La Administración Trump confirmó este 17 de septiembre de 2025 la entrada en vigor de un nuevo examen de educación cívica para quienes buscan la ciudadanía estadounidense. La medida fue publicada en el Registro Federal por el Servicio de Ciudadanía e Inmigración de Estados Unidos (USCIS).

El cuestionario actualizado evalúa el conocimiento de los inmigrantes sobre la historia y el sistema de gobierno del país. Según la normativa, constituye uno de los pasos más importantes dentro del proceso de naturalización.

La Casa Blanca señaló que este cambio busca “restaurar la integridad del proceso de naturalización y cumplir con las intenciones del Congreso”. En palabras del comunicado oficial: “La naturalización es un privilegio que permite a los extranjeros convertirse en miembros plenos de la sociedad estadounidense, con importantes derechos y responsabilidades que todos los ciudadanos deben ejercer y respetar”.

Para aprobar, el solicitante debe responder correctamente al menos 12 de las 20 preguntas que el oficial de inmigración formulará de manera oral durante la entrevista. El banco total incluye 128 preguntas. Algunas respuestas pueden variar con el tiempo, ya que dependen de elecciones o nombramientos. USCIS recomienda consultar en uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates para verificar cualquier cambio.

Existe además una consideración especial para mayores de 65 años con 20 años de residencia legal en Estados Unidos, quienes solo deben estudiar 20 preguntas específicas marcadas con un asterisco (*).

A continuación, se presentan las 128 preguntas oficiales con sus respuestas en inglés y en español.

AMERICAN GOVERNMENT

A: Principles of American Government

1. What is the form of government of the United States?
• Republic
• Constitution-based federal republic
• Representative democracy

2. What is the supreme law of the land? *
• (U.S.) Constitution

3. Name one thing the U.S. Constitution does.
• Forms the government
• Defines powers of government
• Defines the parts of government
• Protects the rights of the people

4. The U.S. Constitution starts with the words “We the People.” What does “We the People” mean?
• Self-government
• Popular sovereignty
• Consent of the governed
• People should govern themselves
• (Example of) social contract

5. How are changes made to the U.S. Constitution?
• Amendments
• The amendment process

6. What does the Bill of Rights protect?
• (The basic) rights of Americans
• (The basic) rights of people living in the United States

7. How many amendments does the U.S. Constitution have?
• Twenty-seven (27)

8. Why is the Declaration of Independence important?
• It says America is free from British control
• It says all people are created equal
• It identifies inherent rights
• It says the United States is free (from Great Britain)

9. What founding document said the American colonies were free from Britain?
• Declaration of Independence

10. Name two important ideas from the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution.
• Equality
• Liberty
• Social contract
• Natural rights
• Limited government
• Self-government

11. The words “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness” are in what founding document?
• Declaration of Independence

12. What is the economic system of the United States? *
• Capitalism
• Free market economy

13. What is the rule of law?
• Everyone must follow the law
• Leaders must obey the law
• Government must obey the law
• No one is above the law

14. Many documents influenced the U.S. Constitution. Name one.
• Declaration of Independence
• Articles of Confederation
• Federalist Papers
• Anti-Federalist Papers
• Virginia Declaration of Rights
• Fundamental Orders of Connecticut
• Mayflower Compact
• Iroquois Great Law of Peace

15. There are three branches of government. Why?
• So one part does not become too powerful
• Checks and balances
• Separation of powers

B: System of Government

16. Name the three branches of government.
• Legislative, executive, and judicial
• Congress, president, and the courts

17. The President of the United States is in charge of which branch of government?
• Executive (branch)

18. What part of the federal government writes laws?
• (U.S.) Congress
• (U.S. or national) legislature

19. What are the two parts of the U.S. Congress?
• Senate and House (of Representatives)

20. Name one power of the U.S. Congress.
• Writes laws
• Declares war
• Makes the federal budget

21. How many U.S. senators are there?
• One hundred (100)

22. How long is a term for a U.S. senator?
• Six (6) years

23. Who is one of your state’s U.S. senators now? *
• Answers will vary (Senators represent the whole state)

24. How many voting members are in the House of Representatives?
• Four hundred thirty-five (435)

25. How long is a term for a member of the House of Representatives?
• Two (2) years

26. Why do U.S. representatives serve shorter terms than U.S. senators?
• To more closely follow public opinion

27. How many senators does each state have?
• Two (2)

28. Why does each state have two senators?
• Equal representation (for small states)
• The Great Compromise (Connecticut Compromise)

29. Name your U.S. representative. *
• Answers will vary

30. What is the name of the Speaker of the House of Representatives now?
• Visite uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates para conocer el nombre del Presidente de la Cámara de Representantes.

