US federal employees may now download TikTok on government-issued devices after the Department of Justice concluded that a 2022 federal ban no longer applies to the platform’s restructured US operations. Individual agencies can still decide whether to permit the app under their own security and workplace policies.
The decision follows the transfer of TikTok’s US data, content moderation and algorithm-security operations to TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC. The new entity is majority-owned by American and international investors, while Chinese parent company ByteDance retains a 19.9% stake.
DOJ Finds ByteDance No Longer Controls US Entity
The Justice Department’s legal opinion found that the No TikTok on Government Devices Act applies to versions of TikTok developed or provided by companies controlled by ByteDance. It concluded that ByteDance’s minority ownership of the US joint venture does not amount to a controlling stake.
The DOJ memorandum said President Donald Trump had authorised employees of executive branch agencies to download TikTok on official devices. That permission remains subject to each agency’s discretion and applicable workplace rules.
Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX are the joint venture’s three managing investors, with each holding a 15% stake. Oracle also provides cloud infrastructure to secure US user data and the recommendation algorithm.
TikTok said in its official joint venture announcement that the company would retrain, test and update the recommendation system using US user data. The platform said the structure would protect its apps, data and algorithms through cybersecurity and privacy controls.
Policy Reverses Earlier Government Ban
Congress passed the No TikTok on Government Devices Act in 2022 over concerns that ByteDance’s ownership could expose federal information to security risks. Agencies were later instructed to remove the app from government devices, with limited exceptions for law enforcement, national security and research.
A separate law passed in April 2024 required ByteDance to divest TikTok’s US assets or face a nationwide ban. The Supreme Court upheld that law, but Trump declined to enforce it while negotiations over the new ownership structure continued.
TikTok briefly became unavailable in the United States when the prohibition took effect in January 2025. Access was restored after Trump delayed enforcement and asked service providers to continue supporting the app.
The completed joint venture now serves more than 200 million US users and 7.5 million businesses, according to TikTok. The White House and TikTok did not immediately comment on the new federal-device guidance, Reuters reported.
Featured image credits: Plann
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