Federal employees have received the green light to once again download TikTok on their government-issued devices, putting an end to a ban that lasted years. This decision follows a new directive from the Department of Justice.
The policy shift comes after ByteDance, the Chinese parent company of TikTok, successfully transferred control over U.S. user data and its operations to TikTok U.S. Data Security (TikTok USDS). This entity is now largely owned by American interests, thanks to a deal that reached completion in January. This strategic move safeguarded TikTok from a potential U.S. ban.
Back in 2022, a law prohibited federal employees from installing TikTok on government devices due to concerns over national security. However, a recent legal opinion from the DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel has determined that the new structural changes effectively remove the previous threats that justified the nationwide ban.
This opinion, directed towards the deputy counsel of President Donald Trump, assured that the now American-steered version of TikTok no longer poses any security threats.
The distinctive TikTok logo was spotted illuminated on a smartphone screen on July 3, 2026. (Photo by Thomas Fuller/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
“We understand you have since instructed that employees of Executive Branch agencies may download TikTok onto their official devices, subject to the agency’s discretion and consistent with all applicable workplace policies,” the opinion said.
American and global investors own 80.1% of the new joint venture, while ByteDance owns 19.9%, according to the divestiture agreement.
“The fact that ByteDance Limited remains a minority shareholder in the joint venture operating TikTok USDS makes no practical difference,” the DOJ said in the opinion.
TikTok supporters are seen outside the U.S. Capitol on March 13, 2024, before the House passed the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act. The bill was later signed by President Joe Biden, eventually prompting the sale of TikTok to an American-controlled joint venture. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
ByteDance’s divestiture from TikTok was prompted by a 2024 law that passed with overwhelming bipartisan support in Congress.
The law, signed by President Joe Biden in April of that year, required ByteDance to divest control of TikTok’s U.S. operations or risk having the app barred from U.S. app stores and internet-hosting services.
TikTok attempted to challenge the constitutionality of the law, arguing that it violated the free speech rights of its tens of millions of users.
President Donald Trump shows an executive order about TikTok he signed in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., on September 25, 2025. (SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)
On Jan. 17, 2025, the Supreme Court ruled that Congress had the right to impose a sell-or-ban ultimatum to address the “well-supported national security concerns regarding TikTok’s data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary.”
The law was supposed to take effect on Jan. 19, 2025, but Trump delayed its enforcement after returning to office the following day.
Oracle co-founder, CTO and Executive Chairman Larry Ellison speaks during a news conference with President Donald Trump in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on January 21, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
Trump repeatedly delayed enforcement of the law last year to allow enough time for investors to express interest in taking over TikTok, which is used by around 200 million Americans.
Oracle, Silver Lake and Emirati investment firm MGX emerged as the most prominent investors. The new venture said in January that U.S. user data would be protected in Oracle’s secure cloud and that TikTok’s recommendation algorithm would be retrained using U.S. user data.