If you thought YOUR wedding registry was a pain in the neck, think again.
The recently married Duke and Duchess of Sussex (AKA Meghan Markle and Prince Harry) are reportedly returning $9 million worth of wedding gifts — so, maybe stop complaining about having to exchange something at Target, mmkay?
Apparently, the gifts in question are being returned because palace aides believe the items were given to generate publicity. According to official royal guidelines, this type of gift is prohibited.
“The fundamental principle governing the acceptance of gifts by Members of the Royal Family is that no gifts, including hospitality or services, should be accepted which would, or might appear to, place the Member of the Royal Family under any obligation to the donor,” the royal guidelines state.
What constitutes an inappropriate royal gift? Well, for example, a swimwear company sent the couple swimsuits in the hopes that they would wear them on their honeymoon, thereby generating publicity.
The royal guidelines state that acceptance of a gift is “contingent upon the enterprise undertaking not to exploit the gift for commercial purposes,” and that a gift “should be refused where there are concerns about the propriety or motives of the donor or the gift itself.”
For the record, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle did not ask for any of these gifts. In fact, prior to their wedding, the royal couple encouraged people who wished to give gifts to donate to one of their seven chosen charities: CHIVA, Crisis, Myna Mahalia Foundation, Scotty’s Little Soldiers, StreetGames, Surfers Against Sewage, and The Wilderness Foundation UK.
Luckily, it sounds like Harry and Meghan will have lots of assistance when it comes to returning their extensive gift haul — otherwise, they might get buried under swag and never be heard from again.