From February 1, 2027, the bar for joining the YouTube Partner Program doubles. New creators applying for ads and Premium revenue sharing will need 8,000 qualified watch hours in the last 365 days, or 20 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days. The 1,000-subscriber minimum stays exactly where it is. And there is a second change that matters more for creators who are already in the program: a monthly Shorts floor that re-tests you every single month.
YouTube announced all of this on August 10, 2026, in a blog post titled “New opportunities to earn and changes to the YouTube Partner Program.” The same numbers appear on YouTube’s Help Center page for the changes. This guide sticks to what those two sources actually say, plus one clearly labelled piece of reported news at the end. Nothing here comes from a screenshot, a rumor roundup, or a guess.
What are the new YouTube Partner Program requirements from February 1, 2027?
For new applicants, the entry bar for ads and Premium revenue sharing becomes one of two routes. You need 1,000 subscribers plus either 8,000 qualified watch hours in the last 365 days, or 20 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days. YouTube calls this the first significant change to entry since 2018.
| Route | Current (before Feb 1, 2027) | From Feb 1, 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Subscribers | 1,000 | 1,000 (unchanged) |
| Long-form route | 4,000 qualified watch hours in the last 12 months | 8,000 qualified watch hours in the last 365 days |
| Shorts route | 10 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days | 20 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days |
| Fan funding, Shopping, Creator Partnerships | 500 subscribers + 3,000 qualified watch hours in the last year, or 3 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days | Unchanged |
Two things about that table are easy to miss. First, meeting a threshold does not automatically get you in. Every channel still goes through a standard review, which YouTube says typically takes about 1 month. Second, the “qualified” word does real work. Qualified watch hours come only from public long-form videos. They do not come from private, unlisted, or deleted videos, from ad campaigns, from Shorts, or from livestreams that are unlisted, deleted, or never converted to video on demand. Qualified Shorts views come only from public Shorts that appear in the Shorts Feed. Private, unlisted, or deleted Shorts do not count, ad campaigns do not count, and Image Posts in the Shorts Feed do not count. Shorts Feed views never count toward the watch-hour bar, in either direction. Say it plainly: Shorts views do not help you reach 4,000 hours today, and they will not help you reach 8,000 hours in 2027.
Joining also still requires the same basics: following the channel monetization policies, living in a country or region where the program is available, no active Community Guidelines strikes, 2-Step Verification turned on, advanced features access, and one active AdSense for YouTube account linked.
What is the new 10 million Shorts views monthly floor?
This is the change that hits existing partners, and it works differently from an entry bar. From February 1, 2027, a channel needs 10 million qualified Shorts views over the last 90 days to earn Shorts ad revenue and Premium revenue for each month. YouTube measures the 90 days ending on the 15th of the calendar month before the earnings month.
Hitting a monthly Shorts floor means publishing on a schedule, not in bursts. Worth knowing before you pick a tool: Buffer lists YouTube as Shorts only, and most schedulers’ YouTube support is thinner than their marketing suggests.
Fall below the floor and three things are true at once. You stay in the Partner Program. Your long-form earnings are untouched. And your Shorts revenue sharing starts again automatically once you cross 10 million views again. There is no reapplication, no penalty box, no separate approval. YouTube’s own wording is “remain in YPP” and “automatically resuming,” and this guide keeps that wording on purpose, because looser paraphrases have caused real confusion about this rule.
I think the doubled entry bar is the headline, but the monthly floor is the real story. An entry bar is a door you walk through once. A floor is a test you pass every month. A channel with a quiet quarter can dip under it, lose Shorts revenue for a month, and climb back without ever leaving the program. That is a much better deal than getting kicked out, and it is also a reason to watch your trailing 90-day Shorts views the way you watch your subscriber count.
I already crossed 10 million views once. Does the floor still apply to me?
