS 570/402 – Possession of Controlled Substance The exact weight matters enormously at the charging stage.
Theft
Theft becomes a Class 4 felony in two narrower situations: when the stolen property is worth $500 or less and was taken from a school, place of worship, or government, or when the property is worth $500 or less and you have a prior conviction for theft, robbery, burglary, forgery, or a related offense.8Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 720 ILCS 5/16-1 – Theft The prior-conviction upgrade is one of the most common ways a misdemeanor becomes a felony.
Driving on a Suspended or Revoked License
Driving while your license is revoked or suspended reaches Class 4 felony territory if it’s your second or subsequent violation and you cause a crash that seriously injures someone.9Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 625 ILCS 5/6-303 – Driving While License Suspended or Revoked It also reaches Class 4 if the original revocation was for reckless homicide or aggravated DUI.
Life After Conviction
If the case doesn’t end in a first-offender program, the felony stays on your record and creates effects far beyond the courtroom.
Employment
The conviction will appear on most background checks, and many employers treat felonies as automatic disqualifiers. There are limits. The EEOC has issued guidance stating that blanket bans on hiring people with criminal records can violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act if the policy disproportionately affects applicants of a particular race or national origin, and employers should weigh the seriousness of the offense, the time elapsed, and its relevance to the job.10U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Enforcement Guidance on the Consideration of Arrest and Conviction Records in Employment Decisions That framework gives you grounds to push back if you’re rejected solely on the conviction.
Professional licensing boards run their own reviews. A felony can block or delay licensure in healthcare, law, finance, education, and other regulated fields. Most boards look at whether the offense relates to the profession, how long ago it happened, and whether you’ve shown rehabilitation.
Firearms
A felony triggers a firearms ban at both the state and federal level. Illinois law bars anyone convicted of a felony from obtaining a Firearm Owner’s Identification (FOID) card, meaning you cannot legally possess a firearm or ammunition in the state.11Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 430 ILCS 65/8 – Grounds for Denial and Revocation Federal law separately prohibits anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year of imprisonment from possessing firearms anywhere in the country.12Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 922 – Unlawful Acts Because a Class 4 felony carries up to three years, the federal ban applies.
Voting
Illinois suspends your right to vote only while you are serving a sentence of confinement. Once you’re released from prison, your voting rights are automatically restored. No application or petition is required.
Immigration Consequences
For noncitizens, a Class 4 felony can trigger deportation or make you inadmissible for future immigration benefits, even if you hold lawful permanent resident status. Drug offenses are especially dangerous in the immigration context because federal immigration law treats many controlled-substance convictions as aggravated felonies or crimes involving moral turpitude, either of which can result in mandatory removal. If you’re not a U.S. citizen, the immigration consequences may be more severe than the criminal penalties, and you need an attorney who understands both systems.
Passport and International Travel
A state drug felony can block your passport if you used a passport or crossed an international border while committing the offense. During any period of imprisonment or supervised release for that conviction, the State Department can deny or revoke your passport.13Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 22 U.S. Code 2714 – Denial of Passports to Certain Convicted Drug Traffickers Even with a valid passport, several countries restrict entry. Canada routinely denies entry to anyone convicted of an offense that would be indictable under Canadian law, though a temporary resident permit or criminal rehabilitation application may eventually lift that bar. Japan can deny entry for any conviction carrying a sentence of one year or more. France and Germany are generally less restrictive for short visits.
Sealing the Record Later
Illinois allows many Class 4 felony convictions to be sealed, which hides the record from most background checks. Sealing is not expungement. Expungement erases the record entirely and is generally available only for arrests that didn’t lead to conviction or cases resolved through a first-offender program. For actual convictions, sealing is the realistic option.
Eligibility depends on the specific offense. Violent crimes, sex offenses, and DUI convictions are typically excluded. You must have completed your entire sentence, including probation or mandatory supervised release, and a waiting period applies before you can petition. Filing fees vary by county and range from nothing to several hundred dollars. Because the rules are detailed and offense-specific, the circuit clerk’s office in the county of conviction, or an attorney, is the reliable place to confirm eligibility.
Defenses Worth Raising
The right approach depends on the facts, but a few strategies recur in Class 4 cases.
Challenging How the Evidence Was Obtained
If police obtained evidence through an illegal search or seizure, a motion to suppress can knock it out. Drug possession cases are especially exposed here, because the case often rests entirely on what officers found during a traffic stop or pat-down. If the stop was unjustified, the drugs may be excluded.
Lack of Intent or Knowledge
Many Class 4 felonies require the prosecution to prove you acted knowingly or intentionally. If you genuinely didn’t know the substance in your bag was illegal, or didn’t know property you received was stolen, that’s a viable defense. It comes up more often than people expect in shared vehicles, shared living spaces, and borrowed items.
Entrapment
Illinois recognizes entrapment when a law enforcement officer or agent induced you to commit a crime you would not otherwise have committed. It doesn’t apply if you were already predisposed and the officer merely gave you the opportunity.14FindLaw. Illinois Code 720 ILCS 5/7-12 – Entrapment Proving it is difficult because prosecutors will point to any prior conduct suggesting predisposition. It works best when there’s clear evidence of aggressive pressure from law enforcement.
Constitutional Violations
If police questioned you in custody without Miranda warnings, statements you made may be inadmissible. If you were denied access to an attorney during interrogation, that’s another basis for suppression. These challenges don’t prove innocence, but they can weaken the prosecution enough to force a dismissal or a favorable plea.