Citizenship TestThe 2008 and 2025 question lists compared
We compared the two official USCIS lists question by question. Here is what differs, counted from the lists themselves.
Size and rules
The 2008 list has 100 questions; the officer asks up to 10 and you need 6. The 2025 list has 128; the officer asks up to 20 and you need 12. Both lists mark 20 questions for applicants aged 65 or older with 20 years of permanent residence.
The parts of each list
| Part | 2008 list | 2025 list |
|---|---|---|
| Principles of American democracy / government | 12 | 15 |
| System of government | 35 | 47 |
| Rights and responsibilities | 10 | 10 |
| Colonial period and independence | 13 | 17 |
| The 1800s | 7 | 10 |
| Recent American history | 10 | 19 |
| Geography | 8 | none |
| Symbols | 3 | 6 |
| Holidays | 2 | 4 |
| Total | 100 | 128 |
What the 2025 list drops
The 2008 list has a Geography part: the longest rivers, the oceans on each coast, the territories, and the states that border Canada and Mexico. The 2025 list has no geography part. Questions about the month of the presidential election, the tax deadline of April 15 and the two major political parties are also in the 2008 list only.
What the 2025 list adds
- More "why" questions. Examples: why there are three branches of government, why representatives serve shorter terms than senators, why each state has two senators, why Supreme Court justices serve for life, why the Electoral College is important.
- More people. James Madison, Alexander Hamilton and Dwight Eisenhower each get a "famous for many things" question, alongside Franklin, Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Martin Luther King, Jr.
- More history after 1900. The Great Depression, the reasons for entering World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam and the Persian Gulf War, and conflicts after September 11, 2001.
- The Federalist Papers, with a question on why they were important.
- American innovations and the meaning of the motto "E Pluribus Unum".
Questions that ask for more
Some questions ask for more answers in the 2025 list than their 2008 cousins did.
| Topic | 2008 list asks for | 2025 list asks for |
|---|---|---|
| The 13 original states | Three | Five |
| National holidays | Two | Three |
| Rights of everyone living in the United States | Two | Three |
| Promises in the Oath of Allegiance | One | Two |
What stays the same
The heart of both lists is the same: the Constitution as the supreme law, three branches, 100 senators, 435 representatives, Jefferson and the Declaration of Independence, Lincoln and the Civil War, Martin Luther King, Jr., the flag, the anthem and the capital. A person who learned the 2008 list well already knows a large share of the 2025 list. But the wording of questions and accepted answers often differs, so study the list for your own version: 2025 or 2008.
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Independent study site. Citizenship Test is not a government website and is not connected with USCIS or any agency. Questions and accepted answers are quoted from the official USCIS lists; the notes are ours. Rules were read on uscis.gov on 12 November 2026. Always confirm with uscis.gov/citizenship before your interview.