Citizenship
2026 citizenship test: all 128 questions, and a practice run
20 asked, 12 to pass. Drill the official question bank the way the officer will actually ask it — out loud.
- 128 official questions
- 20 asked
- 12 to pass
- No signup
Educational estimate only. Not legal, tax, immigration, or financial advice. Full disclaimer below.
Questions transcribed from USCIS M-1778 (09/25). Answers that depend on who currently holds an office are not stored here — check test updates.
The 2025 civics test draws from a pool of 128 questions. The officer asks 20 of them out loud and you need 12 correct to pass — and stops early once you reach 12 right or 9 wrong. You take this version if you filed Form N-400 on or after October 20, 2025.
- Pool 128 · asked 20 · pass at 12 · fail at 9
- Filed N-400 before October 20, 2025? You take the older 2008 test — 100 pool, 10 asked, 6 to pass
- 65/20: 65 or older and a lawful permanent resident for 20 or more years — study just 20 questions, 10 asked, 6 to pass
- 2 attempts; re-tested only on the portion you failed, 60–90 days later
- The test is spoken, not multiple choice — practise saying the answer
- Eight questions have answers that change; those are look-ups, not memorised
The 2025 civics test in numbers
Correct answers needed12 of 20
Questions in the pool
128
Asked at the interview
Up to 20
Correct to pass
12
Wrong answers that end it
9
65/20 set
6 of 10
From 20 starred questions
Applies to N-400s filed
On or after October 20, 2025
USCIS can revise the test and the answers to eight of the questions change with elections and appointments. Check test updates before your interview.
Informational only, not legal advice. This page explains how a government process works and what the published rules say. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney–client relationship. For advice on your own facts, speak to a licensed immigration attorney — here is what one typically costs.
Choose how you want to practise
The real test is spoken, not multiple choice — an officer asks, you answer out loud. So this one is self-graded: say your answer, reveal the official one, mark yourself honestly. That is the skill being tested.
The officer stops asking once you have answered 12 correctly (you pass) or 9 incorrectly (you fail), so a real test is often shorter than 20 questions.
What actually changed
The test got harder in three ways at once, and the third is the one people underestimate. The pool grew from 100 to 128 questions. The number asked went from 10 to 20. And the pass mark went from 6 to 12 — so where you once needed to know 60% of what you were asked, you still need 60%, but across twice as many questions, which leaves far less room for a lucky draw.
The version you take is fixed by your N-400 filing date, not your interview date. If you filed before October 20, 2025 you are on the 2008 test even if your interview is in 2027. Check the receipt notice before you spend weeks studying the wrong list — our N-400 readiness checker works out which version applies from your filing date.
| 2008 version | 2025 version | |
|---|---|---|
| Questions in the pool | 100 | 128 |
| Questions asked | 10 | 20 |
| Correct answers to pass | 6 | 12 |
| Wrong answers that end it | 5 | 9 |
| Who takes it | N-400 filed before October 20, 2025 | N-400 filed on or after October 20, 2025 |
| 65/20 reduced set | 20 questions, 10 asked, 6 to pass | 20 questions, 10 asked, 6 to pass |
Source: USCIS M-1778 (09/25) and the 2025 civics test pages, read September 16, 2026.
How the interview actually runs
- File Form N-400. Online or on paper, once you meet the residence requirement.
- Biometrics. Fingerprints and photo at an application support centre.
- Interview: English + civics. Reading one of three sentences, writing one of three, speaking assessed through the interview, and 20 civics questions — 12 correct to pass.
- Decision. Granted, continued for more evidence or a re-test, or denied.
- Oath of Allegiance. You are a US citizen from the moment you take the oath.
- If you fail a portion: you get 2 attempts in total, and you are re-tested only on the part you failed, between 60 and 90 days after the first interview.
The stop rule, and why it matters for how you study
USCIS says the officer stops asking once you have 12 correct or 9 incorrect. Two consequences follow, and both change how you should prepare.
First, a strong start ends the test early. Get your first twelve right and you are done — you never see the other eight. Second, and less comfortably, a weak start ends it early too. Nine wrong answers and the officer stops, whatever you might have known about the remaining questions. There is no recovering in the back half, so there is no value in a strategy that leans on some topics and writes off others.
