How Long Does It Take USCIS To Process Form N-400 for Citizenship Applications?

In a Nutshell

To get U.S. citizenship, you must file Form N-400: Application for Naturalization with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Processing times for Form N-400 have stayed fairly consistent over the past five years with the average wait time being about 11 months. There are 89 field offices that currently process Form N-400. The current average processing time across all offices is 15.5 months. The whole naturalization process (including application processing, the citizenship interview and exam, and oath of allegiance ceremony) takes 18-24 months on average.

Written by ImmigrationHelp News Team. Legally reviewed by Jonathan Petts
Updated December 11, 2023

Updated December 11, 2023

Form N-400 Processing Times

Form N-400: Application for Naturalization is the form you file to apply for U.S. citizenship by naturalization. If you are 18 years or older and have been a permanent resident (green card holder) for at least five years, or three years if you are married to a U.S. citizen, you are eligible to file Form N-400. When you file your application, you must also submit the required supporting documents and filing fees.

Here are the current processing times for Form N-400:

USCIS Field Office	Last Week	This Week	Change?
Agana GU	8 months	8 months	No change
Albany NY	9.5 months	9.5 months	No change
Albuquerque NM	7 months	7 months	No change
Anchorage AK	9.5 months	9.5 months	No change
Atlanta GA	10 months	10 months	No change
Baltimore MD	10.5 months	10.5 months	No change
Boise ID	7 months	7 months	No change
Boston MA	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
Brooklyn NY	8 months	8 months	No change
Buffalo NY	10 months	10 months	No change
Burlington VT	9.5 months	9.5 months	No change
Charleston SC	13.5 months	13.5 months	No change
Charlotte Amalie VI	8.5 months	8.5 months	No change
Charlotte NC	10 months	10 months	No change
Chicago IL	8 months	8 months	No change
Christiansted VI	10.5 months	10.5 months	No change
Cincinnati OH	6 months	6 months	No change
Cleveland OH	5.5 months	5.5 months	No change
Columbus OH	7 months	7 months	No change
Dallas TX	7 months	7 months	No change
Denver CO	7 months	7 months	No change
Des Moines IA	8.5 months	8.5 months	No change
Detroit MI	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
El Paso TX	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
Fort Myers FL	12 months	12 months	No change
Fort Smith AR	8.5 months	8.5 months	No change
Fresno CA	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
Greer SC	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
Harlingen TX	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
Hartford CT	8.5 months	8.5 months	No change
Helena MT	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
Hialeah FL	7 months	7 months	No change
Honolulu HI	7 months	7 months	No change
Houston TX	7 months	7 months	No change
Imperial CA	9.5 months	9.5 months	No change
Indianapolis IN	8 months	8 months	No change
Jacksonville FL	10 months	10 months	No change
Kansas City MO	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
Kendall FL	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
Las Vegas NV	8.5 months	8.5 months	No change
Lawrence MA	10.5 months	10.5 months	No change
Long Island NY	8.5 months	8.5 months	No change
Los Angeles CA	7 months	7 months	No change
Los Angeles County CA	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
Louisville KY	7 months	7 months	No change
Manchester NH	8 months	8 months	No change
Memphis TN	10 months	10 months	No change
Miami FL	8.5 months	8.5 months	No change
Milwaukee WI	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
Minneapolis-St. Paul MN	9 months	9 months	No change
Montgomery AL	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
Mount Laurel NJ	9 months	9 months	No change
Nashville TN	12.5 months	12.5 months	No change
New Orleans LA	12.5 months	12.5 months	No change
New York City NY	8.5 months	8.5 months	No change
Newark NJ	8.5 months	8.5 months	No change
Norfolk VA	13 months	13 months	No change
Oakland Park FL	8 months	8 months	No change
Oklahoma City OK	7 months	7 months	No change
Omaha NE	9 months	9 months	No change
Orlando FL	9 months	9 months	No change
Philadelphia PA	8 months	8 months	No change
Phoenix AZ	7 months	7 months	No change
Pittsburgh PA	7 months	7 months	No change
Portland ME	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
Portland OR	7 months	7 months	No change
Providence RI	8.5 months	8.5 months	No change
Queens NY	8.5 months	8.5 months	No change
Raleigh NC	8 months	8 months	No change
Reno NV	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
Sacramento CA	9.5 months	9.5 months	No change
Saint Louis MO	11 months	11 months	No change
Salt Lake City UT	10 months	10 months	No change
San Antonio TX	9 months	9 months	No change
San Bernardino CA	7 months	7 months	No change
San Diego CA	9 months	9 months	No change
San Fernando Valley CA	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
San Francisco CA	8 months	8 months	No change
San Jose CA	7 months	7 months	No change
San Juan PR	7 months	7 months	No change
Santa Ana CA	8 months	8 months	No change
Seattle WA	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
Spokane WA	6.5 months	6.5 months	No change
Tampa FL	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change
Tucson AZ	8.5 months	8.5 months	No change
Washington DC	8 months	8 months	No change
West Palm Beach FL	8 months	8 months	No change
Wichita KS	8 months	8 months	No change
Yakima WA	7.5 months	7.5 months	No change

Historical Form N-400 Processing Times: 2018-2022

Historical USCIS processing times for citizenship applications have been relatively stable. Over the last five years, the average median processing time for Form N-400 was 10.2 months.

	FY 2018	FY 2019	FY 2020	FY 2021	FY2022
Form N-400: Application for Naturalization	9.7 months	10 months	9.1 months	11.5 months	10.5 months

How Long Will My Citizenship Application Take?

The naturalization process takes 18-24 months on average. Though citizenship is one of the most straightforward immigration applications, a lot of factors can influence your USCIS case processing time. This includes backlogs, number of applications, budget cuts, and staffing issues at the USCIS field office processing your case.

Also, keep in mind that in addition to filing Form N-400, you’ll also need to undergo a citizenship interview and an English language and civic knowledge test. You can use this guide to common naturalization interview questions to prepare for your interview. We can also help you prepare for the citizenship test by reviewing every question and answer. Finally, you will attend an oath of allegiance ceremony where you trade your green card for a certificate of naturalization. Congratulations!

If you have filed your N-400 application and your case is outside normal processing times, you can contact USCIS to ask for additional information. If you need help understanding your current case status, you can review the case status resources in our Learning Center. One article that may be especially helpful is What Happens if My Green Card Expires While I Wait for Citizenship?