April 1st is a reference point, not a due date, for the 2020 census.
The goal of the 2020 Census is to have a complete and accurate count of everyone living in the United States and its five territories.
An accurate count helps inform the government for funding hospitals, fire departments, schools, and roads for the next 10 years. It is important to count everyone living in your home.
You should count yourself at the place where you are living and sleeping most of the time as of April 1, 2020 (Census Day).
If you are filling out the census for your home, you should count everyone who is living there as of April 1, 2020. This includes anyone—related or unrelated to you—who lives and sleeps at your home most of the time.
Please be sure to count roommates, young children, newborns, and anyone who is renting a space in your home. If someone is staying in your home on April 1 and has no usual home elsewhere, you should count them in your response to the 2020 Census.
If someone, such as a college student, is living with you temporarily due to the COVID-19 situation, they should be counted on the college campus or city where they ordinarily would be living on April 1, 2020.
For more details about where people are counted, view the Official Residence Criteria for the 2020 Census.