You renewed your Microsoft 365 Copilot subscription, but the status still shows as expired. This problem usually occurs because the licensing data on your local device has not synced with Microsoft’s servers after the renewal processed. The subscription status is stored in cached credentials and license files that can become stale. This article explains why the expired status persists and provides four reliable methods to force a refresh of your license state.
Key Takeaways: Refresh Your Copilot License After Renewal
- Sign out and sign back into Microsoft 365 apps: Forces the client to re-authenticate and download the current subscription status from Microsoft servers.
- Clear Microsoft 365 cached credentials from Windows Credential Manager: Removes stale authentication tokens that store the expired license flag.
- Run the Microsoft 365 License Activation Troubleshooter: Automatically detects and repairs activation state mismatches between the client and server.
Why Copilot Shows Expired After a Successful Renewal
When you renew a Microsoft 365 Copilot subscription, Microsoft’s licensing servers update your tenant’s entitlement record within minutes. However, the Microsoft 365 apps on your Windows device do not constantly poll the licensing servers. Instead, they rely on a local license cache that is refreshed only during specific events: application startup, user sign-in, or a manual license revalidation. If the renewal occurred while the apps were open, or if the local cache was not invalidated by the server, the apps continue to display the old expired status. The root cause is a synchronization delay between the server-side entitlement and the client-side license cache. This can also happen if your device has multiple Microsoft 365 licenses assigned and the client picks up the wrong one.
How the License Cache Works
Microsoft 365 stores licensing tokens in two locations: the Windows Credential Manager under the MicrosoftOffice entry, and in the registry at HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Common\Licensing. These tokens include an expiration timestamp. When the local token shows a past date, the app treats the subscription as expired even if the server shows active. The fix requires deleting or overwriting these cached tokens so the app is forced to fetch fresh data.
Steps to Force a License Refresh for Copilot
Choose one of the methods below. Start with Method 1 because it is the fastest and requires no administrative privileges.
Method 1: Sign Out and Sign Back Into All Microsoft 365 Apps
- Close all Microsoft 365 apps
Close Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams, and any other Office application. Right-click the Teams icon in the system tray and select Quit. - Open any Office app and sign out
Open Word. Go to File > Account. Under User Information, select Sign Out. Confirm the sign-out when prompted. - Close the app and reopen it
Close Word completely. Open Word again. Click Sign In on the Account page. Enter your Microsoft 365 work or school account credentials. Copilot should now show as active.
Method 2: Clear Cached Credentials in Windows Credential Manager
- Open Credential Manager
Press the Windows key, type Credential Manager, and press Enter. - Select Windows Credentials
Click the Windows Credentials tab. - Remove MicrosoftOffice entries
Scroll to the Generic Credentials section. Look for entries that start with MicrosoftOffice or Microsoft.Office. Click the arrow to expand each entry, then select Remove. Confirm each removal. - Restart your computer
Restart Windows. After the restart, open any Microsoft 365 app and sign in again. The license status should now reflect the active subscription.
Method 3: Run the Microsoft 365 Activation Troubleshooter
- Download the troubleshooter
Go to aka.ms/SARA-OfficeActivation-Alchemy and download the Microsoft Support and Recovery Assistant. - Run the tool
Open the downloaded file. Accept the license terms. Select Office as the product, then select I’m having trouble activating Office. - Follow the on-screen prompts
The tool will check your license status, clear the local cache, and re-activate the product. Restart your device when prompted.
Method 4: Remove and Reassign the License from Microsoft 365 Admin Center
- Sign in to Microsoft 365 Admin Center
Go to admin.microsoft.com and sign in with your global admin account. - Navigate to the user’s license page
Go to Users > Active Users. Select the affected user. Click the Licenses and Apps tab. - Uncheck the Copilot license
Uncheck the Microsoft 365 Copilot license. Click Save changes. Wait 5 minutes. - Re-check the Copilot license
Check the Copilot license again. Click Save changes. The user’s license is now freshly assigned. Have the user sign out and sign back into their Microsoft 365 apps.
If Copilot Still Shows Expired After These Fixes
If the subscription status does not update after trying the methods above, check these additional factors.
Copilot license was assigned to the wrong user
In the Microsoft 365 Admin Center, verify that the correct user account has the Copilot license assigned. If the license was assigned to a different user, remove it from that user and assign it to the correct one. Then run the sign-out and sign-in process again.
Multiple Microsoft 365 subscriptions are active on the same tenant
If your tenant has both Microsoft 365 E3 and Copilot for Microsoft 365, the client may pick up the base E3 license instead of the Copilot add-on. In the admin center, ensure the user has only the intended license combination. Remove any conflicting license assignments.
Network proxy or firewall blocks license validation
Microsoft 365 apps need to reach licensing.mp.microsoft.com and activation.sls.microsoft.com to validate licenses. If your corporate network blocks these domains, the client cannot refresh the license. Ask your IT team to add these endpoints to the allowlist. After unblocking, run the Activation Troubleshooter again.
Manual License Refresh vs Automatic Renewal: What Changes
| Item | Manual Refresh (fix described in this article) | Automatic Renewal (normal behavior) |
|---|---|---|
| Trigger | User signs out and signs back in, or clears credentials | Microsoft server sends a renewal notification to the client on next app launch |
| Time to reflect | Immediate after sign-in or credential clear | Up to 24 hours depending on client update frequency |
| User action required | Yes, multiple steps | None, happens in the background |
| Risk of data loss | None, cached files are not deleted | None |
| Best for | Users who see expired status immediately after renewal | Users who wait for normal sync cycle |
You can now resolve the expired subscription status by signing out and signing back in, clearing cached credentials, running the Activation Troubleshooter, or reassigning the license. After the fix, confirm the status by opening any Microsoft 365 app, going to File > Account, and checking the Subscription Product section. To prevent this issue in the future, always close all Microsoft 365 apps before processing a renewal in the admin center. If you manage multiple users, use the admin center’s bulk license assignment feature to avoid assignment mismatches.