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The Trump administration is reviving the practice of conducting neighborhood investigations of immigrants seeking U.S. citizenship, a move officials say will ensure applicants meet the standards of good moral character required under federal law.
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced this week that investigators will resume vetting procedures once common in the naturalization process but discontinued more than 30 years ago. The agency said the checks could involve gathering testimony from neighbors, employers, co-workers and business associates about applicants.
A policy memo outlining the change said applicants may avoid a neighborhood investigation if they provide sufficient testimonial letters themselves.
“Submitting such evidence proactively with the Application for Naturalization can assist USCIS in determining whether a waiver of a neighborhood investigation is appropriate in a particular case without a need to issue a Request for Evidence,” the memo said.
The goal, according to USCIS Director Joseph Edlow, is to ensure that citizenship is granted only to those who are fully qualified.
“Americans should be comforted knowing that USCIS is taking seriously its responsibility to ensure aliens are being properly vetted and are of good moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the United States, and well-disposed to the good order and happiness of the United States,” Edlow told CBS News.
From 1802 until 1981, immigrants seeking citizenship were required to present two witnesses who could vouch for their qualifications, Breitbart News reported. After Congress eliminated that requirement, the agency shifted to neighborhood investigations until 1991, when the practice ended. Since then, naturalization reviews have relied mainly on biometric data and FBI background checks.
The Biden administration reportedly shortened some of the naturalization vetting questions to accelerate processing. Between 2021 and 2025, nearly 3.5 million people became naturalized citizens under Biden, according to the Migration Policy Institute, far more than under any previous single presidential term.
That total surpassed the combined numbers of naturalizations granted during the presidencies of Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. As a result, about 23 million naturalized U.S. citizens, all foreign-born, are now eligible to vote in elections at every level of government.