Migrating from Yandex Mail to Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace

As of 8 December 2025, the free business edition of Yandex 360 for Business is gone. The service that many companies chose precisely because it offered “free corporate mail” now switches accounts to a view-only mode unless you pick a paid plan. That single change put the same question on hundreds of SME desks across Türkiye: stay on Yandex, or move?

If you have decided to move, the technical side is a little more nuanced than it looks. Email migration is not copy-and-paste; done in the wrong order, mail flow breaks and calendars and contacts get left behind. This guide walks through moving from Yandex Mail to Microsoft 365, Google Workspace and other platforms in realistic steps.

Why are companies leaving Yandex?

A few reasons — some concrete, some a matter of judgement:

• The free plan ended. This is the clearest trigger. Paid tiers run at roughly TRY 199 (Basic / 100 GB), TRY 299 (Optimum / 1 TB) and TRY 799 (Advanced / 3 TB) per user per month. If you are going to pay anyway, the “which platform” question reopens.
• Data residency. After the 2024 ownership change, Yandex’s consumer and business services belong to a Russia-based operator. Data is processed on Russian servers under Russian law (152-FZ). Under KVKK (Türkiye’s data protection law, the local equivalent of the GDPR), cross-border transfer to Russia is something to weigh carefully — not an automatic violation, but a real risk line item.
• Ecosystem. Built-in enterprise integrations — Teams, Office co-authoring, single sign-on via Entra ID — are far more mature on Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace.

Be sceptical of rumours like “Yandex is leaving Türkiye” or “cards are being declined” — the service is still actively sold via yandex.com.tr. Base the decision on the concrete points above, not chatter.

The one fact that breaks migrations: IMAP moves email only

I am putting this first because it is where migrations most often fail. Yandex has no one-click connector for Microsoft or Google. The move happens over standard IMAP migration, and by protocol IMAP carries only the inbox and mail folders. Calendars, contacts and tasks are not migrated over IMAP. Third-party tools do not get around this — the limit is in the protocol, not the tool.

So every migration is really two jobs: (1) IMAP migration for mail, (2) a separate transfer for calendars and contacts. Skip the second and users land in the new system with an empty calendar.

What to prepare on the Yandex side

Whatever the destination, the source side is the same:

1. In Yandex Mail → Settings → Email clients, enable IMAP access via the imap.yandex.com server (off by default).
2. On the same screen, enable “App passwords and OAuth.”
3. In Yandex ID → Security, generate an app password (type: Mail). Yandex rejects the normal account password in third-party clients, so the migration tool cannot connect without it. The generated password is shown only once.

Server value in every case: imap.yandex.com, port 993, SSL.

Migrating to Microsoft 365

The typical flow runs through the Exchange admin center:

1. Domain: add your domain in the M365 admin center and verify it with a TXT record.
2. Users and licences: IMAP migration does not create mailboxes; each user’s mailbox and licence must already exist.
3. Temporarily disable archive/MRM policies (otherwise items show as “missing” and trigger false data-loss panic).
4. Migration endpoint: Exchange admin center → Migration → Endpoints → IMAP → server imap.yandex.com, port 993, SSL.
5. CSV and batch: prepare a CSV with headers EmailAddress, UserName, Password — where Password is the Yandex app password. Create and start the batch, then watch for “Syncing.”

Limits: up to 500,000 items per user, single emails up to 35 MB. Calendars and contacts move separately, via Outlook .pst export/import or CSV/ICS.

Migrating to Google Workspace

Google’s built-in Data Migration tool takes IMAP directly as a source:

1. Admin Console → Data → Data import & export (super admin required).
2. Select IMAP, server imap.yandex.com, verify with Test connection.
3. Up to 20 users by hand; more via a CSV with Source ImapUser, Source ImapPassword, TargetGUser.
4. Choose a start date; mail from that date forward is migrated.

Limits: roughly 2.5 GB per user per day, up to 100 users at a time, message+attachment 25 MB. IMAP folders become Gmail labels. Calendars move via ICS, contacts via vCard/CSV.

Other destinations and a decision table

Destination	Yandex migration path	Calendar/contacts	Note
Microsoft 365	EAC IMAP migration	Separate (PST / ICS)	Office-Teams ecosystem
Google Workspace	Data Migration (IMAP)	Separate (ICS / vCard)	Web-first, simple admin
Zoho Mail	Built-in IMAP tool	Separate	Cost-focused SMEs
Proton (Business)	Easy Switch (explicitly supports Yandex)	During import	Privacy-focused
Own server / hosting	IMAP-to-IMAP (imapsync)	Manual	Full data control

KVKK and data residency

If data residency in Türkiye matters, know this: neither Microsoft 365 nor Google Workspace offers a data-centre commitment inside Türkiye’s borders. In both, the closest option is selecting the Europe/EU data region and relying on the provider’s DPA (Data Processing Agreement) and Standard Contractual Clauses. If data must stay in Türkiye, the destination has to be your own server hosted in Türkiye or a local provider. Both major platforms are GDPR-compliant and ISO 27001/27701 certified; KVKK compliance is then built through the right contract and configuration.

A plan for a downtime-free move

The way to migrate without cutting mail flow is in the sequence:

1. Inventory: mailbox count, sizes, large mailboxes, shared mailboxes, calendar/contact volume.
2. Lower the TTL: at least a day or two before cutover, reduce the MX record’s TTL so DNS propagates fast.
3. Pilot: test with 5-10 representative users (an admin, someone with a huge mailbox, someone with a complex calendar).
4. Run the first full sync while MX still points to Yandex.
5. Flip MX and set up SPF, DKIM and DMARC for the destination.
6. Delta (final) sync: pull the last messages that landed on Yandex during the switch.
7. Keep rollback ready: thanks to the low TTL, you can revert to the old MX if something goes wrong.

Frequently asked questions

Do my calendar and contacts come over automatically? No. IMAP moves only mail; you transfer calendars and contacts separately via ICS/vCard or PST.

Will I lose email during the migration? Done in the right order (create mailboxes/users first, then flip MX, then delta sync) there is no loss. The most common loss comes from flipping MX before users exist.

Why is an app password required? Yandex rejects the normal password in third-party clients; the migration tool can only connect with an app password.

How long does it take? The real driver is mailbox count and size. A weekend cutover is typical for a small company; larger organisations move in phased waves.

If you would like us to plan your move from Yandex to Microsoft 365, Google Workspace or your own server end to end — from inventory and DNS cutover to calendar/contact transfer and the KVKK side — get in touch. We review your current setup and produce a downtime-free migration plan.

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Sources: Yandex 360 official support (free edition shutdown, IMAP/app password, pricing); Microsoft Learn (IMAP mailbox migration, domain & DNS records); Google Workspace Admin Help (Data migration, MX/SPF/DKIM/DMARC, data regions); Proton Easy Switch; Zoho Mail migration documentation.