Photo by Antoine Gravier on Unsplash

Naturalization cases are currently processing at their fastest pace in a decade. 

We are now two months away from Election Day 2024, and a common practice in an election year is for the government to help naturalization cases move faster, creating more people eligible to vote in November. 

The USCIS website currently states that the average processing time for naturalization at the Norfolk, VA USCIS field office is 11.5 months, but we have heard of naturalization cases zooming through at six months' processing time, or in a few cases, even three months! The New York Times reported seeing 4.9 months, on average, to process naturalization applications in the first nine months of the current fiscal year.

As part of its Constitution Day celebrations, USCIS announced that between September 17 and September 23 of this year, over 17,000 people would become new U.S. citizens! Below we tell you how to prepare if you are waiting for your naturalization case to process:

I Applied for Naturalization but Haven't Received an Interview Notice Yet, What Should I Do?

• The best thing for you to do right now is to make sure you are ready for your interview! Unless you have filed for an exception, you will have to be ready for the Civics exam in your interview, and to do your interview in English. There are many, many questions you need to be ready for, so we highly recommend to keep practicing. You can access free study materials for your naturalization interview in multiple languages here. 

• Keep checking your mail. You don't want to miss your interview notice from USCIS! If you go on a trip, have a trusted friend check your mail for you, as sometimes interview notices are for dates only two weeks away.

• Keep your attorney informed. If you have had any new traffic tickets or any run-ins with the law since you filed your naturalization application, it is important for your attorney to know about them!

If you would like assistance with filing a naturalization petition, you can reach us at (757) 422-8472, or send us a message on our website. You can also schedule an appointment with one of our attorneys by clicking on this link.