US Citizenship Interview Practice / Which Test Will I Take?
Which citizenship test will I take?
USCIS changed the civics test on 20 October 2025, and which version you sit depends entirely on when your N-400 was received. Answer three questions and see exactly what you face — the civics pool, the pass mark, and whether the English test applies to you at all.
Checked against USCIS on 2026-08-21The date on your USCIS receipt notice (Form I-797C) — not the day you posted it.
In whole years, on that date.
Whole years as a lawful permanent resident, on that date.
All three of these are assessed at the time of filing, not at the time of your interview. If you turn 55 while you are waiting for your interview date, the rules still look at how old you were when USCIS received your application.
Fill in the three fields above to see exactly which test components you will face.
This reflects USCIS’s published rules as checked on the date shown below. It is general information, not legal or immigration advice, and it does not tell you whether you will pass. Always confirm against USCIS before you rely on it.
Whichever version you get, an officer asks it out loud, across a desk.
Practise it the way it is actually asked — spoken, one question after another, with no time to look anything up.
Practise the interview out loud2 free coaching sessions · available until used · no card needed · no subscriptionThe two civics tests, side by side
| 2008 civics test | 2025 civics test | |
|---|---|---|
| Applies when USCIS received your N-400 | Before 20 October 2025 | On or after 20 October 2025 |
| Questions in the pool | 100 | 128 |
| Questions the officer asks | Up to 10 | Up to 20 |
| Correct answers to pass | 6 | 12 |
| Officer stops early at | 6 right or 5 wrong | 12 right or 9 wrong |
| Reduced list for 65/20 applicants | 20 questions | 20 questions |
| Pass mark as a percentage | 60% | 60% |
Note the 2025 test’s fail threshold: 9 wrong, not 8. The arithmetic is deliberately not symmetrical.
Three separate rules, not one
The most common mistake is to treat “I am over 65 and have been a permanent resident a long time” as a single exemption. It is not. Three independent rules are applied, and you can meet one without meeting the others.
1. Which civics version you get
Decided by your filing date alone. Your age and years of residence make no difference to this.
2. Whether the English test applies
Decided by 50/20 or 55/15 — age 50+ with 20+ years, or age 55+ with 15+ years, at the time of filing. If either applies, you may take civics in your own language, with your own interpreter.
3. Whether you study the reduced civics list
Decided by 65/20 alone — age 65+ with 20+ years at filing. This is a civics rule and nothing else. It is why someone aged 66 with 16 years as a permanent resident skips the English test but still studies the full pool.
FAQs
Which civics test will I take?
It depends only on the date USCIS received your N-400. Received before 20 October 2025, you take the 2008 civics test: a pool of 100 questions, up to 10 asked, 6 correct to pass. Received on or after that date, you take the 2025 civics test: a pool of 128, up to 20 asked, 12 correct to pass. Your age and how long you have held a green card do not change which version you get.
Does "filed" mean the day I posted my application?
No. It means the day USCIS actually received it — the date printed on your receipt notice, Form I-797C. There is no postmark rule. And if your first attempt was rejected, for example over a signature or a fee, you lose that filing date entirely and the date of your successful re-filing is the one that counts.
Am I exempt from the English test?
There are two age-and-residence exceptions, both assessed at the time of filing: 50/20 (age 50 or older with 20+ years as a permanent resident) and 55/15 (age 55 or older with 15+ years as a permanent resident). If either applies, you do not take the English test, and you may take the civics test in your own language — but you must bring your own interpreter.
Is the 20-question senior list the same as the English exemption?
No, and this trips people up. The 65/20 rule (age 65+ with 20+ years) gives you a reduced civics list of 20 questions — 10 asked, 6 to pass. It is a civics rule only. The English exemption is a separate rule with its own thresholds. Someone aged 66 with 16 years as a permanent resident is exempt from English under 55/15, but still studies the full civics pool.
Does the officer really ask all 20 questions on the 2025 test?
Not usually. They stop as soon as the outcome is settled — at 12 correct or 9 wrong. The 2008 civics test works the same way, stopping at 6 correct or 5 wrong. Early stopping is not new; it is not something the 2025 test introduced.
What happens if I do not pass?
You get one more attempt. USCIS schedules the re-examination 60 to 90 days after your first interview, and retests you only on the portions you did not pass.
Sources
Every figure on this page was checked against these sources on 2026-08-21. The USCIS Policy Manual is the controlling guidance — where a study page and the Policy Manual differ in wording, the Policy Manual is what officers apply.
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Merra is an independent interview-preparation practice platform. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to US Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Department of Homeland Security, or any US government agency. This page reflects USCIS’s published rules as checked on 2026-08-21; rules change, so confirm on uscis.gov before you rely on anything here. This is general information, not legal or immigration advice; Merra does not review your application and does not predict whether you will pass or be naturalised.