Microsoft List Form No Access

Moreland, Alyssa 0 Reputation points
2026-10-15T19:55:37.4+00:00

I created a Microsoft List through my personal Microsoft Lists account, and the List is stored under my personal SharePoint location. I created the submission form using the Forms option within the List.

To share the form, I open the form, select Send form, and then select Copy link. Copy link is the only sharing option I am using. The form states “People in my Corporation with the link can respond.”

However, some employees who receive that copied form link get the SharePoint error “You can't access this site. You don't have permission to access this item.”

The confusing part is that these same employees can eventually access the form if they first go to a SharePoint page where I have placed a link to the form and click the link from there. In other words, the original form link they receive from someone other than me gives them an access error, but after accessing it through the SharePoint page that I uploaded, the form works for them.

I am trying to understand why access appears to depend on how the employee reaches the form when the form itself is set to allow people in our organization with the link to respond.

Am I copying the correct link by using Send form → Copy link? Could the issue be that the List and integrated form are stored under my personal SharePoint location rather than a shared SharePoint site? If so, what permissions need to be configured so that the Send form → Copy link URL works immediately for any employee in our organization without me individually granting access?

I do not want general users to edit the underlying List. The goal is for employees to submit new items through the form, and then my team will review and edit the List as needed.

Microsoft 365 and Office | Microsoft Forms | For business
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  1. Kai-L 21,095 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2026-10-15T20:56:01.6266667+00:00

    Dear Alyssa,

    Thank you for the clear explanation. Having a form work for some people only after a detour through another page is confusing. Unfortunately, as a forum moderator, I am not able to review your list permissions or sharing settings to diagnose and fix this directly. My role here is limited to providing general guidance you can apply from your side.

    From my research, the Send form > Copy link URL is the correct response link. A link set to “People in "Organization" with the link can respond” should be forwardable and should not depend on who sent it. Employees must, however, be signed in with an account from the same Microsoft 365 organization. Because the same employees can open the form after going through your SharePoint page, the most likely cause is how they're signed in. The page probably signs them in with their corporate account first. When they open the forwarded link directly, their browser may be using a personal or guest account instead. To confirm this, please follow these steps:

    1. Generate a new link from Send form > Copy link. Don't use the browser address bar or Share list > Copy link.
    2. Ask an affected employee to open an InPrivate window, paste the link, and sign in with only their corporate account.

    If the link works there, the issue is the cached account, not your permissions.

    If it still fails, please check List settings > Permissions for this list. Look for changes made after the form was created, such as restored inheritance or a removed organization wide entry. As a quick test, you can also create a new temporary form on the same list and try its link.

    You don't need to give employees Can edit access for them to submit through the form, so your plan to keep editing limited to your team works. For long term use, I'd also recommend moving the list from your personal location to a team owned SharePoint site. That way the intake process doesn't depend on a single account.

    If none of this helps, your SharePoint administrator can review the list permissions and open a case with Microsoft Support if needed. A technical support engineer can perform a remote session to investigate the situation, verify the backend configurations, and run any necessary synchronization tools to resolve the problem. If the issue requires further attention, they can escalate it to a specialized team for deeper analysis. For detailed instructions on how to get support, please refer to Get support - Microsoft 365 admin. If you don't know who your IT administrator is, please refer to this article: How do I find my Microsoft 365 admin? - Microsoft Support 

    I hope this helps narrow it down. Should you have any further questions or need additional assistance, please don't hesitate to reach out. I'm always happy to help. Have a wonderful day! 

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