Changes to Microsoft 365 Non-profit Grants
We're Here to Help You Transition
As implemented on 1st July 2025, Microsoft are discontinuing the free grant offers for Microsoft 365 Business Premium and Office 365 E1 for non-profits. If your organisation currently uses these free licenses, they will expire at your next renewal date.
As your trusted IT support partner, we’re here to help you understand what this means and how to prepare.
Discontinuation Date
1st July 2025
(applies to renewal dates on or after this).
What’s Changing?
Affected Grants
MS 365 Business Premium (free licences)
Office 365 E1 (free licences)
Who’s Affected
Only nonprofits using the free grant versions of these services. If you’ve paid for your licenses, you are not affected.
What’s Still Available?
While the Business Premium and Office 365 grants are ending, Microsoft is continuing to support non-profits with:
Up to 300 Free Licenses of Microsoft 365 Business Basic.
Discounts of Up to 75% on most Microsoft 365 plans, including:
Microsoft 365 Business Premium
Office 365 E1
And other cloud services
This allows organisations to continue benefiting from advanced Microsoft tools while still managing costs effectively.
Why is Microsoft Making This Change?
Microsoft’s Tech for Social Impact (TSI) team explains the move:
“Our goal is to ensure nonprofits can benefit from industry-leading solutions that are critical to security and productivity. We are streamlining our grant portfolio to make it simpler and more sustainable. While the Business Premium and Office 365 E1 grants are being retired, we’re transitioning to offer up to 300 free Microsoft 365 Business Basic licenses and deep discounts on a wide range of Microsoft 365 plans.”
What You Should Do Now
If you’re currently using the affected free grants, here’s how to prepare:
Review your current license mix
Understand which users are on the free Business Premium or E1 plans. We can help.
Plan for transition
Choose between free Microsoft 365 Business Basic (up to 300 users) or discounted Business Premium/E1 (up to 75% off).
As your IT support provider, we can help assess your current usage and plan the most cost-effective path forward.
We strongly advise transitioning to a different Microsoft 365 offer for non-profits before the subscription is cancelled to avoid disruption and data loss.
We’re Here to Help
This change may sound disruptive, but with proactive planning, your organisation can continue to thrive using Microsoft’s tools, and we’ll help make that transition smooth.
Reach out to our support team, and we’ll guide you through your options and next steps.