31. Who does a U.S. senator represent?
• Citizens of their state

32. Who elects U.S. senators?
• Citizens from their state

33. Who does a member of the House of Representatives represent?
• Citizens in their (congressional) district
• Citizens in their district

34. Who elects members of the House of Representatives?
• Citizens from their (congressional) district

35. Some states have more representatives than other states. Why?
• (Because of) the state’s population
• (Because) they have more people
• (Because) some states have more people

36. The President of the United States is elected for how many years?
• Four (4) years

37. In what month do we vote for president? *
• November

38. What is the name of the President of the United States now? *
• Visit uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates for the name of the President of the United States

39. What is the name of the Vice President of the United States now?
• Visit uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates for the name of the Vice President of the United States

40. If the President can no longer serve, who becomes President?
• The Vice President

41. Name one power of the President.
• Signs bills into law
• Vetoes bills
• Enforces laws
• Commander in Chief of the military
• Chief diplomat

42. Who is Commander in Chief of the U.S. military?
• The President

43. Who signs bills to become laws?
• The President

44. Who vetoes bills?
• The President

45. Who appoints federal judges?
• The President

46. The Executive Branch has many parts. Name one.
• President
• Cabinet
• Federal departments and agencies

47. What does the President’s Cabinet do?
• Advises the President

48. What are two Cabinet-level positions?
• Attorney General
• Secretary of Agriculture
• Secretary of Commerce
• Secretary of Defense
• Secretary of Education
• Secretary of Energy
• Secretary of Health and Human Services
• Secretary of Homeland Security
• Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
• Secretary of the Interior
• Secretary of Labor
• Secretary of State
• Secretary of Transportation
• Secretary of the Treasury
• Secretary of Veterans Affairs

49. Why do Cabinet members serve for different lengths of time?
• They serve as long as the President wants them to

50. What is one part of the judicial branch?
• Supreme Court
• Federal Courts

51. What does the judicial branch do?
• Reviews laws
• Explains laws
• Resolves disputes (disagreements) about the law
• Decides if a law goes against the (U.S.) Constitution

52. What is the highest court in the United States?
• Supreme Court

53. How many seats are on the Supreme Court?
• Nine (9)

54. How many Supreme Court justices are usually needed to decide a case?
• Five (5)

55. How long do Supreme Court justices serve?
• For life
• Lifetime appointment
• (Until) retirement

56. Supreme Court justices serve for life. Why?
• To be independent (of politics)
• To limit outside influences

57. Who is the Chief Justice of the United States now?
• Visit uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates for the name of the Chief Justice of the United States

58. Name one power that is only for the federal government.
• Print paper money
• Mint coins
• Declare war
• Create an army
• Make treaties
• Set foreign policy

59. Name one power that is only for the states.
• Provide schooling and education
• Provide protection (police)
• Provide safety (fire departments)
• Give a driver’s license
• Approve zoning and land use

60. What is the purpose of the 10th Amendment?
• It states that the powers not given to the federal government belong to the states or to the people

61. Name one power that belongs to the states and the federal government (shared powers).
• Tax
• Build roads
• Create lower courts
• Borrow money

62. Who is the Governor of your state now? *
• Answers will vary

C: Rights and Responsibilities

63. There are four amendments to the U.S. Constitution about who can vote. Describe one of them.
• Citizens eighteen (18) and older (can vote)
• You don’t have to pay (a poll tax) to vote
• Any citizen can vote. (Women and men can vote)
• A male citizen of any race (can vote)

