Adding a Family Member

This is most likely more than just waiting. Two issues in the symptoms match the documented causes:

• verification messages may not arrive if the account is temporarily blocked for unusual activity or too many requests
• a family invite can stay stuck if the child account is still pending or still associated with family membership state that needs to be cleared

Try this in order:

1. Check the family invitation status
   • Sign in with the family organizer account at https://account.microsoft.com/family/.
   • On the family member page, check whether the child shows as Pending member.
   • If there is a pending invite, select More and Cancel invite.
   • Send a fresh invitation.
2. Confirm the child account is not still tied to another family group
   • A Microsoft account can only be part of one family group.
   • If the child account is already in another family group, it must leave or be removed before it can join this one.
3. Add a different verification method on the organizer account if possible
   • Go to the Microsoft account Security tab at https://account.microsoft.com/security.
   • Select Manage how I sign in.
   • Select Add a new way to sign in or verify.
   • Add another available method such as a recovery email, Microsoft Authenticator, or a passkey.
   • Microsoft notes that adding a new phone number may not be available for some personal accounts.
4. If verification codes are not arriving, avoid repeated retries
   • Too many repeated requests can cause a temporary block.
   • If blocked, try another verification method already connected to the account.
   • Try another network, such as switching between Wi‑Fi and cellular.
   • Wait at least 24 hours, and if needed wait longer, up to 1 week, without repeated attempts.
5. If the child can sign in to Windows but Family Safety is not linking correctly
   • On the child’s device, verify the Microsoft account.
   • Go to Start > Settings > Accounts and look for Verify.
   • If Verify is not shown, open Microsoft Edge on the child’s device and use the family verification flow referenced in Microsoft’s Family Safety troubleshooting.
6. If the child account was added on the laptop, make sure it is a Standard user
   • In Settings > Accounts > Family & other users or Other accounts, check the child account type.
   • Set it to Standard user if needed. An Administrator child account can break or bypass Family Safety settings.

Based on the documented guidance, waiting only 24 hours may not always be enough if the account or verification method was blocked. The most useful next steps are to cancel any pending invite, resend it, use a different verification method if one is available, and stop repeated code requests while the block clears.

• Add people to your family group | Microsoft Support
• Add people to your family group | Microsoft Support
• Microsoft account security info & verification codes | Microsoft Support
• Troubleshoot Microsoft verification code issues | Microsoft Support
• Troubleshooting Microsoft Family Safety | Microsoft Support
• [Windows](https://support.microsoft.com/family-safety/troubleshooting-microsoft-family-safety)
• Getting started with Microsoft Family Safety