What happens next with TikTok?

The social media video app isn’t disappearing from smartphones anytime soon. The legislative process is still in its early stages after the House of Representatives passed a bill requiring sales by the app’s Chinese owner ByteDance or banning it. The bill will then go to a skeptical Senate, after which President Biden would have to sign it into law. Even after that, it might not happen.

This is what you can expect.

What happens next in the legislative process?

The bill must still be approved by the Senate, which can also make changes to the text of the legislation.

Several senators have already expressed concerns about the legislation as it is currently written. For example, because the text of the bill explicitly mentions TikTok and ByteDance, some worry it could violate a section of the Constitution that prohibits Congress from targeting specific entities with legislation. (The bill’s proponents say this won’t be a problem.)

Several prominent senators who could help decide whether the legislation moves forward have been noncommittal. Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the Democratic leader, has not said whether he will vote on it. His spokesman did not respond to a question about his plans.

Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington, a Democrat and chairwoman of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, said in a statement that she would speak with “colleagues from the Senate and House of Representatives to try to find a path forward that is constitutional and protects civil liberties. .”

Will TikTok be immediately banned if the bill becomes law?

President Biden said last week that he would sign the bill if Congress passed it. But even if he does, it won’t lead to an immediate ban.

ByteDance has six months to find someone who wants to buy the app. If ByteDance finds a buyer who satisfies the government within that period, the ban will never come into effect. If not, app stores and internet hosting companies will no longer be allowed to offer TikTok for download or send updates to the app.

How likely is it really that we will lose access to TikTok in the United States?

A ban becomes more likely if TikTok cannot find a buyer who can afford a price tag of tens of billions of dollars, analysts said. That will probably be difficult.

A sale or divestiture could also depend on whether ByteDance is willing to sell or spin off TikTok’s entire global footprint, or just its U.S. operations. The legislation prohibits a connection between the two companies after a sale, which created complications if a U.S. TikTok needed access to its parent company’s algorithms or other global versions of the app.

A ban could also result from the fact that the Chinese government is blocking the sale of TikTok. China has criticized the new legislation and Beijing appeared to take steps in 2020 that would give the country the ability to block the transfer of the TikTok algorithm.

Can anything delay a ban?

If the House bill becomes law, TikTok or someone else will likely challenge its legality in court. A possible ban could be postponed while they fight that legal battle with the government. And a judge could ultimately strike down the legislation entirely.

Will TikTok disappear from my phone if it is banned?

The bill passed in the House of Representatives on Wednesday does not appear to provide any way for the government to remove the TikTok app from your phone. The bill’s sponsors did not immediately respond to a question about what would happen to versions of the app already installed on smartphones.

But blocking app stores and hosting services from sending updates to the app or helping maintain the app could degrade service for existing users, even if TikTok is already installed, and the app could stop working altogether.

What happens to my TikTok posts?

TikTok is legally required to let you download videos and other content.