Why George, Charlotte, and Louis May Not Be Able to Keep Their Christmas Gifts

For a family that has it all, the royals like to keep things understated and inexpensive in the gift-giving department. The royal family has a long-running tradition of giving each other funny gag gifts on Christmas Eve, and both King Charles and Kate Middleton are reportedly not fans of extravagant presents. Apparently, there are also strict rules around which gifts that Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis are allowed to keep –especially when they’re presents from the public.

On December 25, the Wales kids joined the rest of the royal family as they made the Christmas Day walk from Sandringham House to St. Mary Magdalene Church at Sandringham. The highly-photographed annual engagement is a chance for royals to mingle with well-wishers in a more intimate setting–and in TikTok clips of their latest outing, George, Charlotte, and Louis were given countless gifts from onlookers as they walked with their dad. The trio was showered with chocolate, stuffed animals, and flowers, and Prince William even had to step in to help carry some of the extra goodies when 6-year-old Louis became overwhelmed by the sheer quantity of gifts. “Flowers [pointing at Charlotte], chocolate [pointing at George and Louis]—very easy,” William joked to the crowd.

So, will Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis be able to keep their latest Christmas gifts? According to official royal gift protocol, it depends on a few factors. Per Hello!, royal family members are allowed to accept gifts during official engagements, but these become part of the royal collection. They’re also allowed to accept gifts from people they don’t know, but these presents need to fall into a few categories.

Flowers, food, and other consumable items are acceptable to keep as long as they’re in reasonable quantities, meaning that the Wales children will probably be able to keep the flowers and chocolate they received on Christmas day. Other presents that are allowed are copies of books if they’re given by the author (as long as the book’s subject isn’t controversial), as well as gifts that cost less than 150 pounds (or roughly $188). This means that Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis will probably also be keeping their stuffed animals, but it’s unknown whether the youngest Wales child will be able to keep the “hand-finished silver egg cup and spoon” that he was given by a fellow 6-year-old, per Hello!

Even among themselves, the royals put a lighthearted spin on gift-giving. “They love doing gag gift exchanges and a Sandringham walkabout,” a source told Us Weekly. “They don’t do anything extravagant for gifts and do more funny gifts that make each other laugh."

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