Copyright strike basics

This content is about copyright strikes. If you're looking for information about Community Guidelines strikes, which are different than copyright strikes, go to our Community Guideline strikes basics.

If you get a copyright strike, that means your video has been taken down from YouTube because a copyright owner sent us a complete and valid legal request asking us to do so. When a copyright owner formally notifies us that you don’t have their permission to post their content on the site, we take down your upload to comply with copyright law.

A video can only have one copyright strike at a time. Keep in mind that videos can be removed from the site for reasons other than copyright. Also, Content ID claims don't result in a strike.

Deleting a video with a strike won’t resolve your strike. Learn how to resolve a copyright strike below.

What happens when you get a copyright strike

We all make mistakes. When you get a copyright strike, it acts as a warning. The first time you get a copyright strike, you’ll need to go through Copyright School. We do this so you can understand copyright and how it’s enforced at YouTube. 

Copyright strikes may affect your ability to monetize. In addition, if your live stream is removed for copyright, your access to live streaming will be restricted for 90 days.

If you get 3 copyright strikes:

  • Your account, along with any associated channels, is subject to termination.
  • All the videos uploaded to your account will be removed.
  • You can't create new channels.
Courtesy Period
If your channel is in the YouTube Partner Program, you are eligible for a 7 day courtesy period after 3 copyright strikes before your channel is disabled. During this period, your copyright strikes won’t expire and you won’t be able to upload new videos. Your channel will remain live and you will be able to access it to seek a resolution for your strikes. If your strikes are resolved through a retraction, or we forward your counter notifications and they are ultimately successful, your channel will not be disabled.
How to get information about your strike
  1. Sign in to YouTube Studio.
  2. From the left menu, select Videos.
  3. Click on Copyright claim under the Restrictions column for the respective video.
  4. Click on View Copyright claim details.
Resolve a copyright strike

There are three ways to resolve a copyright strike:

  1. Wait for it to expire: Copyright strikes expire after 90 days. If it's your first strike, you'll need to complete Copyright School.
  2. Get a retraction: You can contact the person who claimed your video and ask them to retract their claim of copyright infringement.
  3. Submit a counter notification: If your video was mistakenly removed because it was misidentified as infringing, or qualifies as a potential fair use, you may wish to submit a counter notification.

Watch to learn more

Check out the following video from the YouTube Creators channel to learn the basics of copyright strikes.

Copyright in YouTube Studio: Addressing Copyright Claims with New Tools, Filters and More

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