U.S. Citizenship Requirements
To become a U.S. citizen, all naturalization applicants have
to meet the following requirements -- unless they qualify for an exemption or
apply based on their U.S. military service. Here’s a breakdown of the 8 requirements:
1.Minimum Age
You must be at least 18 years old to apply for naturalization — unless you’re applying
based on any period of wartime military service, in which case you may be any age.
2. Continuous and Physical Presence You have to continuously live in the United States
as a green card holder for at least five years (or at least three years if you’re married to a U.S.
citizen). “Continuously” means you didn’t take any trips outside of the U.S. for more than six
months in the 3–5 years you’re required to have a green card (plus the extra period while U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services processes your U.S. citizenship application). This means,
you’re allowed to leave the United States — just make sure to return within six months every time.
IMPORTANT: If you leave the United States for more than six months as a green card holder,
USCIS will presume that you abandoned your permanent residence in the United States,
and they’ll deny your U.S. citizenship application.
Learn how to overcome that presumption by clicking the link in our description.
3. Demonstrating “physical presence”
Demonstrating physical presence means you must have physically lived in the
United States for at least half of five years (roughly 913 days)
or at least half of three years (548 days) if you’re married to a U.S. citizen.
You can take trips outside the U.S. while you wait the 3-5 years,
but be mindful of the requirements for “continuous presence.”
4. Residency
This requirement is different from the continuous and physical
presence requirement we just told you about.
To satisfy the residency requirement, you must have been a resident of the state
or USCIS district where you plan to apply for citizenship for at least three months
immediately before you apply for naturalization.
“State” also includes the following: The District of Columbia
Puerto Rico Guam
The U.S. Virgin Islands The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
The USCIS district basically refers to the geographical area associated with a particular
USCIS field office - and that’s determined by your ZIP code. This means that the address you
provide on your naturalization application has to be where you’ve established residency, e.g.,
where you’ve registered to vote, pay taxes, or have a state ID or driver’s license.
IMPORTANT THINGS TO REMEMBER: If you move after filing Form
N-400 (officially called the “Application for Naturalization”),
you have to notify USCIS of your new address within 10 days of relocating to your new home
so they can forward your naturalization file to the appropriate USCIS field office.
USCIS will consider your residency to be the location you specify as your “current
physical address” on your Form N-400, even if you decide to apply for naturalization 90 days early.
5. Good Moral Character
“Good moral character” is broadly defined by USCIS as character that
measures up to the standards of average citizens. Here’s what that means:
Did not commit certain crimes like: murder, illegal gambling,
or defrauding the U.S. government for immigration purposes — during the period that begins three or
five years before you applied for naturalization and ends when you’ve taken the Oath of Allegiance.
Don’t lie to a USCIS officer during your naturalization interview.
Don’t receive 2 or more DUI convictions in the three or five years before
applying for naturalization and up until the Oath of Allegiance.
6. English Proficiency and Civics Knowledge
As part of the naturalization process, you will need to pass a two-part naturalization test:
An English language test that evaluates your reading, writing, and speaking skills
A civics test that evaluates your knowledge of U.S. history and government
7. Military and Civil Service Registration
You must be willing to serve in the U.S. military or perform civil service
for the United States if you’re ever called upon to do so,
which generally means registering with the Selective Service System if you’re a male of
a certain age. The Selective Service System is a government program that collects and
maintains information on individuals who may be able to serve in the military by draft.
Selective Service registration is required if you haven’t turned 26 during the three- or five-year
wait period before you applied for naturalization. But if you’re past the age of 26, USCIS will
then consider other factors, including how many years you’ve demonstrated “good moral character”
8. Allegiance to the United States
Finally, In order to become a U.S. citizen, you have to demonstrate an “attachment” to
the U.S. Constitution. “Attachment” means that you believe, support,
and are willing to defend the principles of the U.S. Constitution by accepting the democratic
process and promising to obey the law. How do you demonstrate this “attachment”?
You’ll attend a public “swearing-in” ceremony, where you and other naturalization applicants
will recite the Oath of Allegiance, which is the final step of the naturalization process.
During the ceremony, you’ll be asked to make sure that you understand the following:
You’re taking the Oath of Allegiance voluntarily. You’re giving your full allegiance to the United
States by renouncing your allegiance to all other countries where you claim citizenship.
You accept all the responsibilities of a U.S. citizen — including military
and civil service if necessary (see above) — and have no intention of not fulfilling these duties.
You must complete this last step before you can become a U.S. citizen.
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