USCIS announces major changes to the Naturalization Test

November 25, 2020
×Close
USCIS recently announced significant changes to the civics test mandatory for most applicants seeking to obtain U.S. Citizenship.  The new test will have 128 Civics questions.  The applicants will be required to answer 20 questions instead of 10 under the currently existing version of the test.  The applicants will need to give correct answers to 12 questions in order to pass.   Some of the substantive changes include the removal of the questions regarding geography and some changes to previously existing answers.   The examining officers will also ask all 20 questions even if the applicant achieves a passing score. The changes, however, will not impact older applicants who have been residing in the U.S. for a considerable period of time.   Naturally, the changes will not apply to applicants with disabilities claiming medical exception from the Civics and the English requirement. The new Civics Test applies prospectively to naturalization applications filed on or after December 1, 2020. USCIS will process applications filed before December 1, 2020, based on the currently used test.   By: Edyta Salata, Esq.           Ms. Salata focuses her practice in U.S. immigration law. She was named a "Super Lawyer®-Rising Star" and earned the highest Peer Review Rating of AV®-Preeminent™ from the Martindale-Hubbell Legal Directory attesting to her legal ability and professional ethical standards. Ms. Salata received her Juris Doctor from University of Illinois College of Law in May 2002 and Bachelor of Arts magna cum laude from Loyola University Chicago in January 1999. Ms. Salata is an active member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA); she served as a co-chair of the New Americans Initiative and UPL Committees and a member of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Committee (CBP) of the Chicago Chapter. She was also named as chairperson of the Immigration Law Committee of the DuPage County Bar Association. Ms. Salata has written extensively in the area of immigration law and is a frequent speaker at bar association conferences.  
Upcoming Webinars
VIEW ALL

Related News

VIEW ALL
White House prepares new immigration limits, using coronavirus as cover

The Trump administration is preparing to roll out another set of restrictions on legal immigration, citing the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, even as it argues for the reopening of the US economy, according to sources familiar with the deliberations. Despite a push from President Donald Trump to move past the pandemic, the administration is continuing to usher […]

Texas Service Center to Begin Processing Form I-129 for L Visas

On February 12, 2018, the Texas Service Center (TSC) will begin processing certain Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker petitions for L nonimmigrant classification, also known as L visas. The TSC will share this workload with the California Service Center to balance workloads and to provide flexibility as USCIS works towards improving processing times […]

Over 200,000 H-1B visa workers could lose legal status by June Concerns arise about “a catastrophe at a human level and an economic level” if visa issues aren’t addressed.

Manasi Vasavada has less than three weeks left before she loses her legal right to be in the country. The dental practice in Passaic County, New Jersey, where Vasavada, 31, has worked for almost two years closed its doors in mid-March due to Covid-19. She has been on an unpaid leave of absence ever since. […]