Word Unlicensed Product

Question

When I go to Word it says that it is an Unlicensed Product because my subscription was cancelled, so am unable to create a new document or make changes to other documents I have on my computer

When my personal subscription ran out I joined our family plan.

It says that I'm installedin our family Microsoft 365 subscription, but when I go to open a new blank document or edit an old document it won't let me

Answer 1

Confirm with the person who pays for the 365 Family subscription that you have indeed been invited properly and accepted the invite. See https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/share-your-microsoft-365-family-or-premium-subscription-b389b9ce-3ae3-4a82-9017-39d79972fcba .

Answer 2

The apps are still using the old, cancelled subscription, so Word is running as Unlicensed Product even though the family subscription is active. Fix this by confirming the correct subscription is active, then making Word pick up that license.

Follow these steps in order:

1. Confirm the active subscription
   1. Close all Office apps.
   2. Go to the Subscriptions page: https://account.microsoft.com/services
   3. Sign in with the Microsoft account that is part of the family Microsoft 365 subscription.
   4. Under Subscriptions (not Cancelled subscriptions), verify that the family Microsoft 365 subscription is listed as active.
2. Make sure Word is signed in with the same account
   1. Open Word.
   2. Go to File → Account.
   3. Under User Information, check which account is shown.
   4. If it is not the same account that shows the active family subscription on the Subscriptions page, click Sign out for all accounts listed.
   5. Close Word.
   6. Reopen Word and sign in using the account that is part of the active family subscription.
3. Refresh the license in Word
   1. In Word, go again to File → Account.
   2. Use the option there to Update license (or similar wording) and sign in again with the family-subscription account.
   3. Close and reopen Word, then try creating a new blank document and editing an existing one.
4. If Word still shows Unlicensed Product
   1. Follow the activation troubleshooting steps in Unlicensed Product and activation errors in Office to:
      • Confirm again that the correct account is used (Step 1: Sign in to Office with the right account).
      • Check that there are no conflicting or older Office installations that might be using the cancelled subscription (Step 2: Check for multiple copies of Office).
      • Confirm the subscription is not expired (Step 3: Check your Microsoft 365 subscription status).
   2. If activation still fails, run the Microsoft 365 activation troubleshooter on the same Windows PC (Windows 10 or higher) as described in Step 4 of that article and follow its prompts.

Once Word is signed in with the account that has the active family subscription and the license is refreshed, the Unlicensed Product banner should disappear and editing/creating documents will be re-enabled.

---

References:

• A subscription notice appears when I open a Microsoft 365 application
• Unlicensed Product and activation errors in Office
• Why did my file open read-only?
• When opening Word or Excel, getting a 'subscription canceled' message but I have renewed my Office subscription - Microsoft Q&A
• No license associated with my email account - Microsoft Q&A
• I just bought Office for Home and Business and now "No license found" - Microsoft Q&A