Confirming whether Microsoft Customer Agreement acceptance requires approval of an accompanying GDAP admin relationship

Question

We are an existing Microsoft 365 customer establishing a CSP reseller relationship with an indirect provider. The invitation we have received presents Microsoft Customer Agreement acceptance and a granular delegated admin privileges (GDAP) relationship request covering twelve Entra ID roles within a single approval flow.

We intend to accept the Microsoft Customer Agreement and establish the reseller relationship. We do not intend to approve the GDAP relationship, as we assign and manage all licences internally and raise Microsoft support cases directly.

Please confirm the following in writing:

1. Can we accept the Microsoft Customer Agreement and establish a reseller relationship without approving an accompanying GDAP admin relationship?
2. Is there a customer-side path in the Microsoft 365 admin center for us to review and accept the Microsoft Customer Agreement independently of a partner-issued invitation link?
3. If we decline or allow the GDAP relationship request to expire, does that have any effect on the reseller relationship, on the partner's ability to purchase and provision subscriptions into our tenant, or on our existing subscriptions?
4. Please confirm our reading of the GDAP FAQ (https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/partner-center/customers/gdap-faq), which states that GDAP is not required to fulfil orders for new and existing customers, and that a partner holding a reseller relationship without DAP or GDAP retains the ability to place and manage orders.

Answer 1

Hi,

Based on Microsoft's published documentation regarding CSP and GDAP, your understanding appears to be correct.

1/ Microsoft Customer Agreement (MCA) and reseller relationship vs. GDAP approval:

To begin with, accepting the Microsoft Customer Agreement (MCA) and establishing a reseller relationship are separate from granting delegated administrative access through GDAP.

According to Microsoft's GDAP FAQ, GDAP is an optional capability designed for partners who require delegated administrative privileges to manage services within a customer's tenant. However, Microsoft specifically states that partners do not need a GDAP relationship in order to fulfill orders for either new or existing customers through Partner Center. In addition, Microsoft notes that even if a GDAP relationship is removed, the underlying reseller relationship remains intact, allowing the partner to continue purchasing products and performing commercial activities on behalf of the customer.

With that in mind, accepting the MCA and authorizing a partner as your reseller should not, in itself, require you to grant delegated administrative permissions. While some partner-generated invitation links may combine both actions into a single workflow, the commercial relationship and the administrative access relationship are fundamentally separate.

2/ Customer-side acceptance of the Microsoft Customer Agreement:

Furthermore, Microsoft provides a direct method for customers to accept the MCA themselves through the Microsoft 365 admin center. The documented link is: https://admin.microsoft.com/AdminPortal/Home?ref=/BillingAccounts/agreement

Microsoft's guidance indicates that customers can sign in using this link and follow the prompts to complete acceptance of the agreement directly.

Microsoft also explains that MCA acceptance can be confirmed either through partner attestation or through direct customer acceptance within the Microsoft 365 admin center.

Therefore, if the invitation you received combines MCA acceptance with a GDAP approval request, it may be worth contacting the reseller or indirect provider and asking whether they can provide a process or invitation that enables MCA acceptance and establishment of the reseller relationship without requiring delegated administrative access.

3/ What happens if you decline the GDAP request or let it expire?

In addition, Microsoft's GDAP FAQ states that GDAP invitations automatically expire after 90 days if no action is taken by the customer. Microsoft also confirms that the expiration of a GDAP request does not affect existing customer subscriptions.

Microsoft further clarifies that removing all GDAP relationships with a customer does not end the reseller relationship. The partner can still transact business with the customer, purchase products, and perform related commercial functions.

As a result, declining the GDAP request, or simply allowing it to expire, should not by itself affect:

• Your reseller relationship with the partner
• The partner's ability to provision or transact subscriptions for your tenant
• Any existing subscriptions or services already in place

The primary consequence is that the partner would not receive delegated administrative access to your tenant through GDAP. If your organization prefers to manage licensing, administration, and Microsoft support directly, this approach may be consistent with that operating model.

4/ Confirmation of your interpretation of the GDAP FAQ:

Overall, yes, your interpretation of the GDAP FAQ aligns with Microsoft's published guidance.

Microsoft explicitly states that partners do not need GDAP to fulfill orders for new or existing customers and may continue using the standard Partner Center ordering process. Microsoft also confirms that removing GDAP does not terminate the reseller relationship and does not prevent the partner from purchasing products for the customer.

The one important requirement to keep in mind is that the Microsoft Customer Agreement must still be accepted before a CSP partner can place orders on your behalf. Microsoft's CSP documentation makes clear that customer acceptance of the MCA is required before orders can be submitted.

In summary, based on Microsoft's published documentation, you should be able to establish the reseller relationship and complete Microsoft Customer Agreement acceptance without granting GDAP access. Provided the reseller supports an MCA-only acceptance process and does not require GDAP as part of its own internal procedures, declining or allowing the GDAP request to expire should not affect the reseller relationship, subscription provisioning, or your existing services.

I hope this helps clarify the distinction between the MCA/reseller relationship and GDAP administrative access.

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