Overview
- U.S. industry sources say Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix received 2026 approvals to bring U.S.-origin chipmaking equipment into their China plants.
- The Bureau of Industry and Security has moved from per-shipment permissions to a system in which companies submit annual plans listing tool types and quantities.
- Validated end user waivers for Samsung, SK Hynix and TSMC end on December 31, 2025, removing prior blanket permissions for equipment shipments to China.
- The annual-approval model avoids hundreds to roughly 1,000 individual filings forecast under a per-shipment regime and offers temporary operational certainty.
- Samsung and SK Hynix declined to comment as Commerce was unavailable; China facilities remain crucial for legacy memory output as AI-driven demand and tight supply lift prices, and TSMC was not reported to have a 2026 approval.