TikTok starts working again after Trump says he will stop a ban

TikTok flickered back to life in the United States on Sunday after President-elect Donald J. Trump said he would issue an executive order to end a federal ban on the app.

The abrupt shift came hours after major app stores removed the popular social media site and it stopped working for US users when a federal law took effect on Sunday. The company said in a post on X that in “agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service.”

Mr. Trump phelp in a Sunday morning post on Truth Social that he would “issue an executive order on Monday to extend the period before the law’s ban goes into effect so we can reach an agreement to protect our national security.”

The ban stems from a 2024 law that requires app stores and cloud computing providers to stop distributing or hosting TikTok unless it is sold by its Chinese parent company, ByteDance. Lawmakers passed the law over concerns that the Chinese government could use the app, which claims about 170 million American users, to collect information on Americans or spread propaganda.

App stores and cloud computing providers that do not comply with the law face potentially significant financial penalties. Mr. Trump said in his post on Sunday that his order would “affirm that there will be no liability for any company that helped prevent TikTok from going dark prior to my order.”

The possibility of an announcement, followed by TikTok’s stunning face, marks a new phase in the battle for the future of the app, which has reshaped the social media landscape, defined popular culture and created a livelihood for millions of influencers and small businesses that rely on the platform.

By issuing an order, Mr. Trump raised questions about the rule of law in the United States. His action would constitute an attempt to temporarily neutralize a law that was passed with broad bipartisan support in Congress and that the Supreme Court unanimously upheld last week.

“We thank President Trump for providing the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will not face any sanctions in delivering TikTok to over 170 million Americans and allowing over 7 million small businesses to thrive,” TikTok said in a statement announcing that the app was coming back online.

Creators celebrated as TikTok sputtered back to life.

“ITS BACKKKKK,” James Charles, a beauty influencer, wrote on Instagram, where he had been communicating with fans since the ban took effect.

Policy experts and lawmakers from both sides of the aisle issued early warnings that the law is still valid and enforceable. TikTok remained unavailable for downloads in Google and Apple’s app stores, suggesting some companies continued to enforce the ban.

Legal experts said the impact of Mr. Trump’s action would depend on the details of any order he released, which is likely to provoke significant questions about the scope and limits of the president’s authority.

Still, “there is no good path here from a rule of law perspective,” said Alan Rozenshtein, an associate professor of law at the University of Minnesota.

Google declined to comment. Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Oracle, which hosts TikTok on its servers, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

It’s unclear whether Mr. Trump’s efforts — and the negotiations to keep the app online that happened before he even took office on Monday — will succeed in the long term. His executive order could face a legal challenge, including whether he has the power to stop enforcement of a federal law. Companies subject to the Act may determine that the text of an order does not provide sufficient assurance that they will not be penalized for violations

The law allows a president to grant a 90-day extension if a buyer is found, but only if there is “significant progress” toward a deal that puts TikTok in the hands of a non-Chinese company. That agreement must also be completed within the 90 days before the president can trigger the extension. And it is unclear whether this extension option still exists, since the law is already in force.

In his post on Sunday, Mr. Trump floated the idea that he “wants the United States to have a 50% ownership position in a joint venture,” without providing further details.

TikTok has said a sale is impossible, citing the nature of its global operations, and China has already signaled it could block exports of its all-important video recommendation technology.

Some policy experts said there is too little information to draw a conclusion about next steps. “What Trump has proposed on social media seems lawless,” said Peter Harrell, a former Biden administration official. “We’ll have to see what he actually does to implement it.”

Late Saturday, TikTok sent a message to users saying the site was unavailable, but it was “fortunate that President Trump has indicated he will work with us on a resolution.”

Then, after restoring service, TikTok welcomed users with a message that said, “As a result of President Trump’s efforts, TikTok is back in the United States!”

TikTok and several Democratic members of Congress have launched a last-ditch effort in recent days to keep the app online. Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the Democratic leader, privately told President Biden that the app going dark on his watch would damage his legacy.

Critics of TikTok started their own push to keep the possible ban on track. Senator Tom Cotton, Republican of Arkansas and chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, called some of the big tech companies in recent days to say they needed to comply with the law, according to three people familiar with the calls. He also said in a joint statement earlier Sunday that there was no room for any kind of extension as the law had already come into effect.

After TikTok announced it would restore service to the app, Mr. Cotton a warning.

Any “company that hosts, distributes, services or otherwise facilitates communist-controlled TikTok could face hundreds of billions of dollars in punitive damages under the law,” not only from the federal government, but also state attorneys general, shareholder lawsuits and under securities laws, he said in a post on X.

“Think about it,” he said.

Maggie Haberman, Karen Weise, Sapna Maheshwari, Madison Malone Kircher and Aaron Krolik contributed with reporting.