64. Who can vote in federal elections, run for federal office, and serve on a jury in the United States?
• Citizens

65. What are three rights of everyone living in the United States?
• Freedom of expression
• Freedom of speech
• Freedom of assembly
• Freedom to petition the government
• Freedom of religion
• The right to bear arms

66. What do we show loyalty to when we say the Pledge of Allegiance?
• The United States
• The flag

67. Name two promises that new citizens make in the Oath of Allegiance.
• Give up loyalty to other countries
• Defend the (U.S.) Constitution
• Obey the laws of the United States
• Serve in the military (if needed)
• Serve (help, do important work for) the nation (if needed)
• Be loyal to the United States

68. How can people become United States citizens?
• Naturalize
• Derive citizenship
• Be born in the United States

69. What is one reason colonists came to America?
• Freedom
• Political liberty
• Religious freedom
• Economic opportunity
• Escape persecution

70. Who lived in America before the Europeans arrived?
• American Indians
• Native Americans

71. What group of people was taken and sold as slaves?
• Africans
• People from Africa

72. Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?
• (Thomas) Jefferson

AMERICAN HISTORY

A: Colonial Period and Independence

73. When was the Declaration of Independence adopted?
• July 4, 1776

74. Name three of the original 13 states.
• New Hampshire
• Massachusetts
• Rhode Island
• Connecticut
• New York
• New Jersey
• Pennsylvania
• Delaware
• Maryland
• Virginia
• North Carolina
• South Carolina
• Georgia

75. What happened at the Constitutional Convention?
• The Constitution was written
• The Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution

76. When was the U.S. Constitution written?
• 1787

77. The Federalist Papers supported the passage of the U.S. Constitution. Name one of the writers.
• (James) Madison
• (Alexander) Hamilton
• (John) Jay
• Publius

78. Who is called the “Father of Our Country”?
• (George) Washington

79. Who was the first President? *
• (George) Washington

80. What territory did the United States buy from France in 1803?
• Louisiana Territory
• Louisiana

81. Name one war fought by the United States in the 1800s.
• War of 1812
• Mexican-American War
• Civil War
• Spanish-American War

82. Name the U.S. war between the North and the South.
• The Civil War
• The War between the States

83. The Civil War had many important events. Name one.
• (Battle of) Fort Sumter
• Emancipation Proclamation
• (Battle of) Gettysburg
• Siege of Vicksburg
• Sherman’s March
• Surrender at Appomattox
• (Battle of) Antietam/Sharpsburg
• Lincoln was assassinated

84. Name one problem that led to the Civil War.
• Slavery
• Economic reasons
• States’ rights

85. What did the Emancipation Proclamation do?
• Freed the slaves
• Freed slaves in the Confederacy
• Freed slaves in the Confederate states
• Freed slaves in most Southern states

86. Abraham Lincoln is famous for many things. Name one.
• Freed the slaves (Emancipation Proclamation)
• Led the U.S. during the Civil War
• 16th president of the United States
• Delivered the Gettysburg Address

87. What did the 13th Amendment do?
• Abolished slavery
• Freed the slaves

88. What did the 14th Amendment do?
• Defined citizenship
• Said all people born in the United States are citizens
• Said citizens are equal under the law

89. What did the 15th Amendment do?
• Gave all men the right to vote
• Said voting cannot be based on race
• Said voting cannot be based on color
• Said voting cannot be based on previous condition of servitude

B: 1800s

90. What U.S. war ended slavery?
• The Civil War

91. What did Susan B. Anthony do?
• Fought for women’s rights
• Fought for civil rights

92. Name one leader of the women’s rights movement in the 1800s.
• Susan B. Anthony
• Elizabeth Cady Stanton
• Sojourner Truth
• Harriet Tubman
• Lucretia Mott

93. Name one important leader of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1900s.
• (Martin Luther) King, Jr.
• Rosa Parks
• Malcolm X
• (John) Lewis

94. What did Martin Luther King, Jr. do?
• Fought for civil rights
• Worked for equality for all Americans

95. Dwight Eisenhower is famous for many things. Name one.
• General during World War II
• President at the end of the Korean War
• 34th president of the United States
• Signed the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 (Created the Interstate System)

