What is the Microsoft CSP program and how does it work?

The Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) program lets partners sell Microsoft cloud services, including Microsoft 365, Azure, and Dynamics 365, directly to customers. CSP partners manage the full customer relationship: provisioning, billing, and technical support. There are two participation models. In the Direct Bill model, partners buy from Microsoft and invoice customers directly. In the Indirect Reseller model, partners work through a Microsoft-authorized distributor that handles the Microsoft transaction. Partners choose the model that fits their revenue scale and operational capacity. Source: https://learn.microsoft.com/partner-center/enroll/enrolling-in-the-csp-program

What is the difference between a Direct Bill partner and an Indirect Reseller in the CSP program?

A Direct Bill partner purchases Microsoft cloud services directly from Microsoft and owns the end-to-end customer relationship, including billing and first-level technical support. An Indirect Reseller works through a Microsoft-authorized distributor (indirect provider), which handles procurement and invoicing from Microsoft. Direct Bill status carries significantly higher requirements: at least 12 months as an Indirect Reseller, USD $1 million in trailing twelve-month CSP revenue at the Partner Global Account level, an active Solutions Partner designation in the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program, and an active premium support plan (ASfP or PSfP). Source: https://learn.microsoft.com/partner-center/enroll/direct-partner-new-requirements

What are the requirements to become a CSP Direct Bill partner?

To enroll as a CSP Direct Bill partner, your organization must meet five requirements verified by Microsoft: (1) at least 12 months of transacting as a CSP Indirect Reseller; (2) at least USD $1 million in eligible CSP revenue at the Partner Global Account (PGA) level during the preceding 12 months; (3) an active Solutions Partner designation in the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program (MAICPP); (4) an active Microsoft support plan, either Advanced Support for Partners (ASfP) or Premier Support for Partners (PSfP); and (5) completion of all mandatory Partner Center security score requirements, including MFA for all administrative users. Starting October 2025, existing Direct Bill partners are reassessed annually. Source: https://learn.microsoft.com/partner-center/enroll/direct-partner-new-requirements

What is the Microsoft Partner Agreement (MPA) and is it mandatory for CSP partners?

The Microsoft Partner Agreement (MPA) is a mandatory digital agreement that every CSP partner must sign to participate in the program. It covers data privacy, security, and compliance obligations that apply across all CSP transactions. The MPA must be signed by a Global Admin in Partner Center. Partners must sign the MPA separately for each CSP region where they operate. If the MPA is not signed, the partner's CSP status remains in a Qualified (inactive) state and they cannot transact. Source: https://learn.microsoft.com/partner-center/enroll/microsoft-partner-agreement

Microsoft CSP Program: Enrollment Guide for Partners

Q: What is the Microsoft Customer Agreement (MCA) and why does it matter for CSP partners?

The Microsoft Customer Agreement (MCA) is the legal licensing agreement that customers must accept before a CSP partner can place orders on their behalf. CSP partners confirm acceptance in two ways: through partner attestation via the Partner Center API, or by inviting the customer to accept directly in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center. As of October 7, 2025, partners who confirmed the MCA for customers prior to April 1, 2023, and have not reattested, are blocked from completing new purchases, quantity changes, or subscription upgrades for those customers. Indirect Resellers cannot attest on behalf of customers and must work through their indirect provider. Source: https://learn.microsoft.com/partner-center/customers/confirm-customer-agreement

CloudCockpit

This article explains how the Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) program works, covering enrollment models, Direct Bill partner requirements, New Commerce Experience subscription terms, and the Microsoft Customer and Partner Agreement obligations that apply in 2025 and 2026.

Navigating the Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider Program

By CloudCockpit Team | Published: March 13, 2024 | Last updated: May 14, 2026

The Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) program lets IT companies act as a Microsoft cloud service provider: reselling Microsoft 365, Azure, Dynamics 365, and other Microsoft products to end customers while owning the billing, provisioning, and support relationship. Understanding the program structure is the first decision every Microsoft CSP partner must make correctly, because the model you choose determines your compliance obligations, margin control, and operational infrastructure for years.

What Is the Microsoft CSP Program?

The CSP acronym stands for Cloud Solution Provider. As a Microsoft CSP partner, you do not simply refer customers to Microsoft. You provision subscriptions, bill customers directly, and deliver first-level technical support. Microsoft is your supplier; your customers contract with you.

