Caroline Matthews, the supervising attorney at Pathways to Citizenship, a legal nonprofit in San Diego, said more people were nervous in part because federal officers seem to have a lot of discretion to determine what demonstrated good moral character, and they were unclear about how to meet the new standards. She said some applicants who qualified for fee waivers were choosing to pay the roughly $700 in full because they did not want to risk being denied if they appeared to be relying on government benefits.

Other applicants have grown more conscious about what they are posting on social media, Ms. Matthews said. Some have also worried about the possibility of having their green cards revoked or being subject to deportation if they reopen their cases by applying to naturalize, she added.

“For example, say you got your green card through a spouse, and you later divorce,” she said. “You can get pulled into a situation where you’re defending that you had a bona fide marriage and you didn’t get that through fraud.”

Still, Ms. Matthews said the organization had recently seen strong interest from people hoping to become citizens, particularly ahead of the new civics test. For the full article, please visit the New York Times.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/01/us/politics/trump-citizenship.html