WHAT IS IN THIS GUIDE
- How the Citizenship Interview Works
- Old Test vs. New Test — Key Differences
- Civics: American Government (Questions 1–36)
- Civics: American History (Questions 37–70)
- Civics: Integrated Civics (Questions 71–100/128)
- Personal Questions Your Officer Will Ask
- What to Bring to Your Interview
- Tips to Pass on the First Try
- Frequently Asked Questions
HOW THE CITIZENSHIP INTERVIEW WORKS
3Parts to every interview
20–45Minutes average interview
1Second chance if you fail
Every USCIS naturalization interview has three parts. They happen in the same appointment, one after another:
PART 1 — English Test
The officer asks you to read one sentence in English and write one sentence in English. The sentences are simple. The officer also evaluates your English speaking ability throughout the interview. You do not get to choose the sentences — the officer picks them.
PART 2 — Civics Test
The officer asks civics questions from the official list. New test (filed Oct 20, 2025+): 20 questions asked, need 12 correct. Old test (filed before Oct 20, 2025): up to 10 questions asked, need 6 correct. The officer stops as soon as you reach the passing number — you might only be asked 12 questions total if you answer all correctly.
PART 3 — N-400 Application Review
The officer reviews your application line by line and asks about your personal background — travel history, employment, family, criminal record, taxes. Be honest. The officer can see your background check results. Inconsistencies between your answers and the records are a major red flag.
If you fail: You get one second attempt. USCIS schedules a re-exam within 60–90 days for only the portion you failed. Fail the second time — your N-400 is denied and you must reapply and pay the full fee again.
OLD TEST VS. NEW TEST — KEY DIFFERENCES
OLD 2008 TEST — Filed before Oct 20, 2025
100 total possible questions
Officer asks up to 10 questions
Must answer 6 correctly to pass
Test stops when you reach 6 correct or 5 incorrect
Focused on traditional civics
NEW 2025 TEST — Filed Oct 20, 2025 or later
128 total possible questions
Officer asks 20 questions
Must answer 12 correctly to pass
Test stops when you reach 12 correct or 9 incorrect
Expanded to include more recent history and integrated civics
Your filing date determines your test — not your interview date. If you filed before October 20, 2025 but your interview is in 2026, you still take the old 100-question test. Check your Form I-797C receipt notice for your exact filing date.
CIVICS — AMERICAN GOVERNMENT (Questions 1–36)
PRINCIPLES OF AMERICAN DEMOCRACY
Q 01
What is the supreme law of the land?
ANSWERThe Constitution.
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Q 02
What does the Constitution do?
ANSWERSets up the government / defines the government / protects basic rights of Americans.
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Q 03
The idea of self-government is in the first three words of the Constitution. What are these words?
ANSWERWe the People.
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Q 04
What is an amendment?
ANSWERA change to the Constitution / an addition to the Constitution.
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Q 05
What do we call the first ten amendments to the Constitution?
ANSWERThe Bill of Rights.
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Q 06
What is one right or freedom from the First Amendment?
ANSWERSpeech / religion / assembly / press / petition the government. (Any one is acceptable.)
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Q 07
How many amendments does the Constitution have?
ANSWERTwenty-seven (27).
TAP TO REVEAL
Q 08
What did the Declaration of Independence do?
ANSWERAnnounced our independence from Great Britain / declared our independence from Great Britain / said the United States is free from Great Britain.
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Q 09
What are two rights in the Declaration of Independence?
ANSWERLife / liberty / pursuit of happiness. (Any two.)
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Q 10
What is freedom of religion?
ANSWERYou can practice any religion, or not practice a religion.
TAP TO REVEAL
SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT
Q 11
What is the economic system in the United States?
ANSWERCapitalist economy / market economy.
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Q 12
What is the "rule of law"?
ANSWEREveryone must follow the law / leaders must obey the law / government must obey the law / no one is above the law.
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Q 13
Name one branch or part of the government.
ANSWERCongress / legislative / President / executive / the courts / judicial. (Any one.)
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Q 14
What stops one branch of government from becoming too powerful?
ANSWERChecks and balances / separation of powers.
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Q 15
Who is in charge of the executive branch?
ANSWERThe President.
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Q 16
Who makes federal laws?
ANSWERCongress / Senate and House of Representatives / U.S. legislature.
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Q 17
What are the two parts of the U.S. Congress?
ANSWERThe Senate and House of Representatives.
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Q 18
How many U.S. Senators are there?
ANSWEROne hundred (100).
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Q 19
We elect a U.S. Senator for how many years?
ANSWERSix (6) years.
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Q 20
Who is one of your state's U.S. Senators now?
ANSWERAnswers vary by state. Look up your current senators at senate.gov before your interview. This is one of the most important state-specific questions.
