What To Know About US Possibly Banning TikTok
TikTok was flickering back to life on Sunday in the U.S., Jan. 19, after no longer being accessible starting the night before. President-elect Donald Trump said he would issue an executive order to stall a federal ban on the app while the U.S. government negotiates further with the company's owners. The following report reflects conditions as of Jan. 17.
A law that bans TikTok in the U.S. is set to take effect Jan. 19, 2025, unless its China-based parent company sells its U.S. operations.
TikTok attempted to sue the U.S. government over the law, called the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act. But the Supreme Court affirmed on Jan. 17 that the act did not violate First Amendment rights, leaving the Jan. 19 deadline in place.
The Supreme Court's decision puts the matter in the hands of President-elect Donald Trump, who will take the oath of office to become America's 47th president on Jan. 20, the day after the law is set to take effect. He said in a Truth Social post on Jan. 17, shortly before the Supreme Court's ruling, that he and Chinese leader Xi Jinping had just discussed TikTok. The details of that conversation were unknown.
Experts say the TikTok app will not disappear from users' phones if, or when, the ban takes effect, according to The Associated Press. However, app stores operated by Apple, Google and others will not be able to offer the app. In other words, new users will not be able to download it and updates will not be available.
A law that bans TikTok in the U.S. was set to take effect Jan. 19, 2025, unless its China-based parent company sells its U.S. operations in accordance with a federal law that categorizes the app as a national security threat.
The Supreme Court upheld the law on Jan. 17 — a decision that puts the matter in the hands of President-elect Donald Trump, who will assume the presidency the day after the law takes effect.
On the day of the Supreme Court's ruling, Trump had a call with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. He said in a Truth Social post that TikTok was among the topics they discussed:
It is my expectation that we will solve many problems together, and starting immediately. We discussed balancing Trade, Fentanyl, TikTok, and many other subjects. President Xi and I will do everything possible to make the World more peaceful and safe!
It's unclear what options are open to Trump, who attempted his own ban on TikTok in 2020.
It is also unknown what a "banned" version of TikTok would mean for people in the U.S. Under the law, if there's no sale, app stores such as Apple and Google would no longer be able to offer the app. Existing users would also not be able to update it, eventually rendering it unusable, according to The Associated Press.
"Essentially, the platform shuts down," TikTok lawyer Noel Francisco said during Supreme Court oral arguments.
In the days leading up to the Supreme Court's decision, creators on the platform grieved (archived) the potential loss (archived) of the platform's 170 million-person U.S. audience and directed (archived) audiences (archived) to other networks. Meanwhile, Snopes readers searched our site for information about the potential ban.
What the Law Requires
The in-question law is called the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (PAFACA). Signed by U.S. President Joe Biden in April 2024, the law gave TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, a 270-day deadline to divest — essentially sell — its U.S. operations to a government-approved buyer. ByteDance has not done that as of this writing.
PAFACA prohibits the distribution, maintenance and update of what it describes as "foreign adversary controlled application(s)" within the U.S., specifically ByteDance and TikTok.
The law also prohibits entities such as Apple or Google from providing a "marketplace" or "internet hosting services" — i.e., an app store — to allow individuals in the U.S. access to the in-question applications. The law defines a "foreign adversary" using 10 U.S. Code § 4872, which names nations including China where ByteDance is headquartered.
In order for app stores to continue offeringTikTok in the U.S. after Jan. 19, a "qualified divestiture" must be carried out, according to PAFACA. This means that ByteDance must sell TikTok in the U.S. in a deal that the president — using "an interagency process"— approves. That approval, under the law, would hinge on whether the buyer is U.S.-based and/or has any Chinese connections.
On Apr. 25, 2024, the day after Biden signed the act into law, Reuters reported that ByteDance "would prefer to shut down its loss-making app rather than sell it," citing four anonymous sources.
TikTok and creators on the platform subsequently sued the U.S. government over PAFACA, calling the act "unconstitutional" and arguing that the company could not fulfill its requirements for commercial, technological and legal reasons. The lawsuit read:
If Congress can do this, it can circumvent the First Amendment by invoking national security and ordering the publisher of any individual newspaper or website to sell to avoid being shut down. And for TikTok, any such divestiture would disconnect Americans from the rest of the global community on a platform devoted to shared content — an outcome fundamentally at odds with the Constitution's commitment to both free speech and individual liberty.
After hearing oral arguments on Jan. 10, 2025, the Supreme Court released an opinion on Jan. 17 affirming a lower court's decision that PAFACA was not unconstitutional, allowing the law to take effect on Jan. 19.
Focus Has Shifted to Incoming Trump Administration
On Jan. 16, 2025, an anonymous Biden official told The Associated Press that the outgoing presidential administration "was leaving the implementation of the law — and the potential enforcement of the ban — to Trump."
On that same day, Mike Waltz, Trump's pick for national security adviser, told Fox News that the incoming administration wants to find a way to "preserve" the app.
