Remove a License from a Microsoft 365 User via Microsoft Graph

Remove a license using the Microsoft 365 admin center

1. Sign in to the Microsoft 365 admin center at https://admin.microsoft.com with a License Administrator or User Administrator role.
2. In the left navigation, go to Users → Active users.
3. Search for the target user (e.g., {user_displayName}) and click their name to open the user details pane.
4. Select the Licenses and apps tab.
5. Review the list of assigned licenses. Uncheck the box next to the SKU you want to remove (e.g., Microsoft 365 Business Standard).
6. Click Save changes at the bottom of the pane.
7. Confirm the change by reopening the Licenses and apps tab — the removed SKU should no longer appear checked.

Verifying in the Licenses blade

1. Navigate to Billing → Licenses.
2. Select the SKU you just unassigned and confirm the Assigned count decreased by one.

Note: If the user's license shows a 🔒 (inherited) icon, the assignment comes from a group. You must remove the user from the licensing group instead of unchecking the SKU.

Remove a license using Microsoft Graph

Step 1 — Resolve the user's object ID

GET https://graph.microsoft.com/v1.0/users?$filter=startswith(displayName,'{displayName}')&$select=id,displayName,userPrincipalName

Example response:

{
  "value": [{
    "id": "d4a8b926-9c24-4be5-aa23-2c8711c5aec3",
    "displayName": "Jane Doe",
    "userPrincipalName": "jane.doe@contoso.com"
  }]
}

Step 2 — Enumerate currently assigned licenses

GET https://graph.microsoft.com/v1.0/users/{userId}/licenseDetails

The response returns each assigned SKU with skuId (GUID) and skuPartNumber (friendly code). Record the skuId you want to remove.

Step 3 — Remove the license via the assignLicense action

POST https://graph.microsoft.com/v1.0/users/{userId}/assignLicense
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "addLicenses": [],
  "removeLicenses": ["cdd28e44-67e3-425e-be4c-737fab2899d3"]
}

A 200 OK with the updated user object confirms success. To remove multiple SKUs in one call, include multiple GUIDs in the removeLicenses array.

Step 4 — Verify

GET https://graph.microsoft.com/v1.0/users/{userId}/licenseDetails

Confirm the removed skuId no longer appears in the value array.

Common errors

Remove a license using PowerShell

Use the Microsoft.Graph PowerShell SDK. This approach is ideal for scripting bulk removals or integrating with automation runbooks.

Prerequisites

• PowerShell 7.x recommended
• Install-Module Microsoft.Graph -Scope CurrentUser
• An account with License Administrator or User Administrator role

Quick interactive example

# Connect with the required scope
Connect-MgGraph -Scopes "User.ReadWrite.All","Organization.Read.All"

# Look up the user
$user = Get-MgUser -Filter "userPrincipalName eq 'jane.doe@contoso.com'"

# List current licenses with friendly names
Get-MgUserLicenseDetail -UserId $user.Id | 
    Select-Object SkuPartNumber, SkuId

# Remove a specific SKU (Microsoft 365 Business)
Set-MgUserLicense -UserId $user.Id \`
    -AddLicenses @() \`
    -RemoveLicenses @("cdd28e44-67e3-425e-be4c-737fab2899d3")

What the script does

1. Authenticates to Graph with delegated scopes that allow license writes.
2. Resolves the user by UPN, display name, or object ID.
3. Enumerates licenses so you can confirm the target SKU ID.
4. Calls Set-MgUserLicense — this wraps the assignLicense Graph action. -AddLicenses @() is required even when only removing.
5. Verifies the final state by re-running Get-MgUserLicenseDetail.

For production use, download the full script below, which adds parameter validation, group-assignment detection, dry-run mode, and logging.