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Q 21
The House of Representatives has how many voting members?
ANSWERFour hundred thirty-five (435).
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Q 22
We elect a U.S. Representative for how many years?
ANSWERTwo (2) years.
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Q 23
Name your U.S. Representative.
ANSWERAnswers vary by congressional district. Look up at house.gov before your interview.
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Q 24
Who does a U.S. Senator represent?
ANSWERAll people of the state.
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Q 25
Why do some states have more Representatives than other states?
ANSWERBecause of the state's population / because they have more people / because some states have more people.
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Q 26
We elect a President for how many years?
ANSWERFour (4) years.
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Q 27
In what month do we vote for President?
ANSWERNovember.
TAP TO REVEAL
Q 28
What is the name of the President of the United States now?
ANSWERDonald J. Trump / Donald Trump / Trump. (As of 2025–2026.)
TAP TO REVEAL
Q 29
What is the name of the Vice President of the United States now?
ANSWERJD Vance / James David Vance / Vance. (As of 2025–2026.)
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Q 30
If the President can no longer serve, who becomes President?
ANSWERThe Vice President.
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Q 31
If both the President and the Vice President can no longer serve, who becomes President?
ANSWERThe Speaker of the House.
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Q 32
Who is the Commander in Chief of the military?
ANSWERThe President.
TAP TO REVEAL
Q 33
Who signs bills to become laws?
ANSWERThe President.
TAP TO REVEAL
Q 34
Who vetoes bills?
ANSWERThe President.
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Q 35
What does the President's Cabinet do?
ANSWERAdvises the President.
TAP TO REVEAL
Q 36
What are two Cabinet-level positions?
ANSWERSecretary of Agriculture / Commerce / Defense / Education / Energy / Health and Human Services / Homeland Security / Interior / Labor / State / Transportation / Treasury / Veterans Affairs / Attorney General / Vice President. (Any two.)
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START INTERVIEW PREP — $49CIVICS — AMERICAN HISTORY (Questions 37–70)
COLONIAL PERIOD AND INDEPENDENCE
Q 37
What is one reason colonists came to America?
ANSWERFreedom / political liberty / religious freedom / economic opportunity / practice their religion / escape persecution.
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Q 38
Who lived in America before the Europeans arrived?
ANSWERAmerican Indians / Native Americans.
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Q 39
What group of people was taken to America and sold as slaves?
ANSWERAfricans / people from Africa.
TAP TO REVEAL
Q 40
Why did the colonists fight the British?
ANSWERBecause of high taxes (taxation without representation) / because the British army stayed in their houses / because they didn't have self-government.
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Q 41
Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?
ANSWERThomas Jefferson.
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Q 42
When was the Declaration of Independence adopted?
ANSWERJuly 4, 1776.
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Q 43
There were 13 original states. Name three.
ANSWERNew Hampshire / Massachusetts / Rhode Island / Connecticut / New York / New Jersey / Pennsylvania / Delaware / Maryland / Virginia / North Carolina / South Carolina / Georgia. (Any three.)
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Q 44
What happened at the Constitutional Convention?
ANSWERThe Constitution was written / the Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution.
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Q 45
When was the Constitution written?
ANSWER1787.
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Q 46
The Federalist Papers supported the passage of the U.S. Constitution. Name one of the writers.
ANSWERJames Madison / Alexander Hamilton / John Jay / Publius.
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Q 47
What is one thing Benjamin Franklin is famous for?
ANSWERU.S. diplomat / oldest member of the Constitutional Convention / first Postmaster General / writer of "Poor Richard's Almanac" / started the first free libraries / discovered electricity.
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Q 48
Who is the "Father of Our Country"?
ANSWERGeorge Washington.
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Q 49
Who was the first President?
ANSWERGeorge Washington.
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1800s HISTORY
Q 50
What territory did the United States buy from France in 1803?
ANSWERThe Louisiana Territory / Louisiana.
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Q 51
Name one war fought by the United States in the 1800s.
ANSWERWar of 1812 / Mexican-American War / Civil War / Spanish-American War.
TAP TO REVEAL
Q 52
What did the Emancipation Proclamation do?
ANSWERFreed the slaves / freed slaves in the Confederate states / freed slaves in the states that were in rebellion / freed slaves in most Southern states.
TAP TO REVEAL
Q 53
What did Susan B. Anthony do?
ANSWERFought for women's rights / fought for civil rights.
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RECENT AMERICAN HISTORY
Q 54
Name one war fought by the United States in the 1900s.
ANSWERWorld War I / World War II / Korean War / Vietnam War / Gulf War (Persian Gulf War).
TAP TO REVEAL
Q 55
Who was President during World War I?
