EXCLUSIVE: Meghan Markle 'May Revive British Citizenship Studies After UK Return'

Meghan Markle may revive her abandoned plans to become a British citizen following her dramatic return to the UK – six years after Megxit brought the process to an abrupt halt.

RadarOnline.com can reveal Markle, 45, had intended to pursue citizenship after marrying Prince Harry, 42, in 2018, with Kensington Palace insisting she would follow the "usual" process without special treatment.

Those plans effectively ended after the Sussexes stepped down as working royals in 2020 and settled in California.

But their return to Britain with Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five, has now raised the prospect of Markle revisiting them.

A source claimed: "British citizenship was something Meghan genuinely expected to pursue when she married Harry. At that point she believed Britain would be her permanent home, so becoming a citizen was a natural part of building her life here.

"Everything changed with Megxit. Once Meghan and Harry established themselves in America, there was little practical reason to continue down that road. Returning to Britain changes the equation again.

"She may not rush off tomorrow to study for and sit a citizenship test, but it is something that could logically come back onto the table and be revived if Britain once again becomes their long-term family base."

The insider noted, "There would also be symbolism attached to it. Meghan's relationship with Britain became incredibly difficult, and ultimately she felt unable to remain here. Choosing British citizenship now would represent a remarkable change from the circumstances in which she left.

"The complication is that returning geographically doesn't mean Meghan and Harry have returned to the royal family. Those are completely separate things, and Buckingham Palace has gone out of its way to make that distinction unmistakable."

The Sussexes' return to the UK follows six years of upheaval triggered by their January 2020 announcement that they intended to step back as senior royals and become financially independent.

Their proposed "half-in, half-out" model was rejected following the Sandringham summit with Queen Elizabeth II, and the couple ultimately stopped carrying out official engagements before moving to North America.

Relations with the royals subsequently deteriorated as Harry and Markle publicly criticized their life in 'The Firm,' including during their 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey, their Netflix documentary series, and Harry's 2023 memoir Spare.

Harry criticized King Charles III, 77, Queen Camilla, 79, Prince William, 44, and Catherine, Princess of Wales, also 44, in accounts of disputes inside the family.

His relationship with William remains particularly strained.

There have nevertheless been signs of movement with Charles.

The King privately reunited with Harry, Markle and their two children at Highgrove in July, having not seen Archie and Lilibet for four years.

But the boundaries surrounding the Sussexes' position remain firm.

After their return, Charles' household formally reiterated that Harry and Markle remain non-working members of the royal family whose activities are undertaken privately.

The pair were reportedly surprised by the timing of the intervention.

Their security arrangements are also being reassessed following the Sussexes' relocation back to Britain, after years of legal and public disputes over Harry's protection while in the country.

Markle's original citizenship ambitions stood in contrast to Prince Philip's path into the royal family.

Philip, born a prince of Greece and Denmark, became a naturalized British subject before marrying the future Queen Elizabeth II in November 1947.