- Form
- Form N-648; Form N-400
- Time
- Second examination between 60 and 90 days after the initial examination
Applicants who meet the 50/20 exception or 55/15 age-and-residence criteria when they file are exempt from the English test but must still take civics; the 65/20 special consideration also provides designated civics forms. The test version depends on whether the naturalization application was filed before or on or after October 20, 2025.
The age and residence tests apply on the date you file, not on the date of your interview. The agency’s policy manual, current October 27, 2026, describes the age-based English exemptions and the separate civics accommodation for qualifying older applicants.
Naturalization testing has two different requirements at issue here: English proficiency and civics knowledge. Age-based eligibility changes the English requirement, while the civics test remains unless an applicant qualifies for a separate medical disability exception.
The Federal Register notice published September 18, 2025, says the 2025 civics test does not change the English-language parts of naturalization testing. Its age wording for civics consideration differs from the agency’s public guidance, so applicants should check the applicable wording when assessing eligibility.
A proposal introduced by Congressman Brandon Gill on July 16, 2026, would repeal the age-based exceptions. The English Language Proficiency Act has not been enacted, so the existing age-and-residence categories remain the rules described in the current agency guidance.
The age boundaries are worded differently across official materials: the policy manual uses “50 or older,” “55 or older” and “65 or older,” 8 CFR 312.1 uses “over 50” and “over 55,” and the Federal Register notice refers to “over the age of 65.”
The age thresholds excuse English, but civics remains part of naturalization
Free toolSubstantial Presence Test Calculator| Situation at filing | English requirement | Civics requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Age 50 or older with at least 20 years as a lawful permanent resident | Exempt | Required; may be taken in a language of choice using an interpreter |
| Age 55 or older with at least 15 years as a lawful permanent resident | Exempt | Required; may be taken in a language of choice using an interpreter |
| Age 65 or older with at least 20 years as a lawful permanent resident | Exempt | Required on specially designated forms; may be taken in a language of choice using an interpreter |
The residence period must be time living in the United States after lawful admission for permanent residence. The rule is not simply based on how long someone has lived in the country: the applicant must meet the relevant age and qualifying permanent-resident residence requirement at filing.
For the first two rows, the result is the same for the English and civics portions. The applicant does not take the English test, but must still demonstrate civics knowledge. The third row also removes the English requirement, but changes which civics forms the officer uses.
The age provisions appear in the naturalization requirements in 8 CFR Part 312. Section 312.1 describes the English requirement and its age-related exceptions. Section 312.2 states that an applicant exempt from the literacy requirement under the age provisions still has to meet the civics requirement.
The proposed English Language Proficiency Act would alter this framework if enacted. Congressman Brandon Gill introduced it on July 16, 2026, as a proposal to repeal the English and civics examination exceptions in naturalization law. The proposal is not an enacted change to the eligibility criteria.
Measure your age and LPR residence on the naturalization filing date
Use the filing date to check both parts of the age-based criteria. The residence calculation is the time you have lived in the United States as a lawful permanent resident, not simply your total time in the country.
For example, an applicant who is 57 and has lived in the United States as a permanent resident for 16 years when filing meets the 55/15 criteria:
- Compare the applicant’s age at filing, 57, with the 55-year threshold. The applicant meets it.
- Compare the applicant’s qualifying permanent-resident residence, 16 years, with the 15-year requirement. The applicant meets it.
- Apply the result: the applicant is exempt from English but must still take civics.
- If the applicant takes civics in a native language, arrange for an interpreter who is fluent in English and that language.
Applicants eligible for an age-based English exception can take civics in a language of their choice using an interpreter. The public-facing naturalization exceptions and accommodations page says applicants taking civics in a native language must bring an interpreter fluent in both English and the applicant’s native language.
The age exception does not remove the need to prepare for civics. Applicants should use the study materials for the test version that applies to their filing date. Those in the 65/20 category should prepare from the designated questions for that category, rather than relying only on the standard question bank.
The filing date selects the civics test and its question bank
The filing date separates the 2008 and 2025 civics tests. Applications filed before October 20, 2025, use the 2008 test; applications filed on or after that date use the 2025 test.
| Test or applicant group | Questions asked | Questions to answer correctly |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 test, standard version | 10 questions selected from a bank of 100 | 6 |
| 2025 test, standard version | 20 questions selected from a bank of 128 | 12 |
| 65/20 applicants, either test version | 10 questions selected from that version’s 20 specially designated questions | 6 |
The passing threshold remains 60 percent for either civics-test version. In the standard 2008 test, the officer asks 10 questions from the 100-question bank, and the applicant must answer six correctly. The standard 2025 test draws 20 questions from a bank of 128, and the applicant must answer 12 correctly.
For an eligible 65/20 applicant, the officer uses specially designated forms. Each version draws 10 questions from its own set of 20 designated questions, and six correct answers are required to pass. The designated set is distinct from the standard test bank, so study materials should match both the filing-date version and the applicant’s eligibility category.
The 2025 test was announced in a Federal Register notice that described the reimplementation of the 2020 Naturalization Civics Test with modifications. That notice says it does not change the English portions of the naturalization test. Use the agency’s Citizenship Resource Center study materials for the applicable civics test and, if eligible, the designated 65/20 question set.
Form N-648 can request a medical exception to English, civics or both
A medical disability exception is separate from age-based relief. An applicant who cannot meet the English requirement, the civics requirement or both because of a qualifying disability or impairment may request an exception with Form N-648, Medical Certification for Disability Exceptions.
A licensed medical or osteopathic doctor or a licensed clinical psychologist must complete the form. The regulation describes a medically determinable impairment that has lasted, or is expected to last, at least 12 months. The applicant’s condition must affect the ability to meet the requirements; advanced age by itself is not a medical disability exception.
Applicants generally submit Form N-648 as an attachment to Form N-400, Application for Naturalization. The exception can cover English, civics or both, depending on the applicant’s documented limitations and the request. An age-based English exemption does not itself waive civics, so an applicant seeking relief from the civics requirement must rely on a separate qualifying basis.
The agency’s policy manual explains the age-based exemptions and civics requirements. The regulation in 8 CFR 312 addresses the disability standard and the continuing civics requirement for applicants who qualify for an age-based English exception.
A failed test portion brings one retest limited to the areas missed
If an applicant fails any part of the English or civics test at the initial examination, the agency schedules a second examination between 60 and 90 days afterward. The officer retests only the portion or portions the applicant did not pass the first time.
An applicant who fails a test portion a second time is denied on educational grounds. Passing one part at the first examination does not require taking it again at the second examination; the retest is limited to the areas failed.
Before filing, check your age and qualifying years of U.S. residence as a permanent resident on the filing date. Then use the study materials for the civics version that applies, and bring a fluent interpreter if you will take civics in a native language.