ANSWERWoodrow Wilson.
TAP TO REVEAL
Q 56
Who was President during the Great Depression and World War II?
ANSWERFranklin Roosevelt / Franklin D. Roosevelt / FDR.
TAP TO REVEAL
Q 57
Who did the United States fight in World War II?
ANSWERJapan, Germany, and Italy.
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Q 58
Before he was President, Eisenhower was a general. What war was he in?
ANSWERWorld War II.
TAP TO REVEAL
Q 59
During the Cold War, what was the main concern of the United States?
ANSWERCommunism.
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Q 60
What movement tried to end racial discrimination?
ANSWERCivil rights movement.
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Q 61
What did Martin Luther King, Jr. do?
ANSWERFought for civil rights / worked for equality for all Americans.
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Q 62
What major event happened on September 11, 2001 in the United States?
ANSWERTerrorists attacked the United States.
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Q 63
Name one American Indian tribe in the United States.
ANSWERCherokee / Navajo / Sioux / Chippewa / Choctaw / Pueblo / Apache / Iroquois / Creek / Blackfeet / Seminole / Cheyenne / Arawak / Shawnee / Mohegan / Huron / Oneida / Lakota / Crow / Teton / Hopi / Inuit. (Any one.)
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CIVICS — INTEGRATED CIVICS (Questions 64–100)
GEOGRAPHY
Q 64
Name one of the two longest rivers in the United States.
ANSWERMissouri River / Mississippi River.
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Q 65
What ocean is on the West Coast of the United States?
ANSWERPacific Ocean.
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Q 66
What ocean is on the East Coast of the United States?
ANSWERAtlantic Ocean.
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Q 67
Name one U.S. territory.
ANSWERPuerto Rico / U.S. Virgin Islands / American Samoa / Northern Mariana Islands / Guam.
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Q 68
Name one state that borders Canada.
ANSWERMaine / New Hampshire / Vermont / New York / Pennsylvania / Ohio / Michigan / Minnesota / North Dakota / Montana / Idaho / Washington / Alaska. (Any one.)
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Q 69
Name one state that borders Mexico.
ANSWERCalifornia / Arizona / New Mexico / Texas.
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Q 70
What is the capital of the United States?
ANSWERWashington, D.C.
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Q 71
Where is the Statue of Liberty?
ANSWERNew York Harbor / Liberty Island / New Jersey / New York City / New York.
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SYMBOLS & HOLIDAYS
Q 72
Why does the flag have 13 stripes?
ANSWERBecause there were 13 original colonies / the stripes represent the original colonies.
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Q 73
Why does the flag have 50 stars?
ANSWERBecause there is one star for each state / each star represents a state / because there are 50 states.
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Q 74
What is the name of the national anthem?
ANSWERThe Star-Spangled Banner.
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Q 75
When do we celebrate Independence Day?
ANSWERJuly 4th.
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Q 76
Name two national U.S. holidays.
ANSWERNew Year's Day / Martin Luther King Jr. Day / Presidents' Day / Memorial Day / Juneteenth / Independence Day / Labor Day / Columbus Day / Veterans Day / Thanksgiving / Christmas. (Any two.)
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RIGHTS & RESPONSIBILITIES
Q 77
What is one responsibility that is only for United States citizens?
ANSWERServe on a jury / vote in a federal election.
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Q 78
Name one right only for United States citizens.
ANSWERVote in a federal election / run for federal office.
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Q 79
What are two rights of everyone living in the United States?
ANSWERFreedom of expression / freedom of speech / freedom of assembly / freedom to petition the government / freedom of religion / the right to bear arms. (Any two.)
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Q 80
What do we show loyalty to when we say the Pledge of Allegiance?
ANSWERThe United States / the flag.
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Q 81
What is one promise you make when you become a United States citizen?
ANSWERGive up loyalty to other countries / defend the Constitution / obey the laws of the United States / serve in the U.S. military if needed / be loyal to the United States.
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Q 82
How old do citizens have to be to vote for President?
ANSWEREighteen (18) and older.
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Q 83–100
Questions 83–100 cover participation in democracy, state information, and additional integrated civics topics.
PRACTICE ALL 100+ QUESTIONSUse LEGALIAI's Interview Prep module to practice all questions with AI feedback in your language. Know exactly which questions you need more practice on before your interview.
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PRACTICE ALL QUESTIONS WITH AI FEEDBACK
LEGALIAI gives you AI-powered feedback on every answer in your language — Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Hindi, or Korean. Know exactly where you stand before your real interview.
START INTERVIEW PREP — $49PERSONAL QUESTIONS YOUR OFFICER WILL ASK
The officer reviews your N-400 application line by line and asks questions about your answers. These are not random — they come directly from your application. Be consistent with what you wrote.
