YouTube is raising the bar for creators who want to earn money from ads and subscriptions. 

Starting February 1, 2027, creators hoping to join the YouTube Partner Program will need 1,000 subscribers and either 8,000 hours of qualified watch time in the previous 12 months or 20 million qualified Shorts views within 90 days. That is twice the current watch-time requirement and double the Shorts threshold. At present, creators need 1,000 subscribers alongside 4,000 qualified watch hours over 12 months or 10 million qualified Shorts views over 90 days.

The subscriber requirement remains unchanged, but the jump in viewing metrics means newer creators will now have to build considerably larger audiences before they can start sharing in YouTube’s advertising revenue.

Shorts creators also face a new condition after entering the Partner Program. To earn from the Shorts Creator Pool, channels will need to record at least 10 million qualified Shorts views within 90 days. Falling below that figure will not remove a creator from the Partner Program, but it will pause their Shorts earnings until they cross the threshold again.

YouTube says the changes reflect the platform’s growing scale, pointing to more than 200 billion daily Shorts views and over a billion hours of YouTube watched on televisions every day.

The company is also making changes to how creators can earn beyond advertising. Its cheaper Premium Lite subscription is expanding to every country where YouTube Premium is available. Creators receive a share of subscription revenue based on how much their content is watched, with 55% allocated to long-form content and 45% to Shorts.

YouTube says Premium subscribers can generate more revenue for creators on average than viewers who watch ads, giving creators another potential source of income as the platform expands its paid audience.

But getting into the Partner Program is not the only hurdle changing.

Creators already in the programme will have to remain active to keep monetisation. YouTube says channels will need to meet at least one of several activity or performance conditions, including 1,000 watch hours in a year, 1 million Shorts views, or regular uploads of two long-form videos or five Shorts within a 90-day period. Channels that go six months without uploading content or using the Posts tab can also be removed from the programme.

The new rules come as YouTube continues to push beyond its traditional identity as a video-sharing platform and further into the territory of television and streaming services. The company has been expanding its presence on TV screens, introducing seasons for creator content and securing programming deals with established personalities.