Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s baby could be an American citizen, experts reveal
MEGHAN Markle and Prince Harry are expecting their royal arrival in just a matter of weeks, and it's set to make history as the first Anglo-American to be born into the royal family.
But it still hasn't been confirmed what citizenship will the youngster will be born with, having an American-born mother and a British father.
In November 2017 that following Meghan's engagement to Prince Harry, the BBC reported that the Duchess would begin the process to become a British citizen.
And it remains unknown as to whether her status in the UK has been confirmed, and if it has, whether she decided to renounce her US citizenship altogether - making it impossible for her child too.
But if she's still an American national, her baby would be entitled to apply for citizenship in the USA, since the the Duchess of Sussex was born and raised in Los Angeles, California.
American law, a child born outside of the USA in wedlock can gain citizenship if one of it's parents has lived there for at least five years, two of which were before the age of 14.
Though the royal family have been quiet on the subject, it is thought that American citizenship will be left out of the equation in order to avoid a hefty tax.
As if Meghan decides to keep her American citizenship, she might be subject to an expensive IRS audit - which would see the royal family's personal finances under exposure.
Yet Meghan has several hoops to jump through yet before becoming a fully-fledged Brit - and is required to take a citizenship test, which has been taken more than two million times since 2005.
Royal expert Kelly Lynch told that the question of the royal baby's citizenship will set a royal precedent.
"No one in royal history has had an American mother," she said. "It will be fairly interesting to see what happens. But the child will be fully British."
It's not unheard of for royal children to hold dual-passports, either - with Peter and Autumn Phillips' daughters Savannah, eight, and Island, six, holding Canadian citizenship.
The girls, who are currently fifteenth and sixteenth in line to the throne, were the first royal children in history to be in the line of succession whilst being a national of two countries.
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In other royal news, a flurry of bets have been placed on Meghan and Harry having a baby girl, and naming their daughter Diana.
Or find out all we know so far about the gender of the royal baby, and the speculations over what it might be called.
Is Meghan pregnant with twins? When is she due? And what has Kensington Palace said about her birth? Check out our roundup to know more.