A lawsuit to make Prince Harry’s secret visa records public is set to have its first court hearing since Donald Trump’s inauguration.
The Heritage Foundation has reopened its case to have the duke’s immigration papers released.
Raising questions, the American think tank has expressed concerns about how Prince Harry managed to enter the US in 2020, especially after his wife Meghan disclosed in his 2023 book “Spare” about indulging in cocaine, marijuana, and psychedelic mushrooms.
Accusations have been made by the Heritage Foundation that Prince Harry may have falsified information about his drug use on his immigration papers, or received preferential treatment from the Joe Biden administration to facilitate his relocation to the United States.
As a result of these concerns, Judge Carl J. Nichols has instructed attorneys representing both the think tank and the Department of Homeland Security to convene at a federal court in Washington DC on the upcoming Wednesday, February 5th.
Heritage lost a previous case in September when it brought a lawsuit against the Department for Homeland Security after a Freedom of Information request for Harry’s documents to be released was rejected.
In his first ruling Judge Nichols said they should remain private.
The case was brought because visa applicants must by law declare whether they have taken drugs. Failure to do so can lead to deportation, and Heritage wanted the US Government to release the records to see what Harry said about drug usage.
The Heritage Foundation questioned why the Duke of Sussex was allowed into the US with his wife Meghan in 2020 following his reference to illicit drug consumption and consequently filed a lawsuit
US President Donald Trump pictured in the Oval Office on January 6 signing an executive order for pardons. He has previously said he ‘wouldn’t protect’ Harry
Trump previously suggested Harry may be deported from the US under his leadership if the Duke is found to have falsified information on his visa form – even though his wife is American and his children are dual citizens.
The US President criticised the duke in February last year and accused him of betraying the late Queen Elizabeth II.
He told the Sunday Express: ‘I wouldn’t protect him… That’s unforgiveable. He would be on his own if it was down to me.’
Trump was urged this week by Heritage to release Harry’s immigration files.
Now that the Duke of Sussex no longer has support from the Biden administration, lawyers and fellows at the Heritage Foundation are hoping the newly elected president will override the court’s decision to keep the files secret.
‘I’ll be urging the president to release Prince Harry’s immigration records and the president does have that legal authority to do that,’ Nile Gardiner, director of Heritage’s Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom told the New York Post.
‘Donald Trump is ushering in a new era of strict border control enforcement, and you know, Prince Harry should be held fully to account as he has admitted to extensive illegal drug use’, he added.
‘My firm expectation is that action will be taken’.
In his controversial memoir, Spare, the duke said cocaine ‘didn’t do anything for me’, adding: ‘Marijuana is different, that actually really did help me’
If the files are made public and Harry is found to have lied, he faces leaving his life in the Californian town of Montecito behind
Trump gestures as he boards Air Force One upon departure from Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas, Nevada — January 25, 2025
Speaking to British politician and broadcaster Nigel Farage on GB News last year, Trump suggested that the royal would not get ‘special privileges if he was found to have lied about his drug use.
During the interview, Farage asked Trump if Harry should enjoy ‘special privileges’ should it come to light he did not tell the truth.
‘We’ll have to see if they know something about the drugs, and if he lied they’ll have to take appropriate action,’ Trump responded.
‘Appropriate action? Which might mean…not staying in America?’ Farage asked.
‘Oh I don’t know. You’ll have to tell me. You just have to tell me. You would have thought they would have known this a long time ago,’ Trump replied.
In his controversial memoir, the duke said cocaine ‘didn’t do anything for me’, adding: ‘Marijuana is different, that actually really did help me.’
He also said that while using ayahuasca, a psychedelic drug, he realised that his late mother Diana wanted him to be ‘happy’.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex quit their royal roles in 2020 and have been residing in the US with their two children ever since.
If the files are made public and Harry is found to have lied, he faces leaving his life behind in the Californian town of Montecito.
