Prince Harry did tell authorities about his prior drug use when he applied for a visa to live in California, it was suggested last night.
Upon applying for a US visa, applicants are required to tick a box to answer ‘yes’ or ‘no’ in response to the question: ‘Are you or have you ever been a drug abuser or addict?’
Harry has previously admitted to using a variety of recreational drugs including cocaine, weed and magic mushrooms in his best-selling memoir, Spare.
The admission led to conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation to use Freedom of Information laws in the US to find out who let the Duke into the country.
Under US law, an admission of drug use usually results in a person being denied entry to the States.
But sources close to the Duke of Sussex have insisted that the royal told officials the truth when submitting his application, the Telegraph reports.
The Heritage Foundation has since called for Harry’s visa application to be made public so the American taxpayer can understand whether he was being honest about declaring his drug use.
They have called on the Prince to be ‘totally transparent’ in his response and have issued a deadline of April 12.
Mike Howell, director of the Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project, said: ‘This request is in the public interest in light of the potential revocation of Prince Harry’s visa for illicit substance use and further questions regarding the Prince’s drug use and whether he was properly vetted before entering the United States’.
A ban is sometimes overturned following an in-person interview at a US consulate or official immigration office, where a waiver can be issued.
Samuel Dewey, a lawyer acting for America’s Heritage Foundation in its FoI case, said: ‘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.’
Reports in the US have suggested Harry was admitted on an ‘O’ visa – given to people of extraordinary ability.
The Heritage Foundation argues if immigration officials did know about the royal’s drug use, Harry’s case raises questions over whether he was given special treatment because he is a prince and his wife is a TV star, which they insist would be illegal.
In response to the Foundation’s calls, a US State Department spokesman said: ‘Visa records are confidential under Section 222(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA); therefore, we cannot discuss the details of individual visa cases.’
Representatives of Prince Harry have been reached for comment.
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