US President Donald Trump on Tuesday extended a delay on enforcing a ban against the immensely popular video-sharing app TikTok until December 16.
This marks the fourth postponement of a law designed to force the app's sale from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance.
The decision was announced through an executive order, despite the President telling reporters earlier on Tuesday that the two nations had reached a "deal" regarding the new ownership structure for TikTok's US business.
The delay, coming after previous extensions in January, April, and June, prevents a US law from taking effect that was signed by then-President Joe Biden in 2024. The legislation aimed to address significant national security concerns over ByteDance’s potential ties to the Chinese government.
The executive order not only extends the ban's delay but also retroactively prohibits the US Justice Department from taking any enforcement action for conduct that occurred since the ban was originally set to come into force on January 19, 2025—the day before Trump's inauguration.
Trump previously supported a TikTok ban during his first term as President, but later had a change of heart and pledged to “save TikTok” during his presidential campaign ahead of his second term.
Trump credits the popular social media platform with helping him secure support among young voters in his victory over Democrat Kamala Harris in the November 2024 presidential election.
Last month, the White House launched an official TikTok account to promote Trump’s messages.