Saved emails disappearing in new Outlook

Check the mailbox in Outlook on the web first: if the messages are missing there too, recover them and have your school’s Microsoft 365 administrator inspect retention policies; if they remain on the web, the problem is isolated to the New Outlook client.

1. Determine whether the messages still exist on the server

1. Sign in to Outlook on the web using the same school account.
2. Open the personal folder where you moved a message.
3. Also expand Archive and Deleted Items.
4. If the message appears on the web but not in New Outlook, use the web version temporarily and report New Outlook as the affected client. This is not expected folder behavior.

Do not rely only on New Outlook search for this test. Its search can return incomplete results, although Microsoft’s documented search settings concern Deleted Items, search scope, and locally available mail rather than messages disappearing after several days.^1^

2. Recover messages that were removed

In New Outlook or Outlook on the web:

1. Open Deleted Items.
2. If the messages are present, select them and choose Move, then select a safe folder.
3. If they are absent, open Deleted Items and select Recover items deleted from this folder at the top.
4. Select the messages and choose Restore.

Microsoft documents that items can sometimes be recovered even after leaving Deleted Items.^2^

Also check Archive or the separate Online Archive mailbox. A policy can move mail there rather than delete it.

3. Check the folder’s retention policy

The recurring 1–7 day interval makes a retention or archive policy important to investigate, but the timing alone does not prove that this is the cause.

In Outlook on the web:

1. Right-click the affected personal folder.
2. Look for Assign policy.
3. Record the selected retention or archive policy.
4. If an optional short-term deletion policy is selected, change it to Use parent folder policy or an appropriate longer policy.
5. If the policy cannot be changed, contact the school’s Microsoft 365 administrator.

Retention labels control how long messages are saved, while archive policies control when they move to an archive. Required policies are controlled by the organization and cannot be removed by the user. Microsoft also notes that these policies are processed periodically, including once every seven days, which can produce delayed changes.^3^

For the administrator, the relevant checks are:

Get-Mailbox [Email] |
    Format-List RetentionPolicy

(Get-RetentionPolicy "<policy-name>").RetentionPolicyTagLinks

Get-RetentionPolicyTag |
    Format-Table Name,Type,AgeLimitForRetention,RetentionAction

The administrator should look for tags with actions such as MoveToArchive, DeleteAndAllowRecovery, or permanent deletion, especially personal tags applied to custom folders. Microsoft documents that custom folders can receive personal retention tags and that administrators can inspect the mailbox policy and its linked tags.^4^

If recovered messages disappear again, move them to a folder without the affected policy or have the administrator correct the policy; otherwise, the same policy can process them again.^3^

4. If the messages exist on the web but not in New Outlook

This points to a New Outlook display or synchronization problem rather than deletion from the mailbox.

• Continue using Outlook on the web, or switch temporarily to classic Outlook if your school permits it.
• In New Outlook, select Help → Support or Help → Feedback and include:
  • The affected account type and folder name
  • Approximate move and disappearance times
  • Whether the message remains visible on the web
  • Whether multiple folders are affected
• Ask the school’s Microsoft 365 administrator to check Service health and open a Microsoft support case if the web/client results differ.

Microsoft maintains a New Outlook fixes and workarounds page, but the published list does not currently identify “messages moved to personal folders disappear after 1–7 days” as an acknowledged general behavior.^5^

This is therefore not documented as the intended way New Outlook works. The web test, recovery location, and folder policy will distinguish a client defect from an organizational retention action.

References

1. [New Outlook](https://support.microsoft.com/outlook/troubleshooting-outlook-search-issues#outlook-search-returns-incomplete-results-or-search-can't-find-older-emails)
2. [Web](https://support.microsoft.com/outlook/mail/recover-and-restore-deleted-items-in-outlook)
3. Assign retention labels and archive policies in Outlook on the web | Microsoft Support
4. Messaging Records management (MRM) and Retention Policies in Microsoft 365
5. Fixes or workarounds for recent issues in new Outlook for Windows