100 Civics Questions
The 100 civics (history and government) questions and answers for the naturalization test are listed below. The civics test is an oral test and the USCIS Officer will ask the applicant up to 10 of the 100 civics questions. An applicant must answer 6 out of 10 questions correctly to pass the civics portion of the naturalization test.
Note: If you are 65 years old or older and have been a legal permanent resident of the United States for 20 or more years, you may study ONLY the questions that have been marked with an asterisk.
On the naturalization test, some answers may change because of elections or appointments. As you study for the test, make sure that you know the most current answers to these questions. Answer these questions with the name of the official who is serving at the time of your eligibility interview with USCIS. The USCIS Officer will not accept an incorrect answer.
Although USCIS is aware that there may be additional correct answers to the 100 civics questions, applicants are encouraged to respond to the civics questions using the answers provided below.
As a prospective citizen, you will get up to two opportunities to take the English and civics tests per application. If you fail any portion of the test during your first interview, you will be scheduled to return to the service center to be retested on the portion(s) of the test that you failed within 60 to 90 days from the date of your initial interview.
1. What is the supreme law of the land?
check the Constitution
2. What does the Constitution do?
check sets up the government
check defines the government
check protects basic rights of Americans
3. The idea of self-government is in the first three words of the Constitution. What are these words?
check We the People
4. What is an amendment?
check a change (to the Constitution)
check an addition (to the Constitution)
5. What do we call the first ten amendments to the Constitution?
check the Bill of Rights
6. What is one right or freedom from the First Amendment?*
check speech
check religion
check assembly
check press
check petition the government
7. How many amendments does the Constitution have?
check twenty-seven (27)
8. What did the Declaration of Independence do?
check announced our independence (from Great Britain)
check declared our independence (from Great Britain)
check said that the United States is free (from Great Britain)
9. What are two rights in the Declaration of Independence?
check life
check liberty
check pursuit of happiness
10. What is freedom of religion?
check You can practice any religion, or not practice a religion.
11. What is the economic system in the United States?*
check capitalist economy
check market economy
12. What is the "rule of law"?
check Everyone must follow the law.
check Leaders must obey the law.
check Government must obey the law.
check No one is above the law.
13. Name one branch or part of the government.*
check Congress
check legislative
check President
check executive
check the courts
check judicial
14. What stops one branch of government from becoming too powerful?
check checks and balances
check separation of powers
15. Who is in charge of the executive branch?
check the President
16. Who makes federal laws?
check Congress
check Senate and House (of Representatives)
check (U.S. or national) legislature
17. What are the two parts of the U.S. Congress?*
check the Senate and House (of Representatives)
18. How many U.S. Senators are there?
check one hundred (100)
19. We elect a U.S. Senator for how many years?
check six (6)
20. Who is one of your state's U.S. Senators now?*
check Answers will vary. [District of Columbia residents and residents of U.S. territories should answer that D.C. (or the territory where the applicant lives) has no U.S. Senators.]
21. The House of Representatives has how many voting members?
check four hundred thirty-five (435)
22. We elect a U.S. Representative for how many years?
check two (2)
23. Name your U.S. Representative.
check Answers will vary. [Residents of territories with nonvoting Delegates or Resident Commissioners may provide the name of that Delegate or Commissioner. Also acceptable is any statement that the territory has no (voting) Representatives in Congress.]
24. Who does a U.S. Senator represent?
check all people of the state
25. Why do some states have more Representatives than other states?
check (because of) the state's population
check (because) they have more people
check (because) some states have more people
26. We elect a President for how many years?
check four (4)
