According to the Illinois Secretary of State (SOS) a driver receiving his/her permit on January 1, 2008, or later must hold the permit for a minimum of nine months before a driver's license may be obtained.

Other conditions of a learner's permit include:

• A nighttime driving restriction is in place Sunday-Thursday, 10 p.m-6 a.m., and Friday-Saturday, 11 p.m.-6 a.m. (local curfews may differ from the nighttime driving restriction.
• Must practice driving a minimum of 50 hours, including 10 hours of nighttime driving, supervised by a are not or adult age 21 or older with a valid driver's license.
• Must not acquire any driving convictions during the nine-month permit phase.
• Number of passengers limited to one in the front seat and the number of safety belts in the back seat.
• All occupants under age 19 must wear safety belts.
• Cell phone use while driving is prohibited except in the case of an emergency to contact a law enforcement agency, health care provider or emergency services agency.

The next step in the IL graduated driver licensing (GDL) after the permit is the initial licensing phase. This also comes with conditions including many of those listed above and for the first year of licensing, or until the driver is age 18, whichever occurs first, the number of passengers is limited to one person under age 20, unless the additional passenger(s) is a sibling, step-sibling, child, or step-child of the driver. After this period, the number of passengers is limited to one in the front seat and the number of safety belts in the back seat.

Also one must maintain a conviction-free driving record for six months prior to turning age 18 before moving to the Full Licensing Phase. A traffic conviction during the initial licensing phase may extend restrictions beyond age 18.

The full licensing phase is next for drivers age 18 to 20. There are no age-related restrictions that apply with this GDL phase except in cases where a driver fails to move from the Initial Licensing Phase to the Full Licensing Phase. Cell phone use while driving for persons under age 19 is prohibited except in the case of an emergency to contact a law enforcement agency, health care provider or emergency services agency.

The Illinois SOS can give you more information on their graduated driver licensing system and the various phases you must pass through to obtain your full IL driver's license.