The United States and China have both signed off on TikTok’s long-awaited divestment deal, clearing a major hurdle for the popular social media app’s future in the U.S., a White House official confirmed to Scripps News.
The approvals pave the way for the sale of TikTok’s American operations to close ahead of a Jan. 22 government deadline, bringing an end to several years of political, legal and national security uncertainty surrounding the platform used by roughly 170 million Americans.
The agreement restructures TikTok’s U.S. business into a new American-controlled company, limiting the ownership stake of its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, and adding new safeguards around data and governance.
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In 2024, Congress passed a law requiring TikTok to either sell its U.S. operations or divest enough control from ByteDance by early 2025, or face a nationwide ban. Lawmakers said the measure was necessary to protect national security and prevent foreign influence over a major social media platform.
When that deadline arrived without a completed deal, TikTok briefly went offline in the U.S. in January 2025. Service was restored soon after President Donald Trump took office and issued an executive order delaying enforcement, allowing negotiations to continue.
Over the next year, U.S. officials, TikTok executives and the Chinese government worked to hammer out a structure that could satisfy regulators in Washington without triggering opposition from Beijing.
In December 2025, TikTok CEO Shou Chew wrote in an internal memo obtained by CNBC that ByteDance had signed binding agreements with a group of investors — including Oracle, Silver Lake and Abu Dhabi-backed MGX.
Now with the companies given approval to move forward with signing the official documents, under the agreement, ByteDance will retain just under a 20% ownership stake in the U.S. business, the maximum allowed under the law, while the remaining shares will be held by the investor group.
While Oracle declined to comment, TikTok and the other investors named did not immediately respond to Scripps News’ requests for comment.
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For most TikTok users in the U.S., the immediate impact is expected to be minimal.
The app will remain available without disruption, and users will keep their accounts, followers, content and viewing history. The platform is expected to look and function largely the same.
Behind the scenes, however, the changes are significant.
The new U.S. company taking over TikTok’s American operations will be responsible for data protection, content moderation and key security functions. A majority-American board is expected to govern the company, and U.S. user data will be stored domestically under Oracle’s management, according to the White House’s executive order released in September regarding the deal.
Still, some concerns remain. With ByteDance retaining a minority ownership stake and continued ties to certain parts of the business, critics argue the divestment may not fully sever all technological or operational links to China.
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