Microsoft Account Recovery help/issues

Question

Hi, I'm hoping you can help with an issue recovering my partners personal Microsoft account.

The account I'm trying to recover is a @live.com account. I know the correct password, but I can no longer access the old recovery email address that receives the verification code, so I'm unable to complete the sign-in process.

I've completed the Microsoft Account Recovery form several times using information that I know is accurate, including:

• Exact email addresses I've regularly corresponded with.

Exact email subject lines from 2023 through to March 2026.

My Xbox gamertag and console information.

I receive the initial verification code to my Gmail contact email, so I know that part of the recovery process is working.

However, after I submit the recovery form, I never receive a confirmation email or a decision saying whether my recovery request has been approved or rejected. Because of this, I'm concerned that my recovery requests may not actually be reaching the Account Recovery team.

I'm hoping you can advise on how I;

• Confirm whether my recovery submissions are being received.
• Check whether there is a problem preventing them from being processed.
• See whether there is another way I can verify ownership of my account.

Or whether there is a way too further improve my recovery form's chances of being successful despite the information I'm already inputting

I've been trying to recover this account for several months and would really appreciate any assistance or escalation if possible.

Answer 1

@Sophie Wills said

I know the correct password, but I can no longer access the old recovery email address

Account Security Reset

If you can complete one verification step for your account (e.g. password), but can't access any of the other verification methods, and have repeatedly failed the Account Recovery process, or can't use Account Recovery because your account has Two-step Verification (2FA, MFA), then you can try to request that all the verification methods be replaced.

This will put your account in a 30 day "Pending Request" state. You will have limited access to the account during this period or no access at all if the account has Two-step Verification enabled.

See the Answer by "Hornblower409 Jun 25 2026" in
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5920985/how-to-fix-we-will-send-a-verification-code-to-(mo

Answer 2

Hi Sophie Wills,

I understand that you have submitted the recovery form several times with detailed information but have not received either an approval or rejection message.

Please note that this is a user-to-user forum, so contributors cannot access the account, confirm whether a recovery request was received, or review its status.

First, check the Inbox, Junk, Spam, Deleted, and filtered folders of the contact email used for the recovery form. The recovery result is normally provided within 24 hours. If no message appears, review Help with the Microsoft account recovery form and submit the form again from a device and location previously used with the account. You can submit the form up to twice per day.

You can also contact Microsoft Support to explain that several recovery forms were submitted but no result was received:

1, Visit the Microsoft Support contact page: Contact - Microsoft Support  

2, In the search bar provided on the page, type "Account recovery" and press Enter.  

3, Click on the "Get Help" button that appears.  

4, Scroll down the page until you see and click on the "Contact Support" option.  

5, When prompted to select your product or service, choose "Other Products".  

6, For the category, choose "Manage account security".  

7, Look for and click on "Chat with a support agent in your web browser".  

8, Confirm your personal email when prompted - this is the email Microsoft will use to communicate with you during and after the support session.  

9, When connected, clearly explain your situation. Be concise but include all relevant details. 

Please keep in mind that support agents must follow account security verification rules and may not be able to manually bypass the recovery system. However, live chat is still the right channel to ask if an additional account security review option is available for your case. 

I hope this helps you receive a clear outcome through the appropriate account-recovery channel.