That is why the practice tool here mirrors the stop rule rather than always running to 20. A mock test that always asks all twenty flatters you: it lets a bad first half be rescued by a good second half, which the real test will not do.
What the 128 questions cover
Knowing the shape of the pool tells you where your study time goes. More than half of it is American government.
| Section | Topic | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| AMERICAN GOVERNMENT | Principles of American Government | 15 |
| AMERICAN GOVERNMENT | System of Government | 47 |
| AMERICAN GOVERNMENT | Rights and Responsibilities | 10 |
| AMERICAN HISTORY | Colonial Period and Independence | 17 |
| AMERICAN HISTORY | 1800s | 10 |
| AMERICAN HISTORY | Recent American History and Other Important Historical Information | 19 |
| SYMBOLS AND HOLIDAYS | Symbols | 6 |
| SYMBOLS AND HOLIDAYS | Holidays | 4 |
Use “study by topic” in the tool above to work through one row at a time, then take a mixed mock test.
The English half, and who does not have to take it
Almost everything written about the naturalisation test is about civics, which is odd, because the English requirement is the one that worries people more — and it is the one with real exceptions attached. Start with what it actually is: three parts, and one of them is not a separate exercise at all.
| Part | What you do | How it is judged |
|---|---|---|
| Reading | Read one of three sentences aloud correctly. | One correct reading out of up to three attempts. USCIS publishes the vocabulary list the sentences are drawn from. |
| Writing | Write one of three sentences correctly. | One correct writing out of up to three attempts, from the same published vocabulary list. |
| Speaking | Not a separate exercise at all. | Assessed by the officer through the eligibility interview itself — your answers to the N-400 questions are the test. |
The age-and-residence exceptions
Three of them, and they are usually written as a pair of numbers: your age, and your years as a permanent resident. Eligibility is measured at the time you file the N-400, not at the interview — so a few weeks either side of a birthday can genuinely change which rule you file under.
| Rule | You must be | English test | Civics test |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50/20 | 50 or older, and a permanent resident for 20+ years | Exempt | Still required, but you may take it in the language of your choice.You bring an interpreter. The full civics pool still applies. |
| 55/15 | 55 or older, and a permanent resident for 15+ years | Exempt | Still required, but you may take it in the language of your choice.Identical treatment to 50/20 — a different age-and-years combination reaching the same place. |
| 65/20 | 65 or older, and a permanent resident for 20+ years | Exempt | Required, in the language of your choice, and from a reduced set of questions with a lower pass mark.The only exception that reduces what you have to study. USCIS marks the qualifying questions in its own publication. |
Read the civics column carefully, because this is where people get it wrong in both directions. An English exception is not a civics exception: on 50/20 and 55/15 you still take the full civics test, you simply take it in your own language with an interpreter. Only 65/20 reduces what you have to learn — to 20 questions, 10 asked, 6 to pass. The practice tool above has a 65/20 mode that uses exactly that set.
The medical exception, Form N-648
A different mechanism, and not age-based. Form N-648, Medical Certification for Disability Exceptions, requests an exception to an exception to the english requirement, the civics requirement, or both. It rests on a medically determinable physical or developmental disability or mental impairment that has lasted, or is expected to last, at least 12 months. Only a medical doctor, doctor of osteopathy, or clinical psychologist licensed to practise in the United States may certify it. The impairment cannot be the direct effect of illegal drug use. Filed with the N-400 where possible, or brought to the interview. There is no fee for the form itself.
Sources: USCIS exceptions and accommodations, Policy Manual Vol. 12, Pt. E, Ch. 2 and Ch. 3. Read September 20, 2026. USCIS also provides disability accommodations — a sign-language interpreter, an accessible site, extended time — separately from any of these exceptions, and requesting one does not require N-648.
The eight questions nobody should memorise
Seven questions ask who currently holds an office and one asks for your state capital. Those answers change with elections, appointments and where you live, so this tool stores no answer for them at all — it tells you to look them up.
