Harry’s journey to Independence Day: The careful choreography of the Prince’s decision to list US as his primary residence with Meghan for the first time as he FINALLY cuts ties with Britain
Prince Harry’s decision to officially make the US his home has finally ‘closed the door’ on a return to royal duties as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex finish off Megxit and concentrate on making money, experts told MailOnline today.
The Duke of Sussex has updated his business records in London to make it clear that he no longer lives in Britain and California is his official home – despite moving there in 2020.
Mark Borkowski, arguably Britain’s leading PR guru, has said it is the culmination of years of gradual change by Harry and Meghan from working royals to influencers establishing their Sussex name as a ‘commercial vehicle’ to make millions.
He said: ‘The line has been drawn and hope of a rapprochement with the royals is now gone. Harry has closed the door and burned the bridge. It’s now all eyes on commerce.
‘They’re getting further and further away from Harry’s family and they’re trying to be lifestyle models. They [Harry and Meghan] need a lot of money to maintain their lifestyle and their royal status is gradually diminishing’.
Mr Borkowski has said that King Charles and the Princess of Wales‘ cancer battles has meant that the launch of Meghan’s American Riviera Orchard brand came with less of a PR blitz than expected.
‘Meghan’s jam emerged this week. All these products are going to come out but to some extent they have been quite low profile, whilst Kate and the king have been grappling with their cancer’, Mr Borkowski said.
Prince Harry, right, and wife Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, arrive for the 2024 Royal Salute Polo Challenge in Florida on Friday
The publicly-viewable document that officially shows Prince Harry is now based in the United States
Meghan’s American Riviera Orchard brand has had a soft launch , with Meghan sharing limited edition jars of jam with friends and influencers who shared images on Instagram
On the day they left from Vancouver Island to Canada on March 14 2020, Prince Harry celebrated their emigration calling it their ‘freedom flight’. Four years on he has made his permanent residence the US instead of the UK
In the last week Meghan has shared limited edition jars of her Strawberry preserve with selected friends and influencers to share on social media. Experts believe she is trying to use her profile to make millions in the food and lifestyle world like her friend Gwyneth Paltrow has with Goop.
But despite the health crisis gripping Harry’s family, the Sussexes are ploughing on because they need ‘a lot of money’ to support their luxury lifestyle after previous deals failed to take off, such as with Spotify, and Netflix has put them ‘in the last chance saloon’, Mr Borkowski said.
Harry’s decision to update his official business records in Britain and declare that his home is in the US is the culmination of years of creeping towards America being the ‘home’ of Harry and Meghan’s brand, he said.
Mr Borkowski said: ‘There’s an honesty about the declaration. It’s fascinating and I guess the story has become bigger because of the idea that somehow there is a residency issue and this declaration that America is now the home of the brand.
‘None of this surprises me. I think that the endeavour that they’ve set out over a period of time is obviously to establish a commercial model.
‘But sooner or later, they’ve got to get beyond the hype and all those negative headlines and establish a commercial vehicle. They cannot maintain their status and their lifestyle without having something that is to getting them the type of money that they need to keep going’, Mr Borkowski said.
‘So everything at the moment seems to be commercially biased. This deal with Netflix. They have given them three projects. That’s last chance saloon.
‘They are under the microscope, which makes it very difficult to succeed because there’s more talk about failure than there is success. They need some success stories. All eyes will be on their commercial viability’.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle being interviewed by Oprah Winfrey. The incendiary conversation made global headlines
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex with their son Archie while in Cape Town in September 2019 – before Megxit and quitting as frontline royals
The couple are seen in February 2020, shortly after stepping off a plane in Canada following Megxit
James Corden grabs Harry’s iPhone and calls Meghan on FaceTime during a segment for the Late Late Show during the pandemic
Prince Harry with James Cordon enjoying tea and scones in an open-top bus on The Late Late Show
Harry and Meghan attend the 2021 Salute To Freedom Gala at Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum in NYC
Their lucrative Spotify deal was axed and Meghan was criticised by top Hollywood agent Jeremy Zimmer as ‘not a great audio talent, or necessarily any kind of talent’
Harry and Meghan on a sofa at their Montecito residence in their Netflix documentary
The Duke of Sussex taking part in a Q&A with the San Francisco-based company BetterUp, one of the businesses he works for
Prince William, Prince of Wales, Catherine, Princess of Wales, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex seen inside the Palace of Westminster during the Lying-in State of Queen
Prince Harry, centre, arrives at Westminster Abbey for the coronation ceremony of Britain’s King Charles III. Meghan stayed in the US and he left straight after his father was crowned
The Diana Awards this year had been touted as a rare joint appearance by estranged brothers William and Harry but they did not appear at all together, with Harry dialling in later in the evening after his brother had left
Mindy Kaling, award-winning writer and actress, is among the exclusive group to have received jam from Meghan’s first American Riviera Orchard batch
Meghan Markle was seen congratulating her husband Prince Harry with a passionate kiss after he won a charity polo match in Miami last week
Prince Harry’s decision to pinpoint the day he and Meghan were ‘evicted’ from Frogmore Cottage by King Charles as the date his US residency began points to ‘irritation’ with his father and that he won’t return to the UK, royal experts told MailOnline today.
The Duke of Sussex has updated his official business records in this country to make it clear that he no longer lives in Britain.
