The reason for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's 31 March resignation date has been revealed

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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle made news earlier this year as they announced that they would be stepping down from their roles as ‘senior’ members of the royal family, becoming financially independent and relocating to Canada and now California.

The couple have lost their HRH titles and closed their Sussex Royal social media accounts, moving away from the brand.

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“After many months of reflection and internal discussions, we have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution. We intend to step back as ‘senior’ members of the Royal Family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen. It is with your encouragement, particularly over the last few years, that we feel prepared to make this adjustment. We now plan to balance our time between the United Kingdom and North America, continuing to honour our duty to The Queen, the Commonwealth, and our patronages. This geographic balance will enable us to raise our son with an appreciation for the royal tradition into which he was born, while also providing our family with the space to focus on the next chapter, including the launch of our new charitable entity. We look forward to sharing the full details of this exciting next step in due course, as we continue to collaborate with Her Majesty The Queen, The Prince of Wales, The Duke of Cambridge and all relevant parties. Until then, please accept our deepest thanks for your continued support.” – The Duke and Duchess of Sussex For more information, please visit sussexroyal.com (link in bio) Image © PA

A post shared by The Duke and Duchess of Sussex (@sussexroyal) on Jan 8, 2020 at 10:33am PST

‘The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are grateful to Her Majesty and the Royal Family for their ongoing support as they embark on the next chapter of their lives,’ a statement read earlier this year.

And while Harry and Meghan will always remain family members, as of 31 March at midnight, they were announced to no longer represent the Queen.

‘Effective March 31, 2020, no other Royal communications representatives act on behalf of The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, including Palace spokespeople, Household representatives nor Royal sources,’read a statement on behalf of the couple. ‘Going forward, Buckingham Palace will no longer comment/guide on Sussex related enquiries.’

But why 31 March? According to royal insiders, it’s all about finance, with the date marking the end of the financial year.

‘One of the reasons behind the Duke and Duchess of Sussex officially stepping back from their royal duties on this date, is because 31 March marks the end of the financial year for the royal family,’ explained HELLO Online’s royal correspondent Danielle Stacey. ‘Every year, around June, the royal household publishes its annual financial statement, the Sovereign Grant report, for the previous year. Details in the annual reports include the cost of travel, staff and property maintenance. Harry and Meghan have expressed their wishes to work to become financially independent and as they will no longer receive funding from the Sovereign Grant, it makes sense for them to depart on this particular date.’

Well, that’s that.

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