Becoming a legal, permanent citizen of the United States is no easy feat. After maintaining residency in the country for a minimum of five years, submitting your N-400 naturalization application kicks off a process that you will need to see through to completion before taking part in the oath and allegiance ceremony.
Besides the biometrics appointment, you will need to take – and pass – your English and civics tests. Being born and raised in a country outside of the U.S. can make it difficult to learn the English language well enough to pass the reading, writing and speaking sections of the language test. It poses an even greater challenge when it comes to learning about the structure of the U.S. government and its laws.
There are resources to support you
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) seeks to support applicants through their process of becoming naturalized citizens. The USCIS uses two different versions of the civics test – a 2008 version and a 2020 version. Both versions are available online on the USCIS website. You can view the test questions and answers ahead of time to help you prepare.
In addition to the practice tests, there are free educational resources available to assist applicants with their test preparation. You can also do a web search from the USCIS website to locate free or low-cost citizenship classes available throughout the United States.
Successfully navigating the naturalization process can be overwhelming. There are plenty of ways applicants can unknowingly delay or obstruct their own path to citizenship, so it can be helpful to speak with someone knowledgeable about immigration law.