What to Bring to Your US Citizenship Interview: A 2026 Checklist
A practical document checklist for the US naturalization interview. What every applicant should bring, what to bring only if it applies to you, and what to leave at home.
Showing up to your naturalization interview with the right documents is one of the simplest ways to keep your case moving. Missing paperwork is a common reason interviews get continued, which adds weeks or months to an already long process. The list of what to bring is not complicated, and most of it you already have.
This is a general checklist. Your appointment notice may ask for specific items based on your case, so read it carefully and follow it first. If your situation is unusual, an immigration attorney can tell you exactly what your case needs.
Bring these every time
These items apply to almost every applicant:
- Your interview appointment notice. The letter USCIS sent you with the date, time, and location. Bring the actual notice.
- Your green card (Permanent Resident Card). Bring it even though you will hand it back later at the oath ceremony.
- A valid photo ID. A state-issued driver's license or ID card is standard.
- Your passport and any travel documents. Bring all current and expired passports that cover your time as a permanent resident, plus any reentry permits or refugee travel documents. The officer may check your trips against them.
Bring these if they apply to you
Depending on your situation, you may also need:
- Marriage and divorce records. If you are applying under the three-year rule as the spouse of a US citizen, bring your marriage certificate and proof your spouse is a citizen, plus divorce decrees that ended any earlier marriages, for you or your spouse.
- Children's documents. If your application lists children, bring their birth certificates if requested.
- Tax records. If you owe taxes or are on a payment plan, bring proof of the arrangement and recent payments. Tax compliance can come up under the good moral character questions.
- Selected Service registration, if it applies to you.
- Court or police records. If you have ever been arrested, cited, detained, or charged, bring certified copies of the disposition for each incident, even if the case was dismissed or expunged. This is one of the most important categories to get right.
- Anything that changed since you filed. A new address, a new job, a new trip abroad, or any updated answer to a question on your N-400.
What you do not need to bring
You do not need to bring study notes or the civics question list. The civics test is oral and from memory, and bringing notes will not help you during it. You also do not need to bring family members or friends into the interview itself, although they can wait for you, and you may bring an interpreter only if you qualify to test in another language or your appointment notice allows one.
A few practical tips
- Organize your documents in advance. A simple folder with originals and copies saves you fumbling at the desk.
- Bring originals and copies where you can. Officers usually want to see originals and may keep copies.
- Arrive early. Security and check-in take time, and a late arrival can cause problems.
- Re-read your appointment notice the night before. It is the final word on what your specific case requires.
Where to practise
Documents get you through the door. The civics test is what you actually have to perform. PassCitizen has the complete official civics question set in a free flashcard format, built for the oral style of the real interview, so you walk in ready for the questions as well as the paperwork.
Ready to practice?
Test your United States citizenship knowledge with real exam questions.
Practice United States questions →