Citizenship and Naturalization Attorney in Oak Brook

Naturalization is the last step in most immigration stories, and many permanent residents expect it to be a formality. The green card has been in the wallet for years, so the citizenship application should be routine. Often it is. But the N-400 is also the moment USCIS looks back over your whole record — how you got your green card, the time you have spent abroad, and anything that has happened since — and an answer given without thinking it through can turn a simple case into a hard one.

We have practiced immigration law in Illinois since 1983, and Joe is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. We help permanent residents work out when to file, prepare the application and the evidence behind it, and attend the interview with them. Consultations are free, and we take cases in English and Spanish.

Who can apply, and when

Most applicants file under one of two rules. USCIS sets out the requirements on its own pages for permanent residents of five years and for spouses of U.S. citizens.

The five-year rule. You must be at least 18 when you file and have been a lawful permanent resident for at least five years. Over those five years you need continuous residence in the United States and physical presence here for at least 30 months. You must have lived for at least three months in the state or USCIS district where you apply. And you have to show good moral character, attachment to the principles of the Constitution, basic English, and knowledge of U.S. history and government.

The three-year rule for spouses of U.S. citizens. If you have been a permanent resident for at least three years and have been living in marital union with your U.S. citizen spouse during those three years, the wait is shorter. Physical presence is at least 18 months of the three years, and the marital union has to continue while the application is decided. The other requirements are the same.

You can file a little early. USCIS accepts an N-400 up to 90 days before you reach the five-year or three-year mark. You still cannot be naturalized until the full period has passed, and every other requirement has to be met on the day you file. An application filed too early is rejected, so the date is worth counting carefully; USCIS explains how in its Policy Manual.

There are separate routes for people serving in the U.S. military and for some military family members. If that applies to you, say so at the start, because the rules are different.

Trips abroad: the issue we see most

Long trips outside the United States cause more naturalization problems than anything else, and they catch people who have done nothing wrong. Continuous residence and physical presence are two separate tests. Physical presence adds up the days you were in the country. Continuous residence asks whether any single trip was long enough to interrupt your residence here.

Under the USCIS Policy Manual, an absence of more than six months but less than one year is presumed to break continuous residence. The presumption can be overcome with evidence — for example, that you kept your job here, that your immediate family stayed here, or that you kept your home here. An absence of one year or more breaks continuous residence, except for certain people working abroad for qualifying employers who hold an approved Form N-470.

A broken period is not the end of the road. In most cases it changes the date you can apply, not whether you can. Before anything is filed, we go through every trip since you became a permanent resident, using your passports and travel records, because the N-400 asks for those dates and they have to be right.

Good moral character, and why we review the file before you file

You must show good moral character for the five-year or three-year period before you file, and until you take the oath. The Policy Manual also says conduct before that period can matter. The standard does not mean a perfect life, but it does mean the whole record is looked at.

The application asks about far more than convictions. Form N-400 asks about arrests, citations and detentions anywhere in the world, including ones that never led to a charge, and USCIS expects documents showing how each one ended. A sealed or expunged record does not disappear for this purpose: the Policy Manual says expungement does not remove the underlying conviction, and that it remains the applicant's responsibility to obtain the records.

These are the things we go through with every client before an N-400 is filed:

• Any arrest, citation or court case, here or abroad, however old and however it ended.
• How the green card was obtained. To naturalize you must have been lawfully admitted for permanent residence, and USCIS can look at whether the green card was properly granted in the first place.
• Voting and claims to be a citizen. Registering to vote, voting in a federal election, or claiming to be a U.S. citizen on a form can be a serious problem for a permanent resident. USCIS updated its guidance on both in August 2025.
• Taxes and child support. The Policy Manual treats tax problems that have since been corrected, including through a payment plan, differently from ones left unaddressed, and it looks at the circumstances of any missed support. Both are worth putting right before you file.
• Selective Service. Men are generally required to register between the ages of 18 and 26. A failure to register is not a permanent bar, but it has to be addressed.

We ask about all of this because the worst outcome of a naturalization application is not a denial. Under a February 2025 policy memo, USCIS generally issues a Notice to Appear in immigration court after denying an application when the person is removable. A permanent resident with a problem in the record can apply for citizenship and end up defending the green card instead. The time to find that problem is before the application goes in, not at the interview, and sometimes the right advice is to wait. If you have already received a Notice to Appear, see our deportation and removal defense page.

Neighborhood investigations and character letters

In August 2026, USCIS reintroduced neighborhood investigations for naturalization applicants. Under its updated Policy Manual, an investigation applies unless USCIS waives it, and it generally covers at least the five years before the N-400 is filed. Investigators may speak to people who know you near your home and your work: neighbors, landlords, employers, supervisors and coworkers, and for business owners, partners, clients and contractors.

