President Donald Trump on Friday announced a 75-day extension for ByteDance, the Chinese parent company of TikTok, to secure a non-Chinese buyer for the popular video-sharing app, narrowly averting a ban that was set to take effect on Saturday, April 5.
The surprise decision comes despite earlier signals from Trump and Vice President JD Vance, who had expressed confidence that a resolution would be reached before the original deadline. The announcement followed the implementation of sweeping tariffs targeting China and other countries, signaling an escalation in Trump’s broader economic strategy.
Under a 2024 federal law, TikTok is required to divest from Chinese ownership due to national security concerns or face a total ban in the U.S. Trump previously delayed enforcement of the law via executive order on his first day back in office, pushing ByteDance’s deadline until this weekend.
The new extension buys ByteDance more time to negotiate a sale and potentially avoid a nationwide shutdown of TikTok, which has more than 170 million users in the United States.
The move also tempers immediate market disruption while maintaining pressure on ByteDance to sever ties with the Chinese government.
While some lawmakers have urged a more aggressive approach, others view the extension as a practical move to allow for a more structured divestment and preserve user access while ensuring national data security.
"My Administration has been working very hard on a Deal to SAVE TIKTOK, and we have made tremendous progress," he wrote in a Truth Social post. "The Deal requires more work to ensure all necessary approvals are signed, which is why I am signing an Executive Order to keep TikTok up and running for an additional 75 days."
ByteDance has previously said it did not plan to sell TikTok. It has largely remained silent about whether it is in talks with bidders and has not publicly confirmed it would divest at all.
On Friday, a spokesperson for ByteDance said the company "has been in discussion with the U.S. Government regarding a potential solution for TikTok U.S. An agreement has not been executed. There are key matters to be resolved. Any agreement will be subject to approval under Chinese law."