Trump administration plans to make citizenship test harder

The Trump administration is planning to make the test applicants take for U.S. citizenship more difficult, with a higher bar for passing and potentially an essay requirement.

Speaking at the Center for Immigration Studies think tank in Washington Thursday, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Joseph Edlow called the current test “just too easy,” arguing that it allows for people to be “coached” through the immigration process who may not qualify for citizenship under U.S. law .

The potential changes, which do not seem to be imminent, are the latest move by the Trump administration to add more stringent scrutiny to applicants for U.S. citizenship. Last week, USCIS said it would resume interviewing applicants’ neighbors and coworkers, restoring a practice that had been paused since the George H.W. Bush administration.

The current citizenship test requires applicants to correctly respond to at least 6 out of 10 questions drawn from a list of 100 questions available online. Applicants must also prove basic English skills.

Edlow said he didn’t want the test to be “so hard that it’s impossible” for anyone except highly educated applicants to pass. But he said the test needed be more “thought-provoking.” He offered that applicants may be required to write an essay outlining what becoming an American would represent to them and he suggested the test may move toward a standardized format.

“A question of simply, ‘hey, name two federal holidays’ and, you know, ‘name one branch of government’ or ‘name your governor.’ It's simply not enough,” Edlow said. “We need to know more, especially if we're going to really understand whether someone has a true attachment to the Constitution as required by the statute.”

The move reflects what immigration analysts and advocates have described as a shift in USCIS’ mission away from “customer service” for those navigating the U.S. immigration and naturalization process toward a concerted effort to root out abuses and fraudulent applications. Edlow embraced the idea that USCIS is an “enforcement” agency in his remarks, as he pledged to combat malfeasance in the immigration system.

“I am declaring war on fraud,” Edlow said. “I am declaring war on anyone that is coming to this country and wants to get a benefit, but doesn't want the responsibility of what it means to actually be a U.S. citizen.”

The agency also submitted a final rule Thursday expanding its law enforcement apparatus. In a release explaining the policy change, the agency argued that having its own body of special agents who will work in tandem with other law enforcement arms will help it combat cases of fraud and uphold U.S. national security.

“Having agents there who can help do detective work, investigate some of these cases is going to help us get to the right decision and make these decisions so we can move forward with the integrity of the system,” Edlow explained.