What Are The U.S. Citizenship Requirements? (2024 Guide)

In order to qualify for citizenship through naturalization, you must be at least 18 years old.

There are some limited exceptions to this rule under the Child Citizenship Act of 2000, which allows foreign-born biological and adopted children who did not acquire citizenship at birth to become citizens before 18.

Outside of these exceptions, though, you cannot become a naturalized citizen until you reach the age of majority.

Featured Partner

Find An Immigration Lawyer In Your Area

Assistance With Visa Applications

Available

Assistance With Green Card Applications

Available

Represent Clients in Removal Proceedings

Yes

Learn More

From Participating Partners

Available

Available

Yes

You must have lawful permanent resident status (LPR status) for five years before qualifying for naturalization, which means you have a green card. If you are married to a U.S. citizen, you must have this status for at least three years.

Demonstrating that you have been a person of good moral character and will continue to be one is a prerequisite to becoming a naturalized citizen.

Being convicted of certain criminal offenses in this country, foreign convictions for offenses that would be crimes in the U.S. and court martial convictions can all make it more difficult to show good moral character, as can evidence of adultery or failure to support dependents.

The most important period of time for determining if you have good moral character is the five years leading up to applying for naturalization and the period of time leading up to when you take your Oath of Allegiance. However, earlier conduct can also impact whether you qualify.

When you go to your naturalization interview, the USCIS official will assess your speaking proficiency by focusing on whether you can respond normally to questions. You do not need to understand every word, but you must be able to communicate about your application.

You also must pass a reading and writing test, which involves reading one of three sentences sufficiently to convey the meaning without extended pauses and writing one of three sentences in a manner sufficient to convey the meaning even if there are some omitted words or some grammatical or spelling errors.

There are exemptions to this requirement for individuals 50 and over who have lived in the U.S. as lawful permanent residents for at least 20 years before filing for naturalization and applicants age 55 and older who have been LPRs for at least 15 years. There is also a medical disability exception.

The Civics Test requires candidates to demonstrate knowledge of U.S. history and government before becoming naturalized citizens. The standard test contains 10 questions; applicants must answer at least six correctly.

There is a medical disability exemption to this testing. Applicants ages 50 and older who have lived in the U.S. as LPRs for at least 15 to 20 years may be eligible to take the test in their native language but must still pass the test.

When you apply for naturalization, you must show that:

• You resided in the country for three years (if you are married to a U.S. citizen) prior to applying or for five years prior to applying in other situations.
• You were physically present in the United States for 18 months out of the last three years (if you are married to a U.S. citizen) or for 30 months in other circumstances.

There are limited exceptions to these requirements, such as if you are a contractor for the U.S. government or working abroad for the U.S. government or the military. But, in general, most people must fulfill them.

Demonstrating Continuous Residence

Continuous residence means you maintained a permanent dwelling within the United States, with residence defined as your actual domicile without regard to your intent. Usually, but not always, your residence is your physical location, even if you want or plan to claim somewhere else as your residence.

Unfortunately, leaving the United States for an extended time can interfere with your ability to demonstrate that you maintained a continuous residence.

If you have a break in continuity, you must start a new period of continuous residence before becoming eligible for naturalization. However, depending on the basis upon which you’re seeking naturalization, your continuous residence requirement after restart may be at least six months shorter than the normal time required.

If You Stayed Abroad 181 to 364 Days

If you stayed outside of the United States for more than six months but less than a year during the period when continuous residence was required, this time abroad is presumed to break the continuity of your residence, regardless of your intent.

You can overcome the presumption of this break by providing evidence showing that you actually did maintain your residence status. Evidence you maintained your residence could include:

• Remaining employed by a U.S. employer or not finding a foreign job while abroad.
• Your immediate family members stayed in the U.S.
• You retained full access to or continued to own or lease a house in the United States.

If You Stayed Abroad More Than 365 Days

If you were continuously absent from the U.S. for a year or more during the period when continuous residence was required, this is an automatic break in your residence continuity.

If you did not have an approved Application to Preserve Residence for Naturalization Purposes (Form N-470), your naturalization application will be denied.

You will need to wait at least:

• Two years and one day (if you are married to a citizen)
• Four years and one day (in other circumstances) to apply for naturalization going forward.

Unless you wait for either two years and six months or four years and six months, you must overcome the presumption of a break in naturalization to move forward under the shorter period.

Ways to Avoid Breaking Continuous Presence

The easiest way to avoid a break in continuous residence is to remain within the United States.

However, if you want to travel abroad without breaking continuous residence, you can submit an Application to Preserve Residence for Naturalization Purposes (Form N-470).

You must meet certain requirements, such as being physically present in the U.S. for at least a year before working abroad, and the application must be filed before you are continuously abroad for a year. You also must have a qualifying employer, including the U.S. government, American research institutes or certain other qualifying organizations.

Demonstrating Physical Presence

Physical presence means you are physically in the United States.

You must have been present in the United States for 18 months out of the three years before applying for naturalization (if you are married to a U.S. citizen) or for 30 months in other circumstances. The day you depart from the U.S., and the day you enter count as days of physical presence.

You also must have resided in your state where you claim to have residency for at least three months before submitting your application.

Under the Military Selective Service Act, anyone whose gender was assigned male at birth must register with the Selective Service System within 30 days of their 18th birthday.

If you are immigrating to the United States and are under the age of 26, you also must register for the Selective Service.

• If you are under 26 and have not yet registered, you must do so or your application for naturalization won’t be processed.
• If you are older than 26 and younger than 31 and did not register, your failure to register for the selective service may be used as evidence you do not have good moral character. This could hurt your naturalization efforts.
• If you are older than 29 and married to a U.S. citizen or older than 31 in other circumstances, a failure to register will not impact your naturalization process.
• If you are in the U.S. on a valid visa, you are not required to register.

You must take an Oath of Allegiance at your naturalization ceremony in which you pledge your loyalty to the United States.

This does not require you to give up your foreign citizenship, but you do have to swear certain declarations to the U.S., including renouncing “allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty, of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen.”

Featured Partner

Find An Immigration Lawyer In Your Area

Assistance With Visa Applications

Available

Assistance With Green Card Applications

Available

Represent Clients in Removal Proceedings

Yes

Learn More

From Participating Partners

Available

Available

Yes

If you apply for naturalization due to your military service, some of the requirements above do not apply. In general, if you have served honorably for at least a year, you should be eligible for naturalization as long as:

• You’re 18 or over
• You were separated under honorable conditions; if you were separated
• You have a completed Form N-426, Request for Certification of Military or Naval Service (PDF, 288.38 KB)
• You are a lawful permanent resident at the time of your naturalization interview
• You meet certain residence and physical presence requirements depending on the nature and timeline of your service
• You demonstrate you can read, write and speak English and have knowledge of U.S. history and government, or you qualify for an exception
• You demonstrate good moral character for at least five years
• You demonstrate an attachment to the principles of the Constitution