Addressing the Threat Posed by WeChat, and Taking Additional Steps To Address the National Emergency With Respect to the Information and Communications Technology and Services Supply Chain

The order prohibits, beginning 45 days after signing, any transaction related to WeChat by any U.S. person or any person subject to U.S. jurisdiction with Tencent Holdings Ltd. or any of its subsidiaries identified by the Secretary of Commerce. It also bars evasion of, or conspiracy to violate, that prohibition. The Secretary of Commerce is empowered to adopt rules and regulations and to exercise the full range of IEEPA authorities to implement the order. All federal departments and agencies are directed to take appropriate measures within their own authority to carry it out.

The prohibition applies notwithstanding any pre-existing contracts, licenses, or permits, and is subject only to any future regulations, orders, directives, or licenses the Secretary of Commerce may issue. The order expressly waives prior-notice requirements for identification of covered transactions, citing the risk that advance notice would render enforcement ineffective.

U.S. citizens, permanent residents, U.S.-organized entities, and anyone physically present in the United States who uses or transacts with WeChat. App stores, payment processors, advertisers, and businesses that communicate through or pay via WeChat with Chinese counterparties are directly reached by the prohibition.

Tens of millions of U.S. residents — including Chinese-American communities and businesses with Chinese-market operations — rely on WeChat for messaging, payments, and commerce. An effective ban would sever those communications channels and cut off payment flows that operate through the app.

The 45-day clock runs from August 6, 2020, giving the Secretary of Commerce time to publish a list of covered transactions before the prohibition takes effect. Once identified, any U.S. person engaging in a listed transaction faces IEEPA civil and criminal penalties. The Secretary may redelegate implementation authority within the Commerce Department and issue licenses to carve out specific transactions. All other agencies are required to act within their own authority in parallel, creating a whole-of-government enforcement posture.