Feature Access

YouTube unlocks channel features in three tiers: standard features for everyone, intermediate features after phone verification, and advanced features after phone verification plus channel history or an ID or video check. All three are checked in YouTube Studio under Settings > Channel > Feature eligibility.

To unlock intermediate features on YouTube, verify a phone number in YouTube Studio under Settings > Channel > Feature eligibility > Intermediate features > VERIFY PHONE NUMBER; advanced features then need either enough channel history or an ID or video check, started from Advanced features > ACCESS FEATURES on the same page. Every channel starts with standard features. The tiers exist to keep spam and abuse away from tools that reach many people, so YouTube asks for a little proof of a real person before longer uploads, and a little more before pinned comments, higher upload limits and the creator tools that depend on them.

Quick facts

Where	YouTube Studio on a computer: Settings > Channel > Feature eligibility
Standard	Every channel
Intermediate	Phone verification by text or voice call
Advanced	Phone verification plus channel history, ID verification or video verification
ID or video review	Usually 24 hours
After a second rejection	Wait 30 days
One phone number	Verifies at most 2 channels
Upload length	15 minutes by default; 12 hours or 256 GB, whichever is less, once verified

What each tier unlocks

Standard features are what any new channel can do: upload videos up to 15 minutes, make Shorts and playlists, and add basic details.

0:07 Intermediate features come with a verified phone number. The best known is uploading videos longer than 15 minutes: verification lifts the limit to 12 hours or 256 GB, whichever is less. Custom Thumbnails also need a verified account (Help).

1:28 Advanced features include pinned comments and higher daily upload limits, and other Help pages name advanced access as the key to more tools: Thumbnail Test and Compare (Help), multi-language audio tracks (Help; Switch Audio Tracks and Languages) and, for channels without access, Chapters (Help). YouTube's podcast RSS upload tool has no subscriber requirement but needs advanced features too. Advanced features are also one of the requirements of the YouTube Partner Program (Help).

How do I unlock intermediate features?

Sign in to YouTube Studio on a computer.
Click Settings, then Channel, then Feature eligibility.
Under Intermediate features, click VERIFY PHONE NUMBER.
Choose a text message or an automated voice call, then enter the code.

If the text does not arrive within a few minutes, Help suggests trying the voice call. The same verification can be started from the YouTube app by uploading a video longer than 15 minutes, which prompts for it (Help).

How do I unlock advanced features?

Advanced features need phone verification first, then one of three things (Help):

Channel history: a record of the channel's uploads, live streams and audience activity, plus the Google Account's age and use. Help says most active channels already have enough, and for them advanced features simply switch on.
ID verification: a photo of a valid ID such as a passport or driver's license, whose birth date must match the Google Account. Review usually takes 24 hours.
Video verification: a short video of the creator's face while following a prompt, such as tracking a dot or turning the head. Review usually takes 24 hours, and an email confirms approval.

To start, go to Feature eligibility > Advanced features > ACCESS FEATURES. Only the primary owner of a channel can verify; Brand Account users and supervised accounts see an error. ID and video verification are not offered to every creator. After a second rejected attempt, either method waits 30 days.

Losing advanced features

Advanced access depends on keeping a clean record. YouTube can delay or remove it after Community Guidelines Strikes, Copyright Strikes, repeated uploads or comments that break policy, spam or scams, impersonation, cyberbullying or child safety violations. Help says a compliant, active channel can usually rebuild enough history to get access back within 2 months. A channel that once uploaded long videos and suddenly cannot should check for claims and strikes first (Help).

Privacy of the ID and video

YouTube usually deletes the ID or video a few months after the channel has built enough history, or after 1 year if advanced features go unused, and always within 2 years. Data may be kept for up to 3 years from the account's last YouTube activity.

What creators say

6:10 In "YouTube Age Verification Got Worse", a 2026 video, the Deep Humor channel objected that Google's terms update named only the obvious losses for accounts YouTube judges to be under 18. By the channel's reading, standard and intermediate features still unlock without an ID, but such an account loses most advanced features unless it hands over an ID, a selfie or a similar check: appealing Content ID claims, external links in descriptions, more uploads, live streams and Shorts a day, title and thumbnail tests, pinned comments, chapters and applying for monetization. That is one creator's list and opinion; YouTube's own list is on its Help page.

Frequently asked questions

How do I get intermediate features on YouTube? Verify a phone number in YouTube Studio under Settings > Channel > Feature eligibility. It unlocks videos longer than 15 minutes and other intermediate features at once.

How do I get advanced features on YouTube without ID? Build channel history: YouTube says most active channels already qualify through their uploads, live streams and account age, with no ID or video needed.

How long does YouTube advanced features verification take? An ID or video check usually takes about 24 hours. Channel history is assessed automatically.

Why can't I verify my YouTube channel with my phone number? One phone number can verify no more than two channels, so a number already used twice is refused. Only the primary owner can verify, and Brand Account users see an error.

How long can a YouTube video be? 15 minutes by default, and up to 12 hours or 256 GB, whichever is less, once the account is phone verified.

Can I lose YouTube advanced features? Yes. Strikes, spam, impersonation and other policy problems can remove them; a compliant channel can usually rebuild access within two months.