Form N-400, Application for Naturalization is the U.S. citizenship application. If you are a citizen of a foreign country and you wish to become an American citizen, you must first become a legal permanent resident of the U.S.
If you have had your Green Card for five years, you would likely qualify to apply for U.S. citizenship. If you are married to a U.S. citizen, the wait time is even less, and you might qualify to apply for citizenship in just three years from the date of getting your permanent resident status.
Read more about the U.S. Citizenship eligibility requirements.
Application for U.S. Citizenship
Form N-400 is the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) form that needs to be filed to apply for naturalization. This form includes 20 pages and it comes with form instructions that will help you complete the N-400 application.
You will need to file the most recent edition of the form. You can find this date on the form as well as on the form instructions page. As of July 2018, you’ll need to file the form with edition date 12/23/16. Make sure to check the USCIS site to confirm this is the edition date they’re accepting at the time you file.
U.S. Citizenship Filing Fee
$640 is the form filing fee. This fee should accompany an $85 biometric fee. The total fee to file for Naturalization is $725. However, the fee for biometrics does not apply to all applicants and there are some exceptions.
USCIS accepts payment made with money orders, personal checks and cashier’s checks. Credit card payments are also accepted for which you will need to file Form G-1450, Authorization for Credit Card Transactions along with Form N-400. However, you can use your credit card to make the payment only if you are filing at a USCIS Lockbox facility and not if you are filing at a service center.
You are not required to pay the fees for biometrics services if you are 75 or older or if you are a military applicant who is filing under section 328 or 329 of the Immigration or Nationality Act. In this case, you just need to pay the filing fee for Form N-400 which is $640.
Where to File Form N-400?
USCIS allows applicants to file the form by paper and online.
Filing Form N-400 Online
To file this form online, you will have to create an online account. If you already do not have an account with the USCIS, you can create one. This online account will allow you to check your case status, manage your contact information, update your address, reply to requests for evidence, receive notifications about your case and get case completion date estimates.
You cannot file the form online if you are applying while outside the U.S., applying based on your military service or applying for a fee waiver.
Filing Your Paper Form N-400
After you file your paper form with the USCIS, the agency will send you a USCIS Account Acceptance Notice with information on how to create an online account that will help you manage your case. However, it is not mandatory to create an online account and USCIS will process your case even if you do not create an account. USCIS will continue to mail you notifications related to your case.
If you live in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Micronesia, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Mariana Islands, Montana, North Dakota, Nebraska, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington or Wyoming, you can mail your form to the following address
For U.S. Postal Service:
USCIS
P.O. Box 21251
Phoenix, AZ 85036
For FedEx, UPS, and DHL deliveries:
USCIS
Attn: N-400
1820 E. Skyharbor Circle S
Suite 100
Phoenix, AZ 85034
If you live in Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, District. Of Columbia, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Virgin Islands, Vermont or West Virginia, you can mail your form to the following address.
For U.S. Postal Service:
USCIS
P.O. Box 660060
Dallas, TX 75266
For FedEx, UPS, and DHL deliveries:
USCIS
Attn: N-400
2501 S State Hwy 121 Business
Suite 400
Lewisville, TX 75067
If you live in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Missouri or Pennsylvania, you can mail your form to the following address.
For U.S. Postal Service:
USCIS
P.O. Box 4380
Chicago, IL 60680-4380
For FedEx, UPS, and DHL deliveries:
USCIS
Attn: N-400
131 S. Dearborn, 3rd Floor
Chicago, IL 60603-5517
Send your paper form to the following address if you are a military applicant. This includes spouses of military members and close relatives of a deceased military member.
For U.S. Postal Service:
USCIS
P.O. Box 4446
Chicago, IL 60680-4446
For FedEx, UPS, or DHL deliveries:
USCIS
Attn: Military N-400
131 S. Dearborn, 3rd Floor
Chicago, IL 60603-5517
Form N-400 Processing time
The queue for citizenship application processing can be quite long. This process could take around 8 to 12 months. This does not mean that all applicants will receive their U.S. citizenship within this time-frame. The processing times differ and it could be longer for some and shorter for others.