Yes. This is the most confusing part of the whole update, so here are the four numbers side by side. The same number, 10 million, does two completely different jobs.
| Number | What it is | One-time or ongoing | What happens if you miss it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 million Shorts views / 90 days | Current entry bar (Shorts route, before Feb 1, 2027) | One-time | You simply have not qualified yet; you apply once you reach it |
| 20 million Shorts views / 90 days | New entry bar (Shorts route, from Feb 1, 2027) | One-time | You have not qualified yet; you apply once you reach it |
| 10 million Shorts views / 90 days | New monthly Shorts earnings floor (all partners, from Feb 1, 2027) | Ongoing, re-tested every month | You stay in YPP, long-form earnings continue, Shorts revenue pauses until you cross 10 million again |
| 1 million Shorts views / 90 days | Activity test alternative (from Feb 1, 2027) | Ongoing, 90-day window | 90-day restoration window on hours or views before anything further happens |
Read the first and third rows together and the trap becomes obvious. Crossing 10 million once to get in does not exempt you from the floor. The floor asks the same question every month: did you clear 10 million in the last 90 days? If the answer is no for a given month, that month’s Shorts revenue pauses. Cross it again and it resumes. Your entry is history. The floor is current.
What is the new YPP activity test?
Separate from both the entry bar and the floor, YouTube is adding an activity test for existing members from February 1, 2027. Your channel counts as active if it meets any one of three conditions: 1,000 qualified watch hours in the past 365 days, or 1 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days, or 2 long-form videos or 5 Shorts uploaded every 90 days.
If you drop below, you get an extended 90-day window to get back to active status, but only through the hours or views conditions. Uploads do not count for the restoration window. YouTube says most creators in the program already meet these thresholds. Keep the three numbers apart in your head: 8,000 or 20 million gets you in, 10 million a month keeps your Shorts revenue flowing, 1,000 hours or 1 million views or steady uploads keeps you counted as active. Three different jobs.
What happens if I don’t accept the new terms by January 31, 2027?
You need to review and accept the updated terms in YouTube Studio by January 31, 2027. The modules are the Watch Page Monetization Module, the Shorts Monetization Module, and where applicable the Commerce Product Module. If you do not accept by then, you stop earning from the associated monetization features beginning February 1, 2027. Accept later and those features come back. Your decision does not affect your channel’s standing in the Partner Program. That last point matters because it is easy to misread a deadline as a threat to your membership. It is not. It pauses earnings from those features until you accept.
The timeline, in one place: August 10, 2026, YouTube announced the changes on its official blog. January 31, 2027, is the deadline to accept the updated terms. February 1, 2027, is when everything above takes effect.
What about targeted Shorts ads and Premium Lite?
Two more pieces arrive on February 1, 2027. First, targeted Shorts ads. When an advertiser targets an ad to a group of five or fewer channels, eligible creators earn a direct 45% revenue share from that specific placement, paid on top of their standard earnings from the general Shorts Creator Pool. This is direct revenue from a specific ad, not a bonus, and this guide does not call it one. Note that 45% appears three times in this story with three different meanings: this targeted-ads share, the 45% creators keep from their Creator Pool allocation, and the 45% Shorts share of the Premium pool below. They are not the same payment. When you see 45% in YouTube’s documents, check which one it is.
Second, Premium Lite expands to all countries where Premium is available. Creators share in a pool of 30% of net subscription revenue for Premium and 60% for Premium Lite. That pool is distributed based on member watch time and views, and from that distribution creators receive a revenue share of 55% for long-form videos and 45% for Shorts. An illustration makes the split concrete. Take $100 of net Premium subscription revenue. The creator pool is $30. From that distribution, $16.50 goes to long-form creators and $13.50 to Shorts creators, in aggregate. That is an illustration of YouTube’s stated percentages, not a promise to any individual creator. Your own share depends on your share of member watch time and views.
YouTube also says it expects to pay even more to creators in 2027 than in 2026. That is YouTube’s own forecast about its own spending, not an audited figure and not a promise to you personally. Treat it as their stated expectation, nothing more.
What has NOT changed?
The unchanged list is almost as useful as the changed one, because most of the panic around this update comes from assuming everything moved.
- The 1,000-subscriber minimum is unchanged.
- Creators already in the program keep their status. The new entry bar applies to new applicants only.