There are two ways to participate.

Direct Bill partners purchase Microsoft cloud services from Microsoft and invoice customers themselves.
Indirect Resellers purchase through a Microsoft-authorized distributor (indirect provider), which handles procurement and invoicing from Microsoft.

Managed service providers (MSPs) also participate in the CSP program to deliver managed Microsoft 365 and Azure services to their clients under either model.

The model you choose determines your compliance bar, your billing infrastructure requirements, and how much of the customer relationship you own.

Completing Your CSP Application

Before starting the enrollment process in Partner Center, gather the following:

Partner Location Account (PLA) ID: the location-specific identifier for your company in the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program (MAICPP). PGA IDs (global account IDs) are not accepted for CSP transactions: only PLA IDs are valid for Partner of Record (POR) assignments.
Global admin credentials: the username and password for your organization's Microsoft Entra tenant (Microsoft 365, Azure, or Dynamics 365).
Company legal business name and address: used for business verification. If your company is registered with Dun & Bradstreet, you can use the DUNS ID for automatic lookup.
Primary contact details: a work email on your company domain. Free email addresses (Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook.com) are not accepted.
Billing anniversary date: the recurring date on which you will receive your monthly invoices (Direct Bill enrollment only).

Microsoft's business verification process takes 3 to 5 business days after submission. You receive email status updates at your primary contact address throughout the review.

Enrolling in the CSP Program

As a Microsoft CSP partner, you sell and manage Microsoft products on behalf of your customers. Your role covers provisioning, billing, and technical support. The two enrollment paths have very different entry bars.

Indirect Reseller Enrollment

The Indirect Reseller model is the standard entry point for most new CSP partners. You do not purchase Microsoft cloud services directly or sign a licensing agreement with Microsoft. Your distributor (indirect provider) handles procurement and invoicing from Microsoft on your behalf.

Starting December 1, 2025, Microsoft enforces Partner of Record (POR) validation for all CSP Indirect Reseller transactions. Your PLA ID must be valid, associated with an active CSP Indirect Reseller tenant, and your business address must match the CSP region of your distributor. Transactions that do not meet these conditions are blocked.

The Indirect Reseller model suits companies entering the market without an established end-to-end billing infrastructure. Your distributor typically provides technical training, marketing support, and credit terms. The trade-off is that you cede control of the Microsoft transaction layer: pricing, margins, and credit risk are mediated through the distributor.

CloudCockpit note: The Indirect Reseller model reduces entry friction, but it also reduces margin visibility. Distributors aggregate transactions across dozens of resellers, which means the billing detail you receive is rarely line-item accurate by customer. Partners that grow their CSP base past 50 customers on the indirect model consistently report that margin tracking becomes a manual, error-prone process. That is the operational gap that a platform like CloudCockpit is built to close: giving Indirect Resellers the same billing precision and margin visibility that Direct Bill partners have by default.

Direct Bill Partner Enrollment

Direct Bill status requires meeting five verified requirements before Microsoft reviews your application. There is no exception process.

Requirement	Threshold
Indirect Reseller tenure	At least 12 months transacting as a CSP Indirect Reseller
Revenue	At least USD $1 million in eligible CSP revenue at the Partner Global Account (PGA) level during the preceding 12 months
Solutions Partner designation	At least one active designation in the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program (MAICPP)
Support plan	Active Advanced Support for Partners (ASfP) or Premier Support for Partners (PSfP)
Security score	All mandatory Partner Center security requirements met, including MFA for all administrative users

Do not purchase a support plan before Microsoft approves your enrollment application. Microsoft sends an email when you pass the credit check: that is when you purchase the plan. Purchasing too early creates a gap between the plan start date and your activation date.

Starting October 2025, Microsoft requires an annual reassessment of existing Direct Bill partners during their CSP onboarding month. Partners who fail at reassessment must transition to Indirect Reseller status. A one-year waiting period applies before reapplying, both for deauthorized partners and for applicants not approved at initial enrollment.

CloudCockpit note: The USD $1 million TTM revenue threshold is measured at the Partner Global Account level, across all CSP tenants under the PGA. Partners approaching the threshold often find that their revenue reporting across multiple tenants lacks the consolidation needed to demonstrate compliance quickly. Preparing for a Direct Bill application means having consolidated TTM revenue data ready to produce on request. CloudCockpit's reporting layer aggregates transactional revenue across tenants, giving partners the PGA-level view that the enrollment assessment requires.

