Right before you are allowed to swear the oath of allegiance and become a bona fide U.S. citizen, there will be the final U.S. citizenship interview. This will be conducted by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and serves two purposes: to check the information that you wrote on your forms and to check your ability to speak English.
The idea of an interview and a test rolled into one may be daunting for most people, but it certainly will help if you familiarize yourself with the questions that they will ask. That way you can prepare your answers ahead of time.
Here we compiled a list of questions that the interviewer may ask from start to finish. Do make sure to answer every single question as well as you can, even if they don’t seem important to your citizenship because you will also be judged for your ability to speak English.
If you have any concerns or questions or need any help preparing for the U.S. citizenship interview, be sure to contact one of our immigration attorneys at Andres Mejer Law, a New Jersey immigration law firm. Our immigration lawyers will help you understand everything you need about visas, USCIS forms, the civics test, and any other questions you may have on how to become a citizen in the US.
Greetings
- Hello, how are you today?
- Hi, how are you feeling?
Being Under Oath
- Do you understand what an oath and being under an oath are?
- Do you promise to say the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you, God?
Personal Information
- What’s your name? Do you go by any other name?
- When and where were you born?
- What’s your ethnicity? Are your Latino or Hispanic?
Physical Characteristics
- Can you describe your physical characteristics?
- What color are your hair and eyes?
- What’s your height?
Personal History
- Do you have any children?
- Where and when were your children born?
- How many children do you have and what are their names?
- Who are your parents? Is either of them a U.S. citizen?
Relationship History
- What’s your relationship status?
- Are you married?
- What’s your partner’s name?
- Have you gotten married before?
- What’s your partner’s job?
- Is your partner a U.S. citizen?
Service in the Military
- Did you serve in the US military?
- Did you ever leave the country to avoid being drafted?
- Did you ever apply for an exemption from serving in the military?
- Did you ever leave the military before being discharged (deserted)?
- Did you ever live in the US or gotten your green card when you were between the ages of 18 or 26? If yes and you’re male, did you register for selective service? Why or why not?
Immigration Status
- When did you get your permanent residence card?
- For how long have you been a permanent resident?
- What’s your country of citizenship?
- What is your country of origin?
Trips Abroad
- Have you traveled abroad since getting your green card?
- When was your last trip abroad?
- What was your reason for going abroad?
- Have you ever stayed outside the U.S. for more than six months?
- Can you recall the day you came back to the U.S.?
Residential History
- Where do you live?
- How long have you been living at your current residence?
- Do you live with anyone?
- Where else have you stayed in the past three to five years?
Education and Employment History
- Are you currently in school or working?
- What’s your current job?
- What school do you go to?
- What are you studying?
- When and where did you go to school?
- Where else have you worked in the past three to five years?
Income Tax
- Have you ever not filed an income tax return since you got your green card? If yes, did you consider yourself a non-resident of the US?
- Have you ever claimed to be a non-resident on a local, state, or federal tax return since you received your green card?
- Do you owe any local, state, or federal government any taxes?
Personal Ethics
- If necessary, are you willing to serve the U.S. military through noncombatant services?
- Are you willing to go to war for the U.S. if necessary?
- Do you understand what it means to pledge the Oath of Allegiance to the U.S.? Are you willing to take that oath?
- Do you support the U.S. Government and Constitution?
- Have you ever acted against someone based on his race, gender, religion, nationality, or membership in a particular group?
- Have you ever registered to vote or voted in a federal, state, or local election in the U.S.?
- Have you ever claimed to be a U.S. citizen?
Affiliations to or Memberships in Certain Organizations
- Have you ever been involved or associated with the Nazi Party, Communist Party, or any terrorist group?
- Have you ever been involved or associated with any fund foundation, organization, association, or club in any other country? (If yes, you may be asked to name the group.)
- Are you a noble in any country? Are you willing to relinquish your status of nobility when you swear your allegiance to the U.S.?
Legal Issues
Your interviewer may ask you about legal issues including arrest, conviction, and incarceration records. You may also be asked regarding involvement in rebel and vigilante groups. For the complete list of legal questions, you may refer to Part 12 of Form N-400, under “additional information”. The information acquired from here will be used to assess if you have good moral character, which is a requirement to be naturalized.
If you are expecting to answer “yes” to any of the questions above, the interviewer will automatically be suspicious of you. So, prepare by contacting a New Jersey immigration attorney to help you navigate these questions during your interview.
Others
- Citizenship exam questions
- Have you ever been admitted into a mental hospital?
- Why do you want to become a citizen of the U.S.?
- Do you understand why you are being interviewed here today?
After your interview, the last step to becoming a citizen is to take your oath during the naturalization ceremony. During the ceremony, you will surrender your permanent residency card (green card) and will be given a naturalization certificate.
Then that’s it! You will be a lawful American citizen. You will have the rights and responsibilities as any other American citizen and will be protected under the law.
If you still have any questions about the naturalization application, naturalization test, or how to apply for citizenship to become a United States citizen, don’t hesitate to talk to an immigration lawyer today. Our immigration attorneys at Andres Mejer Law are committed to helping you become a true American citizen!
