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I have lost MFA device since the last year and cannot recover my account with Active license

marisela oliva 0 Reputation points
2026-05-26T02:50:16.84+00:00

I have an active 365 business basic license but cannot access to my Microsoft 365 admin center because i lost my device and i didn have any other recovery method or another admin user only one user without administrative access.

Microsoft 365 and Office | Install, redeem, activate | For business | MacOS
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  1. Hani-Ng 11,315 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2026-05-26T04:01:59.9233333+00:00

    Hi marisela oliva

    If you are the only Global Administrator and you are completely locked out from the tenant. So, only Microsoft Support team can help you in this MFA issue. You might need to contact Microsoft via phone service number: Customer service phone numbers - Microsoft Support. The agent will be able to create a ticket for you under the affected tenant and then transfer this ticket to Data Protection team who could help you to regain access.  

    • To connect directly with a real person when you call Microsoft support, the call must include the term AdminCenter, and the role must be specified as Global Administrator.
    • In the description of the request, the term AdminCenter must also be mentioned.
    • During the telephone dialog, if asked about another administrator, you can answer “no.” The call will then be forwarded to a real support agent, and a service request can be created.

    If you cannot reach a real person via a support call, you can try to use a Trial Business Account to Submit a Ticket. Please visit the Microsoft 365 Business Plans and Pricing | Microsoft 365 and click Try for free to set up a trial account.

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    Then, please sign into the Microsoft 365 Admin Center using your trial tenant admin account > Choose Help & Support (at the bottom right side).

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    If you decide to use the trial account option, please make sure to cancel the subscription once your issue is resolved to avoid any unexpected charges.

    And please understand that we're not Microsoft support, this is a user-to-user support forum. Moderators have no backend access and cannot directly intervene in Microsoft products. We provide only technical guidance and best-practice recommendations based on reported issues.

    I hope this information helps and if you have any question, please feel free to ask via comment section,

    Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.

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  2. marisela oliva 0 Reputation points
    2026-05-26T02:53:40.8933333+00:00

    I’ve tried every possible way to contact support, but it seems impossible to get help. I have my password, proof that the domain belongs to me, and all the required information, yet I still can’t get assistance through any method.

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  3. AI answer

    2026-05-26T02:50:36.0933333+00:00

    Because the only MFA method and admin device are lost and there is no other global admin or recovery method, self-service recovery is not possible. Administrative access must be restored by Microsoft after verifying tenant ownership.

    Use these steps:

    1. Contact Microsoft support by phone
      • Call the Microsoft global customer service phone number for the region. Use the numbers listed under Customer service phone numbers - Microsoft Support.
      • When the IVR asks for the issue, clearly indicate this is an Authenticator / MFA problem for Office 365 for business.
      • When prompted, confirm:
        • It is a company (work) account.
        • The caller is the only global administrator.
        • There is no other admin who can reset MFA.
      • Ask the agent to open a service request with the Microsoft Data Protection / Tenant Recovery team to reset the admin MFA methods.
    2. Work with the Microsoft Data Protection team
      • The Data Protection team will verify identity and tenant ownership (for example, via business documentation or domain ownership) and then reset the MFA registration for the admin account.
      • After the reset, sign in again and register new MFA methods (Authenticator on a new device plus at least one backup method such as phone or email).
    3. (Optional) Use a temporary trial tenant if needed
      • If it is not possible to reach a live agent directly, create a new trial Microsoft 365 tenant using a different account, sign in to the new tenant’s Microsoft 365 admin center, and open a support ticket from there.
      • In the ticket, clearly state that access is needed to a different existing tenant where the caller is the only global admin and is locked out due to lost MFA.

    Important notes:

    • Microsoft for Nonprofits and forum moderators cannot bypass identity verification or directly grant access; all tenant recovery and admin MFA resets are handled through Microsoft 365/Data Protection support.
    • Be prepared for multiple verification steps and some waiting time while the case is processed.
    • After access is restored, add at least one additional global admin and multiple MFA methods to avoid future lockouts.

    References:

    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

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