Cannot activate a grant

Question

We received a $2000 grant for Azure SQL. The activation process fails, and we are unable to open a ticket that will connect us with a person to resolve.

Any suggestions on how I can do this?

Answer 1

Hello @arthur ross

Thank you for posting your query on Microsoft Q&A platform.

Activate your Azure Sponsorship grant

1. Sign in to the Nonprofit Hub by using your validated Microsoft account.
2. Go to the Offers tab and locate the Azure $2,000 Sponsorship offer.
3. Select the Activate button next to the Azure grant.
4. Complete the guided setup. Follow the instructions to:
   • Accept the Azure Sponsorship terms.
   • Choose whether to activate the credit on an existing billing profile or create a new one.
5. Set up your Azure subscription environment.

Activation deadline:

You must activate your Azure credit within 90 days of offer issuance. If you don't activate the credit, it might expire and become inaccessible.

Important notes about activation:

• Only the primary contact listed on the offer can activate the credit.
• After activation, the credit is shared across all subscriptions under the chosen billing profile.
• Azure Sponsorship credit applies only to first-party Microsoft Azure services. It can't be used for:
  • Reserved instances.
  • Third-party marketplace offers.
  • Support plans.

Check your credit balance:

You can check your balance and view usage from the Microsoft Azure portal:

1. Sign in to the Azure portal by using the administrator account that's associated with the grant.
2. On the left pane, go to Billing > Payment Methods.
3. On the Azure Credits tab, view the current balance and usage details.

If the balance doesn't appear:

• Ensure that you selected the correct billing account or billing profile.
• If necessary, follow the steps in Billing accounts and scopes in the Azure portal to confirm that the right scope is active.

If your nonprofit remains on the legacy sponsorship (including regions for China and India), view your balance in the Azure Sponsorships portal. You must log in with the account owner credentials. Typically, these credentials have the .onmicrosoft.com email address that you used during grant setup. The Azure Sponsorships portal displays the remaining balance, usage, and expiration details.

View all available grants and discounts:

To access all offers available to you:

1. Sign in to the Nonprofit Hub.
2. Select Offers. The Offers page in the Nonprofit Hub is your central dashboard for accessing and viewing available grants and discounts. It shows:
   • A list of your organization's current nonprofit offers.
   • The status of your Microsoft 365 and Azure benefits.
   • Activation prompts for unclaimed benefits.
   • Expiration dates for time-limited offers.
   • Notifications related to account usage or potential deactivation.
3. Choose any available benefit to review details or activate on the link to Microsoft Admin Center

You can submit a support request through our Contact Us form.

If you have any other questions, please do let us know.

Thanks,

Suchitra.

Answer 2

If you're having trouble activating your Azure grant, here are some steps you can take:

1. Ensure Eligibility: Make sure that your organization has completed the nonprofit eligibility validation and that you are the primary contact listed on the Azure grant.
2. Check Activation Deadline: Remember that you must activate your Azure credit within 90 days of the offer issuance. If this period has passed, the credit may have expired.
3. Use the Nonprofit Hub: Sign in to the Nonprofit Hub using your validated Microsoft account. Go to the Offers tab and locate the Azure $2,000 Sponsorship offer. Try to activate it again from there.
4. Billing Profile: Make sure you are activating the grant under the correct billing profile. If you need to change ownership or billing profiles, you can create a product transfer request as mentioned in the documentation.
5. Support Request: If the activation continues to fail, you can submit a support request through the Nonprofit Hub's Contact Us form to get assistance from Microsoft support.
6. Check Credit Balance: You can also check your credit balance and usage from the Azure portal to ensure everything is set up correctly.

If you are still unable to resolve the issue, consider reaching out to Microsoft support directly for personalized assistance.

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References:

• Activate your Azure grant
• FAQ
• Check your credit balance