This is not a limitation, it is the correct behaviour. Practice material that hard-codes an officeholder's name goes stale the moment an election or a resignation happens, and the person studying from it has no way of knowing. USCIS maintains a page for exactly this purpose — test updates — and for your own senators, representative and governor you need the answer for your state on the day of your interview. Check them the week before, not months ahead.
For Indian applicants: what naturalising costs you
This is the part that has nothing to do with civics and everything to do with the decision. India does not allow dual citizenship. The day you take the Oath of Allegiance you cease to be an Indian citizen — not by choice, by operation of Indian law — and you are required to surrender your Indian passport and obtain a surrender or renunciation certificate.
The route back to visa-free travel and residence in India is an OCI card, which is available only to foreign nationals — so the sequence is naturalise, surrender the passport, then apply for OCI, in that order. How to apply for OCI covers the documents, and the surrender certificate is one of them.
Worth knowing before you file, because the practical differences are real: OCI is not citizenship. An OCI holder cannot vote in India, cannot hold a constitutional office or most government jobs, and cannot buy agricultural or plantation land or a farm house. Other property is generally fine. If you are weighing what to do with assets you hold in India either way, the NRI investments analysis goes through it, and OCI vs an Indian visa compares the two routes for someone who travels back often.
How to study this in a few weeks
- Take one mock test cold, before studying anything. It is unpleasant and it is the most useful twenty minutes you will spend, because it tells you which of the eight topics you are actually weak in rather than which ones you feel weak in.
- Work the two weakest topics in “study by topic” mode. Say every answer aloud. Reading an answer and knowing you could have said it is not the same as saying it.
- Use “review my wrong answers” every session. The questions you miss are not random — they cluster, and drilling the cluster is what moves a score.
- A week before the interview, look up your current officeholders and your state capital, and check the USCIS test updates page.
- Take a final mock in the format, without the timer off. If you clear 12 comfortably twice in a row, you are ready for this part.
All 128 questions and answers
The full official list, from the same data the practice tool uses. Print it, or use your browser's “Save as PDF” to keep a copy.
All 128 civics questions and answers (2025 version)
Source: USCIS M-1778 (09/25). Answers marked “look this up” change with elections and appointments — check https://www.uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates. Questions with a star are in the 65/20 set.
1. What is the form of government of the United States?
Republic · Constitution-based federal republic · Representative democracy
2. What is the supreme law of the land?★
(U.S.) Constitution
3. Name one thing the U.S. Constitution does.
Forms the government · Defines powers of government · Defines the parts of government · Protects the rights of the people
4. The U.S. Constitution starts with the words "We the People." What does "We the People" mean?
Self-government · Popular sovereignty · Consent of the governed · People should govern themselves · (Example of) social contract
5. How are changes made to the U.S. Constitution?
Amendments · The amendment process
6. What does the Bill of Rights protect?
(The basic) rights of Americans · (The basic) rights of people living in the United States
7. How many amendments does the U.S. Constitution have?★
Twenty-seven (27)
8. Why is the Declaration of Independence important?
It says America is free from British control. · It says all people are created equal. · It identifies inherent rights. · It identifies individual freedoms.
9. What founding document said the American colonies were free from Britain?
Declaration of Independence
10. Name two important ideas from the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution.
Equality · Liberty · Social contract · Natural rights · Limited government · Self-government
11. The words "Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness" are in what founding document?
Declaration of Independence
12. What is the economic system of the United States?★
Capitalism · Free market economy
13. What is the rule of law?
Everyone must follow the law. · Leaders must obey the law. · Government must obey the law. · No one is above the law.
14. Many documents influenced the U.S. Constitution. Name one.
Declaration of Independence · Articles of Confederation · Federalist Papers · Anti-Federalist Papers · Virginia Declaration of Rights · Fundamental Orders of Connecticut · Mayflower Compact · Iroquois Great Law of Peace
15. There are three branches of government. Why?
So one part does not become too powerful · Checks and balances · Separation of powers
16. Name the three branches of government.
Legislative, executive, and judicial · Congress, president, and the courts
17. The President of the United States is in charge of which branch of government?
Executive branch
18. What part of the federal government writes laws?
(U.S.) Congress · (U.S. or national) legislature · Legislative branch
19. What are the two parts of the U.S. Congress?
Senate and House (of Representatives)
20. Name one power of the U.S. Congress.★
Writes laws · Declares war · Makes the federal budget
21. How many U.S. senators are there?
One hundred (100)
22. How long is a term for a U.S. senator?
Six (6) years
23. Who is one of your state's U.S. senators now?
Answer with the name of a current U.S. senator for your state. Senators for the District of Columbia and U.S. territories: D.C. and the territories have no U.S. senators.
