Twitch recently announced a significant update to its violation policies: Community guideline violations will now expire after a set period. This change aims to create a fairer environment for creators by acknowledging growth and learning from past mistakes.

According to Twitch in a recent post, “Starting today, most violations will expire and drop off of your account after a set amount of time. You will be able to track when they expire in the Appeals Portal, and this information will also be in the enforcement emails that you receive.”

How the new policy works

Under the new system, minor infractions will disappear from an account after 90 days. More serious violations, such as participating in hateful conduct, will remain for one to two years. The expiration timeline depends on the severity of the offense. High-severity violations, including child safety breaches, terrorism, and extreme hate speech, will not expire and will remain permanently on an account.

This policy shift offers creators a chance to move past minor mistakes without long-term repercussions. It encourages adherence to community guidelines while providing an opportunity for redemption. However, creators must remain vigilant, as serious violations will still have lasting consequences.

Twitch looks to be more forgiving

According to Twitch, “Most violations committed tend to be low severity (such as cheating in online games) and will expire in 90 days. However, higher-severity violations (such as hateful conduct) will remain on an account longer, and will expire in 1 or 2 years. The most severe harms will still result in immediate indefinite suspensions. If you are indefinitely suspended due to accumulating multiple violations within a short time period, you are able to apply for reinstatement after 6 months.” This means that depending on the severity of the violation, Twitch will either be more or less forgiving.

Creators should familiarize themselves with these changes to understand how they may impact their streaming experience. You can read them here.

Featured image courtesy: Twitch