Harry, Meghan caught off guard by Palace letter on royal status

London,UPDATED: Sep 8, 2026 18:04 IST

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan were surprised by the way Buckingham Palace released a letter making clear that they remain non-working members of the royal family, even though they have returned to the UK.

The letter, sent on behalf of King Charles III to senior government and military officials, was released to the media on Monday and confirmed that the couple’s status has not changed. A person familiar with the discussions said Harry and Meghan were caught off guard because they were given little time to review or comment on its contents.

According to the person, the couple’s representatives received a copy of the letter just one hour and 12 minutes before it was sent to news outlets. They were unable to reach Harry, who was in a meeting, until just two minutes before the letter was released, leaving little time for any response.

The letter said Harry and Meghan would continue to refrain from using the formal royal titles, such as His Royal Highness and Her Royal Highness, as they have done since stepping back from official royal duties in 2020. It also said that any charity work undertaken by the couple would be carried out in a private capacity, and that operational security decisions are matters for the relevant police agencies.

“To help avoid doubt or confusion, The King has directed that (this) information be shared,” the Lord Chamberlain, the most senior official in the royal household, said in the letter.

Harry and Meghan stepped back from royal duties in 2020 when they moved to North America to make their own living through deals with Netflix and Spotify. At the time, Queen Elizabeth II made clear that the couple could not be part-time royals and would have to give up their royal positions if they wanted to pursue such commercial arrangements. Charles reiterated that position after he became king in 2022.

The couple’s reaction to the letter underlined tensions around their return to the UK. Some palace observers have expressed concern that Harry and Meghan’s presence in Britain could allow them to create a parallel royal court that might compete with working members of the royal family.

The question of security remains particularly sensitive because Harry has been in a long-running dispute with the government over the restoration of publicly funded police protection, which was withdrawn when the couple gave up their royal roles. Any decision on restoring round-the-clock police protection rests with a government panel known as RAVEC, or the Royal and VIP Executive Committee, which is expected to meet this week, the person familiar with the discussions said. In effect, the letter restated that Harry and Meghan remain outside the working royal fold and that decisions on security and public roles will continue to be handled on that basis.

With PTI Inputs

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