24. How many voting members are in the House of Representatives?
Four hundred thirty-five (435)
25. How long is a term for a member of the House of Representatives?
Two (2) years
26. Why do U.S. representatives serve shorter terms than U.S. senators?
To more closely follow public opinion
27. How many senators does each state have?
Two (2)
28. Why does each state have two senators?
Equal representation (for small states) · The Great Compromise (Connecticut Compromise)
29. Name your U.S. representative.
Answer with the name of your current U.S. representative. Residents of territories with nonvoting Delegates or Resident Commissioners may give that person's name, or state that the territory has no (voting) Representatives in Congress.
30. What is the name of the Speaker of the House of Representatives now?★
Visit uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates for the na me of the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
31. Who does a U.S. senator represent?
Citizens of their state · People of their state
32. Who elects U.S. senators?
Citizens from their state
33. Who does a member of the House of Representatives represent?
Citizens in their (congressional) district · Citizens in their district · People from their (congressional) district · People in their district
34. Who elects members of the House of Representatives?
Citizens from their (congressional) district
35. Some states have more representatives than other states. Why?
(Because of) the state's population · (Because) they have more people · (Because) some states have more people
36. The President of the United States is elected for how many years?★
Four (4) years
37. The President of the United States can serve only two terms. Why?
(Because of) the 22nd Amendment · To keep the president from becoming too powerful
38. What is the name of the President of the United States now?★
Visit uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates for the name of the President of the United States.
39. What is the name of the Vice President of the United States now?★
Visit uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates for the name of the Vice President of the United States.
40. If the president can no longer serve, who becomes president?
The Vice President (of the United States)
41. Name one power of the president.
Signs bills into law · Vetoes bills · Enforces laws · Commander in Chief (of the military) · Chief diplomat · Appoints federal judges
42. Who is Commander in Chief of the U.S. military?
The President (of the United States)
43. Who signs bills to become laws?
The President (of the United States)
44. Who vetoes bills?★
The President (of the United States)
45. Who appoints federal judges?
The President (of the United States)
46. The executive branch has many parts. Name one.
President (of the United States) · Cabinet · Federal departments and agencies
47. What does the President's Cabinet do?
Advises the President (of the United States)
48. What are two Cabinet-level positions?
Attorney General · Secretary of Agriculture · Secretary of Commerce · Secretary of Education · Secretary of Energy · Secretary of Health and Human Services · Secretary of Homeland Security · Secretary of Housing and Urban Development · Secretary of the Interior · Secretary of Labor · Secretary of State · Secretary of Transportation · Secretary of the Treasury · Secretary of Veterans Affairs · Secretary of War (Defense) · Vice-President · Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency · Administrator of the Small Business Administration · Director of the Central Intelligence Agency · Director of the Office of Management and Budget · Director of National Intelligence · United States Trade Representative
49. Why is the Electoral College important?
It decides who is elected president. · It provides a compromise between the popular election of the president and congressional selection.
50. What is one part of the judicial branch?
Supreme Court · Federal Courts
51. What does the judicial branch do?
Reviews laws · Explains laws · Resolves disputes (disagreements) about the law · Decides if a law goes flagainst the (U.S.) Constitution
52. What is the highest court in the United States?★
Supreme Court
53. How many seats are on the Supreme Court?
Nine (9)
54. How many Supreme Court justices are usually needed to decide a case?
Five (5)
55. How long do Supreme Court justices serve?
(For) life · Lifetime appointment · (Until) retirement
56. Supreme Court justices serve for life. Why?
To be independent (of politics) · To limit outside (political) influence
57. Who is the Chief Justice of the United States now?
Visit uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates for t he name of the Chief Justice of the United States.
