Did Prince Harry Admit To Drug Use During Visa Application? Some Question VIP Treatment

The Heritage Foundation — a Washington-based conservative think tank — has requested U.S. authorities to publish Prince Harry's visa application amid claims of receiving special treatment despite admitting to illegal drug use.

The 38-year-old Duke of Sussex made public declarations about his drug use over the past year, most notably in television interviews and his best-selling memoir "Spare," where he admitted to taking cocaine, cannabis and magic mushrooms — a drug considered illegal in the U.S. — during a party at "Friends" star Courtney Cox's Los Angeles home, The Telegraph reported.

In another interview last month, he also dished on using another illegal psychedelic drug called ayahuasca as part of his therapy.

"It was the cleaning of the windshield, removal of life's filters. It removed it all for me and brought me a sense of relaxation, release, comfort, a lightness that I managed to hold onto for a period of time," Prince Harry told trauma expert Dr. Gabor Maté, according to The Daily Beast.

He continued, "For me, I started doing it recreationally and then started to realize how good it was for me. I would say it is one of the fundamental parts of my life that changed me and helped me deal with the traumas and the pains of the past."

Now, the Duke of Sussex is facing criticism about whether or not he disclosed using such drugs during his visa application.

The U.S. immigration laws state that foreign nationals "determined to be a drug abuser or addicts" is considered "inadmissible" unless the immigration officials use their discretion to waive the rule.

But unnamed sources close to Prince Harry claimed that he remained "truthful" during his visa application, suggesting that he admitted to using such drugs and continued to do since he relocated to California in 2020 with his wife, Meghan Markle, and two children, 3-year-old Archie and 1-year-old Lilibet, per Telegraph.

Using the freedom of information laws, The Heritage Foundation demanded the release of the Archewell Foundation co-founder's visa application, detailing his drug abuse, his waiver and the identity of the person making the decision. The think tank said it is of public interest.

On behalf of the organization, Attorney Samuel Dewey said of the case, "When there is an adjustment of status, such as an application for a Green Card, there is a requirement for a full medical examination."

"One condition of a waiver in the case of someone who has admitted drug use could be that the person has to check back with the medical examiner so that there is some sort of follow-up. But we just don't know how Prince Harry has been treated and that is why we are asking these questions," he added.

Meanwhile, Nile Gardiner, the director of the Margaret Thatcher Centre for Freedom at the Heritage Foundation, told Telegraph, "The drug issue is a huge question. Applicants to the U.S. have to say if they have used drugs. If they say yes, they have to fill out a much more detailed form. Sometimes they will be denied entry."

Gardiner added that they were only asking whether or not Prince Harry was "open and transparent" with his application, or if he was given "particular favors or treated differently from everybody else."

The request has already been brought to the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service. They reportedly have until April 12, Tuesday, to submit their response.

Dewey said that if it got declined, the 500-member foundation would bring the issue to court.

"This could potentially build into an issue of congressional interest. Immigration law is a big issue in the coming U.S. presidential election, and Prince Harry is increasingly seen as a political activist, so I think this is going to build and build as an issue," Gardiner added.