As the clock ticks down to TikTok’s final days in the US, a business litigator has warned Americans against trying to trick the system.

For those that don’t know, US Congress passed a bipartisan bill in April last year to prohibit TikTok from providing its services in America unless its parent company ByteDance, of China, relinquished control over it by January 19, 2025.

When will TikTok be banned in the US?

Unfortunately, it doesn’t look likely that TikTok will be sold and so as of Sunday (January 19) the app will be gradually frozen out of society in the US, with it being taken off the app store and updates will cease.

It comes on President Joe Biden‘s last day in office, with the US Justice Department claiming it poses ‘a national-security threat of immense depth and scale’ – due to concerns that the Chinese firm could be forced to hand over data of its approximate 170 million US users to the state.

So we now find ourselves in what could be the demise of TikTok in the US, and with it being by far the most popular app among teens and young adults in the nation, there will be people doing everything they can to find a workaround so they can continue to enjoy the app.

TikTok is just days away from its impending ban in the US (Costfoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Although, the ban won’t mean that the app mysteriously vanishes from your phone, but as I mentioned earlier it will be frozen out.

With so much speculation over what will happen, business litigator Neil Elan, of Stubbs Alderton & Markiles, has weighed in on the subject.

Risks of accessing TikTok illegally

Elan, who specializes in high-value intellectual property disputes, told Dexerto: If there is a law saying, ‘You can’t do this,’ and you do this by using a VPN to circumvent the law, then you are in violation of the law.

“There would be a penalty and punishment, likely fines. I wouldn’t recommend using a VPN to get around the law, although I do know that it is common. Whether the lawmakers turn a blind eye or whether it’s strictly enforced is a risk that the user will take.”

Yes, we may just have to say fair well to TikTok in the States (Getty stock)

He continued: “The main concern is national security. If a few people do it, then are large troves of US consumer data being accessed by the Chinese government? Unlikely. But if there’s a growing base that continues to use it with the VPN, and the government knows about it, and those concerns still bloom, then there could be penalties enforced.

“How this plays out remains to be seen. It depends on the law. It depends on whether it will be acquired, and it depends on who has the authority to enforce the law and how many users try to skirt the law by using a VPN, but certainly the use of a VPN to circumvent the law would potentially render the user to fines and penalties.”

So, what will happen to the TikTok app on your phone if it gets banned?

After January 19, if you’re in the US and haven’t got the app already on your phone it’s unlikely you’ll be able to download it as it’ll be pulled from stores like Google and Apple under the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act.

For those who have the app prior to the ban, it’s expected that it will eventually ‘go dark’ as updates won’t be issued anymore – which will cause it to become buggy and unusable.

TikTok users are racing to download a new app, RedNote, ahead of the proposed US TikTok ban.

Time is ticking if one of our favorite social media platforms is to be saved, as the US plans on banning the video app as soon as Sunday (January 19) this week.

In April last year, the US Congress passed a bipartisan bill to prohibit TikTok unless it secures a new owner.

Federal officials argued the platform poses a ‘national security threat’ on an ‘immense depth’ due to its supposed links with China.

The RedNote app has shot to the top spot on the app store (Cheng Xin/Getty Images)

It is feared US users’ data could be being shared unlawfully with the Communist government.

However, TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, refute the allegations and are in the midst of challenging the rule in the Supreme Court by highlighting its First Amendment Rights.

But justices threw out the argument on Friday and appeared to side more favorably with the US government.

Justice Elena Kagan said the law is only targeted at the foreign corporation, ‘which doesn’t have First Amendment rights’, while Chief Justice John Roberts added: “They’re not saying TikTok has to stop. They’re saying the Chinese have to stop controlling TikTok’, reports The Independent.”

President-elect Donald Trump, who will take office in a matter of days on January 20, tried to ban TikTok in 2020, but has since sought to delay it.

Content creators argue banning TikTok could jeopardize their financial security (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Creators, businesses, influencers, and other users of the app have argued that the ban would decimate the lucrative creator economy that depends on it.

But frantic with worry about a TikTok-less future, thousands of US users have stumbled across what could be suitable alternatives if, or rather when, the dreaded dawn comes.

A free Chinese short-form video app called Xiaohongshu, or RedNote in English, has shot to the top of the Apple App store as of Monday, followed by Lemon8, also owned by TikTok and ByteDance, as users look to migrate across.

The app functions as a cross between Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest, and has more than 300 million monthly active users, according to The Independent, which still falls below the figures seen on TikTok.

RedNote, based in Shanghai, was founded in 2013 and was valued at $17 billion after raising funds from Chinese investors, with now more than $900 million raised in funding and 2,000 employees, reports CNBC.

The app could be banned as soon as Sunday in the US (Jaque Silva/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

And many TikTokers appear to be a fan of the alternative already.

One Georgian TikToker who goes by the username allieusyaps said: “They’re trying to ban TikTok and that’s ok”, before explaining to his 200,000 followers that ‘we on that RedNote baby’.

“Look, I might not have a job in the next week”, he continued, “but we about to learn Mandarin baby!

“RedNote is already lit. I ain’t never s*** like that. The content they got over there is really different.

“So yeah, the great migration is here.”

Another TikToker, itsjustheavita, said the alternative could be even better for influencers as ‘Chinese brands have more money than American brands’.

“Let’s get our bag y’all. To the Red Note app it is. Goodbye”, she added.

MrBeast has shared an update for his followers after declaring he would ‘buy TikTok’ to prevent it from being banned in the US.

Is TikTok really getting banned?