58. Name one power that is only for the federal government.
Print paper money · Mint coins · Declare war · Create an army · Make treaties · Set foreign policy
59. Name one power that is only for the states.
Provide schooling and education · Provide protection (police) · Provide safety (fire departments) · Give a driver's license · Approve zoning and land use
60. What is the purpose of the 10th Amendment?
(It states that the) powers not given to the federal government belong to the states or to the people.
61. Who is the governor of your state now?★
Answer with the name of the current governor of your state. District of Columbia residents should answer that D.C. does not have a governor.
62. What is the capital of your state?
Answer with the capital city of your state. District of Columbia residents should answer that D.C. is not a state and does not have a capital.
63. There are four amendments to the U.S. Constitution about who can vote. Describe one of them.
Citizens eighteen (18) and older (can vote). · You don't have to pay (a poll tax) to vote. · Any citizen can vote. (Women and men can vote.) · A male citizen of any race (can vote).
64. Who can vote in federal elections, run for federal office, and serve on a jury in the United States?
Citizens · Citizens of the United States · U.S. citizens
65. What are three rights of everyone living in the United States?
Freedom of expression · Freedom of speech · Freedom of assembly · Freedom to petition the government · Freedom of religion · The right to bear arms
66. What do we show loyalty to when we say the Pledge of Allegiance?★
The United States · The flag
67. Name two promises that new citizens make in the Oath of Allegiance.
Give up loyalty to other countries · Defend the (U.S.) Constitution · Obey the laws of the United States · Serve in the military (if needed) · Serve (help, do important work for) the nation (if needed) · Be loyal to the United States
68. How can people become United States citizens?
Be born in the United States, under the conditions set by the 14th Amendment · Naturalize · Derive citizenship (under conditions set by Congress)
69. What are two examples of civic participation in the United States?
Vote · Run for office · Join a political party · Help with a campaign · Join a civic group · Join a community group · Give an elected official your opinion (on an issue) · Contact elected officials · Support or oppose an issue or policy · Write to a newspaper
70. What is one way Americans can serve their country?
Vote · Pay taxes · Obey the law · Serve in the military · Run for office · Work for local, state, or federal government
71. Why is it important to pay federal taxes?
Required by law · All people pay to fund the federal government · Required by the (U.S.) Constitution (16th Amendment) · Civic duty
72. It is important for all men age 18 through 25 to register for the Selective Service. Name one reason why.
Required by law · Civic duty · Makes the draft fair, if needed
73. The colonists came to America for many reasons. Name one.
Freedom · Political liberty · Religious freedom · Economic opportunity · Escape persecution
74. Who lived in America before the Europeans arrived?★
American Indians · Native Americans
75. What group of people was taken and sold as slaves?
Africans · People from Africa
76. What war did the Americans fight to win independence from Britain?
American Revolution · The (American) Revolutionary War · War for (American) Independence
77. Name one reason why the Americans declared independence from Britain.
High taxes · Taxation without representation · British soldiers stayed in Americans' houses (boarding, quartering) · They did not have self-government · Boston Massacre · Boston Tea Party (Tea Act) · Stamp Act · Sugar Act · Townshend Acts · Intolerable (Coercive) Acts
78. Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?★
(Thomas) Je erson
79. When was the Declaration of Independence adopted?
July 4, 1776
80. The American Revolution had many important events. Name one.
(Battle of) Bunker Hill · Declaration of Independence · Washington Crossing the Delaware (Battle of Trenton) · (Battle of) Saratoga · Valley Forge (Encampment) · (Battle of) Yorktown (British surrender at Yorktown)
81. There were 13 original states. Name five.
New Hampshire · Massachusetts · Rhode Island · Connecticut · New York · New Jersey · Pennsylvania · Delaware · Maryland · Virginia · North Carolina · South Carolina · Georgia
82. What founding document was written in 1787?
(U.S.) Constitution
83. The Federalist Papers supported the passage of the U.S. Constitution. Name one of the writers.
(James) Madison · (Alexander) Hamilton · (John) Jay · Publius
84. Why were the Federalist Papers important?
They helped people understand the (U.S.) Constitution. · They supported passing the (U.S.) Constitution.
