Citizenship for Green Card Holders: What to Do Next

Why consider citizenship

Permanent residence is not permanent in every sense. A green card has an expiration date and must be renewed with Form I-90. USCIS says a card should be replaced when it has expired or will expire within six months. A resident who stays abroad for a long time can lose the right to return on the card. An absence of more than a year generally means the green card alone is not enough to reenter. Residents who plan a long stay abroad can ask USCIS for a reentry permit before they leave (up to two years), and USCIS looks at the resident’s intent and ties to the U.S. when it decides if the status was abandoned.

Citizenship removes these risks. Only citizens can vote in federal elections or serve on a federal jury, and a U.S. passport gives access to help from the U.S. government abroad. A citizen’s spouse, unmarried children under 21 and, if the citizen is 21 or older, parents are immediate relatives, which means no visa-number wait. See Green card for the spouse of a U.S. citizen.

Eligibility requirements

The general rule is in 8 U.S.C. 1427 and in the USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 12, Part D. USCIS lists these requirements for most applicants:

• You are 18 or older.
• You have been a lawful permanent resident for at least five years.
• You have lived continuously in the U.S. for those five years.
• You were physically present in the U.S. for at least 30 months of the five years. The months do not have to be consecutive.
• You have lived for at least three months in the state or the USCIS district where you file (8 CFR 316.2(a)(5)).
• You have good moral character during the five years.
• You are attached to the principles of the U.S. Constitution.
• You can read, write and speak basic English and pass a civics test.

The three-year rule for spouses of citizens

A permanent resident married to a U.S. citizen can apply after three years if the resident has been married to and living in marital union with the citizen spouse for those three years and the spouse has been a citizen for the same time. The resident must have been physically present in the U.S. for at least 18 months of the three years and must meet the three-month residence requirement (8 U.S.C. 1430(a); Policy Manual, Volume 12, Part G, Chapter 2).

Travel and continuous residence

An absence of more than six months but less than a year creates a presumption that continuous residence was broken. The applicant can try to rebut it with evidence of ties to the U.S. An absence of one year or more breaks continuous residence unless USCIS approved Form N-470, Application to Preserve Residence for Naturalization Purposes, before the absence (Policy Manual, Volume 12, Part D, Chapter 3).

The earlier version of this guide said the applicant had to be present for half of the 30 months continuously. That is not a rule. The 30 months do not have to be consecutive, but the five years of continuous residence must not be broken.

How to apply

Processing time changes with the field office, so no standard length applies.

1. Check the requirements and gather identity, residence and travel records. You may file up to 90 calendar days before you complete the continuous residence period.
2. File Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, with USCIS. The fee is $760 on paper or $710 online. A reduced fee of $380 is available for applicants whose household income is at or below 400 percent of the Federal Poverty Guidelines. A fee waiver on Form I-912 is also possible. A reduced fee or a waiver must be filed on paper (Form G-1055, edition 10/16/26).
3. Attend the biometrics appointment and the interview. At the interview an officer tests your English and your knowledge of U.S. civics and history.
4. If USCIS approves the application, you take the Oath of Allegiance and receive a Certificate of Naturalization.

The 2025 civics test

Applicants whose Form N-400 was filed on or after 20 October 2025 take the 2025 civics test. The study list has 128 questions. The officer asks up to 20 questions and the applicant needs 12 correct answers. The test stops once the applicant reaches 12 correct answers or 9 incorrect answers.

Children

A child born outside the U.S. becomes a citizen automatically when three things are true: at least one parent is a citizen, by birth or naturalization; the child is under 18; and the child lives in the U.S. in the legal and physical custody of the citizen parent after being lawfully admitted as a permanent resident (8 U.S.C. 1431(a)). A parent who naturalizes may therefore also make a child who is a permanent resident and lives with that parent a citizen.

Responsibilities after naturalization

USCIS lists paying income and other taxes honestly and on time to federal, state and local authorities as a responsibility of citizenship. The Selective Service System says that almost all male U.S. citizens and male immigrants aged 18 through 25 must register with it. The duty applies to male immigrants as well as citizens, so a man may need to register before he naturalizes.