Are Claude Models Already Enabled in Your Microsoft Copilot Tenant?

On 10 November 2026 Microsoft posted Message Center notice MC1546438 and gave its European customers a date. On 9 December 2026, Claude models inside Copilot switch on by themselves for tenants registered in the EU and EFTA that have never touched the Anthropic setting. Social media has turned this into “Microsoft is enabling Claude for everyone”. If your tenant is registered in Türkiye the story is different, because the setting is most likely on already.

What is Claude doing inside Copilot?

Copilot does not run on OpenAI models alone. Microsoft onboarded Anthropic as one of its own subprocessors and offers Claude as a model choice in several places. The Microsoft Learn page lists these:

• Microsoft Copilot chat (web, desktop and mobile)
• Researcher
• Copilot in Word, Excel and PowerPoint
• Copilot Studio and Power Platform

The subprocessor status matters for contracts. Requests sent to Claude are handled under the Microsoft Product Terms and the Data Protection Addendum, so you sign nothing separate with Anthropic. In Copilot chat an on-screen indicator shows when a Claude model is answering.

What is the default for a tenant in Türkiye?

According to Microsoft’s documentation, Claude models are on by default for most commercial cloud customers outside the EU, EFTA and the UK. In those three regions the setting arrives as “No users” and an admin has to opt in.

Which group you fall into depends on the country your tenant was signed up in. The EU Data Boundary page lists the 27 EU member states plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. Türkiye is not on it. A tenant signed up in Türkiye therefore sits on the “on by default” side, and the 9 December change does not affect it.

One caveat. Microsoft says “most customers” and does not name Türkiye. Your own admin center gives the definite answer, and checking takes two minutes.

Tenant sign-up country	Default today	On 9 December 2026
Türkiye and other commercial cloud regions	On	No change
EU and EFTA countries	Off	Enabled for all users if no selection was made
United Kingdom	Off	Not covered by the notice

Companies that belong to a foreign group should read this table carefully. If the tenant was created for a parent company in Germany, users in the Istanbul office fall under the EU row too.

Where do you check the setting?

You need the AI Administrator or Global Administrator role.

1. In the Microsoft 365 admin center go to Copilot > Settings > View all.
2. Open AI providers operating as Microsoft subprocessors.
3. Under Anthropic, see who has access. The choices are all users, specific users and groups, or no users.
4. If you changed anything, select Save.

The tenant’s country is shown on the organization profile page in the same admin center.

If you use Copilot Studio or Power Platform there is a second place to look. The Power Platform admin center has its own control for allowing Claude in those products.

Turning Claude off has a cost. Microsoft notes that some features only work with Claude models enabled and may become unavailable once Anthropic is disabled. In my view the sensible setting for most companies is access for specific groups. If your corporate AI policy already says who may use which model with which data, configure this screen to match it.

Why are “Data Retention” models handled separately?

This is the setting that deserves real attention. Advanced models labelled “Anthropic models with Data Retention” sit outside the rule above. Microsoft’s page gives Claude Fable 5 and Claude Mythos 5 as examples. They are off everywhere in the world, and nobody can use them until an admin explicitly opts in.

The reason is where the data stays. For these models Anthropic acts as an independent processor, and Anthropic’s commercial terms apply instead of your Microsoft agreement. According to the documentation Anthropic stores most inputs and outputs for up to 30 days. Content flagged for a possible usage policy violation can be kept for up to two years.

Do not enable this just to get the newest model. If you do enable it, limit access to a small group and decide in advance whether it may be used for work involving personal data.

What changes in Europe on 9 December?

For tenants registered in the EU or EFTA, the notice comes down to four points:

• In early December, Claude processing moves inside the EU Data Boundary. Until then that commitment does not cover Claude.
• On 9 December, Claude is enabled for all users in tenants that made no selection.
• The option to allow Claude only in Copilot in Microsoft 365 apps is retired. Tenants on that option move to “All users”.
• Tenants that deliberately enabled or disabled Claude keep their selection.

An admin who does not want Claude enabled should choose “No users” or “Specific users and groups” on the same screen before 9 December. It can also be turned off afterwards.

Frequently asked questions

Does Copilot stop working if I disable Claude?

No. Copilot keeps working. Users can no longer pick Claude as a model, and some Claude-dependent features may disappear.

Is what I type sent to Anthropic?

When Claude is selected, Anthropic processes the request, but as Microsoft’s subprocessor and under Microsoft’s Data Protection Addendum. With “Data Retention” models the data is stored at Anthropic, which is why they need separate consent.

Copilot, or Claude’s own business plan?

That is a separate decision. I compared the three products on licensing, data and use cases in Copilot vs ChatGPT Enterprise vs Claude.

Is there anything to do under KVKK?

KVKK is Türkiye’s personal data protection law. Record which subprocessors operate in Copilot in your data inventory, and have your legal counsel confirm the cross-border transfer side. This article is not legal advice.

If you would like us to produce an inventory of the Copilot and AI settings in your tenant, get in touch.

Sources

• Microsoft 365 Message Center, MC1546438 (10 November 2026)
• Claude models from Anthropic in Microsoft Online Services, Microsoft Learn
• EU Data Boundary for Microsoft 365, Microsoft Learn