Civics questions
All 100 questions for the 2008 test
These are the questions from the USCIS list. On the real test, the officer asks up to 10 of them, and you need 6 correct answers to pass. Choose a question to see its answers.
Not sure which test is yours? See which test you take.
65/20 One of the 20 questions for the 65/20 ruleAnswer changes Can change after elections or appointmentsDepends on where you live Different in each state
American Government
Principles of American Democracy
- Question 1What is the supreme law of the land?
- Question 2What does the Constitution do?
- Question 3The idea of self-government is in the first three words of the Constitution. What are these words?
- Question 4What is an amendment?
- Question 5What do we call the first ten amendments to the Constitution?
- Question 6What is one right or freedom from the First Amendment?Starred for 65/20
- Question 7How many amendments does the Constitution have?
- Question 8What did the Declaration of Independence do?
- Question 9What are two rights in the Declaration of Independence?
- Question 10What is freedom of religion?
- Question 11What is the economic system in the United States?Starred for 65/20
- Question 12What is the “rule of law”?
System of Government
- Question 13Name one branch or part of the government.Starred for 65/20
- Question 14What stops one branch of government from becoming too powerful?
- Question 15Who is in charge of the executive branch?
- Question 16Who makes federal laws?
- Question 17What are the two parts of the U.S. Congress?Starred for 65/20
- Question 18How many U.S. Senators are there?
- Question 19We elect a U.S. Senator for how many years?
- Question 20Who is one of your state’s U.S. Senators now?Starred for 65/20Depends on where you live
- Question 21The House of Representatives has how many voting members?
- Question 22We elect a U.S. Representative for how many years?
- Question 23Name your U.S. Representative.Depends on where you live
- Question 24Who does a U.S. Senator represent?
- Question 25Why do some states have more Representatives than other states?
- Question 26We elect a President for how many years?
- Question 27In what month do we vote for President?Starred for 65/20
- Question 28What is the name of the President of the United States now?Starred for 65/20Answer changes
- Question 29What is the name of the Vice President of the United States now?Answer changes
- Question 30If the President can no longer serve, who becomes President?
- Question 31If both the President and the Vice President can no longer serve, who becomes President?
- Question 32Who is the Commander in Chief of the military?
- Question 33Who signs bills to become laws?
- Question 34Who vetoes bills?
- Question 35What does the President’s Cabinet do?
- Question 36What are two Cabinet-level positions?
- Question 37What does the judicial branch do?
- Question 38What is the highest court in the United States?
- Question 39How many justices are on the Supreme Court?Answer changes
- Question 40Who is the Chief Justice of the United States now?Answer changes
- Question 41Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the federal government. What is one power of the federal government?
- Question 42Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the states. What is one power of the states?
- Question 43Who is the Governor of your state now?Depends on where you live
- Question 44What is the capital of your state?Starred for 65/20Depends on where you live
- Question 45What are the two major political parties in the United States?Starred for 65/20
- Question 46What is the political party of the President now?Answer changes
- Question 47What is the name of the Speaker of the House of Representatives now?Answer changes
Rights and Responsibilities
- Question 48There are four amendments to the Constitution about who can vote. Describe one of them.
- Question 49What is one responsibility that is only for United States citizens?Starred for 65/20
- Question 50Name one right only for United States citizens.
- Question 51What are two rights of everyone living in the United States?
- Question 52What do we show loyalty to when we say the Pledge of Allegiance?
- Question 53What is one promise you make when you become a United States citizen?
- Question 54How old do citizens have to be to vote for President?Starred for 65/20
- Question 55What are two ways that Americans can participate in their democracy?
- Question 56When is the last day you can send in federal income tax forms?Starred for 65/20
- Question 57When must all men register for the Selective Service?
American History
Colonial Period and Independence
- Question 58What is one reason colonists came to America?
- Question 59Who lived in America before the Europeans arrived?
- Question 60What group of people was taken to America and sold as slaves?
- Question 61Why did the colonists fight the British?
- Question 62Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?
- Question 63When was the Declaration of Independence adopted?
- Question 64There were 13 original states. Name three.
- Question 65What happened at the Constitutional Convention?
- Question 66When was the Constitution written?
- Question 67The Federalist Papers supported the passage of the U.S. Constitution. Name one of the writers.
- Question 68What is one thing Benjamin Franklin is famous for?
- Question 69Who is the “Father of Our Country”?
- Question 70Who was the first President?Starred for 65/20
1800s
- Question 71What territory did the United States buy from France in 1803?
- Question 72Name one war fought by the United States in the 1800s.
- Question 73Name the U.S. war between the North and the South.
- Question 74Name one problem that led to the Civil War.
- Question 75What was one important thing that Abraham Lincoln did?Starred for 65/20
- Question 76What did the Emancipation Proclamation do?
- Question 77What did Susan B. Anthony do?
Recent American History and Other Important Historical Information
- Question 78Name one war fought by the United States in the 1900s.Starred for 65/20
- Question 79Who was President during World War I?
- Question 80Who was President during the Great Depression and World War II?
- Question 81Who did the United States fight in World War II?
- Question 82Before he was President, Eisenhower was a general. What war was he in?
- Question 83During the Cold War, what was the main concern of the United States?
- Question 84What movement tried to end racial discrimination?
- Question 85What did Martin Luther King, Jr. do?Starred for 65/20
- Question 86What major event happened on September 11, 2001, in the United States?
- Question 87Name one American Indian tribe in the United States.
Integrated Civics
Geography
- Question 88Name one of the two longest rivers in the United States.
- Question 89What ocean is on the West Coast of the United States?
- Question 90What ocean is on the East Coast of the United States?
- Question 91Name one U.S. territory.
- Question 92Name one state that borders Canada.
- Question 93Name one state that borders Mexico.
- Question 94What is the capital of the United States?Starred for 65/20
- Question 95Where is the Statue of Liberty?Starred for 65/20