How to Access Microsoft Forms Created by a Departed Employee
Question details
Global administrators need to recover or manage personal Microsoft Forms, including those linked to Power Automate and SharePoint, created by employees who have left the company.
- Product
- Microsoft Forms
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- An employee leaves the organization, and their active workflows or collected data rely on personal forms tied directly to their soon-to-be-deleted user account.
- Observed behavior
- Personal forms remain tied to the departed user's account and face permanent deletion once the organization's account retention period expires.
Verify the exact date the departed employee's Microsoft 365 account was disabled or deleted to ensure you are still within the standard 30-day account retention period.
Restore Account and Transfer Form Ownership
Recover the deleted account within the retention window to access and move personal forms to a shared Microsoft 365 Group.
Personal forms are tied exclusively to the creator's account. To prevent data loss when an employee departs, administrators must restore the account temporarily and move the critical forms to a group, which shifts ownership from the individual to the group.
Go to the Microsoft 365 Admin Center, navigate to Users > Deleted users, select the departed employee's account, and click 'Restore user'.
Log in to Microsoft Forms using the restored account credentials, or assign administrative delegation to access their forms dashboard.
On the form tile, click the 'More options' ellipsis (...), select 'Move', and choose the appropriate Microsoft 365 Group to transfer ownership permanently.
Create Future Forms as Group Forms
Implement a best practice of creating business-critical forms as Group Forms to avoid ownership issues when personnel changes occur.
Manage Your Team's Documents with WPS Office
While managing form ownership requires admin intervention in Microsoft 365, managing your team's everyday documents shouldn't be a hassle. WPS Office offers a free, lightweight, and highly compatible alternative to Microsoft Office, perfect for seamless team collaboration without the steep licensing costs or complex permission hurdles.
- 1. Download the installer: Visit the official WPS Office website and download the free installation package for your operating system.
- 2. Install the software: Run the downloaded file and follow the on-screen prompts to complete the lightweight installation.
- 3. Open your team documents: Launch WPS Office and directly open any existing .docx, .xlsx, or .pptx files to start collaborating immediately.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens to Microsoft Forms when an employee leaves?
If the forms were created as personal forms, they remain tied to the user's account. When the account is deleted, the forms enter a 30-day retention period, after which they are permanently deleted. If they were created as Group forms, they remain unaffected.
Can I transfer ownership of a Microsoft Form without restoring the user account?
If the account is within the 30-day deletion retention period, a global administrator can sometimes use an admin-generated access URL via the Microsoft 365 Admin Center to move the form, though temporarily restoring the account is often the most straightforward method.
How do I check if a form is a personal form or a group form?
In Microsoft Forms, personal forms are listed under 'Recent' or 'My forms' and only show your name as the author. Group forms are listed under 'My groups' and display the name of the Microsoft 365 group they belong to.
Will Power Automate flows break if the form owner's account is deleted?
Yes. If a Power Automate flow relies on a personal form and the form owner's account is deleted and permanently purged, the form will disappear, causing any connected flows or SharePoint list integrations to fail.
