Expiring Microsoft startup hub credits worth $12000 in 2 months!!!

Question

Hi,

We are a part of Microsoft startup hub and got the $25k worth Azure credits. But we have not used all our credits and more than half are remaining but it shows they will expire on 13th May 2026. We found that to avoid that startup needs to be part of a Microsoft for Startups Investor Network and ask their respective investor for the referral code.

But we are not backed by any investor or incubator, so what we should do. Is there any way we can keep our remaining credits and utilize.

Looking forward for a positive response

Thanks

Haniket

Answer 1

Hi Haniket Yadav,

But we are not backed by any investor or incubator, so what we should do. Is there any way we can keep our remaining credits and utilize.

Unfortunately, any Azure credits that haven't been used during the time period will expire 180 days after successful verification and cannot be extended.

Reference:

Get up to $5,000 in Azure Credits for Startups | Microsoft Learn

Kindly let us know if the above helps or you need further assistance on this issue.
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Answer 2

Remaining Microsoft for Startups credits cannot be extended beyond their defined validity period.

For the Microsoft for Startups Investor Offer and Azure startup credit offers, the rules in the program are:

1. Credits must be activated within 90 days of accepting the program agreement; otherwise, the offer expires and reapplication is required.
2. After activation, credits are valid for 2 years and extensions are not available.
3. Once all credits are used or the validity period ends, the subscription automatically transitions to pay-as-you-go billing.

From the available information, there is no supported way to “keep” or roll over unused credits past their expiration date, and additional/increased credits based on usage are explicitly limited to startups that are receiving the Microsoft for Startups Investor Offer and are affiliated with an investor in the Microsoft for Startups Investor Network.

For startups that are not receiving the investor offer (no qualifying investor/incubator), the documented path is to use the standard Azure startup credit offer available directly in the Azure portal, which is separate from the investor offer and has its own limits and terms.

Once the current credits expire on the indicated date, any continued Azure usage will be billed under the normal pay-as-you-go terms for the subscription.

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References:

• Azure Credits and Billing FAQs
• Azure Activation FAQs
• Unlock More Azure Credits
• What is Microsoft for Startups?
• [Azure Credit Offer](https://learn.microsoft.com/microsoft-for-startups/benefits/azure)