How to Apply for U.S. Citizenship With a Green Card

To apply for U.S. citizenship with a green card, you file Form N-400 with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services once you have held permanent residence for five years (or three years if you are married to a U.S. citizen), pay a filing fee of $710 online or $760 on paper, attend a biometrics appointment and an interview, pass the English and civics tests, and take the Oath of Allegiance. Most applicants finish the process in roughly six to ten months. Once sworn in, you can vote, apply for a U.S. passport, and live in the country without practical risk of deportation.

When You Can File

Eligibility comes down to a short checklist under the federal regulations. You must be at least 18, hold a valid green card, and have five years of continuous residence in the United States after receiving it. Spouses of U.S. citizens qualify after three years, provided they have lived in marital union with the citizen spouse the entire time.¹ Inside that five-year window you also need at least 30 months of physical presence in the country; under the three-year spouse rule the physical presence floor is 18 months.² You also need three months of residence in the USCIS district where you file.

You do not have to wait for the anniversary itself. USCIS lets you submit Form N-400 up to 90 days before you would first meet the five-year (or three-year) requirement, and that early-filing window can shave months off your total wait.³

How Trips Abroad Affect the Clock

Continuous residence does not mean you never leave. It means your absences stay within limits:

Trips of six months or less do not affect eligibility, and you do not have to explain them.
Trips longer than six months but under a year create a presumption that you broke continuous residence. You can rebut it by showing you kept your U.S. job, your immediate family stayed here, and you kept your home, but the burden is on you.⁴
A trip of one year or more automatically breaks continuous residence unless you filed Form N-470 in advance to preserve it while working abroad for a qualifying employer.⁵

If a year-long absence resets your clock and you did not have an approved N-470, you have to wait four years and one day after returning (or two years and one day under the spouse rule) before filing again.⁴ Long trips to care for family overseas are the most common way applicants unknowingly derail their own cases.

What to Gather Before You Fill Out Form N-400

The N-400 asks for a detailed account of your life as a permanent resident. Pull the following together first:

Every U.S. address for the past five years with exact move-in and move-out dates.
Every employer and school for the past five years with dates and addresses.
Every trip outside the United States since you became a permanent resident, with departure and return dates and total days abroad. USCIS uses this data to verify your physical presence, so missing a trip raises questions.
A photocopy of the front and back of your green card.⁶
If you are filing under the three-year spouse rule, your marriage certificate and proof of your spouse’s U.S. citizenship.
Selective Service registration information if you are male and were required to register.⁷
IRS tax transcripts covering the past five years to show you have filed and stayed current.

Foreign-language documents such as birth or marriage certificates generally need certified English translations, which run roughly $25 to $50 per page depending on the language.

Filing Fees and Fee Relief

The filing fee is $710 online or $760 on paper, and biometrics costs are already included.⁸ Active-duty members of the U.S. armed forces pay nothing.

Two forms of relief are available if the fee is a hardship. A reduced fee of $380 applies when household income sits at or below 400 percent of the federal poverty guidelines, and a full waiver applies at or below 150 percent.⁶ For 2026, the thresholds for a family of four in the contiguous states are $132,000 for the reduced fee and $49,500 for the full waiver.⁹ Request either option by filing Form I-912 with supporting documentation alongside your N-400.

Hiring an immigration attorney is optional; typical fees run $800 to $1,500 on top of the government charge.

Submitting the Application and Attending Biometrics

You can file the N-400 online through a USCIS account or by mailing a paper form to the designated lockbox. Online filing gives you real-time case tracking and quicker communication. After you submit, USCIS sends a receipt notice and then schedules your biometrics appointment, where a technician takes fingerprints, a photo, and a signature for the background check.

The Interview

Once the background check clears, USCIS schedules the naturalization interview at your local field office. A USCIS officer puts you under oath and walks through the N-400 line by line, asking about your background, travel, employment, and anything that has changed since you filed. Bring the originals of every document you submitted as a copy: your green card, passport, marriage certificate if applicable, and any court records. If you notice a mistake on your form, correct it during the interview rather than hoping the officer misses it.

The English and Civics Tests

The English test happens during the interview itself. The officer gauges your speaking ability from the conversation, asks you to read one English sentence aloud, and dictates one sentence for you to write.¹⁰

The civics test covers U.S. history and government. The officer asks up to 10 questions from a public bank of 100, and you need six correct answers to pass. The officer stops the moment you reach six right or five wrong. USCIS publishes the full question bank and study materials free of charge.¹¹

Age-Based Exemptions

Older long-term residents get accommodations. Applicants 50 or older with at least 20 years as a permanent resident, or 55 or older with at least 15 years, can take the civics test in their native language through an interpreter. Applicants 65 or older with at least 20 years of permanent residence study from a shorter list of 20 designated questions.¹²

