SPARE Suit?: DHS Sued Over Prince Harry Visa Application
Prince Harry’s U.S. visa is still causing him concern—part of the never-ending saga of the royal family. The Heritage Foundation, an institution promoting conservative policies, was recently in federal court having filed a lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) demanding the release of Prince Harry’s U.S. immigration file. The Biden administration has continuously refused to release the records, citing Prince Harry’s right to privacy, which now brings the matter before a federal court judge.
So why, you ask, is The Heritage Foundation demanding the release of Prince Harry’s otherwise private U.S. immigration records? The answer is quite simple: to review his U.S. visa applications for misrepresentations.
We discussed the impact and repercussions of Harry’s confessed drug use in my March 2023 blog. “Prince Harry: Can He Spare his U.S. Visa?” In his memoir Spare (2023), Harry revealed his use of marijuana, cocaine, and psychedelic mushrooms, though without specifying how recently he had used them. Drug use must be revealed on visa applications, as this could be a potential reason for inadmissibility. The Heritage Foundation is asking that the file be released to see if the prince withheld this information on his application, or if DHS applied leniency for the royal.
Harry’s U.S. visa inadmissibility was as murky a year ago as it is now. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) Chapter 8.A. inadmissibility policy, states that “[a]pplicants who are found to be drug abusers or addicts are inadmissible.” However, there is a condition that “[i]f the applicant is classified as a drug abuser or addict, the applicant can apply again for an immigration benefit if his or her drug abuse or addiction is in remission.”
The crux of The Heritage Foundation’s lawsuit is less about the actual drug use, but rather about the speculated favorable treatment toward Prince Harry as a royal figure. According to Nik Popli at Time, the conservative institute “had previously filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for Harry’s immigration file” that was denied back in June of 2023. A lawsuit followed. On Feb. 23, 2024, the federal court heard oral arguments by both The Heritage Foundation and the Biden administration on the question of whether the public interest outweighs Prince Harry’s privacy rights. The matter is now in the hands of a federal judge.
While unrelated to the federal lawsuit, Florida representative Greg Steube has announced that he will introduce a fittingly-named bill, the “the Substance and Possession Abuse Restrictions for Entrance (SPARE) Act,” to permanently ban foreign nationals from the U.S. if they are found to have provided false or misleading information on their visa application regarding substance abuse. The act also proposed including immigration waivers and applications as public under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), from which they are currently exempt.
As competing immigration policies emerge at state and federal levels, it is crucial to keep updated. If you or a loved one is going through the immigration process in the U.S., or is facing difficulties with the process, please do not hesitate to reach out to the Immigration attorneys at Norris McLaughlin, P.A. at info@norris-law.com.