Harry and Meghan repaid £2.4 million Frogmore bill — The Mirror

Harry and Meghan repaid the reported £2.4 million Frogmore Cottage refurbishment bill, and sources close to the couple say the money had already been set aside before anyone asked for it. The mirror has heard that the Sussexes saw repayment as part of the financial break that came with leaving royal life in 2020.

A source close to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex said: "Harry and Meghan always believed that repaying the money for Frogmore was the right thing to do. Many people have suggested they had to be pressured into it, but the reality is that they had already factored repayment into their plans when they decided to step away from the institution." The same source also said: "[The couple] no longer have a Sovereign Grant to support them, nor access to multiple homes maintained at public expense, whether through rent-free arrangements or nominal rents."

Harry, Meghan and Frogmore Cottage

Harry and Meghan stepped back as working royals in 2020, and that departure triggered public outcry over taxpayer money used to renovate Frogmore Cottage. The couple later paid market rent on the property and repaid the reported £2.4 million spent on the renovation. By 2023, a Palace spokesperson said the couple had fulfilled their financial obligations in relation to the property.

Frogmore Cottage has largely sat empty since Harry and Meghan left, and this week it was reported that the property may soon be subdivided again. Prince Andrew reportedly refused to downsize into Frogmore Cottage, while he paid only a peppercorn rent to live in Royal Lodge before he had to move out.

Crown Estate scrutiny

The repayment lands as the Royal Family faces fresh scrutiny over household finances and property arrangements. Prince Edward enjoys a heavily subsidised deal on his 120-room mansion, Bagshot Park, and the Public Accounts Committee is launching a formal audit into the Crown Estate's deals with the Royal Family this summer.

That audit will examine property empires and arrangements to lease vast properties to family members below commercial rates, placing Harry and Meghan's old arrangement at Frogmore Cottage back into a broader dispute over what royal households receive and what they repay. For readers following the Sussexes' finances, the key point is simple: the bill tied to Frogmore has been settled, while scrutiny around other royal property deals is set to intensify this summer.