Popular social media platform TikTok in the United States is days away from being shut down after the US Supreme Court on Friday allowed a federal law imposing a nationwide ban to take effect.
However, questions remain about whether it can still be reversed.
Experts say uncertainty about the app’s future could have ripple effects in Canada, although Ottawa says what happens in the United States will not affect its moves to limit TikTok’s business.
The Supreme Court ruling upholds a law passed in April that sets a Sunday deadline for ByteDance, TikTok’s China-based owner, to sell the social media app or face a ban. TikTok’s US operations are also set to end in light of the ban.
Mike Waltz, US President-elect Donald Trump’s new national security adviser, told Fox News on Thursday that the new administration, which takes office on Monday, would keep TikTok alive in the US if there was a workable agreement, but he did not detail the measure. The determinant that Trump will take. .
It is not clear what authority Trump has to intervene, although he could direct the Justice Department not to enforce the law, which threatens sanctions on the technology companies that make the app available and host it.
Pam Bondi, Trump’s nominee for US attorney general, dodged a question during her Senate confirmation hearing on Wednesday about whether she would support a TikTok ban.
“We will put measures in place to prevent TikTok from going dark,” Waltz said, pointing to a provision in the law that allows for a 90-day extension if there is “significant progress” toward divestiture.
“This gives President Trump enough time to continue running TikTok,” Waltz said.
ByteDance has stood firm in its refusal to sell TikTok and abandon the platform’s highly profitable algorithm. If Trump uses the “substantial progress” clause, it could be challenged by Congress or the court.
Separately, Democrats in Congress this week introduced legislation that would extend the deadline for forced recall by 270 days. Lawmakers say millions of businesses rely on TikTok for marketing, and that people affected by the deadly Los Angeles wildfires shared important information on the app.
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“It is clear that more time is needed to find an American buyer and not disrupt the lives and livelihoods of millions of Americans,” Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said on the US Senate floor on Thursday.
The US law cited national security concerns that TikTok’s 170 million US users were vulnerable to propaganda and data collection by the Chinese government.
How will Canada be affected?
Canada last year ordered TikTok to end its Canadian business operations after it said a national security review raised similar concerns about Chinese influence. However, the government said at the time that it would still allow Canadians to use and access the app.
Innovation and Science Minister François-Philippe Champagne and other Canadian officials have repeatedly refused to explain in detail what those concerns are and what evidence they have, citing national security and privacy laws. She also did not fully explain why she felt it was safe for Canadians to continue using TikTok, although she did warn users to be careful with their data and personal information.
A spokesperson for Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada told Global News that what happens to TikTok in the United States will not affect the Canadian decision.
“The government’s decision under the Investment Canada Act is final,” spokesman Justin Simard said in an email.
TikTok is seeking a judicial review of the government’s decision, preventing the government from commenting further.
Brett Carraway, an associate professor at the Institute of Communication, Culture, Information and Technology at the University of Toronto Mississauga, says closing TikTok’s U.S. operations would further entrench TikTok’s business base in China, putting greater distance between Canadian and American users and the platform.
“ByteDance’s main operations are in Beijing,” he said in an interview. “So, if you have technical issues, or you have concerns, you’re not going to talk to anyone in Canada or the United States anymore.”
Caraway said the main impact Canadians may see from the U.S. lockdown is the sudden disappearance of American content, customer bases and ad revenue on TikTok.
“Suddenly, the number of TikTok users will drop by 170 million,” he said. “For Canadians monetizing TikTok, this is their most lucrative audience.”
Canada has no legislation that would allow the government to ban an app like TikTok in the way that US law does.
US law imposes a ban on new TikTok downloads on Apple or Google app stores if ByteDance fails to divest the site.
In theory, users who have downloaded TikTok will still be able to use the app, but the law also prohibits US companies from providing services to enable its distribution, maintenance or updating once any ban begins.
The President can issue a one-time 90-day moratorium if he certifies to Congress that there is evidence of significant progress and that there are binding legal agreements in place to allow for complete liquidation within three months.
The legislation was passed as part of a larger bill that provided, among other measures, billions of dollars in urgent military and humanitarian aid to Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan.
Trump has reversed his position on the popular app, after trying to ban it during his first term due to national security concerns. He joined TikTok during his 2024 presidential campaign and his team used it to connect with young voters, especially male voters, by promoting content that was often masculine and intended to go viral.
He pledged to “save TikTok” during the campaign and credited the platform with helping him win more youth votes.
“There is no better deal maker than Donald Trump,” Carolyn Leavitt, the incoming White House press secretary and spokeswoman for the Trump transition team, told Reuters.
—With files from The Associated Press and Reuters
