When Does a Work Injury Qualify for Permanent Disability Benefits?

 Posted on August 17, 2026 in Workers' Compensation

Some workplace injuries heal completely. Others can leave a worker with permanent limits or unable to work at all.

Illinois workers' compensation may provide permanent disability benefits when a work injury causes lasting limitations. There are two main types of permanent disability: permanent total disability and permanent partial disability.  A Des Plaines, IL workers' compensation lawyer can help you understand which category of disability might apply to your case in 2026.

What Qualifies as a Permanent Disability Under Illinois Workers' Compensation?

A permanent partial disability is a lasting impairment that still leaves you able to work in some capacity. Permanent total disability covers an injury that leaves you unable to work at all.

An injury can be considered permanent once you have reached a point called "maximum medical improvement" (MMI). This means your condition has stabilized and further treatment isn't expected to make it better. A doctor will usually determine when you have reached MMI.

If you cannot work while you recover, you might be eligible to receive temporary total disability benefits. These generally pay two-thirds of your average weekly wage. Once you reach MMI, a physician may prepare a report about your level of impairment. That report can be considered when determining permanent partial disability. Illinois law requires the Commission to consider several factors when determining PPD, including a physician’s impairment rating when one is provided.

When Does an Illinois Work Injury Qualify for Permanent Total Disability?

Permanent total disability is intended for injuries that leave you wholly and permanently unable to work. Some injuries are assumed to qualify for permanent total disability. Others require proof that you can no longer earn a livelihood.

820 ILCS 305/8(e)(18) automatically treats certain losses as total and permanent disability without needing further proof. These include the loss of both hands, both arms, both feet, both legs, both eyes, or any two of them. The permanent and complete loss of their use counts in the same way.

Other permanent total disability claims require proof that you are permanently unable to work. Medical evidence can show your work restrictions. In some cases, vocational evidence might also show that there is no stable job market for someone with your restrictions, age, training, and experience.

Under 820 ILCS 305/8(f), permanent total disability benefits are payable for life. Because an award can run for decades, insurers often contest these claims heavily. Illinois law also allows an award to end or change if the worker later becomes able to return to work.

How Does Illinois Calculate Permanent Partial Disability?

If you can still work but the injury left lasting damage, you may receive permanent partial disability. Section 8.1b requires the Commission making the decision to consider five factors:

• The level of impairment reported by a physician using the American Medical Association's guidelines
• Your occupation
• Your age at the time of the injury
• Your future earning capacity
• Evidence of disability verified by the treating medical records

The Commission must explain how it considered these factors in writing.

Certain injuries are paid based on a schedule in Illinois law. The schedule sets a number of weeks of benefits for different body parts. If the worker has only a partial loss of use, the number of weeks is reduced based on how serious the loss is. The worker is generally paid 60 percent of their average weekly wage for those weeks, subject to legal limits. For example, a hand injury resulting in complete loss of the hand can qualify for up to 205 weeks of benefits. If a worker has a 20 percent loss of use of the hand, they could receive benefits for 41 weeks.

What if Your Work Injury Forces You Into Lower-Paying Work?

A wage differential may be awarded if you can no longer perform work that pays what you were making. This differential pays two-thirds of the difference between what you could earn in your old job and what you're able to earn in suitable work now.

For injuries on or after September 1, 2011, these benefits generally continue until you reach age 67 or five years after the award becomes final, whichever is later.

This differential is one option for permanent partial disability and may be worth more than a scheduled award in some cases. It's worth having both calculated before you sign anything.

Call a Schaumburg, IL Workers' Compensation Lawyer Today

Employers and insurers may try to fight total disability claims, but that won't deter us. You deserve to be fully and fairly compensated for whatever injuries you suffered at work. Grauer & Kriegel, LLC has recovered over $150 million for clients and brings decades of experience to these cases. We're willing to fight your claim aggressively and take it to a hearing when needed.

We offer free consultations. Call our Des Plaines, IL workers' compensation attorneys at 847-240-9010 today.