Prince Harry, Meghan Markle to remain 'non-working royals' in UK, King Charles III confirms
Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, will remain "private citizens" and not be working royals while living in the United Kingdom, according to a letter released Monday by the head of the Royal Household.
The letter reiterating Harry and Meghan's official position was sent under the direction of Harry's father, King Charles III.
It is the first time Charles and the palace have commented publicly on Harry and Meghan's move back to the U.K., which comes six years after they stepped away from their senior royal roles and moved to California.
The letter -- sent by Lord Chamberlain to Harry's team as well as senior stakeholders across the U.K. government and military -- states that Harry and Meghan will continue to have "financial independence" as well as "protection of their privacy as they would wish."
"It follows that there is no change to the current status of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex," the letter states. "Their styles as His and Her Royal Highness remain in abeyance and are not used. The charitable work of the Duke and Duchess is a personal matter for them both and undertaken in their private capacity. In short, their position is akin to private citizens with commercial and charitable interests."
When Harry and Meghan stepped away from their senior royal roles in 2020, it was agreed that they would no longer use their Royal Highness titles, would no longer represent the monarch and would no longer receive public funds for royal duties, freeing them to earn money on their own.
The couple also no longer receive the same automatic taxpayer-funded armed police protection as Harry's royal family members, including his father, the king, and his brother, Prince William.
The Sussexes have relied on a privately funded security team for the past six years since moving to California.
Harry and Meghan have not commented publicly on their return to the U.K.
The couple and their two children, Archie and Lilibet, reportedly arrived in the U.K. on Aug. 26. The family plans to stay for an "extended period of time" in the U.K., where Archie and Lilibet will attend school, according to a source familiar with the matter.
It is not known publicly where the Sussexes are living in the U.K. nor where Archie and Lilibet are enrolled in school.
Harry was seen publicly on Tuesday for the first time since his U.K. return. Tower Bridge Studios, a podcast and film studio in London, shared a photo of Harry on social media, captioning the photo, "Thank you Prince Harry for choosing Tower Bridge Studios! It was an absolute pleasure to have you in our studios and signing our wall 📸 we look forward to welcoming you back again."
Since living in California and stepping away from their royal roles, Harry and Meghan have taken on commercial projects including speaking engagements and a production deal with Netflix that included their 2022 docuseries, "Harry & Meghan," as well as Meghan's lifestyle show, "With Love, Meghan."
