Why is Microsoft Harassing Me?

1

Open Word.

At the top right of Word, log out of Office.

Restart (not shut down) your PC, then log back into Office, is your subscription then correctly recognised.

2

If not, log into your Microsoft account on this link and check the expiry date on your Microsoft subscription to ensure it is correct for your subscription payment.

https://account.microsoft.com/services/

If not, go to the Payments and billing section, is it indicated your subscription payment has been successfully processed.

The repeated notifications appear because Office believes there is a problem with the Microsoft 365 subscription or its activation on the device, even if payment has already been made.

Common reasons:

1. Subscription/payment issue
   • If a payment was declined (expired or cancelled card, billing problem), Office shows messages such as:
     • “ACCOUNT NOTICE. We've run into a problem with your Microsoft 365 subscription and need your help to fix it.”
   • If this is the case, Office will keep warning until the subscription is renewed or the payment issue is fixed.
2. Activation or license problem on the device
   • Office may show “Unlicensed Product” or similar activation errors if the apps are not properly activated with the account that owns the subscription.
   • This can happen if signed in with the wrong Microsoft account, or if the license information on the device is out of date.
3. Plan change or wrong version installed
   • If the Microsoft 365 plan was changed, Office can show messages like:
     • “Account Notice. Your Microsoft 365 subscription has a pending change. To keep using your applications without interruption, please sign in now.”
     • “Update required. Your Microsoft 365 subscription has a pending change. Please apply the change now to keep using your applications.”
   • In that case, Office must be updated or reinstalled to match the new plan.
4. Notifications continuing after renewal or purchase
   • If the subscription was renewed or a new one was bought, notifications can continue if:
     • The product key from a physical box/card has not been entered yet.
     • The subscription is active online, but the local Office apps have not refreshed their license.

Steps to reduce or stop the notifications (based on the scenarios above):

1. Confirm the subscription is active
   • Go to the Microsoft account’s Services & subscriptions page (as described in the context) and verify the Microsoft 365 subscription shows as active and not expired or suspended.
2. Make sure the correct account is used in Excel/Office
   • In Excel, go to File → Account.
   • Check the user account shown under “User Information” or “Product Information.”
   • If it is not the account that owns the subscription, sign out and sign in with the correct Microsoft account.
3. Refresh or update the license
   • In File → Account, use the option to update or manage the license (for example, “Update license” or similar), then sign in again when prompted.
   • This forces Office to revalidate the subscription and often stops repeated subscription warnings.
4. If recently renewed or bought with a product key
   • If a physical box or card was purchased, ensure the product key has been redeemed as described in the renewal documentation.
   • After redeeming, confirm the expiration date online and then restart Excel/Office so it can pick up the updated status.
5. If a plan was changed by a work/school organization
   • When seeing “Account Notice” or “Update required” about a pending subscription change, click Update in the dialog and sign in if prompted so Office can download the correct version and convert the installation.

If none of the above resolves the issue and the subscription status online looks correct, contacting Microsoft Support from the account portal is recommended so they can check the subscription and activation state.

If no action is taken, Office will eventually go into reduced functionality mode, where files can be opened and printed but not edited or newly created.

References:

• A subscription notice appears when I open a Microsoft 365 application
• “Account Notice” appears in Office after switching Microsoft 365 plans
• When opening Word or Excel, getting a 'subscription canceled' message but I have renewed my Office subscription - Microsoft Q&A
• How to fix the issue with MS Office asking you to log in every time you open an Office app - Microsoft Q&A