27. In what month do we vote for President?*
check November
28. What is the name of the President of the United States now?*
check Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
check Joseph Biden
check Biden
29. What is the name of the Vice President of the United States now?
check Kamala D. Harris
check Kamala Harris
check Harris
30. If the President can no longer serve, who becomes President?
check the Vice President
31. If both the President and the Vice President can no longer serve, who becomes President?
check the Speaker of the House
32. Who is the Commander in Chief of the military?
check the President
33. Who signs bills to become laws?
check the President
34. Who vetoes bills?
check the President
35. What does the President's Cabinet do?
check advises the President
36. What are two Cabinet-level positions?
check Secretary of Agriculture
check Secretary of Commerce
check Secretary of Defense
check Secretary of Education
check Secretary of Energy
check Secretary of Health and Human Services
check Secretary of Homeland Security
check Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
check Secretary of the Interior
check Secretary of Labor
check Secretary of State
check Secretary of Transportation
check Secretary of the Treasury
check Secretary of Veterans Affairs
check Attorney General
check Vice President
37. What does the judicial branch do?
check reviews laws
check explains laws
check resolves disputes (disagreements)
check decides if a law goes against the Constitution
38. What is the highest court in the United States?
check the Supreme Court
39. How many justices are on the Supreme Court?
check nine (9)
40. Who is the Chief Justice of the United States now?
check John Roberts (John G. Roberts, Jr.)
41. Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the federal government. What is one power of the federal government?
check to print money
check to declare war
check to create an army
check to make treaties
42. Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the states. What is one power of the states?
check provide schooling and education
check provide protection (police)
check provide safety (fire departments)
check give a driver's license
check approve zoning and land use
43. Who is the Governor of your state now?
check Answers will vary. [District of Columbia residents should answer that D.C. does not have a Governor.]
44. What is the capital of your state?*
check Answers will vary. [District of Columbia residents should answer that D.C. is not a state and does not have a capital. Residents of U.S. territories should name the capital of the territory.]
45. What are the two major political parties in the United States?*
check Democratic and Republican
46. What is the political party of the President now?
check Republican (Party)
47. What is the name of the Speaker of the House of Representatives now?
check Nancy Pelosi
check Pelosi
48. There are four amendments to the Constitution about who can vote. Describe one of them.
check Citizens eighteen (18) and older (can vote).
check You don't have to pay (a poll tax) to vote.
check Any citizen can vote. (Women and men can vote.)
check A male citizen of any race (can vote).
49. What is one responsibility that is only for United States citizens?*
check serve on a jury
check vote in a federal election
50. Name one right only for United States citizens.
check vote in a federal election
check run for federal office
51. What are two rights of everyone living in the United States?
check freedom of expression
check freedom of speech
check freedom of assembly
check freedom to petition the government
check freedom of religion
check the right to bear arms
52. What do we show loyalty to when we say the Pledge of Allegiance?
check the United States
check the flag
53. What is one promise you make when you become a United States citizen?
check give up loyalty to other countries
check defend the Constitution and laws of the United States
check obey the laws of the United States
check serve in the U.S. military (if needed)
check serve (do important work for) the nation (if needed)
check be loyal to the United States
54. How old do citizens have to be to vote for President?*
check eighteen (18) and older
55. What are two ways that Americans can participate in their democracy?
check vote
check join a political party
check help with a campaign
check join a civic group
check join a community group
check give an elected official your opinion on an issue
check call Senators and Representatives
check publicly support or oppose an issue or policy
check run for office
check write to a newspaper
56. When is the last day you can send in federal income tax forms?*
check April 15
57. When must all men register for the Selective Service?
check at age eighteen (18)
check between eighteen (18) and twenty-six (26)
58. What is one reason colonists came to America?
check freedom
check political liberty
check religious freedom
check economic opportunity
check practice their religion
check escape persecution
59. Who lived in America before the Europeans arrived?
check American Indians
check Native Americans
60. What group of people was taken to America and sold as slaves?
check Africans
check people from Africa
61. Why did the colonists fight the British?
check because of high taxes (taxation without representation)
check because the British army stayed in their houses (boarding, quartering)
check because they didn't have self-government
62. Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?
check (Thomas) Jefferson
63. When was the Declaration of Independence adopted?
check July 4, 1776
64. There were 13 original states. Name three.
check New Hampshire
check Massachusetts
check Rhode Island
check Connecticut
check New York
check New Jersey
check Pennsylvania
check Delaware
check Maryland
check Virginia
check North Carolina
check South Carolina
check Georgia
65. What happened at the Constitutional Convention?
check The Constitution was written.
check The Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution.