96. Who was President during the Great Depression and World War II?
• (Franklin) Roosevelt

97. Who did the United States fight in World War II?
• Japan, Germany, and Italy

98. When was the Constitution signed?
• September 17, 1787

99. When did the United States enter World War II?
• December 7, 1941
• After the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor

C: Recent American History and Other Important Historical Information

100. Name one war fought by the United States in the 1900s.
• World War I
• World War II
• Korean War
• Vietnam War
• (Persian) Gulf War

101. Who was President during World War I?
• (Woodrow) Wilson

102. Who was President during the Great Depression and World War II?
• (Franklin) Roosevelt

103. Who did the United States fight in World War II?
• Japan, Germany, and Italy

104. Before he was President, Eisenhower was a general. What war was he in?
• World War II

105. During the Cold War, what was the main concern of the United States?
• Communism

106. What movement tried to end racial discrimination?
• Civil rights (movement)

107. Martin Luther King, Jr. is famous for many things. Name one.
• Fought for civil rights
• Worked for equality for all Americans
• “I Have a Dream” speech
• Led nonviolent resistance

108. What did the Civil Rights Act of 1964 do?
• Prohibited discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin
• Ended segregation in public places

109. Why did the United States enter the Persian Gulf War?
• To force the Iraqi military from Kuwait

110. What major event happened on September 11, 2001 in the United States? *
• Terrorists attacked the United States
• Terrorists took over two planes and crashed them into the World Trade Center in New York City
• Terrorists took over a plane and crashed into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia
• Terrorists took over a plane originally aimed at Washington, D.C., and crashed in a field in Pennsylvania

111. Name one American Indian tribe in the United States.
• Cherokee
• Navajo
• Sioux
• Chippewa
• Choctaw
• Pueblo
• Apache
• Iroquois
• Creek
• Blackfeet
• Seminole
• Cheyenne
• Arawak
• Shawnee
• Mohegan
• Huron
• Oneida
• Lakota
• Crow
• Teton
• Hopi
• Inuit

112. Name one U.S. territory.
• Puerto Rico
• U.S. Virgin Islands
• American Samoa
• Northern Mariana Islands
• Guam

113. Name one of the two longest rivers in the United States.
• Missouri (River)
• Mississippi (River)

114. What ocean is on the East Coast of the United States?
• Atlantic (Ocean)

115. What ocean is on the West Coast of the United States?
• Pacific (Ocean)

116. Name one U.S. state that borders Canada.
• Maine
• New Hampshire
• Vermont
• New York
• Pennsylvania
• Ohio
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• North Dakota
• Montana
• Idaho
• Washington
• Alaska

117. Name one U.S. state that borders Mexico.
• California
• Arizona
• New Mexico
• Texas

118. What is the capital of the United States? *
• Washington, D.C.

SYMBOLS AND HOLIDAYS

A: Symbols

119. Where is the Statue of Liberty? *
• New York (Harbor)
• Liberty Island
[Also acceptable are New Jersey, near New York City, and on the Hudson (River)]

120. Why does the flag have 13 stripes?
• Because there were 13 original colonies
• Because the stripes represent the original colonies

121. Why does the flag have 50 stars? *
• Because there is one star for each state
• Because each star represents a state
• Because there are 50 states

122. What is the name of the national anthem?
• The Star-Spangled Banner

123. What do we show loyalty to when we say the Pledge of Allegiance?
• The United States
• The flag

124. What is Independence Day? *
• A holiday to celebrate U.S. independence (from Britain)
• The country’s birthday

B: Holidays

125. Name three national U.S. holidays. *
• New Year’s Day
• Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
• Presidents Day (Washington’s Birthday)
• Memorial Day
• Independence Day
• Labor Day
• Columbus Day
• Veterans Day
• Thanksgiving Day
• Christmas Day

126. What is Memorial Day?
• A holiday to honor soldiers who died in military service

127. What is Veterans Day?
• A holiday to honor people in the (U.S.) military
• A holiday to honor people who have served (in the U.S. military)

128. When do we celebrate Independence Day?
• July 4