We have added guests team members to our share point site, they have accepted their invitations and they are not showing up in the search and we cannot add them to chats.

Question

hi team, I wonder if this is expected and its MS team limitation app.

We have added guests team members to our share point site, they have accepted their invitations and they are not showing up in the search and we cannot add them to chats. 1:1 and chats are enabled from MS policies. We have other internal teams too with same issue.

Can you please help?
thank you

Answer 1

Hi @Dariela Dosigyan,

Thank you for your detailed update.

Based on what I tested in my environment, the account format you shared (guest account created through Entra ID with the #EXT# format) can normally be searched in Teams once it has been properly added and synchronized.

However, in my case, the guest accounts were added quite some time ago. Because of that, I recommend allowing some additional time for synchronization across Microsoft 365 to complete, as newly added guest accounts may not appear immediately in Teams search or chat.

If you’re still unable to find the users after waiting, you could try a quick test by removing and then re-adding one of the guest accounts. This can help confirm whether the issue is related to how the guest was provisioned or synced.

If the same behavior continues across multiple guest users and different Teams after waiting, this may indicate a backend synchronization or policy-related issue. In that case, I recommend opening a support request with Microsoft so they can check the directory synchronization status and any policy enforcement on the backend.

• Submit a service request: The Global Administrator should create a support request with Microsoft to receive advanced technical assistance. For detailed instructions, see: Get support - Microsoft 365 admin | Microsoft Learn
• If your subscription is from a partner or reseller, contact the reseller's support provider to help open a service request on behalf of you instead.     

If you discover any solutions or have additional insights, please consider replying to this thread to help others in the community.    

I sincerely apologize for redirecting you to the Microsoft Technical Support Team. While I strive to assist as much as possible here in the forum, my resources are limited when it comes to backend-level diagnostics and advanced troubleshooting.   

Thank you, and please let me know if you need any further assistance. 

Answer 2

hi , yes they were invited through Entra. They looks like: firstname.lastname_companyname.co.uk#EXT#@internalcompanyname.omnicrosoft.com. But guest can be found only when search them with their full id and they not visible in chat. Hope that add more context to this. Thank you

Answer 3

Hello @Dariela Dosigyan,

Thank you for your question.

To better understand the situation, could you please confirm how the guest users were added to SharePoint? For example, were they invited directly through the SharePoint site, or were they first created as guest users in Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD)?

Adding users as guests to a SharePoint site does not automatically mean they are fully available in Teams chat or search. Guest users should be created as Microsoft Entra B2B guest accounts in your directory and must be properly recognized and provisioned across Teams services before they become searchable or chat-enabled

As a best practice, I recommend adding external users through Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD) first:

(Please note that these steps must be done by your IT admin/Microsoft 365 admin. If you don't know who the admin is in your organization, you can find guidance here: How can I find my Microsoft 365 admin? - Microsoft Support)

• Ask your admin to sign into Microsoft 365 Admin Center 
• Go to Users > Guest users > Add a guest user 

• You'll be redirect to the Microsoft Azure Portal  
• Select Invite user, then complete the required fields with the external email address. 

• Click Invite, and ask the user to accept the invitation via the email they receive. 

This helps ensure the account is properly created and synchronized across all Microsoft 365 services.

After adding the guest, please allow some time for the changes to propagate. In some cases, it can take up to 24 hours for the guest account to become fully available in Teams (including search and chat scenarios).

If you continue to see the same behavior across multiple users or Teams after this period, please let me know so I can help you investigate further.

Thank you, and I look forward to your update.

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