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Beginning next year, creators who want to monetize their YouTube channel through the Partner Program will need twice as many watch hours to qualify.

On Monday, YouTube announced some major changes coming to its Partner Program, through which creators can earn ad and Premium revenue. The company is doubling the viewership requirements new creators must meet to qualify.

Currently, channels with 1,000 subscribers can access the full benefits of the YouTube Partner Program if they have either 4,000 qualified watch hours over the past year or 10 million qualified Shorts views within the last 90 days. But beginning February 1, 2027, new creators who want to monetize their channel through the program will need at least 8,000 qualified watch hours or 20 million qualified Shorts views.

YouTube frames the change as a means to launch new opportunities across the program overall, with an expansion to its cheaper Premium Lite subscription launching in all countries where it offers the Premium model. The company splits up subscription revenue to creators based on watch time and views, with 55% dedicated to long-form videos and 45% for Shorts. YouTube reasons that creators can therefore “expect higher earnings” with the additional subscribers from Premium Lite.

YouTube says the new entry thresholds will not impact creators already receiving ad and Premium revenue through the YouTube Partner Program. However, some changes to revenue distribution are also on the horizon.

For creators to keep earning money from the Shorts Creators Pool, they must maintain 10 million Shorts views in the last 90 days—but falling below this threshold won’t result in removal from the YouTube Partner Program.

There are also some new requirements for creators to keep earning money from ads and subscriptions through the Partner Program, including maintaining either 1,000 watch hours over the past year, 1 million Shorts views, or two long-form videos or five Shorts uploaded every 90 days. Existing policies state that YouTube will remove creators from the program if they haven’t uploaded a video or published content to the Posts tab for at least six months.

Creators already in the YouTube Partner Program will need to accept the new terms by January 31, 2027, to continue making money from their content.

Notably, the requirements to access fan funding and YouTube Shopping remain the same. Creators can gain access to those features with 500 subscribers, three public uploads within 90 days, and either 3,000 watch hours or three million Shorts views.

The changes have been met with backlash across the internet. Educational content channel vidIQ said the platform was “raising the bar” for new creators, while DeepHumor added that the changes would deal “a devastating blow” to small channels.