Office 2019 for Mac – Perpetual License Cannot Be Activated

Question

Office 2019 for Mac – Perpetual License Cannot Be Activated

Bihter Koçan 0

I have a valid Office 2019 for Mac perpetual license linked to my Microsoft account.

I installed the last Office 2019-compatible Mac version (16.78.3 / Build 23102801), signed in with the correct Microsoft account, used the official Microsoft Office License Removal Tool, and restarted my Mac.

However, Word still shows “License not activated” and asks me to activate Microsoft 365.

Please check whether my Office 2019 perpetual license can still be activated on my Mac and, if necessary, escalate this to the Licensing/Activation team. I am not looking to purchase Microsoft 365; I want to use the Office 2019 license I already purchased.

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Answer 1

Gérard Oomens 132.7K Volunteer Moderator

Have a look at:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/lifecycle/officeinstall/update-m365-office-macos-ios

.....

If you have Office 2019 for Mac

Office 2019 for Mac reached end of support on October 10, 2023, and no longer receives updates. Because Office 2019 cannot be updated to the required version, this issue cannot be resolved by updating or reinstalling Office 2019 for Mac.

Bihter Koçan 0 Reputation points

2026-10-01T08:38:54.3566667+00:00

Thank you for your response.

I understand that Office 2019 for Mac reached end of support and that version 16.78 is the final build that supports Office 2019 licenses.

However, my issue is not that I am trying to update Office 2019. I have already installed the final compatible version, 16.78.3 (Build 23102801), and my perpetual Office 2019 license is still associated with and visible in my Microsoft account.

The problem is that this valid perpetual license cannot be activated even on the final supported build. I have also already used Microsoft's official License Removal Tool and restarted the Mac.

Could you please clarify whether Microsoft has officially disabled activation of existing Office 2019 perpetual licenses on macOS as of July 13, 2026, or whether this is an activation/licensing issue affecting existing licenses?

If activation has been intentionally disabled, I would appreciate an official Microsoft statement confirming this and explaining what happens to customers who already purchased a perpetual license.
Gérard Oomens 132.7K Reputation points Volunteer Moderator

2026-10-01T09:01:08.7966667+00:00

Yes they did disable activation because it cannot be updated to the required version.

Contact support:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-US/contactus