Share via

Cannot create new E5 sandbox — “Create new subscription” button missing

henok ayenew 0 Reputation points
2026-05-22T00:37:45.52+00:00

My previous Microsoft 365 Developer Program E5 sandbox expired on Jan 3, 2025 and was deleted on Mar 4, 2025. The Dev Center dashboard still shows the deleted subscription, but the “Create new subscription” button is missing.

I have already:

Reset my Developer Program profile

Cleared cookies

Used InPrivate mode

Updated my Dev Center settings

Signed out and back in

The dashboard still shows only the expired subscription. Please re-enable my eligibility for a new E5 sandbox.

Thank you.

Microsoft 365 and Office | Development | Microsoft 365 Developer Program
0 comments

2 answers

Sort by: Most helpful
Most helpful Newest Oldest
  1. Teddie-D 16,130 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2026-05-22T01:17:39.4266667+00:00

    Hi @henok ayenew

    Thank you for the detailed information and for confirming the troubleshooting steps you’ve already completed.

    Since the previous Microsoft 365 Developer Program E5 sandbox expired and was deleted, but the dashboard still shows the expired subscription while the “Create new subscription” option is missing, this appears to be an account eligibility or backend provisioning issue rather than a browser/cache issue.

    As a forum moderator, I do not have the specialized tools or access rights to check your account status or resolve backend provisioning issues related to the Developer Program. This is something that must be handled by the program's dedicated team. If you believe you satisfy the criteria and are still experiencing difficulties, we recommend contacting Microsoft Developer Support for further assistance. Their support team is best positioned to provide direct help and resolve such issues effectively.

    Please note that this is a paid support ticket, which means it requires an active support plan or a one-time support purchase. However, the benefit of using this channel is that your inquiry will be routed directly to the Microsoft Product Group responsible for the specific service or feature in question. This team includes engineers and developers who work on the product itself, so they are best positioned to provide accurate, in-depth, and authoritative answers especially for complex or edge-case scenarios that go beyond publicly available documentation or community knowledge.

    Also be aware that Microsoft has updated eligibility requirements for new E5 developer subscriptions, and approval for a new sandbox is determined by the program’s current validation checks. Please refer to Microsoft 365 Developer Program FAQ | Microsoft Learn.

    Thank you for your patience and understanding.

    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.   

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments

  2. AI answer

    2026-05-22T00:38:01.2466667+00:00

    The Microsoft 365 E5 developer sandbox is short‑lived by design and Microsoft may require tenants to be recreated every 90 days. Only one Microsoft 365 developer subscription is allowed per Developer Program membership, and when a previous subscription is deleted, the normal path to get a new one is through the Developer Program dashboard.

    Because the “Create new subscription” button is missing even after the previous sandbox has been deleted and the Developer Program profile has been reset, this is no longer something that can be fixed from the self‑service UI. Similar eligibility and activation issues (for example, when eligible customers are not recognized, or when subscriptions cannot be created due to backend flags) have required intervention from Microsoft support or the internal Dev Program/portal team.

    Actionable next steps:

    1. Open a support ticket from the Microsoft 365 Developer Program or from the associated Microsoft account/tenant, describing:
      • The original E5 sandbox expiration and deletion dates.
      • That the dashboard still shows the deleted subscription and no “Create new subscription” button.
      • That the Developer Program profile has already been reset and reconfigured.
    2. If the tenant is associated with an eligible program (for example Visual Studio subscription, Partner/ISV/Unified Support, etc.), reference that eligibility explicitly in the ticket so support can validate it against the backend eligibility service.
    3. Ask support to:
      • Clear or correct any stale subscription state for the Developer Program membership.
      • Re‑enable eligibility or manually trigger creation of a new Microsoft 365 E5 developer subscription for the same membership.

    In other documented cases where eligibility or activation was blocked by backend state or account flags, resolution occurred only after support or the internal M365 Dev Portals and Infrastructure team adjusted the account/eligibility on the backend.

    References:

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

    Was this answer helpful?

Your answer

Answers can be marked as 'Accepted' by the question author and 'Recommended' by moderators, which helps users know the answer solved the author's problem.