Update for Naturalization Applicants

On September 17, 2025, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services recently posted a Federal Register notice announcing the new 2025 naturalization civics test, an assessment of an individual’s understanding of U.S. history and government.

A few additional changes have also been made to the naturalization application process, including but not limited to: (1) “robust vetting” for all applicants; (2) “stricter reviews of applicants’ disabilty exceptions to the English and civics requirements”; (3) regarding assessing applicants’ good moral character, the officer is now instructed to look for ways the applicant “contributes positively to American society” (instead of merely looking for “absence of bad behavior” or criminal convictions); (4) “resuming neighborhood investigations”; (5) ensuring the applicant has “never unlawfully voted or registered to vote or made any false claims to U.S. citizenship” (which would “disqualify the applicant from showing good moral character”).

The government plans to announce additional “initiatives to further enhance the integrity of the naturalization process” in the near future.

See the notice here: https://www.uscis.gov/newsroom/news-releases/uscis-unveils-first-changes-to-naturalization-test-in-multi-step-overhaul-of-american-citizenship.