I cannot log into my outlook, its saying my password reset is sent to admin. Im a sole trader, I do not have admin!!

Hi @Kerri Pietens,

Thank you for posting your question in the Microsoft Q&A forum, and I’m sorry to hear you're having trouble accessing work account due to Microsoft Authenticator app.

In most cases, the message of sending password reset to admin indicates that the system attempted to notify an administrator account. Based on your description, the account that received the notification may not necessarily have a privileged administrator role. For this reason, I recommend checking whether there are other accounts within your organization that can successfully sign in to the Microsoft 365 Admin Center.

If you have another account that can successfully sign in to the Microsoft 365 Admin Center, that account can be used to help reset MFA settings and restore access to the affected account by following the guidance outlined in the article Manage authentication methods for Microsoft Entra multifactor authentication - Microsoft Entra ID |….

If no account is able to successfully access the Admin Center, this may indicate that the tenant is fully locked out and that you are likely the sole administrator. In this situation, please follow the steps outlined below to regain administrator access.

Option 1: Contact Microsoft Data Protection Support by phone (Please proceed with the second option if contacting phone support is not applicable to your situation)

To regain access to your admin account as you can't access the Admin Portal, you can try reaching out to our Global Customer Service phone to raise a request for resetting your authentication method here: Customer service phone numbers - Microsoft Support. During the call, request to speak to an agent, and share with them every detail related to your query and also mention that you are the only admin lost access to your account. This should allow you to contact the appropriate team so you can solve this incident as soon as possible.

Please note that forum moderators do not have access to user account settings and cannot assist with logging in, resetting passwords, or changing access rights. While we do not have access to internal systems or administrative tools required to resolve account-specific or backend-related issues, we’ll continue doing our best to support you within the scope of our responsibilities.   

Here are some tips and an example of a prompt to help you navigate the IVR more effectively:      

IVR: What kind of problem are you concerned about?   

You: Authenticator.   

A: What products do you use?

B: Office 365 for business.

Verification: Education or company account?

B: For companies

A: Are you an administrator?

B: Yes.

A: Are there any other administrators in your organization?

B: No.

IVR: Do you need a... Service request?

You: Yes. I need to create a ticket. Please send me directly to the Data Protection Team.

Option 2: Create a new tenant to submit a support ticket (Alternative Method)

If you cannot reach a live agent, there is still a workaround, you might consider registering for a new tenant by signing up for a trial subscription via this link Microsoft 365 Business Plans and Pricing | Microsoft 365.

This would allow you to create a new tenant following the prompts provided. Once set up, you can access the admin console of the new tenant and submit a support ticket requesting to speak with the Data Protection team on behalf of your previous tenant.         

In your ticket description, you'll need to clearly explain that you're trying to regain access to your previous Microsoft 365 tenant and need help from the Data Protection team. Here's a message you can use or adapt: 

"Hello, I’m currently unable to access my previous Microsoft 365 tenant due to losing MFA access, which prevents me from receiving verification codes. I’m the global admin, but I’m locked out and unable to generate a QR code or bypass MFA. 

I created this new tenant solely to request assistance. I kindly ask to be connected with the Data Protection team to verify my identity and help me recover access to the original tenant. 

This is urgent, as I rely on Microsoft 365 for my work and have been unable to operate for several days. I’m available to provide any documentation or verification needed to support the recovery process." 

Ticket Support: In the Microsoft 365 admin center > Support > Help & Support. 

It is important to note: Please remember to cancel the trial subscription once your issue is resolved to avoid any unintended charges. You may prefer the following resource for detailed instructions: Cancel your Microsoft business subscription in the Microsoft 365 admin center | Microsoft Learn.

I hope this helps you regain access to your account quickly. I'm glad to assist and truly hope the information provided has been useful. Please feel free to reach out anytime if you need further assistance.

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