"What is your full legal name?"
TIP: Use exactly the name on your green card. No nicknames or shortened versions. If your name has changed, have documentation ready.
"What is your current address?"
TIP: Must match your N-400 exactly. If you moved after filing, bring proof of updated address notification to USCIS.
"How long have you been a permanent resident?"
TIP: Know the exact date on your green card. Calculate the years and months from that date to today.
"Tell me about your trips outside the United States."
TIP: The officer has your N-400 Part 7 in front of them. Be ready to confirm every trip you listed — destination, dates, purpose. Inconsistencies are a red flag.
"Have you ever been arrested, detained, or cited by any law enforcement officer?"
TIP: Always say yes if you have — even for minor incidents, even if charges were dismissed or expunged. Bring documentation. Non-disclosure is worse than the offense.
"Have you filed your federal, state, and local taxes?"
TIP: Bring 5 years of tax returns or IRS transcripts. If you owe back taxes, bring documentation of your payment plan.
"Do you support the Constitution and form of government of the United States?"
ANSWER: Yes.
"Are you willing to take the full Oath of Allegiance to the United States?"
ANSWER: Yes.
"Why do you want to become a U.S. citizen?"
TIP: This is an open-ended question. Be honest and genuine. Common answers: to vote, for my family, for stability, to fully participate in American society.
WHAT TO BRING TO YOUR USCIS INTERVIEW
Bring originals AND photocopies of everything. The officer keeps the copies and returns originals to you.
- Interview appointment notice — printed from your USCIS online account or mailed notice
- Original green card — you will surrender it at the oath ceremony
- Original passports — current and all expired from the past 5 years
- Federal tax returns — 5 years (3 if applying under the marriage rule)
- Your written travel record — complete list of all trips outside the U.S.
- Marriage certificate + bona fide marriage proof — if applying under the 3-year rule
- Criminal court records — if you have any arrests or charges, bring certified court documents
- Any Request for Evidence (RFE) response — if USCIS sent you one
Bring more than you think you need. If the officer asks for a document you don't have, your case may be "continued" — adding months while you gather it. Over-preparing takes 30 minutes. Being under-prepared costs months.
TIPS TO PASS ON THE FIRST TRY
Know your state-specific answers. Your governor, U.S. senators, and U.S. representative change with elections. Look up your current officials before your interview at senate.gov, house.gov, and your state's official website. These questions trip up prepared applicants every day.
Practice speaking out loud — not just reading. The entire interview is oral. Many people know the answers but freeze when speaking. Practice answering each question out loud, as if the officer were in front of you.
Know the current President and Vice President. These change with elections. As of 2025–2026: President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance. Verify before your interview — this is one of the most common questions asked.
Don't memorize word-for-word. USCIS accepts slight variations in wording. Focus on understanding the answer, not reciting it exactly. The officer may ask in a slightly different way and it should not throw you off.
If you don't understand a question, ask for repetition. It's completely acceptable to say "Could you please repeat the question?" or "I'm sorry, could you say that again?" This is not a negative. Using your right to clarification shows confidence.
Review your entire N-400 the night before. The officer will ask personal questions directly from your application. Know what you wrote. If anything has changed since you filed, be prepared to explain.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Does the officer decide right then if I passed or failed?
Usually yes — the officer tells you the decision at the end of the interview. If approved, you receive your oath ceremony date. If failed, you are told which portion you failed and given information about the re-examination. Occasionally, a case is "continued" while USCIS completes additional review — this is not a denial, just a delay.
Can I bring a dictionary or notes to my interview?
No — you cannot bring a dictionary or notes to the civics test portion. You must answer from memory. However, you can bring documents and records related to your N-400 application. A licensed interpreter can accompany you if you qualify for the language exemption.
Can I bring someone with me to the interview?
You may bring an attorney or accredited representative if you have legal representation. You may also bring an interpreter if you qualify for the language exemption. Children and family members who are not legal representatives generally cannot attend the interview portion.
What if my English is not strong enough for the interview?
The English test is basic — reading and writing a simple sentence. The speaking standard is also practical — you just need to communicate effectively, not speak perfectly. If you are 50+ years old and have been a permanent resident for 20+ years, or 55+ for 15+ years, you qualify for the language exemption and may take the test with an interpreter.
How soon after the interview is the oath ceremony?
It varies by field office. Some hold same-day oath ceremonies immediately after the interview. Most schedule them within 1–4 weeks of the interview. High-volume offices like Los Angeles and New York may schedule oath ceremonies 4–8 weeks after the interview. You become a citizen the moment you take the oath — apply for your passport immediately after.
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START PREPARING — $49