Some U.S. Huawei users won’t be able to update their phones anymore

Huawei’s temporary license from the U.S. Department of Commerce just expired, making it harder for U.S. users to update some of the Chinese tech company’s phones.

In 2019, President Trump put Huawei and other Chinese companies on the “Entity List,” effectively banning those company from doing business with the U.S. (so for Huawei that was basically Google, whose Android operating system is used by most non-iPhone handsets). But the Department of Commerce has been giving temporary licensing exceptions since then to keep Huawei networks and user systems running smoothly. 

Now, the latest 90-day extension expired on Aug. 13 and it hasn’t been renewed.

Back in May, the U.S. department notified companies that the extension “provides an opportunity for users of Huawei devices and telecommunication providers—particularly those in rural U.S. communities—to continue to temporarily operate such devices and existing networks while hastening the transition to alternative suppliers.”

The time has come for that transition, or risk using phased-out phones and devices that Google’s Android operating system can’t update anymore. That means no more operating system updates (sorry, Android 11 hopefuls) and, perhaps more importantly, no more security updates.

This affects phones like the P30 Pro. For phones that don’t have a Google-based system, like the P40 Pro, updates from China should still be possible. Huawei runs its own operating system, HarmonyOS. 

The expired license is part of the Trump’s administration ongoing crackdown on Chinese tech companies, including apps like TikTok.