Prince Harry and his family will leave the sunny shores of Southern California and return to the United Kingdom, a source familiar with the couple’s plans said. The Duke of Sussex, 41, and his wife, Meghan, 45, along with their two children, Archie, 7, and Lilibet, 5, have been living in Montecito, an affluent coastal enclave in Santa Barbara County. King Charles was informed of the move on Sunday, a source familiar with the couple’s plans told NBC News. The matter was not discussed during the Sussexes’ visit in July, The Telegraph reported. King Charles welcomes the opportunity to see more members of the Sussex family in a private capacity, but maintains that they will remain private individuals and non-working members of the royal family, the source said. A spokesperson for the couple declined to comment on the reasons for the move. Meghan and Prince Harry, the Duchess and Duke of Sussex, listen to a music class at the QuestScope Youth Center in the Za’atari refugee camp near Mafraq in northern Jordan on February 25. Aaron Chown/PA Images via Getty Images fileThe couple took refuge in the Golden State after stepping back from royal duties in 2020. The Telegraph and The Sun were the first to report the move on Wednesday night. Reports say Archie and Lilibet have been enrolled in British schools starting in September, meaning the family will likely move in the next two weeks. Harry and Meghan, however, will no longer perform royal duties or live in a royal residence, opting for a more private life. It is still unclear what security will be like, a point of great controversy in the past between the prince and royals. On the issue of Harry and Meghan’s security arrangements, a UK Home Office spokesperson said: “It is our long-standing policy not to provide detailed information about those arrangements, as doing so could compromise their integrity and affect people’s safety.” Meghan is expected to continue running her lifestyle brand, As Ever, while living in the UK. controversial visit to the UK in July, where his offer to stay at Buckingham Palace was rescinded and he had to backtrack on his initial plans to travel with his wife and children for safety reasons. Before July, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were last together in the United Kingdom in 2022, for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II. A royal family reunion may not be an easy affair given Harry’s strained relationship with his father, King Charles, and older brother, Prince William, over the past few years. Harry expressed some of his grievances in his 2023 memoir, “Spare,” and has spoken publicly about tensions within the family. Last year, Harry met his father, who is undergoing cancer treatment, after claiming the monarch refused to speak to him. Despite the frosty relationship, Harry expressed his desire to reconcile with his family in May 2025, noting that he did not “know how much time my father has left.” India McTaggart, royal correspondent for The Telegraph, told NBC News that moving to the United Kingdom has been a long-time wish of Harry’s. “He has made no secret, you know, of his intention of wanting to bring his children here to reunite them with the king, his father and the Spencer side of the family, and just have a place where he can come to the United Kingdom without the circus of his arrival,” McTaggart said. She said that while Harry’s relationship with his brother, Prince William, remains, “A lot of his charities are based here, whether it’s Invictus or WellChild. And I think it feels closer to home here, obviously, because friends are here and I think it’s become very complicated for him to come and go because of all the safety concerns he had,” McTaggart said. “I just think he’s wanted to do this for a while, and it looks like Meghan is taking one for the team.”
