YouTube Partner Program Changes 2027: What Shorts and Faceless Channels Should Do Before February 1

YouTube is raising the bar to get paid. From February 1, 2027, new channels need twice the watch hours or twice the Shorts views to join the YouTube Partner Program, and every channel, new or old, needs 10 million Shorts views in a rolling 90 days to earn from the Shorts ad pool. If you run a faceless Shorts channel, especially one that isn't monetized yet, the next four months matter more than usual. Here's what changes, who it hits, and what to do before the deadline.

What YouTube announced

YouTube announced the changes on August 10, 2026 in a post on the official YouTube blog, with details in the Help Center article on changes to the YouTube Partner Program. Coverage from TechCrunch and NewscastStudio lines up on the main points. Everything below takes effect on February 1, 2027.

1. The entry bar doubles for new applicants

To join the ads-and-Premium level of YPP, a new channel will need 1,000 subscribers plus either 8,000 public watch hours in the last 365 days or 20 million public Shorts views in the last 90 days. Today it's 1,000 subscribers plus 4,000 hours or 10 million Shorts views (see YouTube's current eligibility rules). The subscriber minimum doesn't change.

Channels already in YPP keep their status. YouTube says the update "won't impact creators already in YPP"; the new entry bar applies to new applicants.

2. Shorts revenue gets a rolling 10M-view gate, for everyone

This is the change that hits Shorts creators hardest. YouTube's Shorts monetization policies now say that from February 1, 2027, a channel needs at least 10 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days to earn its share of the Shorts Creator Pool and YouTube Premium revenue for a given month. The 90-day window ends on the 15th of the month before the one being paid out.

This applies to channels already in the program, not just new ones. If you fall below the line, you don't get kicked out of YPP: you keep earning on long-form videos, and YouTube says Shorts revenue sharing resumes automatically once you're back above 10 million.

3. Existing partners must accept new terms

Current partners have to accept updated YPP terms in YouTube Studio by January 31, 2027. Per the Help Center article, if you don't, you stop earning from the affected monetization features on February 1 until you do. You stay in YPP either way.

4. New ways to earn, with details still to come

For channels under the Shorts threshold, YouTube's announcement points to new ways to earn: bonuses for YouTube Shopping, incentives for brand deals, and earnings boosts for starting and growing trends. It says more details are coming soon. Until those are published, don't plan your income around them.

What the numbers mean in practice

Thresholds are easier to judge as daily rates. Simple division, no forecasting:

• 10M Shorts views in 90 days is about 111,000 views a day, every day, just to keep Shorts revenue.
• 20M Shorts views in 90 days (the new Shorts route into YPP) is about 222,000 views a day.
• 8,000 watch hours is 480,000 minutes. If viewers watch an average of 4 minutes per view, that's 120,000 long-form views across a year, or roughly 330 a day.

The 4-minute figure is just an example; plug in your own average view duration from YouTube Studio. The point holds either way: for a small channel, the watch-hour route is now far more reachable than the Shorts-views route. Several outlets, including Switcher Studio, came to the same conclusion: long-form is now the easier path into YPP.

Who this hits, and how

Shorts-only faceless channels that aren't monetized yet

Hardest hit. If you were counting on reaching 10 million Shorts views to get in, the target just doubled. If you're close to the current bar, this is the window to push.

Monetized channels that live on Shorts

Your YPP membership is safe, but Shorts pool revenue now depends on staying above 10 million views every 90 days. Check your trailing 90-day Shorts views in Studio today so you know which side of the line you're on.

Long-form faceless channels

If you're already in, little changes beyond accepting the new terms. If you're not, you need twice the hours, but this is still the more realistic route for most small channels.

What to do before February 1, 2027

1. Check where you stand now. In YouTube Studio's monetization section, look at your subscribers, public watch hours (365 days) and public Shorts views (90 days). If you already meet today's bar, apply now. The new bar applies to applicants from February 1, and you don't want your application caught on the wrong side of that date. If you're unsure how a pending application will be treated, check the Help Center article rather than guessing.
2. Accept the updated terms. If you're a partner, watch for the prompt in Studio and accept before January 31, 2027.
3. Add a long-form track. Shorts are still great for discovery, but they now have a much harder path to revenue. A weekly long-form video (a compilation of your best stories with new commentary, a deeper retelling, a "part 1 to 5" in one sitting) is how a Shorts audience starts adding watch hours.
4. Point Shorts at long-form. Say in the video where the full version lives, and link to it wherever YouTube lets you. A Short that sends viewers to a 10-minute video is now worth more to a small channel than one more Short.
5. Don't rely on one payout. Affiliate links, sponsorships and YouTube Shopping don't depend on the Shorts pool. Start one now so February doesn't zero out your income.
6. Keep it original. Getting to the threshold doesn't help if the channel fails YouTube's reused-content review. Our post on the October Shorts originality update covers what YouTube says does and doesn't count as original.

Quick takeaways

• February 1, 2027: new applicants need 8,000 watch hours or 20M Shorts views, plus 1,000 subscribers.
• Every channel needs 10M Shorts views in a rolling 90 days to earn from the Shorts Creator Pool.
• Falling below 10M pauses Shorts pool revenue. It doesn't remove you from YPP or stop long-form earnings.
• Partners must accept the new terms by January 31, 2027.
• If you already qualify, apply before February 1.
• For most small faceless channels, long-form watch hours are now the realistic way in.

Where Tsuyu fits

Tsuyu won't get you into YPP. Views and watch time come from stories people want to finish. What it does is cut the production time per video, which leaves you more hours for writing and for the long-form work these rules now reward.

Paste a Reddit link or your own script, edit it, and Tsuyu renders a narrated video with a natural AI voice, word-timed captions, illustrated scenes or stock b-roll, and an optional animated host. You can render vertical for Shorts or horizontal 16:9 for regular YouTube videos. Tsuyu makes videos of up to a few minutes. Longer scripts are split into a multi-part series, so it's a fit for Shorts and short horizontal pieces, not for editing a 20-minute video. You download the MP4 and upload it yourself.