During your naturalization eligibility interview, a USCIS officer will test your ability to read, write, and speak English (unless you are exempt from the English requirements). You will also be given a civics test in English (to test your knowledge and understanding of U.S. history and government) unless you are exempt. Even if exempt from the English test, you will need to take the civics test unless you qualify for a waiver. You may also be eligible to take the civics test in your native language with the assistance of an interpreter if you qualify.
English. Your English skills will be tested in the following ways:
- Reading. To test your ability to read in English, you must read one sentence, out of three sentences, in a manner suggesting to the USCIS officer that you understand the meaning of the sentence.
- Writing. To test your ability to write in English, you must write one sentence, out of three sentences, in a manner that would be understandable as written to the USCIS officer.
- Speaking. Your ability to speak English is determined by your answers to questions normally asked by USCIS officers during the naturalization eligibility interview regarding the information on your Form N-400, Application for Naturalization.
Civics. During your interview, the USCIS officer will ask you to orally answer a set of civics questions. You must answer 6 out of 10 civics questions correctly to achieve a passing score. The list of questions can be found below or see the links to the left.
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Study Materials for the Naturalization Test
- Multimedia Tools
- The USCIS Naturalization Interview and Test Video
- Becoming a U.S. Citizen: An Overview of the Naturalization Process Video
- English Portion of the Naturalization Test
- Naturalization Test: Vocabulary List for the English Reading Test (165KB PDF)
- Naturalization Test: Reading Vocabulary Flash Cards (1235KB PDF)
- Naturalization Test: Vocabulary List for the English Writing Test (167KB PDF)
- Naturalization Test: Writing Vocabulary Flash Cards (1219KB PDF)
- Civics Portion of the Naturalization Test
- Naturalization Test: Civics (History and Government) Questions with MP3 Audio (English)
- Naturalization Test: Civics (History and Government) Questions with MP3 Audio (Spanish)
- Naturalization Test: Civics (History and Government) Questions (Chinese Version) (363KB PDF)
- Naturalization Test: Civics (History and Government) Questions (Tagalog Version) (289KB PDF)
- Naturalization Test: Civics (History and Government) Questions (Vietnamese Version) (278KB PDF)
- Naturalization Test: Civics (History and Government) Questions for the 65/20 Exemption
- Civics Flash Cards for the Naturalization Test (8084KB PDF)
- Civics Flash Cards for the Naturalization Test (reversed colors) (8059KB PDF)
- Learn About the United States: Quick Civics Lessons for the Naturalization Test (1532KB PDF)
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Additional Information
- Redesigned (New) Naturalization Test Informational Brochure (514KB PDF)
- Scoring Guidelines for the U.S. Naturalization Test (40KB PDF)
- Naturalization Test Redesign Project: Civics Item Selection Analysis (5664KB PDF)
- New Naturalization Test Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) (62KB PDF)
- New Naturalization Test Fact Sheet (56KB PDF)