A new U.S. citizenship test will be implemented starting Oct. 20.

Immigration advocates claim the Trump administration is making it harder to become a U.S. citizen.

What You Need To Know

The Trump administration is reinstating a citizenship test with more complex questions, instead of simple, sometimes one-word answers, to those who apply on or after Oct. 20

Applicants now have to answer 12 out of 20 questions correctly, compared to the current six out of 10, and the pool of questions has widened from 100 to 128

At the nonprofit District Three Immigration Services in Bushwick, citizenship classes have never been in greater demand, and the organization is now preparing would-be citizens for the new test

One of the students attending the class is originally from the Dominican Republic and came to the U.S. around a decade ago. She says she’s excited to become a citizen so she can can vote and because she feels like she will be safer having citizenship

Among the changes, applicants now have to answer 12 out of 20 questions correctly, compared to the current six of 10. The pool of questions has also widened from 100 to 128, with some now more complex instead of simple, sometimes one-word answers.

NY1 visited a class preparing would-be citizens for the test.

“I’m a pre-K teacher of the little ones, and then I teach my big ones at night,” said Sofia Gonzalez, who has been preparing immigrants for the citizenship test for more than a decade.

The Queens native comes from an immigrant household. Her parents are from Ecuador.

“I remember as a little girl helping my mom with her English. I remember helping her prepare for the citizenship test herself, so being able to come and do this for the community, it’s very powerful,” she said.

Gonzalez says the work out of her small office at the nonprofit District Three Immigration Services in Bushwick has never been in greater demand.

“When they register, the line goes around the block. Everyone wants to try to get a seat in,” she said.

Among those attending, a New Yorker who’s been living in the U.S. for almost four decades and a student, who asked us not to show her face or use her name because she’s scared of immigration authorities.

She’s originally from the Dominican Republic and came to the U.S. around a decade ago.

“I am excited. And I want to be a U.S. citizen because I want to vote. I’m gonna have more opportunity,” she said. “I’m pretty sure that we are gonna be safer.”

“They’re scared that if they’re not citizens, they can be deported,” said Father James Kelly, the priest turned lawyer who runs the office.

Kelly says he’s lost count of how many immigrants he’s helped since 1980, when he passed the bar exam. The 87-year-old came to the city from Ireland at age 23. He says what he’s seeing now worries him.

“It’s never been this bad,” he said. “We don’t know what to tell them. We don’t know how serious Trump is about getting rid of them, you know, or how difficult it’s going to be for them to adjust.”

NY1 asked U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services for an interview about the revised test. Officials denied the request, instead providing a statement, saying in part:

“The American people can be assured that those joining us as fellow citizens are fully assimilated and will contribute to America’s greatness. These critical changes are the first of many.”

Gonzalez says she wants to help immigrants grow their knowledge of U.S. history, both for the country and for themselves.

“I am going to give them that confidence, that no matter what happens, no matter the change, class is still gonna go on, and we’re just going to push forward,” she said.