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QUIZ: Could you pass a US citizenship test?

Hundreds of thousands of people are waiting to become US citizens

JERSEY CITY, NJ - SEPTEMBER 17: One hundred immigrants become American citizens during a naturalization ceremony at Liberty State Park on September 17, 2015 in Jersey City, New Jersey. The group, representing 30 countries, took the oath of allegiance to the United States on U.S. Citizenship Day. They are part of some 36,000 people that United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) plans to nationalize nationwide during the week of September 17-23. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images) (John Moore, 2015 Getty Images)

ORLANDO, Fla. – More people than ever are applying to become U.S. citizens.

According to the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Immigration Statistics, 968,000 people applied for citizenship in 2020, up from 831,000 applications in 2019.

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In the last few months of 2021, there were 798,372 people still waiting to be approved for naturalization, including 5,956 members of the military, who serve as immigrants.

To become a U.S. citizen, applicants have to show the ability to read, write and speak English, pay a $725 fee to apply, and pass a civics test. It can take up to 11 months to be approved for naturalization.

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The civics test consists of up to 20 questions, depending on which test the applicant gets, from a list of up to 128 questions on topics ranging from government to history to geography.

The questions are asked during a face-to-face interview, it’s an oral exam, and there are no multiple choice answers.

If you get the 2020 version of the test, you have to get 12 of 20 questions correct. If you get the 2008 version of the test, you have to get 6 of 10 questions correct.

If you had to take the citizenship test, would you pass?

Below is a multiple-choice version of the citizenship test – 20 questions taken from the 2008 and 2020 versions of the test.

See how many questions you answer correctly.

If you want to see more, you can take the 2008 practice test supplied by U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services, too.