Filings published by Companies House yesterday for ‘Prince Henry Charles Albert David Duke of Sussex’ record that his ‘New Country/State Usually Resident’ is now the U.S. It was previously recorded as the United Kingdom.
And despite being updated officially this week, Prince Harry chose the day he and Meghan officially moved out of Frogmore Cottage – June 29, 2023, as the date his formal US residency began – not when they emigrated in early 2020.
Royal biographer Tom Bower told MailOnline that Harry’s decision to use the date of leaving Frogmore as the start of his US residency reveals his annoyance with his father. It is also a sure sign that Harry has no intention of living in Britain again for some time.
‘King Charles was quite right to evict Harry from Frogmore, and not surprisingly Harry was irritated. He and Meghan thought they could have their cake and eat it’, he said.
‘Unfortunately, the King did not go further and strip the Sussexes of their titles. That might have stopped their recent promotional splurge, exploiting their royal titles to earn money. Hopefully, when the King recovers he will reconsider his attitude towards the Sussexes and distance them further from the royal family’.
Royal experts have said Harry was ‘deeply wounded’ by his father’s order for him and Meghan to leave Frogmore Cottage
King Charles evicted Prince Harry and Meghan from Frogmore Cottage and instead offered it to his brother Prince Andrew
Mr Bower says the Companies House document unearthed by the Mail shows Harry has ‘decided to remain in America for the foreseeable future’.
He said: ‘He should now be firmly told by the King to stop exploiting his royal titles for commercial profit’.
Royal author Angela Levin said the change in residence means that Harry should no longer be ‘a Counsellor of State to stand in for the monarch should it be needed’.
By law, Counsellors of State are required to have a UK domicile, but Harry has no home here after King Charles asked the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to vacate Frogmore Cottage, a gift from the late Queen Elizabeth.
However, many considered this situation unsuitable as Harry, the Duke of York and Beatrice are not working royals.
Later that year, the King asked parliament to add his sister, Princess Anne, and youngest brother, Prince Edward, to the list.
It was reported that the King decided not to remove Harry and Andrew because he did not want to escalate family tensions and believed it was unlikely either would ever be required to deputise for him.
However, last year courtiers were keen to ensure that William returned to Britain from a solo trip to New York before the King and Queen departed for their state visit to France on the same day.
The situation has since become even more urgent because of the King’s cancer treatment.
The Duke of Sussex said he began living in America was disclosed by the Mail yesterday.
Filings published by Companies House for ‘Prince Henry Charles Albert David Duke of Sussex’ record that his ‘New Country/State Usually Resident’ is now the USA, while it previously stated the United Kingdom.
Royal experts have said Harry was ‘deeply wounded’ by his father’s order for him and Meghan to leave Frogmore, which had been a wedding gift from Queen Elizabeth, with suggestions that he was making a point by choosing the date.
This is the date that the Duke of Sussex said he began living in America on new business documents disclosed by the Mail yesterday
The Sussexes’ mansion is worth $14 million (£11m) and has six bedrooms and seven bathrooms
Royal author Phil Dampier told The Sun: ‘Charles and William knew it had to be done to emphasise Harry and Meghan were outside The Firm but he probably still thought he could keep a base here. Now he’s shown he accepts his life is in the US.’
It comes after Harry revealed earlier this year that he has ‘considered’ becoming a US citizen, a move which would mean he may have to renounce his titles.
‘The thought has crossed my mind but not a high priority right now,’ he said on Good Morning America in February.
Pressure has been increasing on Joe Biden‘s government to release Harry’s visa records after campaigners seized on comments made by the American ambassador to London that he would not be deported while the Democrat was president.
The conservative Heritage Foundation think tank in Washington DC, which has gone to court to seek the release of the file, has submitted the remarks made by Jane Hartley as part of its case.
The new details, filed at Companies House for Harry’s eco travel venture Travalyst, also raise serious questions about whether he can remain as a Counsellor of State, one of seven members of the Royal Family who can deputise for the Monarch if he is abroad or unwell.
By law, Counsellors of State are required to have a UK domicile, but Harry has no home here after King Charles asked the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to vacate Frogmore Cottage, a gift from the late Queen Elizabeth.
However, many considered this situation unsuitable as Harry, the Duke of York and Beatrice are not working royals.
Prince William, Prince of Wales, Catherine, Princess of Wales, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex seen inside the Palace of Westminster during the Lying-in State of Queen Elizabeth II
Harry with Charles at Windsor around the time of the Queen’s funeral
Harry challenged the decision by the Home Office to remove his right to automatic Metropolitan Police protection when he is in Britain, even though he has offered to pay for it himself.
After the decision was made, a legal representative for Harry has said he was ‘unable to return to his home’ with his family because it is too dangerous.
He has since lost the court case and potentially faces a bill of around £1million when his own legal costs are taken into account.
A judge rejected a bid to halve the amount he had to pay by saying the Duke of Sussex had ‘comprehensively lost’ his case.
Separately Sir Peter Lane also threw out the duke’s application to appeal against the ruling, describing one section of it as ‘frankly hopeless’.
The Heritage Foundation has been pushing the Department of Homeland Security to open its dossier on Harry under America’s freedom of information laws.
After he admitted taking cocaine in his memoirs, Spare, he faced questions over how he had been able to move to the USA, where admitting drug use can block a visa application.
