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2.0

USCIS implements updated naturalization civics test

  1. Original Date Announced

    September 17, 2025

    USCIS issues a notice re-implementing the 2020 Naturalization Civics Test with modifications. The 2020 test was administered from December 2020 to April 2021, and revised the prior 2008 test by increasing the number of potential questions from 100 to 128, the number of questions asked during the test from 10 to 20, and the number of correct answers needed to pass from 6 to 12. USCIS reverted to the 2008 test under the Biden administration.

    The new 2025 test requires officers only to ask questions until the noncitizen passes or fails the test; under the 2020 test, officers were required to ask all test questions regardless of whether the noncitizen had already answered a sufficient number. No changes are made to the test's English-language portions. The new test will be administered to naturalization applicants on or after October 20, 2025.

    Trump 2.0 [ID #1983]

    2025.09.18 USCIS 2823-25 - Notice of Implementation of 2025 Naturalization Civics Test
  2. Effective Date

    October 20, 2025

Current Status

None

Original Trump Policy Status

Status: Final/Actual
Trump Administration Actions: Agency Directive Change in Practice
Subject Matter: Naturalization
Agencies Affected: USCIS

Commentary

  • 2025.10.10 NPNA -Trends in Naturalization During the First 6 Months of the Trump Administration

    National Partnership for New Americans (NPNA) report compares naturalization in the first 6 months of the second Trump administration with the last 6 months of the Biden administration, concluding early data and administrative policy changes suggest the Trump administration is making naturalization harder.

    NPNA found the number of applications USCIS received was similar in both periods; that USCIS both approved and denied more applications under the Trump administration; that the denial rate increased by 23.7 percent under the Trump administration; and that average processing times for naturalization applications increased under the Trump administration.

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