What is an oath of allegiance?

An oath of allegiance is a solemn public promise to support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States, recited by every naturalization applicant before becoming a citizen. The oath required by the Immigration and Nationality Act, codified at 8 U.S.C. § 1448 and prescribed in detail by 8 C.F.R. § 337.1, contains five core commitments. The applicant promises to support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; to bear true faith and allegiance to the same; to absolutely and entirely renounce all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty of which the applicant has previously been a subject or citizen; to bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law, or to perform noncombatant service in the armed forces, or to perform work of national importance under civilian direction; and to take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion.

Modifications are available for applicants whose religious training and belief preclude bearing arms or performing noncombatant military service. Section 337(a) of the Act allows substitute language requiring only work of national importance under civilian direction or, in some cases, alternative wording that omits military commitments entirely. USCIS officers evaluate these requests during the naturalization interview.

The oath ceremony usually takes place at a federal courthouse or USCIS field office, sometimes weeks or months after the interview, and may include large groups of applicants from many different countries. A judge or USCIS official administers the oath, the new citizens raise their right hands, and they recite the words together. Applicants then receive a Certificate of Naturalization, the only official document proving U.S. citizenship for naturalized persons.

Many ceremonies include the Pledge of Allegiance, a video greeting from the President, the National Anthem, and a brief welcome from civic groups such as the League of Women Voters offering immediate voter registration. Approximately seven hundred thousand to one million people take the oath each year, and the largest single ceremony in U.S. history naturalized over six thousand new citizens at the Los Angeles Convention Center on July 4, 2017.

The oath has roots in the original Naturalization Act of 1790 and has been modified many times, most recently to remove gendered language. Naturalization candidates should approach the oath as the formal moment when permanent residency becomes citizenship.