On September 17, USCIS announced changes to the Naturalization civics test. Applicants for citizenship are required to take and pass the test as part of their application process to become United States citizens. USCIS will start administering the 2025 version of the test to applicants who file their Naturalization applications on or after October 20, 2025. Applicants who file their applications before October 20 will take the 2008 version of the test.
The 2025 version of the test will increase the number of potential questions from 100 to 128. While the 2008 version of the test required applicants to answer 10 questions (and answer 6 correctly to pass), under the 2025 version, applicants will be asked 20 questions, and will need to answer 12 correctly.
According to USCIS, the questions are about 75% the same or similar, and 25% is new content. Some of the new questions test applicants’ knowledge of Dwight Eisenhower, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and the importance of the Federalist Papers, as well as the 10th Amendment.
USCIS implemented a similar version of the test before, in 2020, before switching back to the 2008 version at the beginning of 2021. The implementation of the 2025 citizenship test is one of several recent changes to the Naturalization process, and USCIS is expected to announce further changes in the coming months.
