Send & Receive Issues

How to Move Former Employee Emails to a Shared Folder in Outlook

Rana Garcia Sep 27, 2026 869 views

Question details

The user needs to route incoming messages addressed to a former employee into a specific folder that a replacement employee or delegate can access.

How to Move Former Employee Emails to a Shared Folder in Outlook

Product: Microsoft Outlook
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Managing email continuity and mailbox delegation after an employee leaves the organization.
Observed behavior: Incoming emails for the departed employee need to be automatically redirected to a designated shared folder for continued business operation.

Before you start

Ensure you have the necessary delegate permissions for the former employee's mailbox or administrator access to the Microsoft 365 Exchange admin center before configuring folder sharing and routing rules.

Solution 1Recommended

Set Up a Redirection Rule and Share Folder in Classic Outlook

Create a dedicated folder, share it with the replacement employee, and set up an automated rule to move the former employee's emails into this folder.

This method works best if you are managing the mailbox directly from the classic Outlook desktop client for Windows and want a seamless way to hand off specific emails without granting full mailbox access.

Create a Dedicated Folder

Right-click your Inbox in the folder pane, select 'New Folder', and give it a clear name such as 'Former Employee Emails'.

Share the Folder

Right-click the newly created folder, select 'Properties', and navigate to the 'Permissions' tab. Click 'Add' to find the replacement employee's name, select it, and assign them 'Editor' or 'Reviewer' permission from the Permission Level drop-down.

Open Rules and Alerts

Click on the 'File' tab in the top ribbon, select 'Manage Rules & Alerts', and click on the 'New Rule' button under the Email Rules tab.

Configure the Rule Condition

Choose 'Apply rule on messages I receive' under Start from a blank rule and click Next. Check the box for 'sent to people or public group', click the underlined text in the bottom pane to enter the former employee's email address, and click Next.

Set the Move Action

Check the box for 'move it to the specified folder'. Click the underlined 'specified' text, select the folder you created in Step 1, and click Finish to apply the rule.

Set Up a Redirection Rule and Share Folder in Classic Outlook

Folder Visibility: For the delegate to access the shared folder, they may also need 'Folder visible' permission on the top-level root mailbox folder to see the subfolder in their hierarchy.

Solution 2

Configure Routing via Outlook on the Web

Use the Outlook web interface to set up folder sharing and create an inbox rule to route the emails automatically.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can I simply forward all emails from the former employee to the new employee?

Yes, if you are a Microsoft 365 Exchange Administrator, you can set up direct mailbox forwarding from the Exchange Admin Center. This will bypass specific folder routing and deliver all emails sent to the former employee directly to the replacement's primary inbox.

Will senders know their email was redirected to a shared folder?

No, standard inbox rules that move emails operate silently in the background. The sender will not receive an automatic notification unless you specifically configure an auto-reply or Out of Office message on the former employee's account.

What permissions does the replacement employee need to view the folder?

At a minimum, the replacement employee needs 'Reviewer' (Read) permission to view the emails inside the shared folder. If they are required to reply to, modify, or delete emails from that folder, they will need 'Editor' or 'Author' permissions.

Why can't the delegate see the shared folder in their Outlook client?

If a specific subfolder is shared, the delegate must also have at least 'Folder visible' permission on the parent folder (such as the main Mailbox root or Inbox). Without this, Outlook cannot expand the folder tree to display the shared subfolder.

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