The Chinese company ByteDance has just four days left to sell TikTok or risk getting banned in the US due to allegations that the company is linked to the Chinese government.

Officials and lawmakers in the US have raised concerns that ByteDance has access to the data of approximately 170 million users in the US, putting that data at risk if China asks the company to hand it over.

ByteDance has been described as a ‘national security threat’ (Anna Barclay/Getty Images)

In fact, the US Justice Department has claimed TikTok poses ‘a national-security threat of immense depth and scale’ due to its parent company.

As a result, President Joe Biden signed a law last year which demanded that ByteDance sell, or TikTok would be shut down in the US. The deadline to sell falls on 19 January – just one day before Donald Trump is set to be sworn in as the new president.

ByteDance has responded by claiming the law is ‘unconstitutional’, but they have ruled out the possibility of a sale.

What has MrBeast said about the ban?

As millions of TikTok users express concerns over the loss of TikTok, MrBeast shared what seemed to be a joke tweet about how he’d save it.

On January 14, he posted: “Okay fine, I’ll buy TikTok so it doesn’t get banned.”

MrBeast seemed to be joking about buying TikTok (X/@MrBeast)

With a net worth of approximately $1 billion, according to Celebrity Net Worth, the YouTuber has a better chance than most at being able to afford the app; but that doesn’t mean ByteDance would agree to a sale.

Still, MrBeast indicated he was keen to move forward with the idea, as he shared an update on Twitter a few hours after his first post.

He wrote: “Unironically I’ve had so many billionaires reach out to me since I tweeted this, let’s see if we can pull this off.”

MrBeast claimed billionaires have reached out to him about the sale (X/@MrBeast)

MrBeast didn’t reveal exactly which billionaires are involved in this apparent venture, but fans were quick to joke about what the content creator might do with the app.

“‘I just bought TikTok and I’m giving it away to one lucky subscriber’,” one Twitter user joked, in reference to some of MrBeast’s viral challenges.

What will happen if TikTok isn’t sold?

If the January 19 deadline comes and goes with no sale and the ban goes into effect, TikTok will no longer be available to download for new users.

Those who already have the app would still be able to access it, however new updates would not be available, meaning the app would likely become unusable over time.

As the ban continues to loom, TikTok users are familiarizing themselves with a new app, RedNote; another short-form video app also from China.

US President Joe Biden has signed a legislation which will ban TikTok if its parent company doesn’t sell it – so when could the app get deleted?

What does Biden’s bill say?

On Wednesday (24 April), the US president shocked a lot of TikTok users when he signed a bill which gives the owners of TikTok, China-based company ByteDance, two options.

Either the company can sell TikTok, or the video-sharing app will be banned in the US.

Biden signed the bill after it passed in the Senate by a landslide on Tuesday, when 79 senators voted in favor of the bill and just 18 voted against.

It comes after years of attempts to ban the app over fears it could give the Chinese government access to sensitive user data.

Joe Biden signed the bill after it passed in the senate. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

What has TikTok said about the ban?

TikTok took to X to share a statement on the legislation after Biden signed the bill, calling the law ‘unconstitutional’ and claiming it would ‘challenge it in court’.

“We believe the facts and the law are clearly on our side, and we will ultimately prevail,” it continued.

“The fact is, we have invested billions of dollars to keep U.S. data safe and our platform free from outside influence and manipulation. This ban would devastate seven million businesses and silence 170 million Americans.

“As we continue to challenge this unconstitutional ban, we will continue investing and innovating to ensure TikTok remains a space where Americans of all walks of life can safely come to share their experiences, find joy, and be inspired.”

TikTok criticised the ban on X. (X/@TikTokPolicy)

How long does ByteDance have to sell TikTok?

The bill states that ByteDance now has nine months to find a buyer in America.

If they’re able to find a buyer and the sale is in progress when the deadline comes around, the company will then get another three months to complete the sale.

While a number of US buyers are reported to have expressed interest in buying TikTok – which makes sense, given how popular it is – ByteDance has made clear that it is not in favor of selling the app.

So when could TikTok be deleted?

If ByteDance fails or refuses to find a buyer for TikTok, the soonest the app could be banned in the US would be in one year, according to the legislation’s current timeline.

However, it’s worth noting that ByteDance has said it will fight the legislation, which would take the up by the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Court challenges could delay proceedings by months – if not years.

Isaac Boltansky, director of policy for the financial services firm BTIG, told NBC News ByteDance would likely file a suit no later than this fall. Then, when the case is under judicial review, the ‘clock’ on any ban is effectively paused.

Further delays could come after the Court of Appeals ruling, if the losing side chooses to request a review by the U.S. Supreme Court.

TikTok could be banned in one year. (ANTONIN UTZ/AFP via Getty Images)

What would happen if the app is banned?

If the ban comes in to force, it will become illegal for web-hosting services to support TikTok, meaning Google and Apple will be forced to remove the app from its stores.

Users who have already downloaded the app would be restricted from accessing updates, security patches and bug fixes, meaning that over time the app will become not only a security risk, but simply unusable.

What does the ban mean for creators?

It’s no secret that millions of people use TikTok every day, and a lot of content creators have managed to turn the platform into a source of income for them.

Creators have spoken out against the ban, with TikTok user Alex Pearlman telling the Associated Press: “I don’t take a day for granted on this app, because it’s been so shocking.

“In reality, TikTok has been the driver of American social media for the last four years. Something will step into that place if TikTok vanishes tomorrow. Whether or not that will be better or worse, Congress has no way of knowing.”