- The fan funding, Shopping, and Creator Partnerships entry tier is unchanged: 500 subscribers plus 3,000 qualified watch hours in the last year, or 3 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days.
- Missing the Shorts floor does not remove you from the program and does not touch long-form earnings.
- Missing the terms deadline does not remove you from the program. It pauses earnings from the associated features until you accept.
- Shorts Feed views still do not count toward the watch-hour bar.
What is the reported Shorts bonus pilot?
This section is reported news, not YouTube Help Center documentation, and it is labelled that way on purpose. In October 2026, trade press reported that YouTube is testing a Shorts bonus program for invited creators in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Brazil, Japan, and South Korea. Invitations reportedly come by email or YouTube Studio notification, each invitation sets its own monthly Shorts minimum, and there is no way for non-invited creators to apply at this stage. Creators may also earn a performance element based on what YouTube calls “valid, engaged Shorts views,” and YouTube’s Creator Liaison reportedly said more creators may be invited in the coming months. YouTube is also reported to be testing shopping affiliate exclusive offers and updated shopping analytics for creators.
Two warnings belong with that paragraph. One shared invitation mentioned 16 Shorts a month. That is one invitation’s example, not the program’s rule, and it should never be quoted as a requirement. No dollar amount for the bonus has been verified anywhere, so this guide states none. And this pilot is not the same thing as the February 2027 incentive programs in YouTube’s August blog post (Shopping bonuses, brand-deal incentives, trend boosts), which YouTube itself says it will share more details about soon. Do not merge the two.
What should you do before February 1, 2027?
- Open YouTube Studio and check where you stand against the new numbers: your trailing 365-day watch hours, your trailing 90-day Shorts views, and your subscriber count.
- Accept the updated terms in YouTube Studio before January 31, 2027, so no earnings pause hits you on February 1.
- If you earn from Shorts, watch your trailing 90-day Shorts views against the 10 million floor, not just your all-time totals. A quiet quarter is what dips you under it.
- Keep uploads steady enough to clear the activity test through at least one of its three routes, and remember uploads alone do not restore you if you slip.
- Do not buy views, subscribers, or watch time to reach any threshold. YouTube’s own pages exclude artificial views from eligibility, and bought numbers do not survive review. The thresholds reward consistent, original work, which is the whole point of this site.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need 8,000 watch hours if I am already in the Partner Program?
No. The new entry bar applies to new applicants only. YouTube says the update will not impact creators already in the program, and your status is not affected by it.
Does the 10 million Shorts floor kick me out of the Partner Program?
No. If you fall below 10 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days, you stay in the program and your long-form earnings continue. Only that month’s Shorts revenue pauses, and it resumes automatically once you cross 10 million again.
I crossed 10 million Shorts views to qualify. Am I safe from the floor?
No, and this is the easiest mistake in the whole update. The 10 million you crossed once was a one-time entry bar. The 10 million floor re-tests every month. You need 10 million in the trailing 90 days for each month you want Shorts revenue.
What happens if I miss the January 31, 2027 terms deadline?
You stop earning from the associated monetization features beginning February 1, 2027, until you accept the updated terms. Your channel’s standing in the Partner Program is not affected.
Do Shorts views count toward the 8,000 watch hours?
No. Shorts Feed views never count toward the watch-hour threshold, current or new. The 8,000 hours must come from public long-form videos, excluding private, unlisted, or deleted videos and ad campaigns.
Does the fan funding tier change in February 2027?
No. The 500-subscriber tier for fan funding, Shopping, and Creator Partnerships is unchanged: 500 subscribers plus 3,000 qualified watch hours in the last year, or 3 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days.
Sources
- YouTube Official Blog: New opportunities to earn and changes to the YouTube Partner Program (August 10, 2026)
- YouTube Help Center: Changes to the YouTube Partner Program
- YouTube Help Center: YouTube Partner Program overview & eligibility
- YouTube Help Center: YouTube Shorts monetization policies
- Social Media Today: YouTube tests new Shorts incentives (October 19, 2026), reported context only, for the bonus pilot section