CSP Regional Markets and Subscription Terms

Regional Markets

Your company's physical location determines the market where you can sell CSP offers and the currencies in which you transact. Partners can only create customers for countries and regions within their authorized market. If a customer's tenant is registered in a different country than their physical location, it is the tenant's country that determines market eligibility, not the physical address.

Before placing any order on a customer's behalf, that customer must accept the Microsoft Customer Agreement (MCA). Enrollment in a new CSP region requires a separate application and business verification process, even if you are already authorized as a Direct Bill partner in another region.

New Commerce Experience (NCE) and Subscription Terms

All new Microsoft 365 and Azure subscriptions transacted through CSP today are governed by the New Commerce Experience (NCE). Under NCE, license-based subscriptions are available in three term lengths: monthly (billed monthly), annual (billed monthly or upfront), and three-year (billed monthly or upfront).

The NCE cancellation policy replaces the legacy 30-day full-refund window. Under NCE, you have a 7-day window from purchase or renewal to cancel a license-based subscription and receive a prorated refund. After 7 days, no refund is available and the subscription runs to the end of its term. Monthly subscriptions can be canceled at the end of any billing cycle without a penalty, but the per-seat price is higher than for annual commitments.

This distinction matters operationally. If a customer reduces headcount after day 7 of an annual subscription, the partner absorbs the cost of unused seats until the renewal date. Annual commitments lower the per-seat cost but transfer the cancellation risk to the partner.

The Microsoft Partner Agreement and the Microsoft Customer Agreement

Microsoft Partner Agreement (MPA)

The Microsoft Partner Agreement (MPA) is mandatory for every CSP partner, in every region where they operate. It is a digital agreement covering data privacy, security, and compliance obligations on the partner side. Only a Global Admin can sign the MPA in Partner Center. If the MPA is not signed, the partner's CSP status remains "Qualified" (inactive) and no transactions can be processed.

The MPA must be signed separately for each CSP region. Maintaining active CSP status requires keeping your PLA ID active and your MPA current across all regions where your company transacts.

Microsoft Customer Agreement (MCA)

The Microsoft Customer Agreement (MCA) is a separate document: it is the licensing agreement that your customers must accept before you can place any order on their behalf. The MCA is distinct from the MPA. The MPA governs your obligations as a partner; the MCA governs the customer's right to use Microsoft services.

CSP partners confirm customer acceptance in two ways: through partner attestation via the Partner Center API, or by inviting the customer to review and accept the MCA directly in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center. Indirect Resellers cannot attest on behalf of customers and must work with their indirect provider to complete attestation.

As of October 7, 2025, partners who confirmed the MCA for customers before April 1, 2023, and have not reattested using the updated API, are blocked from placing new purchases, increasing or decreasing quantities, changing billing plans, or processing upgrades for those customers. If your customer base includes accounts onboarded before April 2023, audit your MCA attestation status in Partner Center before a blocked transaction forces the issue.

CloudCockpit note: MCA attestation is one of those compliance tasks that partners defer until it blocks a transaction. By that point, you are either explaining a delayed order to a customer or racing to complete attestation under pressure. Partners managing hundreds of customer accounts have no reliable way to track attestation status across all tenants in Partner Center without building a custom report or manually checking each account. CloudCockpit surfaces MCA compliance status at the account level, so you can identify and resolve gaps before they block revenue.

The Bottom Line

The Microsoft CSP program gives partners a structured path to build a recurring cloud revenue business around Microsoft 365, Azure, and Dynamics 365. The Indirect Reseller model lowers the entry bar; the Direct Bill model gives you more margin control in exchange for a significantly higher compliance and operational load.

The requirements are not static. Direct Bill partners face annual reassessments starting October 2025. MCA attestation rules changed in October 2025, blocking transactions for accounts with outdated confirmations. NCE has replaced legacy subscription terms, shifting the 7-day cancellation risk to the partner.

Partners who treat compliance as a one-time enrollment task will find themselves blocked at the worst possible moment. The operational advantage goes to partners who track requirements, attestation status, and subscription commitments as ongoing operational data, not annual paperwork.

Frequently Asked Questions