During his 2024 presidential campaign, Trump voiced opposition to the potential ban on TikTok. On Dec. 27, 2024, Trump's lawyer D. John Sauer wrote to the Supreme Court, asking it to "stay" — delay or suspend — the date for the law to take effect.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said he was committed (archived) to working with the Trump administration to find a "solution" to the potential ban.
Trump's nominee for attorney general, Pam Bondi, refused to comment on whether she would enforce the act during a Senate hearing to confirm her appointment on Jan. 15. The PAFACA gives the attorney general the authority to investigate and dole out hefty fines to "entities" that distribute or maintain the TikTok app.
Sources:
"10 U.S. Code § 4872 - Acquisition of Sensitive Materials from Non-Allied Foreign Nations: Prohibition." LII / Legal Information Institute, https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/10/4872. Accessed 17 Jan. 2025.
"Bondi Refuses to Commit to Enforcing TikTok Ban." NBC News, https://www.nbcnews.com/now/video/bondi-refuses-to-commit-to-enforcing-tiktok-ban-229371461896. Accessed 17 Jan. 2025.
"Donald J. Trump: "I Just Spoke to Chairman Xi Jinping of China. The Call Was a Very Good One f..." Trump's Truth, https://trumpstruth.org/statuses/29136. Accessed 17 Jan. 2025.
Heritage Reporting Corporation . TikTok Inc., et al., Petitioners v. Merrick B. Garland, Attorney General. 24-656, 10 Jan. 2025, https://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/argument_transcripts/2024/24-656_1an2.pdf.
Joseph, Jamie. "'No Better Dealmaker': Trump Reportedly Considering Executive Order to 'save' TikTok." Fox News, 16 Jan. 2025, https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-eyes-way-save-tiktok-trump-transition-team-confirms.
@kyliexpark. "IN MY FEELS TONIGHT." TikTok, 16 Jan. 2025, https://www.tiktok.com/@kyliexpark/video/7460791264464620846?_r=1&_t=ZG-8t8s4xcBv2O.
@logagm. "Come over to Ig Hehe." TikTok, 16 Jan. 2025, https://www.tiktok.com/@logagm/video/7460623480577395973?_r=1&_t=ZG-8t7uo9l8EzJ.
McMorris Rodgers, Cathy. Making Emergency Supplemental Appropriations for the Fiscal Year Ending September 30, 2024, and for Other Purposes. H.R.815, 24 Apr. 2024, https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/BILLS-118hr815enr/pdf/BILLS-118hr815enr.pdf.
Miller, Zeke, et al. "Biden Won't Enforce TikTok Ban, Official Says, Leaving Fate of App to Trump." AP News, 16 Jan. 2025, https://apnews.com/article/tiktok-ban-trump-executive-order-1e95d9836bf6f8c0c245ed1c3234d968.
Sauer, D. John. TIKTOK, INC., et al., v. MERRICK B. GARLAND, in His Official Capacity as Attorney General of the United States of America. 24-656, 27 Dec. 2024, https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/24/24-656/336151/20241227163400981_2024-12-27%20-%20TikTok%20v.%20Garland%20-%20Amicus%20Brief%20of%20President%20Donald%20J.%20Trump.pdf.
@SenSchumer. "It's Clear That More Time Is Needed to Find an American Buyer for TikTok." X, 16 Jan. 2025, https://x.com/SenSchumer/status/1879983146986361115.
Sherman, Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu, Samantha Putterman, Amy. "Trump's Flip on TikTok Ban Earns a Full Flop Rating." @politifact, https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2025/jan/16/donald-trump/flip-flop-trump-now-opposes-a-tiktok-ban-in-2020-h/. Accessed 17 Jan. 2025.
@sockienorris. "I Can't Believe TikTok Is Getting Banned for Americans." TikTok, 17 Jan. 2025, https://www.tiktok.com/@sockienorris/video/7460810205568290064?_r=1&_t=ZG-8t8s2kTfAJN.
@sophierae78. "Incase Our Worst Fears Come True." TikTok, 16 Jan. 2025, https://www.tiktok.com/@sophierae78/video/7460727061657914670?_r=1&_t=ZG-8t8g7TlvbcG.
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SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES . TIKTOK INC., ET AL., PETITIONERS v. MERRICK B. GARLAND, ATTORNEY GENERAL . 24–656, 17 Jan. 2025, https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24pdf/24-656_ca7d.pdf.
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. TIKTOK INC. AND BYTEDANCE LTD., PETITIONERS V. MERRICK B. GARLAND, IN HIS OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE UNITED STATES, RESPONDENT. 24-1113, 6 Dec. 2024, https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cadc.40861/gov.uscourts.cadc.40861.2088317.0.pdf.
---. TIKTOK INC., and BYTEDANCE LTD., V. MERRICK B. GARLAND, in His Official Capacity as Attorney General of the United States. 24-1113, 7 May 2024, https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cadc.40861/gov.uscourts.cadc.40861.1208620273.1.pdf.
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