On September 17, 2025, USCIS announced the first of what it calls a multi-step overhaul of the naturalization process. The notice implementing it appeared in the Federal Register the next day, 90 FR 45047, and took effect immediately. The substance is a return to the civics test the first Trump administration introduced in December 2020, which ran for five months before being withdrawn in February 2021.
The change is real but bounded. The English test is untouched. The exemptions for older applicants remain. What moves is the size of the question bank, the number of questions asked, and the score needed to pass.
Old test, new test
The 2008 test draws from a bank of 100 questions. The officer asks up to 10; six correct answers pass, five wrong fail.
The 2025 test draws from a bank of 128 questions. The officer asks up to 20; twelve correct pass, nine wrong fail. The questions are asked orally, at random, during the interview.
There is one procedural refinement over the 2020 version. The officer stops as soon as the applicant reaches 12 correct or 9 incorrect. In 2020, all 20 questions were asked regardless. USCIS describes this as a change in procedure, not in the passing standard, which is accurate as far as it goes.
The study materials are the "128 Civics Test Questions" list (form M-1778) and a new study guide titled "One Nation, One People." Some answers depend on who holds office at the time of the interview. The applicant is expected to name the current officeholder, not the one in the booklet.
Who takes which version
The trigger is the filing date of the N-400, not the interview date.
- Filed before October 20, 2025: the 2008 test, 100 questions, six to pass.
- Filed on or after October 20, 2025: the 2025 test, 128 questions, twelve to pass.
That date is 30 days after Federal Register publication. USCIS expects that almost nobody on the new test will be interviewed before early 2026, and it has kept the 2008 study materials online for the applicants still waiting on that version. If your application is already in the queue, nothing has changed for you.
The English test
Unchanged. Speaking is assessed by the officer through the interview itself. Reading requires reading one of three sentences aloud correctly. Writing requires writing one of three sentences correctly.
Exemptions
The age and residence exemptions survive intact:
- 50/20: age 50 or older at filing with 20 years as a permanent resident. Exempt from English; still takes civics, in your own language, with an interpreter you bring who speaks both languages.
- 55/15: age 55 or older with 15 years as a permanent resident. Same treatment.
- 65/20: age 65 or older with 20 years as a permanent resident. Exempt from English, and takes a reduced civics test: 10 questions from a marked set of 20, six correct to pass, in the language of your choice. Which set of 20 applies depends on the filing date, as above.
The medical disability exception, Form N-648, still allows a licensed doctor, osteopath or clinical psychologist to certify that an impairment prevents an applicant from meeting the English requirement, the civics requirement, or both. Note that USCIS tightened its review of N-648 in June 2025. For forms filed on or after June 13, 2025, the certifier must explain how the condition prevents the applicant from meeting the standard, and multiple N-648s on one file draw additional scrutiny.
If you fail
An applicant who fails any part is rescheduled for a second examination 60 to 90 days later. Only the failed portion is retested, and the officer may not reuse the same test form. Two failures end the application; a new N-400 and a new fee follow.
What to do
If you are close to filing and have been studying the 100-question list, filing before October 20 keeps you on that test. If you will file after, study the 128 and expect a longer session. The questions themselves are not difficult for anyone who has followed American civic life for a few years. What changes is the margin for error, which has narrowed from four wrong answers to eight wrong out of a set twice the size. Prepared applicants will pass either version. Unprepared ones now have less room.