85. Benjamin Franklin is famous for many things. Name one.
Founded the first free public libraries · First Postmaster General of the United States · Helped write the Declaration of Independence · Inventor · U.S. diplomat
86. George Washington is famous for many things. Name one.★
"Father of Our Country" · First president of the United States · General of the Continental Army · President of the Constitutional Convention
87. Thomas Je erson is famous for many things. Name one.
Writer of the Declaration of Independence · Third president of the United States · Doubled the size of the United States (Louisiana Purchase) · First Secretary of State · Founded the University of Virginia · Writer of the Virginia Statute on Religious Freedom
88. James Madison is famous for many things. Name one.
"Father of the Constitution" · Fourth president of the United States · President during the War of 1812 · One of the writers of the Federalist Papers
89. Alexander Hamilton is famous for many things. Name one.
First Secretary of the Treasury · One of the writers of the Federalist Papers · Helped establish the First Bank of the United States · Aide to General George Washington · Member of the Continental Congress
90. What territory did the United States buy from France in 1803?
Louisiana Territory · Louisiana
91. Name one war fought by the United States in the 1800s.
War of 1812 · Mexican-American War · Civil War · Spanish-American War
92. Name the U.S. war between the North and the South.
The Civil War
93. The Civil War had many important events. Name one.
(Battle of) Fort Sumter · Emancipation Proclamation · (Battle of) Vicksburg · (Battle of) Gettysburg · Sherman's March · (Surrender at) Appomattox · (Battle of) Antietam/Sharpsburg · Lincoln was assassinated.
94. Abraham Lincoln is famous for many things. Name one.★
Freed the slaves (Emancipation Proclamation) · Saved (or preserved) the Union · Led the United States during the Civil War · 16th president of the United States · Delivered the Gettysburg Address
95. What did the Emancipation Proclamation do?
Freed the slaves · Freed slaves in the Confederacy · Freed slaves in the Confederate states · Freed slaves in most Southern states
96. What U.S. war ended slavery?
The Civil War
97. What amendment says all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are U.S. citizens?
14th Amendment
98. When did all men get the right to vote?
After the Civil War · During Reconstruction · (With the) 15th Amendment · 1870
99. Name one leader of the women's rights movement in the 1800s.
Susan B. Anthony · Elizabeth Cady Stanton · Sojourner Truth · Harriet Tubman · Lucretia Mott · Lucy Stone
100. Name one war fought by the United States in the 1900s.
World War I · World War II · Korean War · Vietnam War · (Persian) Gulf War
101. Why did the United States enter World War I?
Because Germany attacked U.S. (civilian) ships · To support the Allied Powers (England, France, Italy, and Russia) · To oppose the Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria)
102. When did all women get the right to vote?
1920 · After World War I · (With the) 19th Amendment · (With the) 19
103. What was the Great Depression?
Longest economic recession in modern history
104. When did the Great Depression start?
The Great Crash (1929) · Stock market crash of 1929
105. Who was president during the Great Depression and World War II?
(Franklin) Roosevelt
106. Why did the United States enter World War II?
(Bombing of) Pearl Harbor · Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor · To support the Allied Powers (England, France, and Russia) · To oppose the Axis Powers (Germany, Italy, and Japan)
107. Dwight Eisenhower is famous for many things. Name one.
General during World War II · President at the end of (during) the Korean War · 34th president of the United States · Signed the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 (Created the Interstate System)
108. Who was the United States' main rival during the Cold War?
Soviet Union · USSR · Russia
109. During the Cold War, what was one main concern of the United States?
Communism · Nuclear war
110. Why did the United States enter the Korean War?
To stop the spread of communism
111. Why did the United States enter the Vietnam War?
To stop the spread of communism
112. What did the civil rights movement do?
Fought to end racial discrimination
113. Martin Luther King, Jr. is famous for many things. Name one.★
Fought for civil rights · Worked for equality for all Americans · Worked to ensure that people would "not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character"
