Moving MS 365 Family account from the South Africa to the Canadian MS Store.

Question

Moving MS 365 Family account from the South Africa to the Canadian MS Store.

Mark Fischer 0

I have a MS 365 family account based setup in South Africa and billed from my South Africa bank account. 1 of our family members has remained in South Africa, while the rest are now based in Canada. I wish to change my family account and my profile to be linked to the Canada MS Store billed from my Canadian bank account.

What are the exact steps to follow so that our data is not lost as I cancel the South African MS 365 licence and and renew it in Canada adding back in the family members?

Will the remaining South African based family member still be ok post this change ?

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Answer 1

John Jefferson Doyon 82,045 Independent Advisor

Hi @Mark Fischer

Microsoft 365 subscriptions are tied to the country and currency where they were purchased. You cannot renew the South African subscription using a Canadian payment method.

Turn off recurring billing and let the current subscription expire. Then change the Microsoft account region to Canada, add the Canadian payment method, and purchase Microsoft 365 Family again using the same account.

Your OneDrive files should not be deleted, but storage and Office benefits may be limited while the subscription is inactive. Keep the family group as it is. You may only need to share the new subscription with the members again. The family member in South Africa should still be able to remain in the family group.

"Cancel a Microsoft 365 subscription" https://support.microsoft.com/office/cancel-a-microsoft-365-subscription-46e2634c-c64b-4c65-94b9-2cc9c960e91b
"Change your country or region in Microsoft Store: Microsoft account" https://support.microsoft.com/account-billing/change-your-country-or-region-in-microsoft-store-5895e006-34f4-10f7-16b1-999e40adb048#windowsversion=microsoft_account
"Update a Microsoft account payment method" https://support.microsoft.com/account-billing/update-a-microsoft-account-payment-method-2ca44141-c10d-a693-7ea6-3a22f5213283

Was the subscription purchased directly from Microsoft, and when does it expire?

Thanks!

Mark Fischer 0 Reputation points

2026-08-06T14:49:10.8866667+00:00

The billing in month by month so not sure if I can cancel it end of August. I don't have any credits or balance in the Store.

I can't be without access to OneDrive content to save and read so don't want to be in "no mans land" for too long.
John Jefferson Doyon 82,045 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-08-06T17:13:06.9566667+00:00

Hi,

Since it is billed monthly, turn off recurring billing now. The subscription and OneDrive benefits will remain active until the exact “Expires on” date shown at https://account.microsoft.com/services

Once it expires, change the account region to Canada and purchase Microsoft 365 Family again using the same account. Microsoft will not allow the Canadian subscription until the South African one has ended.

Your files will not be deleted. However, if you use more than the free storage limit, OneDrive may become read-only during the gap. Before the expiry date, download important files or select “Always keep on this device” as a backup.

Having no Microsoft Store credit or balance is not a problem.

Should you need further information, please let me know.

Thanks!
Mark Fischer 0 Reputation points

2026-08-06T17:23:39.4433333+00:00

So I can wait till the the last few days of the current month which is paid for and then actually cancel and subscribe within a few hours of each other using the same user ID, first transferring it to the CA region then signing up for 365 family?
John Jefferson Doyon 82,045 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-08-06T17:36:05.9833333+00:00

Almost. You do not need to wait until the last few days. Turn off recurring billing now. Your South African subscription will remain active until the expiry date shown.

Once its status shows “Expired,” change your account country or region to Canada, add the Canadian payment method, and purchase Microsoft 365 Family using the same Microsoft account.

You may be able to complete this on the same day, but I cannot guarantee it will only take a few hours. Do not change the region or purchase the Canadian subscription while the South African subscription still shows as active.