US tightens citizenship process: 2020 Trump-era civics test returns with more questions
The United States government has tightened the process for obtaining citizenship in the country. An expanded civics test will probe deeper into how much the applicant knows about the country.
The US government, in a move to further the tighten the process of giving citizenship to legal migrants, is adding more questions to the civics states that applicants need to take before being granted the same.
With this move, the Trump administration has reintroduced a test which was first introduced in 2020 but was later scrapped by the Biden administration, which had argued that it was an unncessary hurdle for legal immigrants wanting to apply for US citizenship.
Legal immigrants residing in the country, when applying for citizenship, have to showcase that they have been living in the US for three to five years (depending upon other criteria) as law-abiding permanent residents, can communicate (read, write, and speak) in English, and have basic knowledge of the history and political system of the United States.
Details on the civics test
There will be a pool of 128 questions which the applicant has to study. The topics will be US history and politics. The applicant will be asked 20 questions, out of which 12 have to be correct answers for their application to go through.
Previously, the same test required a candidate to study 100 questions and answer at least 6 out of 10 correctly.
This is an oral examination, and multiple choices are not provided. If an applicant does not manage to pass in the first attempt, they are given a second chance. If they fail in the second attempt as well, their citizenship application is denied.
One leeway is given to those residing in the US as permanent residents and over 65 years of age - they are given a pool of 20 questions and can also take the test in a language they prefer.
When will the new test be rolled out?
The new test will be rolled out for those who apply for US citizenship after mid-October, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has revealed.
Among the new questions, there will be queries on the Federalist Papers, former President Dwight Eisenhower, the 10th Amendment, US Founding Fathers James Madison and Alexander Hamilton, and also questions regarding innovations by Americans.