Roll-out status of Microsoft 365 Copilot in Excel/Word for Egypt / Middle East region

Question

Roll-out status of Microsoft 365 Copilot in Excel/Word for Egypt / Middle East region

yasser khira 20

Hello Microsoft Support / Community,

Our organization (tenant ID: <your-tenant-id>, region: Egypt / Middle East) is planning to deploy Microsoft 365 Copilot across the standard Office applications (Excel, Word, PowerPoint). Before we proceed we would like to clarify the following:

Is the full feature set of Copilot in-apps (Excel, Word, PowerPoint) currently generally available in the Egypt / Middle East region, or is it still in a phased rollout?

If not yet generally available in our region, what is the expected date or quarter of rollout for the in-app Copilot features for work/school accounts?

Which licenses or add-ons are required in our region to enable Copilot in these apps? Are there any regional limitations on feature subsets (for example Excel with Python, advanced analysis) in Egypt / Middle East?

Are there any tenant/administrator actions required (for example enabling, update channel, device version) in our Microsoft 365 environment to make the Copilot features visible in the Office apps?

Are there any data-governance or compliance considerations specific to our region (data residency, compatibility with Azure/Graph) that we should plan for prior to rollout?

We appreciate your guidance so we can align our internal rollout, training, and architecture accordingly.

Thank you in advance for your support.

Kind regards,

REMOVE PII

Organization: REMOVE PII

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Answer 1

Tammy-Ng 5,585 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Please note that our forum is a public platform, and we will modify your question to hide your personal information in the description. Kindly ensure that you hide any personal or organizational information the next time you post an error or other details to protect personal data.

Dear yasser khira
Welcome, and thank you for posting your question in the Q&A forum!

Based on the information you shared, I’d like to offer the following recommendations for your organization in Egypt / Middle East, as you prepare to deploy Microsoft 365 Copilot across Office applications such as Excel, Word, and PowerPoint:

Availability of Copilot in Egypt / Middle East

Microsoft 365 Copilot is currently available in the Middle East region, including Egypt, for both individual and enterprise users. However, some advanced features such as Excel with Python or Think Deeper mode are still being rolled out gradually and may not yet be fully accessible to all users: Learn more about Excel with Python

Licensing Requirements

To enable Copilot in Office apps, your organization will need one of the following Microsoft 365 plans:

Microsoft 365 E3 / E5
Office 365 E3 / E5
Business Standard / Premium
Microsoft 365 Apps for Enterprise

Additionally, a Copilot add-on license is required and must be purchased separately: Copilot Licensing Details

Administrator Setup Requirements

To ensure Copilot works properly in Office apps, administrators should:

Confirm users have Exchange Online for their primary mailbox.
Configure Microsoft 365 Apps to use the Current Channel or Monthly Enterprise Channel.
Review and activate relevant features in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center: Copilot Setup Requirements

Data Governance & Compliance

Microsoft 365 Copilot complies with global standards such as GDPR, EU Data Boundary, and supports data residency commitments. Data processed by Copilot is stored within the Local Region Geography if the tenant is part of a supported region. Egypt is not currently listed under mandatory ADR regions, but Microsoft applies strong data protection measures.
Data Residency & Workload Info
Security & Governance Controls

Organizations are encouraged to use tools like Microsoft Purview and SharePoint Advanced Management to manage data access and sensitivity labels effectively.

I hope this information is helpful for your planning. If you have any further questions or need assistance during your rollout, feel free to reach out I’m always here to help!

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment".

Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread."

yasser khira 20 Reputation points

2025-10-27T11:27:31.9+00:00

is there a specific date for these features to be fully available
Tammy-Ng 5,585 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-10-27T11:50:10.9933333+00:00
Dear yasser khira
Thank you for your response and continued interest in Microsoft 365 Copilot.

Based on your inquiry regarding the availability of Copilot features in the Egypt / Middle East region, I’d like to share the following updates and recommendations:

Microsoft 365 Copilot is currently available in your region for enterprise customers. However, some advanced features such as Excel with Python and Think Deeper mode are being introduced gradually. According to Microsoft’s roadmap:

Core Copilot features in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint became generally available starting November 1, 2023.

Additional capabilities are expected to roll out progressively during Wave 2 of 2025, spanning October 2025 to March 2026. View Microsoft’s Release Plan

License Validation Ensure your users have eligible Microsoft 365 licenses (e.g., E3/E5, Business Premium) along with the Copilot add-on license.

Tenant Configuration Verify that your tenant is correctly registered in the Egypt/Middle East region and meets the setup requirements outlined in the Copilot Deployment Guide.

Feature Monitoring Use the Microsoft 365 Roadmap to track the availability of specific features for your region and tenant.

Pilot Rollout Consider launching a pilot program with a small group of users to evaluate current functionality and prepare for broader adoption.

Data Governance Planning Review Microsoft’s data residency and compliance documentation to ensure alignment with your internal policies.

We hope this information helps you align your deployment strategy and internal planning. If you have any further questions or need assistance, please don’t hesitate to reach out, I’m here to support you.
yasser khira 20 Reputation points

2025-10-27T12:09:50.97+00:00

Dear Tammy,

Thank you for your detailed response and guidance.

I would like to clarify one specific point regarding our current licensing: our students are already on the Office 365 A3 for Students plan.

Should users under this plan be able to see Microsoft 365 Copilot embedded directly in Excel, Word, and PowerPoint now?

If not, what additional steps are required on our side to enable Copilot?

Do we need to purchase a separate Copilot add-on license for these student accounts, or is there a different eligibility path for educational tenants?

This will help us decide whether our current subscription is sufficient or if further licensing adjustments are needed.

Thank you again for your support and guidance.
Tammy-Ng 5,585 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-10-27T12:28:58.4966667+00:00
Dear yasser khira
Thank you for your follow-up!

There are two types of Copilot experiences currently available to students:

Copilot Chat (Browser-based AI assistant): Included at no extra cost for students with Office 365 A3 licenses: Requires admin activation via Microsoft Entra ID
Provides AI-powered chat that can summarize, answer questions, and assist with tasks
Does not include embedded Copilot features inside Word, Excel, or PowerPoint

Copilot for Microsoft 365 (In-app Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint): Not included by default in Office 365 A3 for Students
Requires a separate add-on license to enable full Copilot integration directly inside Office apps

For more details, please refer to the official guide: Microsoft 365 Copilot Licensing Guide

I hope this information is helpful to you. If my answer has been even partially helpful, please consider marking it as the “Accepted Answer” so others facing similar questions can find it more easily.
Tammy-Ng 5,585 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-10-28T13:11:14.1966667+00:00

Dear yasser khira

Just writing to see how things are going with this issue.

Have you had a chance to check the replies provided?

Any update would be appreciated.

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Roll-out status of Microsoft 365 Copilot in Excel/Word for Egypt / Middle East region

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