Microsoft Teams: Ask to join a shared channel with a channel link

Updated November 12, 2024: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience.

Coming soon to Microsoft Teams: In-tenant users who attempt to access a shared channel with a link will be able to request to join the channel. Channel owners will receive the join request and can decide to approve or deny request. This rollout applies to Teams for Desktop and Mac.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 325330.

When this will happen:

Targeted Release: We will begin rolling out mid-June 2024 and expect to complete by mid-June 2024.

General Availability (Worldwide, GCC): We will begin rolling out late June 2024 and expect to complete by late June 2024.

General Availability (GCC High, DoD): We will begin rolling out mid-July 2024 and expect to complete by late November 2024 (previously late October).

How this will affect your organization:

Before the rollout, a user who selects a channel with a link receives a You don’t have access message.

After the rollout, a user who selects a channel with a link receives will be able to ask to join a channel:

After the rollout, out-of-tenant users who click on a shared channel link from another tenant will continue to see the You don’t have access message.

Admins cannot turn off this feature.

What you need to do to prepare:

This rollout will happen automatically by the specified dates with no admin action required before the rollout. You may want to notify your users about this change and update any relevant documentation as appropriate.

Before rollout, we will update this post with revised documentation.