Permission & Access Issues

How to Fix SharePoint Site Owner Not Receiving Access Request Notifications

John Wilson Oct 1, 2026 868 views

Question details

A SharePoint site owner is not receiving email notifications for access requests, despite another owner receiving them and both having identical permissions.

How to Fix SharePoint Site Owner Not Receiving Access Request Notifications

Product: Microsoft SharePoint
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Managing site access requests and notifications.
Observed behavior: One site owner receives access request emails while another does not, even though both use internal email addresses and are in the owners group.

Before you start

Ensure you have Site Owner or Microsoft 365 Administrator privileges to access and modify the site permission settings and access request configurations.

Solution 1Recommended

Verify Site Owner Group and Access Request Settings

Check the SharePoint access request settings to ensure the correct email address or owner group is configured to receive notifications.

SharePoint access requests can sometimes be routed to a single email address instead of the entire Site Owners group. Verifying these settings is the most common fix for missing notifications.

Go to Site Settings

Click the gear icon (Settings) in the top right corner of your SharePoint site and select 'Site permissions'. If you don't see it, select 'Site information' and then 'View all site settings'.

Access Access Request Settings

Navigate to 'Advanced permissions settings'. On the Permissions tab in the ribbon, click 'Access Request Settings'.

Verify the Target Email

Check the email address listed in the 'Send access requests to' field. If it is pointing to a single person's email, change it to a group distribution list or ensure the affected user is part of the specified group.

Save Changes

Click 'OK' to save the settings. You can then trigger a test access request from a guest or standard user account to verify the changes.

Verify Site Owner Group and Access Request Settings

Using Distribution Lists: For sites with multiple owners, it is best practice to enter a distribution list or Microsoft 365 Group email address in the Access Request Settings so all members are notified simultaneously.

Solution 2

Check Email Delivery and Junk Folders

Ensure the notification emails are not being filtered, delayed, or blocked by local mailbox rules or organizational email security settings.

Solution 3

Escalate to Microsoft 365 Support

If settings and email delivery are correct but the issue persists, contact Microsoft Support for backend investigation.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Why is only one SharePoint site owner receiving access requests?

This usually happens if the 'Access Request Settings' are configured to send emails to a single specific email address rather than an entire distribution list, or if there is an email filtering issue for the affected user.

How do I change who receives access requests in SharePoint?

Go to Site Settings > Site permissions (or Advanced permission settings), click 'Access Request Settings' in the ribbon, and update the email address in the 'Send access requests to' field.

Can multiple people receive SharePoint access requests simultaneously?

Yes. You can achieve this by entering a distribution list email address or a Microsoft 365 group email address in the Access Request Settings. This ensures all members of that group receive the notification.

What if the user is in the correct Owners group but still doesn't get emails?

First, verify they are checking their spam or junk folders. If no emails are found, reach out to your IT administrator to check Exchange mail flow rules. If the problem continues, a Microsoft 365 admin may need to raise a support ticket to investigate backend routing issues.

Document & File Issues