Meghan indicated her intention to become a British citizen when she first moves to the country in late 2017. And as the spouse of a UK national, the Duchess of Sussex would have been able to apply for a British passport three years after her relocation to London.
However, Meghan has spent too many days outside of the country in 2020 alone to meet the criteria demanded by the Home Office to apply for a UK passport.
If Meghan still wanted to apply to become a British citizen, her future application would be delayed and would require her to move back to the country and start again her three-year period of residence.
People who want to become British citizens must follow the strict rules outlined in the ‘Guide AN Naturalisation Booklet: The Requirements’ issued by the Home Office.
The Government demands people with a British spouse to meet seven requirements before applying for citizenship.
The booklet read: [You] are aged 18 or over when you apply; are married to or the civil partner of a British citizen on the date of application; are of sound mind, so that you understand the step you are taking (but see the section on those who are not of Sound mind); can communicate in English (or Welsh or Scottish Gaelic) to an acceptable level; have sufficient knowledge about life in the UK; are of good character.”
Another key requirement is to “have lived in the UK for a minimum of three years before you apply”.
Though, having lived in the country for three years is not enough to apply for citizenship, as there are also residence requirements to be met.
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People applying for a UK passport must have “been physically present in England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands on the day three years before the application is received by the Home Office”.
Crucially for Meghan, people who have married a Brit and desire to become British citizens must also not have had more than 270 days “outside the UK in the three-year period before making the application”.
People who spend time outside of the country while working on behalf of the Crown or the Government may qualify for citizenship through alternative ways.
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Meghan and Prince Harry travelled abroad on behalf of the Crown during their time as senior royals, visiting Morocco, South Africa and Oceania.
However, they left the UK in March 2020 out of a personal decision and are not representing the Crown while living in California.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were last in the UK in March 2020, when they officially stepped down as full-time working royals.
Upon outlining their plans for their post-royal future in January last year, the couple said they wanted to live between North America and the UK and retained Frogmore Cottage as their base in England.
But the coronavirus pandemic and travel restrictions have made it impossible for them to return to the UK throughout 2020 and visit their family and patronages as they would have wanted.
Meghan officially moved to London and into Nottingham Cottage with Prince Harry in November 2017.
Had she not left the country last March to establish her post-royal life in the US, the Duchess would have been eligible to apply for UK citizenship in late November 2020.
Kensington Palace revealed in 2017 the Duchess intended to become a British citizen – and to do so without cutting any corners.
Prince Harry’s then communications secretary Jason Knauf said in December 2017 the then-actress would be “compliant with immigration requirements at all times”.
He added: “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”.
By applying for UK citizenship, Meghan would have been able to retain her US passport, as both countries allow people to have dual citizenship.
