Microsoft is enhancing license management for Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations. Starting January 15, 2026, license validation will begin for customers with contract renewals or anniversaries after that date. Users without properly assigned licenses will temporarily lose access until licenses are provisioned, so proactive management is essential.
Even if you’ve got licenses sitting unused, or users unknowingly flying under the radar, now is the time to streamline and secure your licensing setup.
And here’s the thing: to keep everything running smoothly and make sure all your users have the access they need, you may need to purchase additional licenses. We know the options can get confusing, but we’ll help you get it sorted—smoothly and stress-free.
Microsoft’s rollout of these changes has already begun, and enforcement will only get stricter. Let’s walk through what’s happening, how to prepare, and ensure there are no unexpected disruptions from January 15, 2026.
Here’s the big shift: Up until now, Microsoft has allowed a bit of wiggle room. As long as your organization purchased enough licenses overall, users were able to access F&O apps—even if they weren’t directly assigned a license. That changes with the staged rollout starting January 15, 2026.
From that day forward, licenses must be assigned directly via the Microsoft 365 Admin Center. If a user isn’t licensed, they’ll be locked out. It’s simple: stay compliant and keep everything running smoothly.
Early signals are behind us — now it’s time to take charge and shape what’s next. Don’t miss your final boarding call!
Here’s what’s already rolled out:
April 30, 2025:
September 1, 2025:
Coming next:
January 15, 2026:
Let’s keep it real.
Come January 15, 2026, users who haven’t been assigned a license won’t get a nudge—they’ll get blocked. Picture your finance manager unable to run payroll. Or your warehouse lead locked out during inventory close. Not ideal.
Beyond the immediate disruption to critical operations, you’re also looking at frustrated end-users flooding your IT team, potential audit issues from non-compliance, and wasted spend on wrongly assigned or unused licenses. None of that’s good for business.
This enforcement affects users of the following Dynamics 365 apps:
Every user of these apps must have a license explicitly assigned in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center—group-based assignment or implicit access won’t fly anymore.
Let’s cut to the chase. Here’s what your IT and licensing teams need to be doing:
Head to the Power Platform Admin Center (PPAC) and open the User License Level Overview Report. This report gives you a clear snapshot of total licenses bought versus those assigned, shows who is actively using the licenses and who isn’t, highlights users missing licenses, and offers suggested actions to help you stay on top of things. Consider this your go-to visibility dashboard—make good use of it.
From now on, all Dynamics 365 licenses must be assigned through the Microsoft 365 Admin Center.
Not everyone needs a full Finance or Supply Chain license. Use Microsoft’s License Estimator Tool to map users’ security roles to the right license type. For example, some users might only require a Team Member license, while others could benefit from activity-based licenses instead of full ones. This step alone can save you a chunk of your Dynamics budget.
It’s low-hanging fruit. If someone isn’t actively using the system—or left the company— it’s best to revoke their license. You might be surprised how many organizations hold onto licenses tied to inactive accounts. Regular quarterly cleanups can help you reclaim and reassign those seats efficiently.
Think of this as your licensing mission control. It tracks license usage and gaps, suggests corrective actions, and flags users with missing or invalid licenses—giving you a clear, centralized view to manage your licenses effectively.
For partners and admins, LCS mirrors the license compliance data shown in PPAC—making it easier to collaborate and take action.
User Security Governance reports show which roles require which licenses.
Let’s be honest—this licensing stuff isn’t always straightforward. And with deadlines looming, it’s easy to get caught in a tangle of reports, estimators, and access controls.
That’s why we at Intwo offer a License Compliance Assessment & Remediation Service designed to take the stress off your shoulders.
Here’s how we help:
Because this isn’t just about following rules—it’s about keeping your team productive, avoiding unnecessary costs, and staying audit-ready. The January 15, 2026, deadline is real—but there’s still time to act. Start with the data, assign what’s necessary, streamline what’s no longer relevant, and if it all feels like a bit much—just reach out. We’re here to support you every step of the way. Got questions? Want to book a compliance assessment?
Reach out to us at marketing@intwo.cloud — we’d be happy to help.
As Customer Success Manager at Intwo, I help organizations drive digital transformation through ERP and CRM solutions. I focus on building lasting customer relationships, delivering solution strategies, and enabling growth with expertise in Microsoft Dynamics 365, Business Central, SAP Business One HANA, and Microsoft CRM.
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