What the TikTok Ban Deadline Could Mean for the App's Future

Despite a last-minute save by President Donald Trump in January, the fate of TikTok remains murky as the deadline to save the app approaches.

TikTok, which boasts more than 170 million users, has been under fire by U.S. legislators over concerns about data privacy and national security. In order to save the app, Trump gave the social media site until April 5 to divest and find a U.S.-based owner.

Under his previous term, Trump was the acting force seeking to ban TikTok in the U.S. But the President seemed favorable towards the app following his election win, citing it as part of why he secured support from young voters.

“We have a lot of potential buyers,” Trump said on Air Force One Sunday. “I’d like to see Tiktok remain alive.” Trump indicated that he would extend the deadline if a deal was not finalized. China has indicated that it would not support the forced sale of TikTok. 

The latest tussle is just the most recent development in the long legal battle to keep TikTok available in the U.S. Efforts to ban TikTok in Montana were overturned by a federal judge in 2023 after creators filed suit against the state.  

TikTok did not immediately respond to TIME’s request for comment. 

Here’s what to know.  

Who currently owns TikTok?

TikTok is owned by its Beijing-based parent company, ByteDance. Sixty percent of the company is owned by investors including Carlyle Group, General Atlantic, and Susquehanna International Group, according to TikTok’s U.S. Data Security page. The remaining 40% is divided between ByteDance employees and the founder of ByteDance. 

TikTok is not available in mainland China and has headquarters in Los Angeles and Singapore. 

But its parent company does have to comply with Chinese law because it operates other video first platforms such as Douyin, the Chinese-equivalent of TikTok. The Chinese government therefore has a “golden share” of one of its subsidiaries, Douyin, owning about 1% of that app. 

Why is the U.S. banning TikTok?

Congress passed a TikTok ban as part of a foreign aid supplemental package, citing national security concerns. Lawmakers were particularly concerned that the company could share data with the Chinese government or interfere with users’ algorithms in a way that would benefit the foreign government. Chinese national security laws require any companies or organizations to cooperate with the country’s national intelligence efforts. 

“Congress is not acting to punish ByteDance, TikTok or any other individual company,” Senate Commerce Committee Chairwoman Maria Cantwell said in April 2024. “Congress is acting to prevent foreign adversaries from conducting espionage, surveillance, maligned operations, harming vulnerable Americans, our servicemen and women, and our U.S. government personnel.”

Already, the app is not permitted on any government-owned devices in the U.S. Other countries, including India have banned TikTok for all users since 2020, while Australia and Canada similarly forbade TikTok from operating on any devices issued by the federal government. 

What can Trump do to extend the deadline?

The current April 5 deadline was issued via Executive Order. Trump could possibly issue another such order to extend the deadline.

Can you still use TikTok if it is banned?

The last time the app was banned, U.S.-based users were unable to comment, share, or view any videos. “A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S. Unfortunately, that means you can’t use TikTok for now,” a message on a gray background read during the one-day TikTok pause.

Even when the app was restored, TikTok was unavailable for download on the Apple and Google Play stores until mid-February. 

It is unclear whether another potential ban would function similarly to the previous one.