U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced the agency will celebrate Constitution Day and Citizenship Day, observed on Sept. 17, with over 260 naturalization ceremonies across the country.

Approximately, 45,000 lawful permanent residents will become America’s newest citizens during the annual commemoration honoring the signing of the U.S. Constitution 231 years ago on Sept. 17, 1787. View the list of 2018 Constitution Week naturalization ceremonies.

USCIS has experienced a sustained 25 percent increase in the number of naturalization applications over the last two fiscal years on average.

In FY 2017 USCIS naturalized more than 716,000 individuals.

USCIS is on pace to complete at least 829,000 N-400 applications for naturalization in FY18.

In response to the uptick in workload, USCIS has implemented a range of process and operational reforms, hired additional staff and expanded its facilities to adjudicate the naturalization applications and cope with the escalating demand for services.

Applicants for naturalization can access study materials and resources on the Citizenship Resource Center. Applicants can also practice for the civics test using the mobile app, USCIS: Civics Test Study Tools, which is currently available for download in Google Play and the iTunes App Store.

• On September 11, 2018, USCIS began applying a new policy to allow the USCIS adjudicators discretion to deny a request for an immigration benefit without first issuing a Request for Evidence (RFE) or a Notice of Intent to Deny (NOID).
• The new policy will allow for USCIS to deny an application or petition without giving the applicant or petitioner the opportunity to correct a simple filing error. USCIS will also deny a benefit if any of the required initial evidence is missing from the filing.
• Prior USCIS policy limited an adjudicator’s ability to deny a case without first giving the applicant or petitioner an opportunity to respond.
• All applicants and petitioners who now file immigration benefit applications with USCIS will be impacted by this new policy and could now face harsh consequences in the form of a denial of their request for an immigration benefit application