N-400Application for Naturalization
- Source
- uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/forms/n-400.pdf
- Size
- 776,244 bytes
- SHA-256
- Revision (page)
- Edition Date 01/20/25
- Revision (footer)
- Form N-400 Edition 01/20/25 ✓ match
- Fetched
- 2026-11-02 06:15 UTC
Form N-400 is the application to become a naturalized U.S. citizen. USCIS's instructions list general requirements that apply to most applicants (age, years as a permanent resident, continuous residence, physical presence, good moral character, English and civics) along with the exceptions explained item by item, and USCIS offers its own Naturalization Eligibility Tool. Many applicants may file up to 90 days before reaching the residence period, but an application filed too early is rejected; USCIS's Early Filing Calculator checks the date. The form runs to 16 parts; Parts 15 and 16, the signature at interview and the oath, are completed only at the interview. USCIS lists N-400 for guided online filing, except for applicants requesting a reduced fee or a fee waiver.
How to file Form N-400
USCIS online account (guided)
USCIS lists N-400 for guided online filing and notes a discount for certain forms filed online. Not available if you request a reduced fee or a fee waiver.
“If you are requesting a reduced fee or filing a fee waiver, you cannot file Form N-400 online.”
Open on uscis.govPDF upload
USCIS's list also includes N-400 among forms that can be submitted by PDF upload through an online account, with a wet-ink signature on the PDF.
Open on uscis.govMail a paper application
Required with a fee-waiver or reduced-fee request (send the request with it). Use every page of the same edition and the address on uscis.gov/n-400.
Why our filler is off for this form: USCIS says its forms are optimized for Adobe Acrobat Reader, and part of this PDF is read-only by design (copied headers, barcodes, signature boxes). We turn our fill on per form only after the output re-opens in Acrobat Reader with every value intact and a matching barcode. Until then, Adobe Reader on a computer is the free tool USCIS points to.
Print, sign in ink, scan, send
USCIS does not accept signatures made by software, so the dependable path is paper first, then a clean PDF under the online limit. Every step below runs in your browser.
- PrintThe official N-400 PDF from uscis.gov, every page from the same edition.
- Sign by handIn the signature box, in ink. USCIS: “USCIS does not accept signatures created by a typewriter, word processor, stamp, auto-pen, or similar device.”
- Scan to PDFPhone camera pages, deskewed and cleaned, in this tab.
- MergeForm and evidence in the order the instructions ask for.
- Under 12 MBCompressed to the USCIS online upload limit, with a preview first.
Sources: USCIS Policy Manual, Vol. 1, Part B, Ch. 2 (signatures) · uscis.gov/file-online/tips-for-filing-forms-online (12 MB) · checked 2026-10-05
Line help for Form N-400
Plain-language notes written from the official instructions, with the place each one comes from. Informational, not legal advice.
Select the one basis you are applying under, for example 5 years as a permanent resident, or 3 years married to and living with a U.S. citizen. Each basis has its own requirements in the instructions.
Form N-400 Instructions (01/20/25), Part 1Names (and any name change you request), A-Number, USCIS Online Account Number if any, date you became a permanent resident, and requests related to testing exceptions or a legal guardian.
Form N-400 Instructions (01/20/25), Part 2Ethnicity, race, height, weight, eye and hair color.
Form N-400 Instructions (01/20/25), Part 3Physical addresses for the statutory period, current first, and your mailing address.
Form N-400 Instructions (01/20/25), Part 4Marital history, all your children, and employment and schools for the period the form asks.
Form N-400 Instructions (01/20/25), Parts 5–7Every trip outside the United States of more than 24 hours during the period the form specifies.
Form N-400 (01/20/25), Part 8Yes/no questions on topics such as taxes, memberships, criminal history and the oath. Answer each truthfully and attach what the instructions ask for. These are the questions where USCIS points people to qualified legal help.
Form N-400 Instructions (01/20/25), Part 9A reduced-fee request if applicable, your handwritten signature, and the interpreter and preparer sections if someone helped.
Form N-400 (01/20/25), Parts 10–13Leave blank; completed at the interview.
Form N-400 Instructions (01/20/25), Parts 15–16Up to 90 days early, never more.
Applicants based on 5 years (or 3 years through marriage to a U.S. citizen) can generally file up to 90 days before meeting the continuous-residence period, but must meet every other requirement on the filing date.
“We will reject your application if you submit it too early.”
Form N-400 Instructions (01/20/25), Early FilingLeave Parts 15 and 16 blank.
The officer asks you to sign these at your interview. Signing the oath part only shows you have no objection to taking the oath.
“Do not complete this part. The USCIS officer will ask you to complete this part at your interview.”
Form N-400 Instructions (01/20/25), Parts 15–16USCIS's tool, not ours.
pdfnex does not assess eligibility. USCIS publishes its own Naturalization Eligibility Tool, and points applicants who need advice to accredited representatives and attorneys.
USCIS Naturalization Eligibility ToolRevision history
We check the USCIS form page and its edition statement every day, and USCIS’s sitemap for preview files of new editions. This list starts when our crawler first saw the form.
| Edition | Status | Fields |
|---|---|---|
| Edition 01/20/25 | Current | baseline |
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Sources
- USCIS Form N-400 page · checked 2026-10-05
- Form N-400 Instructions (Edition 01/20/25) · checked 2026-10-05
- USCIS Early Filing Calculator · checked 2026-10-05
- USCIS page for Form N-400 · crawled 2026-11-02
Not affiliated with the IRS, USCIS or any government agency. US federal forms are public domain (17 U.S.C. §105); the line help is ours, written from the instructions. Informational only: not tax or legal advice. If you need help with an immigration case, USCIS explains how to find legitimate legal services: uscis.gov, Find Legal Services.