The US has revoked Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company’s (TSMC) authorisation to freely ship essential gear to its main Chinese chipmaking base, potentially curtailing its production capabilities at that older generation facility.
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The change removes a fast track export privilege known as Validated End User (VEU) status, meaning future shipments of US-origin chipmaking tools to TSMC’s Nanjing site will require individual licences.
The action mirrors steps the US took to revoke the same designations for China facilities owned by Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix. The waivers are set to expire in about four months.
“TSMC has received notification from the US Government that our VEU authorisation for TSMC Nanjing will be revoked effective December 31, 2025,” the company said in a statement. “While we are evaluating the situation and taking appropriate measures, including communicating with the US government, we remain fully committed to ensuring the uninterrupted operation of TSMC Nanjing.”
Washington’s move jeopardises the China operations of some of the most important companies in the semiconductor sector, hailing from two chipmaking powerhouses that are also US allies. While US officials have said they intend to issue licences needed to keep those facilities operational, the shift from blanket permission to individual approvals introduces uncertainty about wait times to actually secure those permits.
Officials are currently working on solutions to ease the bureaucratic burden, particularly given a significant backlog of existing licence requests, people familiar with the matter said.
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