Can you approve Microsoft Bookings appointments first?

The question has been asked on Microsoft Q&A and Tech Community since 2018. A 2023 thread has 15 "same question" votes and no real answer.

Why "Require staff approvals" is not the answer#

One answer on Microsoft Q&A (January 2026) tells people to switch on Require staff approvals in the Microsoft 365 admin center. That setting does something else.

In Settings → Org settings → Bookings, the admin center lists Require staff approvals before sharing free/busy information. Microsoft describes it as a way to make employees opt in before their availability is shared through Bookings and before they can be booked on a shared page. Each staff member gets an email asking them to approve or reject the request.

So the approval is about the staff member agreeing to be bookable. Customers still book instantly once staff have opted in. Turning it on can also make newly added staff unbookable until they accept, and tenant setting changes can take up to four hours to apply.

Workarounds#

None of these is a real approval workflow. The customer still gets a confirmed appointment unless you use the form option. Pick based on how often you expect to turn requests down.

1. Treat the booking as a request and follow up#

Best when you rarely say no.

1. Open the service (Services → the service) and, on Notifications, use the Additional information for Email Confirmation field to tell customers the time is provisional, for example: "We'll confirm or suggest another time within one business day."
2. Add custom fields on the Custom fields page for anything you need to decide, such as project type or budget.
3. Staff review new appointments in the Bookings Calendar and cancel or reschedule the ones they can't accept. The customer gets the usual cancellation or change email.

The downside is that the slot is blocked and the customer has a calendar invite until you act.

2. Get told straight away with Power Automate#

The Microsoft Bookings connector (still in preview) has a trigger called "When a appointment is Created". You can use it to post each new booking to a Teams channel or send it to an approver with Power Automate's approval actions. If the answer is no, someone still cancels the appointment in Bookings, because the connector has no action to cancel or update appointments.

Limits Microsoft documents for the connector:

• Only Bookings admins for that booking page can create flows with the appointment triggers.
• There's a limit of 5 flows per Bookings mailbox.
• Cancel reason isn't populated for 1:1 bookings.

For flow design, see the Power Automate CRM guide. If the trigger doesn't fire, see trigger not firing.

3. Collect a request, then book it yourself#

Best when most requests need screening, for example eligibility checks.

1. Publish a request form (Microsoft Forms or your website form) instead of the booking link.
2. In the service's Publishing options, choose to make the service bookable only from the Calendar tab. It then disappears from the public page but staff can still book it.
3. Once a request is approved, staff create the appointment in the Bookings Calendar. That sends the normal confirmation.

The customer loses self-service time picking, so this adds a round trip.

4. Restrict who can book#

If the approval requirement is really about keeping unknown people out, Require a Microsoft 365 account from my organization to book on the Booking page limits the page to people in your tenant. This only works for internal use. For public pages, see stopping spam bookings.

What to ask Microsoft for#

No approval feature appears in Microsoft's documentation, the Microsoft 365 roadmap, or the 2024–2026 announcements we checked. If you need one, add your vote to the related ideas on the Microsoft Bookings Feedback Portal.