114. Why did the United States enter the Persian Gulf War?
To force the Iraqi military from Kuwait
115. What major event happened on September 11, 2001 in the United States?★
Terrorists attacked the United States · Terrorists took over two planes and crashed them into the World Trade Center in New York City · Terrorists took over a plane and crashed into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia · Terrorists took over a plane originally aimed at Washington, D.C., and crashed in a field in Pennsylvania
116. Name one U.S. military conflict after the September 11, 2001 attacks.
(Global) War on Terror · War in Afghanistan · War in Iraq
117. Name one American Indian tribe in the United States.
Apache · Blackfeet · Cayuga · Cherokee · Cheyenne · Chippewa · Choctaw · Creek · Crow · Hopi · Huron · Inupiat · Lakota · Mohawk · Mohegan · Navajo · Oneida · Onondaga · Pueblo · Seminole · Seneca · Shawnee · Sioux · Teton · Tuscarora
118. Name one example of an American innovation.
Light bulb · Automobile (cars, internal combustion engine) · Skyscrapers · Airplane · Assembly line · Landing on the moon · Integrated circuit (IC)
119. What is the capital of the United States?
Washington, D.C.
120. Where is the Statue of Liberty?
New York (Harbor)
121. Why does the flag have 13 stripes?★
(Because there were) 13 original colonies · (Because the stripes) represent the original colonies
122. Why does the flag have 50 stars?
(Because there is) one star for each state · (Because) each star represents a state · (Because there are) 50 states
123. What is the name of the national anthem?
The Star-Spangled Banner
124. The Nation's first motto was "E Pluribus Unum." What does that mean?
Out of many, one · We all become one
125. What is Independence Day?
A holiday to celebrate U.S. independence (from Britain) · The country's birthday
126. Name three national U.S. holidays.★
New Year's Day · Martin Luther King, Jr. Day · President's Day (Washington's Birthday) · Memorial Day · Juneteenth · Independence Day · Labor Day · Columbus Day · Veterans Day · Thanksgiving Day · Christmas Day
127. What is Memorial Day?
A holiday to honor soldiers who died in military service
128. What is Veterans Day?
A holiday to honor people in the (U.S.) military · A holiday to honor people who have served (in the U.S. military)
Frequently asked questions
How many questions are on the 2026 citizenship test?
The pool is 128 questions. At the interview the officer asks 20 of them, and you need 12 correct to pass. The officer stops as soon as you have 12 right or 9 wrong, so a real test is usually shorter than 20 questions — you often walk out having answered twelve or thirteen.
Who takes the 2025 version and who takes the old 100-question test?
It is decided by your Form N-400 filing date, not by when your interview happens. File on or after October 20, 2025 and you take the 2025 version: 128 questions in the pool, 20 asked, 12 to pass. File before that date and you take the 2008 version: 100 in the pool, up to 10 asked, 6 to pass. If you filed in 2025 and are interviewing in 2026, check your receipt notice — many people are still on the older test.
Where can I get the 2026 citizenship test questions with answers as a PDF?
USCIS publishes the official list as M-1778 (09/25), and it is linked in the sources at the foot of this page. This page also reproduces all 128 questions and answers below the practice tool, with a print button — use your browser's "Save as PDF" option to keep a copy. The answers here are transcribed from the USCIS publication rather than paraphrased, because applicants are told to answer using the wording USCIS gives.
What is the 65/20 special consideration?
If you are 65 or older and a lawful permanent resident for 20 or more years, you only have to study the 20 starred questions. The officer asks 10 of those and you need 6 correct. You may also take the civics test in the language of your choice. The practice tool has a mode for exactly this set.
Why is this practice test not multiple choice?
Because the real one is not. The civics test is oral: the officer asks a question and you answer out loud, with no options in front of you. Recognising the right answer in a list of four is a different and much easier skill, and practising that way is how people arrive at the interview more confident than they should be. Here you say your answer, reveal the official one, and mark yourself.
What happens if I fail the civics test?
You get 2 attempts. If you fail a portion at the first interview you are re-tested only on that portion, between 60 and 90 days later. Failing the civics test does not mean re-doing the English test if you passed it, and it does not mean re-filing the N-400.
Some answers change — how do you handle those?
