UK to Host Donald Trump for Unprecedented Second State Visit in September
Former U.S. President Donald Trump will make history this September by becoming the first foreign leader to receive a second state visit to the United Kingdom, Buckingham Palace confirmed on Monday.
From September 17 to 19, 2025, Trump and First Lady Melania Trump will be hosted by King Charles III at Windsor Castle, according to a palace statement. The invitation was personally signed by the King and delivered in February by UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer during his visit to Washington.
“This is truly historic,” Starmer said as he handed over the King’s letter in the Oval Office, with Trump calling the invitation a “very great honour.”
The upcoming visit follows a recent state visit by French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte, who were welcomed at Windsor Castle just two months earlier. Unlike Macron, however, Trump is not expected to address the British Parliament, as it will be in recess during the visit.
The 2025 visit mirrors Trump’s first UK state visit in 2019, when he met with the late Queen Elizabeth II. This second honor breaks royal precedent, as no foreign leader has ever received a repeat state visit.
According to The Times, the King had reportedly preferred the visit be scheduled later in Trump’s second term, but PM Starmer overrode this preference in hopes of strengthening UK-US ties and gaining leverage in ongoing trade negotiations.
Trump is also expected to visit Scotland later this month in a private capacity, where he owns two golf resorts. Downing Street has confirmed that Starmer plans to meet Trump during his stay.
Meanwhile, Trump’s threats to impose a 35% tariff on Canadian imports have stirred unease in Canada, where King Charles serves as head of state, placing the monarch in a diplomatically sensitive position. Trump has also controversially remarked that Canada should become the “51st state.”
Despite these tensions, Trump praised King Charles as “a beautiful man” and expressed his eagerness to return to the UK: “We look forward to being there and honouring the King and really your country.”
