U.S. Withdraws TSMC’s Export Privilege for China Plant

The U.S. has revoked Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.’s authorization to ship key equipment to its main China facility, ending its fast-track export privilege known as Validated End User (VEU) status effective December 31.

This means future shipments of U.S. chipmaking tools to TSMC’s Nanjing plant will require export licenses.

TSMC said it is evaluating the situation and remains “committed to ensuring the uninterrupted operations of TSMC Nanjing.” Similar revocations were issued for Samsung and SK Hynix’s China plants, effective in 120 days.

The move comes despite President Trump’s recent efforts to ease restrictions, including plans to roll back Biden-era AI chip curbs and approvals for Nvidia’s H20 chip sales to China.

The Commerce Department said licenses will be granted for foreign firms to continue existing operations, but not expand or upgrade, with unclear timelines that could delay shipments.