Prince Harry should be denied U.S. residency if he fails to disclose drug use, could be revoked if he ‘lies’, says leading U.S. immigration expert doing.
Anyone seeking to settle in the United States, either temporarily or permanently, must answer a drug history question when applying for a visa or permanent residency.
Harry detailed his drug intake in all his memoirs spareclaimed that the psychedelic drug allowed him to see the “truth”.
An immigration lawyer has confirmed that the Duke of Sussex needed to detail its history when it made its decision, The Telegraph spoke. permanently relocate to CaliforniaThe Duke moved with wife Meghan to ultra-rich Montecito, California in early 2020.
“He would have asked. [about drug use]If his answer was true, he should have been denied,” said Professor Alberto Benitez, director of the Immigration Clinic at George Washington University.
Admits to drug use ‘in Harry’s best interest’
The law professor said it was in Harry’s “best interests” to admit to using illegal drugs, adding, “Otherwise, he would be perjurying himself in official U.S. government documents.” .
He suggested that due to the duke’s royal status, some discretion was likely given by immigration officials.
“Had he been ‘Fred Jones’ instead of Prince Harry and he had this kind of background, he could have seen more scrutiny and green card denial.
If the Duke did not declare it, Professor Benitez said:
Professor Benitez, who includes the Duke as a case study in one of his law classes, said Harry was most likely living in the United States on a green card.
He said the easiest way for the Duke to obtain a green card would be through his wife, who is a US citizen.
Applicants for green cards, which are usually granted to foreigners with permanent residency, are also required to undergo a medical examination.
The application contains an extensive list of questions, including questions about the applicant’s criminal history and possible involvement with the Nazi Party.
Similar questions are asked of visa applicants, including tourists applying for visa waivers.
Another immigration attorney, Chrissy Fernandez, has tempered speculation about the legal hazards Harry’s drug use poses.
“Theoretically, if Prince Harry was in possession of illegal drugs, he would have had to disclose it, even if he wasn’t arrested,” she told The Telegraph.
However, Fernandez suggested that US authorities would only ban applicants based on drug use in “very limited circumstances.”
“It’s unlikely to pose him any real problems as it’s related to drug use with no previous convictions.
“Even if the immigration authorities heard that he used drugs years ago, it is unlikely that his case would be reopened…so it is very unlikely that he will be found to have used drugs. Unless he speaks recently, it is unlikely that it will affect his immigration status in the United States.”
In Spare, Harry wrote that he took psychedelics for years, both recreationally and therapeutically, smoking cannabis in Kensington Palace and Eton’s gardens.
He admitted to taking cocaine and magic mushrooms as a teenager in California in 2016.
The Duke of Sussex has been reached for comment.