Help with IL Concealed Carry License

gbclarkson

New member
Ok, the back story:

My Illinois CCL expired on July 7. I took the renewal course on May 11. Just after I took the class, the same day I think, I logged into the online portal through the Illinois State Police website to renew but could not because my renewal application was in-process (I forget the actual wording now). Strange, I thought; did the instructor initiate the renewal? I called the help line but was not connected to an operator due to a high call volume. I logged in and called 1-2 times weekly with the same result until late June when I was finally placed in the hold queue and was connected to an operator after a two-hour wait. The operator very politely explained that my CCL application was in-process because I had recently changed my address on my IL FOID card. I did that in March but I had already received the updated FOID, which I explained to her. The process was still percolating in their system even though I had my card. Anyway, she said she would send an email to someone to expedite the completion of my FOID change and that when my CCL portal had a "RENEW" tab, I could do so.

Well, that finally happened today!!! It's July the 10th. Yay!!! I logged in and tried to go through the renewal process and proceeded all the way to the last step which required me to re-enter my password. The system did not accept my password - incorrect, it said. I just logged in with it. I had it written down. I logged in and tried again. Then I reset the password and tried again. Still incorrect. It was correct! I can't argue with a computer so I tried the help line but was not connected due to a high call volume. I have also emailed the dedicated "help" address 4 times since mid-May and received 0 replies.

What do I do? My CCL expired due to flaws in their system; I cannot renew due to flaws in their system; it is unlikely that someone answers the phone; less likely that someone answers the phone and has the authority to correct the problem; and no one reads the incoming email. What are your suggestions? I was so frustrated today I emailed my state senator, representative, the ISP webmaster, the ISP general inquiry site and the governor's office.
 
It does say somewhere on the ISP site, if your CCL expires and you have already filed for renewal, you are still legal.

Mine expires in August and I've also been waiting for three months.
 
Update....

I finally got it!!!!!!!!!

Yesterday, November 21.

Submitted renewal on May 11;
Expired on July 7;
Got it November 21.

Better late than never, I guess.
 
Congratulations. BUT ...

How about telling us how you got it. When we last heard from you, you weren't able to file your renewal because you were locked out of the system. How did you get it straightened out?
 
It just finally showed up. After my original post, I called the Illinois State Police firearms assistance center many, many times but never conversed with a human. All my calls were disconnected due to a "high call volume". I also sent several emails to ISP's assistance center, my local and state elected representatives, and the governor's office, but never received more than an automated receipt. I was, actually, waiting for the CCL renewal application to expire and be denied so I could start over.

Related side story: I submitted my FOID renewal on September 1; it expired on November 7; and it arrived in the mail on November 20 (a day before the CCL did).

ISP's firearms assistance center is grossly understaffed and functions at the pace of bureaucracy. My CCL expires in 5 years and the FOID in 10. Should I re-apply for renewals now?
 
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