If You Fail or Have a Disability

Failing on the first try is not the end. USCIS must give you a second chance within 90 days.¹³ Fail both attempts and USCIS denies the application, though you can reapply later. Applicants whose physical or developmental disability or mental impairment prevents them from learning English or civics can request an exception by filing Form N-648, completed by a licensed medical professional after an in-person evaluation.¹⁴

Good Moral Character

USCIS evaluates your conduct throughout the statutory period, meaning the five (or three) years before you file plus the time up through the oath. Officers look at criminal history, tax compliance, child support, and whether you answered the N-400 honestly.¹⁵

An aggravated felony conviction on or after November 29, 1990, is a permanent bar to good moral character, meaning naturalization is off the table. The category is broad and includes crimes such as murder, drug trafficking, and fraud or tax evasion with government losses over $10,000.¹⁶ Other issues, like willfully failing to pay court-ordered child support, are conditional bars that can be overcome by showing extenuating circumstances.¹⁷ Male applicants who lived in the United States between ages 18 and 26 should also be able to show Selective Service registration; a knowing, willful failure to register can undermine the good moral character finding.¹⁸ Resolve any open legal or tax issues before you file.

The Oath Ceremony

Once your application is approved, USCIS sends Form N-445 with the date, time, and location of your naturalization ceremony.¹⁹ You surrender your green card at check-in and recite the Oath of Allegiance, pledging to support the Constitution and renounce allegiance to any foreign government.²⁰ Afterward you receive your Certificate of Naturalization. Check it before leaving the venue for errors in your name, date of birth, or alien registration number; fixing a mistake later requires a separate form and more waiting.

On dual citizenship: the United States does not require you to give up your original nationality when you naturalize, even though the oath uses renunciation language.²¹ Whether you keep it depends on your home country’s laws, so check those rules before the ceremony if it matters.

What to Handle After the Ceremony

Apply for a U.S. passport using Form DS-11 at an authorized acceptance facility. Bring your Certificate of Naturalization, a photo ID, a passport photo, and photocopies of both the certificate and your ID.²²
Update your Social Security record. Request the change online, then bring proof of identity and your new citizenship status to your appointment; a new card arrives within five to ten business days.²³
Register to vote. Many states let you register when you get or renew a driver’s license.

If Your Application Is Denied

A denial is not necessarily the end. You have 30 calendar days from receiving the decision (33 if it was mailed) to request an administrative hearing by filing Form N-336, and a different USCIS officer reviews the case from scratch.²⁴ Miss the 30-day window and USCIS will generally reject the request, though it may treat a late filing as a motion to reopen or reconsider if the requirements are met. If the hearing also produces a denial, you can take the case to federal district court. You can also fix whatever caused the denial and file a fresh N-400, though you pay the fee again.

Faster Paths for Some Applicants

Military service changes the math. A service member with at least one year of qualifying military service can apply with reduced residence and physical presence requirements. During a designated period of hostilities, active-duty service members are fully exempt from the continuous residence and physical presence requirements and pay no filing fee.²⁵ The current period of hostilities began September 11, 2001, and remains in effect. Spouses of U.S. citizen service members stationed abroad may qualify for expedited naturalization.²⁶

One boundary worth knowing if you have children: a child under 18 with a green card who lives in the legal and physical custody of a naturalized parent generally acquires U.S. citizenship automatically, without a separate N-400, civics test, or oath ceremony. To get official proof, the parent files Form N-600.²⁷

1
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Spouses of U.S. Citizens Residing in the United States
2
eCFR. 8 CFR 316.2 – Eligibility
3
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Chapter 6 – Jurisdiction, Place of Residence, and Early Filing
4
eCFR. 8 CFR 316.5 – Temporal Requirements for Naturalization
5
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. N-470, Application to Preserve Residence for Naturalization Purposes
6
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. N-400, Application for Naturalization
7
Selective Service System. Who Needs to Register
8
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Fact Sheet – Form N-400 Filing Fees
9
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Poverty Guidelines
10
eCFR. 8 CFR Part 312 – Educational Requirements for Naturalization
11
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Study for the Test
12
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Chapter 2 – English and Civics Testing
13
eCFR. 8 CFR 312.5 – Failure to Meet Educational and Literacy Requirements
14
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. N-648, Medical Certification for Disability Exceptions
15
eCFR. 8 CFR 316.10 – Good Moral Character
16
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS Policy Manual – Permanent Bars to Good Moral Character
17
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Conditional Bars for Acts in Statutory Period
18
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS Policy Manual – Attachment to the Constitution
19
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Naturalization Ceremonies
20
eCFR. 8 CFR Part 337 – Oath of Allegiance
21
U.S. Department of State. Dual Nationality
22
U.S. Department of State. Apply for Your Adult Passport
23
Social Security Administration. Update Citizenship or Immigration Status
24
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Request for a Hearing on a Decision in Naturalization Proceedings
25
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Naturalization Through Military Service
26
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Citizenship for Military Family Members
27
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Application for Certificate of Citizenship