TikTok has finally returned to Apple and Google app stores in the US – but for how long?

Content creators in the US woke up to good news on February 14 – TikTok is finally back in the Apple App Store and Google Play. The return of the short form video app comes nearly one month after a mandated ban in the US took the service out before a presidential executive order temporarily restored the service.

TikTok’s re-entry to app stores makes it possible for those who deleted the app during the shutdown to gain access again – a weeks-long absence that prompted some eBay sellers to list phones with TikTok already installed for thousands more than the retail value of a used device. But, making the app available again also brings back periodic updates. Users in the US now have access to TikTok’s bug fixes that were released a week ago.

But while the news is welcome for both fans of the platform and content creators earning an income from the app, the future of the app is still uncertain in the US. A bipartisan measure passed last year required parent company ByteDance to sell TikTok by January 19 or face a US ban, citing national security concerns over the app’s current China-based ownership.

However, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that effectively pushed that January 19 deadline back by 75 days. While the app has now returned to both devices and app stores, the order only moved the deadline back to April 5.

According to Reuters, Trump has indicated that he could extend the deadline again, but said another extension may not be necessary if ByteDance enters negotiations for a sale.

TikTok has repeatedly made statements against a sale, however, the more than 135 million users in the US make up more of the app’s audience than any other country. When the company claimed the legislation was in violation of the First Amendment, the case went all the way to the Supreme Court, where justices decided the legislation could stand. During the case, TikTok’s lawyer said that the app’s algorithms include intellectual property that is owned by the Chinese government.

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