USCIS also invites letters of recommendation with the application. They are optional, but the Policy Manual recommends at least two, preferably from U.S. citizens who know you personally, such as neighbors, employers, coworkers or business associates. Letters from relatives are not considered. Each letter should give the writer's contact details and proof of citizenship or status, say how long they have known you, and give specific examples. Not sending letters is not, on its own, a reason to find a lack of good moral character, but letters can help USCIS decide whether to waive the investigation.

The policy is new, and we follow how it is being applied as cases move through. We help clients choose who should write and make sure each letter contains what USCIS asks for.

The interview and the English and civics tests

After you file, USCIS takes your fingerprints and photograph at a biometrics appointment and then schedules an interview. At the interview an officer goes through your application with you and gives the English and civics tests.

English. Speaking is judged from your answers during the interview. For reading, you read aloud one of up to three sentences correctly; for writing, you write one of up to three dictated sentences correctly.

Civics. If you filed on or after October 20, 2025, you take the 2025 civics test: up to 20 questions from a list of 128, and you need 12 correct. The officer stops as soon as you reach 12 correct answers, or after nine wrong ones. If you filed before that date, you take the earlier test of 10 questions from a list of 100, with 6 correct answers needed. Which test you take depends on your filing date, not your interview date. The details are in the Policy Manual.

If you fail part of a test, you get a second chance. USCIS schedules a re-examination 60 to 90 days later and retests only the part you failed. Failing that part again generally leads to denial.

Exceptions. If you are 50 or older when you file and have been a permanent resident for 20 years, or 55 or older with 15 years, you are exempt from the English test and may take the civics test in your own language, with an interpreter fluent in both languages. Applicants 65 or older with 20 years as permanent residents get special consideration: under the 2025 test, 10 questions from a designated list of 20, with 6 correct needed. A person who cannot meet the English or civics requirement because of a physical or developmental disability or a mental impairment may ask for an exception on Form N-648, completed by a licensed doctor or clinical psychologist. USCIS lists these on its exceptions and accommodations page.

From filing to the oath

Filing. The N-400 can be filed online through a USCIS account or on paper; anyone requesting a fee waiver or a reduced fee has to file on paper. We do not print USCIS fee amounts here because they change, and the current figures are on the N-400 page.

Biometrics and the interview follow, as described above.

The oath. You are not a U.S. citizen until you take the Oath of Allegiance at a naturalization ceremony. Sometimes the ceremony is on the same day as the interview; if not, USCIS mails a notice with the date, time and place. You return your green card when you check in, and you receive your Certificate of Naturalization after taking the oath. USCIS describes the day on its naturalization ceremonies page.

If the application is denied

A denial is not always the end. You can ask USCIS to review it by filing Form N-336, Request for a Hearing on a Decision in Naturalization Proceedings, within 30 calendar days of receiving the decision, or 33 days if it was mailed to you (USCIS N-336 page). Depending on the reason, applying again later can be the better course. Either way, have the decision read before you respond: the deadline is short, and a denial is also the point at which USCIS may refer a case to immigration court.

Children and citizenship

Children cannot file an N-400 — the minimum age is 18 — but many become citizens automatically. Under section 320 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, a child becomes a U.S. citizen when, before turning 18, all of these are true at the same time: at least one parent is a U.S. citizen by birth or naturalization, the child is under 18, the child is a lawful permanent resident, and the child lives in the United States in the legal and physical custody of the citizen parent.

No application is needed for that to happen. A family that wants proof can apply for a Certificate of Citizenship on Form N-600, or for a U.S. passport (USCIS Policy Manual). If you are naturalizing and your children have green cards, ask us about them at the same time.

Working with you

Our office is in Oak Brook, and we represent permanent residents across Chicago, the western suburbs and the rest of Chicagoland, with consultations in person or by video. If your green card came through marriage, our adjustment of status page covers that stage; for a work-based green card, see work visas and employment immigration; and our immigration page covers the rest of the practice.

What to bring, and the next step

Bring your green card, your current passport and any old ones, a list of trips outside the United States since you became a permanent resident, your addresses and employers for the last five years, and your marriage certificate if you are applying as the spouse of a U.S. citizen. If you have ever been arrested, cited or charged with anything, bring whatever papers you have; we will help you get the rest.

The consultation is free and we take cases in Spanish. Call 630.928.0100 or book a time online. More about the firm is on Joe's page, and what clients have said is on our reviews page.

Nothing on this page is legal advice about your situation, and reading it does not create an attorney–client relationship. The requirements described here were checked against USCIS's website and Policy Manual in October 2026. Naturalization policy has changed several times since 2025, and fees and processing times change often, which is why no fee amounts or waiting times are quoted here.