TSMC Secures Annual U.S. Export Licence for Nanjing Chip Plant

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) has received an annual licence from the U.S. government allowing it to continue importing American chipmaking equipment for its fabrication facility in Nanjing, China, the company said on Thursday. The approval, TSMC noted, will “ensure uninterrupted fab operations and product deliveries,” safeguarding production at the site, which manufactures 16-nanometre and other mature-node chips rather than its most advanced semiconductors.

The licence replaces earlier exemptions that Asian chipmakers — including South Korea’s Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, which have also secured similar approvals — had enjoyed under Washington’s validated end-user status. Those privileges expired on December 31 as part of broader U.S. export controls aimed at curbing China’s access to sensitive semiconductor technologies, requiring companies to apply for new export licences covering 2026.

TSMC said the U.S. Department of Commerce’s decision allows export-controlled items to be supplied to its Nanjing operations without the need for individual vendor approvals, streamlining supply continuity. The Nanjing facility accounted for roughly 2.4% of the firm’s total revenue in 2024, according to its latest annual report, and operates alongside another TSMC plant in Shanghai.

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