Application Form
Visit the USCIS website to download the N-400 application form or call the forms phone line at 800-870-3676 to request that a form be mailed to you.

Fee Waiver
In some cases the application fee may be waived. Read the USCIS fact sheet for more guidance. There is no official fee waiver form. Download a sample N-400 fee waiver form(a pdf file).

Medical Waiver
An exception from the English and U.S. history and government requirements for naturalization may be waived based on a physical or developmental disability or mental impairment. USCIS form N-648 needs to be completed by a licensed medical doctor or a licensed clinical psychologist, along with a completed application for naturalization (Form N-400).

Citizenship Classes
Search the Adult Literacy Hotline for a citizenship class near you. If there is not a citizenship class listed, contact an English as a Second Language (ESL) program near you. That program may be able to provide individual tutoring or independent study.

Fingerprints
After sending in the N-400 application form, the applicant will receive information about getting their fingerprints taken at the Application Support Center. After a background and criminal check has been complete, a date for an interview is set.

Naturalization Interview
In Minnesota it is currently taking about six months to obtain an interview after sending in a complete application. If the applicant does not pass the first time, the interview will be rescheduled about two months later. If the applicant does not pass the second time, he or she will need to reapply. It is important to attend citizenship classes to prepare.

The applicant will first raise his or her hand and swear that he or she will tell the truth during the interview.  The interviewer will ask for the appplicant's green card. The interviewer will ask personal and eligibility questions from the N-400 form, in part to verify that the information on the form has not changed and to establish good moral character, but also to assess the applicant's level of English. The interviewer will next ask about 10 of the 100 U.S. history and government questions. Seventy percent of the answers need to be correct to pass. If there are no questions about the application, the interview will usually last about 20 minutes.

Swearing-in Ceremony
If the applicant passes, he or she will be informed at the end of the interview.  Within two or three months after the interview the applicant will receive a letter of invitation to the next swearing-in ceremony. The ceremony is conducted by a judge. The applicant will take an oath and receive the certificate of citizenship. The applicant has not become a citizen until he or she has been sworn in.