Seven questions ask who currently holds an office — the President, the Vice President, the Speaker, the Chief Justice, your senators, your representative, your governor — and one asks for your state capital. This tool deliberately holds no answer for those. Hard-coding a name would be wrong within a year and nobody would notice. Instead those questions tell you to look the current answer up at https://www.uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates, which is exactly what USCIS tells applicants to do.
Can I keep my Indian citizenship after naturalising?
No. India does not permit dual citizenship. Once you naturalise as a US citizen you cease to be an Indian citizen by operation of law, and you must surrender your Indian passport and obtain a surrender or renunciation certificate. The route back to visa-free access is an OCI card, which you apply for after naturalising — never before, because OCI is only for foreign nationals.
What else is tested besides civics?
English, in three parts. Reading: Read one of three sentences aloud correctly. Writing: Write one of three sentences correctly. Speaking: Assessed by the officer through the eligibility interview itself. For most people who have lived and worked in the United States for five years the English portion is the straightforward part and the civics questions are the ones worth drilling.
Do I have to take the citizenship test in English?
Not always. Three age-and-residence exceptions remove the English requirement: 50/20 (age 50 or older and a permanent resident for 20 or more years), 55/15 (55 or older, 15 or more years) and 65/20 (65 or older, 20 or more years). Eligibility is measured when you file the N-400, not at the interview. Note what the exception does and does not cover: on 50/20 and 55/15 you still take the full civics test, simply in the language of your choice with an interpreter. Only 65/20 also reduces the civics requirement — to 20 questions, 10 asked and 6 to pass.
What is the 65/20 rule for the citizenship test?
If you are 65 or older and have been a lawful permanent resident for at least 20 years when you file Form N-400, you are exempt from the English requirement and you get special consideration on civics. USCIS marks a reduced set of 20 questions in its own publication; you are asked 10 of them and need 6 correct, and you may answer in the language of your choice. The practice tool on this page has a 65/20 mode that draws only from that marked set.
What is on the English portion of the naturalisation test?
Three parts. Reading: you read one of three sentences aloud correctly. Writing: you write one of three sentences correctly. Both are drawn from vocabulary lists USCIS publishes in advance, and you get up to three attempts at each. Speaking is not a separate exercise at all — the officer assesses it through the eligibility interview itself, from how you answer the questions on your N-400. That last point is worth knowing before you walk in: the interview has already started scoring you before anyone mentions a test.
What is Form N-648, and who needs it?
N-648 — Medical Certification for Disability Exceptions — requests an exception to the English requirement, the civics requirement, or both, on the basis of a medically determinable physical or developmental disability or mental impairment that has lasted, or is expected to last, at least 12 months. Only a medical doctor, doctor of osteopathy, or clinical psychologist licensed to practise in the United States may certify it. The impairment cannot be the direct effect of illegal drug use. It is filed with the N-400 where possible, or brought to the interview, and there is no fee for the form. It is a different mechanism from the age-and-residence exceptions and is not limited by age. Separately from all of this, USCIS provides disability accommodations at the interview — a sign-language interpreter, an accessible site, extended time — and requesting one of those does not require N-648.
Which civics topics should I study first?
Weight your time the way the pool is weighted, because your 20 questions are drawn from it. System of Government (47 questions), Recent American History and Other Important Historical Information (19 questions), Colonial Period and Independence (17 questions), Principles of American Government (15 questions) — those four alone are most of the bank. American government is more than half of the whole pool, so a study plan giving every topic equal time is spending most of it in the wrong places. The chart on this page shows the full breakdown, and the practice tool has a study-by-topic mode that follows it.
Sources and last verified
All 128 questions and the test format were checked against these USCIS sources on September 16, 2026. USCIS can revise the test — check before your interview.
Informational only, not legal advice. This page explains how a government process works and what the published rules say. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney–client relationship. For advice on your own facts, speak to a licensed immigration attorney — here is what one typically costs.
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Educational and planning use only. This is not legal, tax, financial, or immigration advice, and it does not replace a CPA, an attorney, or the relevant agency.
- Numbers, forms, fees, dates, rules, and limits change at any time.
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This is practice material, not a USCIS product and not legal advice. Passing here does not predict the outcome of a real interview. Always study from the official USCIS materials as well.
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