N400 Application for Citizenship: When to File a Naturalization Application?

Do you want to become a US Citizen? Foreign nationals who wish to become citizens of the United States may do so through the naturalization process. Citizenship confers many advantages — the right to vote, protection from the government, access to certain jobs and benefits, and the option to hold public office.

A great tip from AILA regarding the timing of filing is provided here:
INA § 334 permits a naturalization applicant to file a Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, up to 3 months before the date the applicant would first meet the 5-year or 3-year continuous residence requirement. See INA §§ 316(a), 319(a); 8 C.F.R. §334.2(b). While the application can be filed within this 3 month time period, the applicant cannot be naturalized until he or she has met the 5-year or 3-year continuous residence requirement, in addition to meeting the other statutory requirements for naturalization. See INA §§ 316, 319.

The National Benefits Center (NBC) conducts preliminary processing of N-400s. When an applicant files a Form N-400 within the 90 day period prior to meeting the continuous residence requirement, the NBC places the application on a “Residence Date Hold.” Only when the continuous residence requirement is met will the NBC place the application in the field office interview scheduling queue. The field office then provides the interview date and time to the NBC and the NBC sends out the appointment notice and transfers the file to the field office. Form N-400 processing times are a function of field office resources and staffing, and therefore, vary from office to office.

When preparing an N-400 application, consider whether filing the N-400 during the 90-day period prior to meeting the continuous residence requirement is really beneficial to the applicant. Since the naturalization interview will not be scheduled until the applicant has met the 5-year or 3-year continuous residence requirement, waiting to file the N-400 until the applicant has met the requirement may effectively shorten the overall processing time from date of filing to interview.

So as you can see, sometimes filing early, will not make the overall process shorter.