"Qualified veteran" means an Illinois resident who: (i) was a member of the Armed Forces of the United States, a member of the Illinois National Guard, or a member of any reserve component of the Armed Forces of the United States; (ii) served on active duty on or after September 11, 2001; (iii) has provided, to the taxpayer, documentation showing that he or she was honorably discharged; and (iv) was initially hired by the taxpayer on or after June 1, 2012.
"Sustained employment" means (i) a period of employment that is not less than 185 days following the date of hire or (ii) in the case of a veteran who was unemployed for an aggregate period of 6 months or more during the one-year period ending on the date the veteran was hired by the taxpayer, a period of employment that is more than 30 days following the date of hire. The period of sustained employment may be completed after the end of the taxable year in which the veteran is hired
A veteran is "unemployed" for a week if he or she (i) has received unemployment benefits (as defined in Section 202 of the Unemployment Insurance Act, including but not limited to federally funded unemployment benefits) for the week, or (ii) has not been employed since being honorably discharged
35 ILCS 5/217.1