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(Updated) Microsoft 365 Copilot: Business justification for Copilot license requests

Services: Microsoft 365 suite, Microsoft Copilot (Microsoft 365)· Published: 2026-02-05· MS modified: 2026-07-20
Updated messageNew featureUser impactAdmin impact

Microsoft announcement

Updated July 20, 2026: We have decided to rollback this change and will not be moving forward with it at this time. We apologize for any inconvenience.  

[Introduction]

To help organizations streamline approval workflows and improve governance, users who request a Microsoft 365 Copilot license will be able to submit a business justification with their request. Admins will see this justification during review, enabling faster and more informed decisions while reducing manual follow-ups.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 547731.

[When this will happen]

General Availability (Worldwide): We have decided to rollback this change and will not be moving forward with it at this time.

[How this affects your organization]

Who is affected:

  • Users who request Microsoft 365 Copilot licenses
  • Admins who review, approve, or manage Copilot license requests

What will happen:

  • Users requesting a Copilot license will see a new field to provide a business justification.
  • Admins will see the justification as part of the review experience.
  • The feature will be on by default with no tenant configuration required.
  • Existing license request workflows will continue to function as they do today.
  • There will be no impact to the user experience unless they request a Copilot license.
  • No changes to admin policies, settings, or reporting.

Screenshot 1 - A license request will be created when the user clicks Request License:

user settings

Screenshot 2 - On the next screen, there is an option to provide a business justification for the request; this step is optional:

 user settings

Screenshot 3 - View of the dropdown menu with business justification options:

 user settings

[What you can do to prepare]

No action is required.

Optional steps:

  • Notify helpdesk or approvers about the new justification field.
  • Review or update internal documentation as needed.
  • If you track license request metadata, ensure your internal workflows and tools account for the justification field.

[Compliance considerations]

No compliance considerations identified. Review as appropriate for your organization.

Change history