The 2025 Naturalization Test

First: Which Test Do You Take?

Preparing for the civics and English portions of your N-400 interview.

Your version depends on your filing date, not your interview date. Applicants who filed Form N-400 on or after October 20, 2025 take the 2025 civics test. Those who filed before that date take the 2008 version.

2025: 128 questions, 20 asked, 12 to pass.

2008: 100 questions, 10 asked, 6 to pass.

What the Test Covers

Two parts. The English portion tests your ability to read, write, and speak basic English. The civics portion is an oral test on U.S. history and government.

How Scoring Works

On the 2025 test the officer asks up to 20 questions from the list of 128. You need 12 correct to pass, and 9 incorrect answers means you do not. The officer stops at whichever comes first.

Exceptions

Age and years as a permanent resident can qualify you to test in your native language or from a shortened question set. Medical disability exceptions also exist.

If You Don't Pass

You get two attempts. USCIS reschedules you to retake only the portion you did not pass, generally 60 to 90 days later.

Where to Get the Official Questions

USCIS publishes the full question bank, flash cards, and study materials free of charge at uscis.gov/citizenship. Use the list that matches your filing date. Answers that change with elections or appointments are updated separately on the same site — check them close to your interview.

Bottom Line

Studying is the part you control. If something in your history worries you — long trips abroad, a citation, a name discrepancy — bring it to us before the interview rather than after.

How to Confirm Which Version Applies to You

Because the two versions differ substantially in size, studying the wrong list is a costly mistake. Confirm before you begin.

The controlling date is the date your Form N-400 was filed — the date USCIS received it, which appears on your receipt notice. It is not the date you signed the application, not the date you mailed it, and not the date of your interview.

If your receipt notice shows a filing date on or after October 20, 2025, you are preparing for the 2025 civics test: 128 questions in the bank, up to 20 asked, 12 correct to pass.

If it shows a filing date before October 20, 2025, you are preparing for the 2008 civics test: 100 questions in the bank, up to 10 asked, 6 correct to pass.

The study plan and the tracker in this guide work for either version. What changes is the size of the question bank you are working through, and therefore how early you need to start.

The Age and Residence Exceptions, In Detail

Two long-standing combinations of age and years as a permanent resident exempt an applicant from the English requirement, allowing the civics test to be taken in a language you speak, with an interpreter you bring.

The first applies to applicants who are 50 or older and have lived in the United States as a permanent resident for at least 20 years. The second applies to applicants who are 55 or older with at least 15 years as a permanent resident. Both are measured as of the date of filing.

A third provision goes further. Applicants who are 65 or older with at least 20 years as a permanent resident are exempt from English and may study from a smaller, specially designated set of civics questions rather than the full bank. If this applies to you, ask before you start studying — there is no reason to work through the full list unnecessarily.

These exceptions are not requested at the interview. They are established by the information on your application, so the filing has to be accurate about your dates.

The Medical Disability Exception

Where a physical or developmental disability or a mental impairment prevents an applicant from meeting the English or civics requirements, a medical disability exception is available. It is requested using Form N-648, which must be completed and certified by a qualifying medical professional.

The certification has to connect the specific diagnosis to the specific inability — a general statement that an applicant is unwell does not establish the exception. The condition must also be expected to last at least 12 months, and it cannot be the result of the illegal use of drugs.

Timing matters. The form is submitted with the application where possible, and applicants who realize mid-process that this applies to them should raise it promptly rather than at the interview.

An applicant granted this exception still takes the oath of allegiance, though modifications to the oath are available in some circumstances.

Answers That Change Between Now and Your Interview

A handful of civics answers depend on who currently holds an office — the President, the Vice President, the Speaker of the House, the Chief Justice, your state's governor, your U.S. senators, and your representative among them.

These change with elections and appointments, and study materials printed even a year ago can be wrong. USCIS maintains updates to these answers separately from the main question list, on the same site.

Check them close to your interview date rather than at the start of your studying, and check the ones that are specific to where you live. An applicant who has recently moved between states needs to update several answers at once.

What the Interview Itself Feels Like

The civics test is oral. The officer asks questions aloud and you answer aloud; there is no written multiple-choice test and nothing to fill in. The officer stops as soon as you have answered enough questions correctly to pass, which is why many applicants report being asked fewer questions than they expected.

The speaking portion of the English test is not a separate exercise. It is assessed through the ordinary conversation of the interview, as the officer reviews your application with you. This is the practical reason to re-read your own filed N-400 beforehand: you will be asked about the answers in it, and hesitation over your own travel dates reads differently than hesitation over a civics question.

The reading and writing portions are short. You read one sentence aloud correctly out of up to three, and you write one sentence correctly out of up to three, dictated by the officer. The vocabulary is drawn from published USCIS lists, and the sentences are plain.

Answer in your own words. There is no requirement to phrase a civics answer exactly as the study material does, as long as the substance is correct.

A Second Attempt, and What It Covers

You get two attempts. If you do not pass a portion, USCIS reschedules you to retake only the portion you did not pass — not the parts you already passed — generally 60 to 90 days later.

Use that interval deliberately. Applicants who fail usually fail narrowly and in an identifiable area, and the retest is a much better prospect for someone who spent the interval on the specific weakness than for someone who reread everything at the same pace.

If you do not pass on the second attempt, the application is denied. That is not the end of the road — you may file a new application — but it means starting the process again.

Nerves are a real factor and a manageable one. Practicing out loud, in English, with someone who asks the questions in random order is the closest thing to the actual experience, which is why it appears in the study plan above.

Who This Guide Is Not For

This guide covers the tests only. It does not tell you whether you are eligible to naturalize, how continuous residence and physical presence are calculated, or what to do about a difficult history. See the Naturalization (N-400) guide for all of that.

It is also not the place to start if you have not yet filed. Eligibility comes first, and the version of the test you take is determined by the date you file — so the filing decision comes before the studying decision.

If you qualify for one of the age and residence exceptions or the medical disability exception, much of the study plan here may not apply to you. Confirm your situation before working through a question bank you may not need.