66. When was the Constitution written?
check 1787
67. The Federalist Papers supported the passage of the U.S. Constitution. Name one of the writers.
check (James) Madison
check (Alexander) Hamilton
check (John) Jay
check Publius
68. What is one thing Benjamin Franklin is famous for?
check U.S. diplomat
check oldest member of the Constitutional Convention
check first Postmaster General of the United States
check writer of Poor Richard's Almanac
check started the first free libraries
69. Who is the "Father of Our Country"
check (George) Washington
70. Who was the first President?*
check (George) Washington
71. What territory did the United States buy from France in 1803?
check the Louisiana Territory
check Louisiana
72. Name one war fought by the United States in the 1800s.
check War of 1812
check Mexican-American War
check Civil War
check Spanish-American War
73. Name the U.S. war between the North and the South.
check the Civil War
check the War between the States
74. Name one problem that led to the Civil War.
check slavery
check economic reasons
check states' rights
75. What was one important thing that Abraham Lincoln did?*
check freed the slaves (Emancipation Proclamation)
check saved (or preserved) the Union
check led the United States during the Civil War
76. What did the Emancipation Proclamation do?
check freed the slaves
check freed slaves in the Confederacy
check freed slaves in the Confederate states
check freed slaves in most Southern states
77. What did Susan B. Anthony do?
check fought for women's rights
check fought for civil rights
78. Name one war fought by the United States in the 1900s.*
check World War I
check World War II
check Korean War
check Vietnam War
check (Persian) Gulf War
79. Who was President during World War I?
check (Woodrow) Wilson
80. Who was President during the Great Depression and World War II?
check (Franklin) Roosevelt
81. Who did the United States fight in World War II?
check Japan, Germany, and Italy
82. Before he was President, Eisenhower was a general. What war was he in?
check World War II
83. During the Cold War, what was the main concern of the United States?
check Communism
84. What movement tried to end racial discrimination?
check civil rights (movement)
85. What did Martin Luther King, Jr. do?*
check fought for civil rights
check worked for equality for all Americans
86. What major event happened on September 11, 2001, in the United States?
check Terrorists attacked the United States.
87. Name one American Indian tribe in the United States.
check Cherokee
check Navajo
check Sioux
check Chippewa
check Choctaw
check Pueblo
check Apache
check Iroquois
check Creek
check Blackfeet
check Seminole
check Cheyenne
check Arawak
check Shawnee
check Mohegan
check Huron
check Oneida
check Lakota
check Crow
check Teton
check Hopi
check Inuit
88. Name one of the two longest rivers in the United States.
check Missouri (River)
check Mississippi (River)
89. What ocean is on the West Coast of the United States?
check Pacific (Ocean)
90. What ocean is on the East Coast of the United States?
check Atlantic (Ocean)
91. Name one U.S. territory.
check Puerto Rico
check U.S. Virgin Islands
check American Samoa
check Northern Mariana Islands
check Guam
92. Name one state that borders Canada.
check Maine
check New Hampshire
check Vermont
check New York
check Pennsylvania
check Ohio
check Michigan
check Minnesota
check North Dakota
check Montana
check Idaho
check Washington
check Alaska
93. Name one state that borders Mexico.
check California
check Arizona
check New Mexico
check Texas
94. What is the capital of the United States?*
check Washington, D.C.
95. Where is the Statue of Liberty?*
check New York (Harbor)
check Liberty Island
96. Why does the flag have 13 stripes?
check because there were 13 original colonies
check because the stripes represent the original colonies
97. Why does the flag have 50 stars?*
check because there is one star for each state
check because each star represents a state
check because there are 50 states
98. What is the name of the national anthem?
check The Star-Spangled Banner
99. When do we celebrate Independence Day?*
check July 4
100. Name two national U.S. holidays.
check New Year's Day
check Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
check Presidents' Day
check Memorial Day
check Independence Day
check Labor Day
check Columbus Day
check Veterans Day
check Thanksgiving
check Christmas