US Citizenship Test Interview

When one arrives for his/her citizenship interview, s/he will wait with a number of other people until his/her name is called. Then, a USCIS officer will lead the applicant to his or her desk, and probably ask one to sit down. Just when the applicant is comfortable, the officer will probably ask him/her to stand up and raise his/her right hand in order to swear to tell the truth during the interview.

Usually, the interview itself takes about 20 minutes. The officer will go over the N-400 that one filled out, and ask the applicant some questions about the same information on the form. Part of the purpose here is to see whether one actually speak and understand English.

What is the purposes of the US Citizenship Interview

The citizenship interview serves many purposes, including allowing USCIS to:

• review the application
• test applicant’s ability to speak, read, and write English
• test applicant’s knowledge of U.S. history and government (civics), and
• make a decision on whether one is eligible for citizenship.

Up to this point, USCIS may have quickly looked over his/her application to make sure it’s complete, but it won’t have reviewed it for substance.