The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it will be reverting to the 2008 version of the naturalization civics test beginning March 1, 2021.
The agency on Dec. 1, 2020 revised the civics test as part of a decennial review and update but it “determined the 2020 civics test development process, content, testing procedures, and implementation schedule may inadvertently create potential barriers to the naturalization process,” according to a news release on Monday, Feb. 22.
The civics test is administered to applicants who apply for U.S. citizenship through naturalization and is one of the statutory requirements for naturalizing. Applicants must demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of the fundamentals of the history, principles, and form of government of the United States.
Applications who filed their application for naturalization on or after Dec. 1, 2020 and before March 1, 2021 will be given the option to take either the 2020 or 2008 tests.
The 2020 version of civic test asks applicants 20 questions from a list of 128 possible questions. Applicants are required to answer at least 12 of the 20 questions correctly to pass.
The 2020 test will be phased out on April 19 for initial test takers. Meanwhile, those who file for naturalization after March 1 will take the 2008 test.
Those who take the 2008 test will need to study 100 questions about American government and history and must answer correctly six of the 10 questions (or 60%) to pass. All questions on the test are asked orally.
Applicants are given two opportunities to pass the naturalization test. If they fail any part of the naturalization test during the first interview, they will be retested only on the portion of the test that they failed failed, between 60 and 90 days from the date of the initial interview.
