Meghan Markle may never be a British citizen after flouting rules, but govt could make an exemption in her case
Although Meghan Markle married a man who happens to be sixth in line to the British throne, she had to go through the same steps any law-abiding US individual has to go through when they apply for citizenship of the UK.
Since her citizenship application is still under review, she might have jeopardized her chances of getting it approved by announcing she will be spending a considerable amount of time in Canada, along with her husband and son, following "Megxit," in which Prince Harry and Meghan announced they will be stepping down as senior members of the royal family. "We now plan to balance our time between the United Kingdom and North America, continuing to honor our duty to the Queen, the Commonwealth, and our patronages," part of their historic statement on January 8 read. "This geographic balance will enable us to raise our son with an appreciation for the royal tradition into which he was born, while also providing our family with the space to focus on the next chapter, including the launch of our new charitable entity," it added.
In the UK, being engaged to a citizen does not automatically guarantee someone a visa or allows one to work in the country. Hefty financial requirements are involved.
At the time Meghan became Harry's fiance, his communications secretary, Jason Knauf, let the public know that the-then future Duchess of Sussex won't be granted any special privileges when it comes to applying for citizenship. She’d be “compliant with immigration requirements at all times," Knauf told BBC at the time. “I can also say she intends to become a UK citizen and will go through the process of that, which some of you may know takes a number of years,” he added.
In November 2019, two years after her marriage to Harry, Meghan's friend confirmed to Daily Mail that the Duchess was yet to become a British citizen. “Meghan is not yet a British citizen. It might seem extraordinary, given that she’s been married to the Queen’s grandson for 18 months, but she accepts that it’s a slow process," she said.
Any spouse of a British citizen has to have lived in the UK for at least three years before he or she is eligible to apply for citizenship. Also, according to the official government guidelines of the UK, applicants should not have “spent more than 270 days outside the UK during the 3 years before your application.” However, Meghan might be exempted from this rule as applicants “may be exempt from the residency requirements if your partner works abroad either for the UK government or an organization closely linked to the government,” the website stated.
A royal aide told the Telegraph that Markle’s application process won’t be complete for “several” years and that there was no change to the Duchess’ application at this time.
