The US Naturalization Civics Test

It is well known that the dream of thousands of immigrants is to become American citizens. If foreigners meet certain eligibility requirements, they can apply for American citizenship after residing in the country for a period of time and following legal guidelines established by the local immigration system.

This path to citizenship is called the Naturalization process. Immigrants submit an application to the USCIS (US Citizenship and Immigration Services), which is the entity in charge of receiving, reviewing and responding to immigration applications in the country. After the USCIS states that applicants meet eligibility requirements, they must present a Naturalization test.

In this test, immigrants must demonstrate English proficiency (at least basic reading, writing and speaking). Adding to that, the Naturalization test also includes a civic knowledge section, where immigrants must answer a certain number of questions regarding the history of the US, American culture, local customs, inter alia.

If applicants pass the Naturalization test, they will be able to become American citizens through the Naturalization Ceremony and, after this event, they might access social benefits and public services like any other local citizen.

Do you need help to adjust your immigration status in the US? Follow the advice of our experienced attorneys. Contact us today!

Trump tried to hamper the naturalization test

The Trump administration planned to restrict immigration by all means possible, hindering existing processes and increasing eligibility requirements.

Speaking specifically about the naturalization test, the Trump administration announced in November 2020 that the number of questions in the civic knowledge section would increase starting in December. In effect, on December 1, 2020, Trump’s USCIS released the new version of the Naturalization test.

In Trump’s 2020 version, immigrants interested in becoming American citizens were required to study 128 questions for the civics test and had to answer at least 12 correctly out of 20 questions.

The USCIS reverts to the 2008 version of the naturalization test

Since President Biden took office in late January 2021, his team has focused heavily on removing restrictions and limitations implemented by the previous administration on the immigration system.

Regarding the Naturalization process, Biden’s USCIS announced on February 22, 2021 that it would revert to the old version of the Naturalization test as of March 1. That means that instead of 128 questions, immigrants must study 100 questions and answer 6 correctly out of 10 questions. It is important to clarify that this version has been available since 2008.

This is another step by the Biden administration to deliver on its promises and restructure the entire immigration system, reversing Trump’s restrictive policies.

Contact Motion Law for your immigration process

Now that President Joe Biden is leading the US administration, it is possible that many immigration processes will change again as his government plans to push through comprehensive immigration reform, which would substantially transform the way the country approaches immigration since the 80s.

We understand that starting an immigration process requires constant dedication and expert help. Our team is highly qualified to guide you through your immigration journey in the US, so please don’t hesitate to contact us for a FREE Phone Consultation with one of our expert immigration attorneys.

Simply call Motion Law today at: (202) 918-1799.