What is Email Forwarding in Office 365?

Email forwarding in Microsoft 365 lets you redirect incoming email messages from one email account to another automatically. For businesses, this can be a game-changer when managing team mailboxes, ensuring no critical message gets missed.

Small business owners, marketers, and enterprise teams often rely on email forwarding to keep their workflow organized. Whether you’re streamlining responses to customers, forwarding emails to external collaborators, or consolidating communications, this feature simplifies operations.

Why Set Up Email Forwarding?

For a marketer, forwarding emails ensures email messages from campaigns reach the right address without delay. Small business owners might use automatic forwarding to manage emails during peak times. Enterprise teams can route emails to shared mailboxes for better tracking.

By the end of this guide, you’ll know:

  1. How to set up forwarding in Office 365.
  2. Steps for forwarding in Outlook and the admin center.
  3. Best practices to enhance productivity while keeping security intact.

 Understanding Email Forwarding in Office 365

Email forwarding in Microsoft 365 is a feature that redirects incoming email messages from one email address to another. It ensures seamless communication, whether you’re managing a team or working with external collaborators.

Use Cases for Email Forwarding

  • Small Business Owners: Forward emails to team members for faster responses to customer inquiries.
  • Marketers: Simplify campaign management by routing campaign responses to a centralized mailbox.
  • Sales Teams: Forward important leads to specific representatives automatically.

Types of Forwarding

  1. User-Level Forwarding: Set up by the user in Outlook or a similar email account interface.
  2. Admin-Level Forwarding: Configured in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center, ideal for managing team-wide communications.
  3. External Email Forwarding: Redirects messages to external addresses like Gmail or Yahoo, often requiring additional settings for compliance and security.

Benefits of Email Forwarding

  • Prevent missed emails sent to inactive accounts.
  • Centralize communication for easier tracking.
  • Streamline workflows by forwarding to shared mailboxes.

Prerequisites for Setting Up Email Forwarding

Before setting up email forwarding in Microsoft 365, ensure you meet the necessary requirements. This will help avoid errors like “5.7.520 Access Denied” or compliance issues within your organization.

Access and Permissions

  • For Individual Users: You need access to your 365 account and Outlook settings.
  • For Admins: Permissions in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center are required to configure forwarding for other users.

Organizational Policies

  • Verify if your organization allows automatic forwarding. Some businesses disable this for security and compliance purposes.
  • Review the anti-spam settings to ensure external email forwarding is enabled, if required.

Technical Needs

  • A valid Microsoft 365 account or subscription.
  • Administrator access to the portal for team-wide forwarding setups.
  • An active and functional email address to act as the forwarding destination.

Security Considerations

  • Enable external forwarding only when necessary, as it can pose risks like data leaks or phishing attempts.
  • Use automatic forwarding rules responsibly to maintain compliance with your company’s information technology policies.

Step-by-Step Guide to Setting Up Email Forwarding

Setting up email forwarding in Microsoft 365 is straightforward, whether you’re an individual user or an admin managing a team. Follow these steps to ensure smooth configuration.

For Individual Users in Outlook

Step 1: Log into your Microsoft 365 account and open Outlook.
Step 2: Click the gear icon (Settings) at the top right and select View all Outlook settings from the dropdown menu.
Step 3: Navigate to Mail > Forwarding.
Step 4: Check the box for Enable forwarding and enter the forwarding address where you want the email messages to go.
Step 5: Decide whether to check the option to keep a copy of forwarded messages in your inbox.
Step 6: Click Save to apply the changes.

For Admins Using the Microsoft 365 Admin Center

Step 1: Access the Admin Center by logging in at admin.microsoft.com.
Step 2: Go to Users > Active Users and select the user whose email account needs forwarding.
Step 3: In the user details pane, click Mail > Manage email forwarding.
Step 4: Turn on the forwarding option and enter the forwarding address.
Step 5: Choose whether to allow forwarding to external email addresses like Gmail or Yahoo by enabling allow external forwarding in the mail flow settings.
Step 6: Save the configuration and test the setup.

Testing the Forwarding Configuration

  • Send a test email message to the original email address to ensure it is successfully forwarded.
  • Check if a copy of the forwarded email is retained, if that option was selected.

Common Issues and Fixes

  • 5.7.520 Access Denied: This error usually indicates that external email forwarding is disabled. Update your anti-spam or mail flow policies to resolve it.
  • Spam Filters: Ensure forwarding rules don’t conflict with the anti-spam settings of your organization.
  • Remote Server Returned Error: Verify the recipient’s email address is valid and active.

Managing and Monitoring Forwarded Emails

Once email forwarding is set up in Microsoft 365, effective management is key to ensure smooth communication. This section focuses on tracking forwarded email messages, making adjustments, and addressing common challenges.

Tracking Forwarded Emails

  • Monitor Forwarded Messages: Regularly check the destination mailbox to confirm that all emails sent to the original email address are being forwarded correctly.
  • Activity Logs: For admins, use the Microsoft 365 Admin Center to review mail flow logs. These logs help identify forwarding errors or delays.

Adjusting Forwarding Settings

  • Modify Forwarding Rules: If business needs change, update the forwarding address or turn off forwarding via Outlook or the Admin Center.
  • Disable Forwarding: Stop forwarding emails temporarily or permanently by unchecking the enable forwarding option in your account settings.
  • Change Retention Options: Decide whether to keep a copy of forwarded messages in the original inbox to maintain a record of communications.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

  • Spam Filters Blocking Forwarded Emails: Review anti-spam settings to ensure legitimate messages are not flagged as spam.
  • External Email Delivery Problems: Ensure the external email address is correctly entered and reachable. Check for typos in the forwarding address book or policies blocking external email forwarding.
  • Phishing and Security Risks: Regularly review forwarded emails for potential phishing attempts and use built-in security tools in Microsoft 365 to identify risks.

Tools for Effective Management

  • Custom Rules: Create filters and rules to sort forwarded emails into folders or categories.
  • Admin Tools: Use mail flow dashboards in the Admin Center to adjust global forwarding rules and monitor delivery issues.
  • Shared Mailboxes: For team-wide communication, redirect emails to a shared mailbox instead of individual addresses.

Best Practices for Email Forwarding

Proper management of email forwarding in Microsoft 365 helps maintain efficiency, security, and compliance. Follow these best practices to get the most out of the forwarding feature while minimizing risks.

Prioritize Security and Privacy

  • Avoid Forwarding Sensitive Information: Be cautious when forwarding emails containing sensitive or confidential data, especially to external addresses.
  • Enable External Forwarding Only When Necessary: Limit external email forwarding to trusted addresses to prevent data breaches.
  • Use Built-In Security Tools: Leverage Microsoft 365‘s security features, like anti-spam filters and phishing detection, to protect forwarded emails.

Simplify and Organize Workflows

  • Create Automatic Forwarding Rules: Set up custom rules to filter and categorize forwarded emails automatically. For instance, sort emails by sender or subject into dedicated folders.
  • Keep a Copy of Forwarded Messages: Enable this option to ensure the original email messages are retained for record-keeping or backup.
  • Leverage Shared Mailboxes: For collaborative teams, forward emails to a shared mailbox instead of individual accounts to centralize communication.

Stay Compliant with Organizational Policies

  • Review Forwarding Permissions Regularly: Ensure compliance with your organization’s email policies and disable forwarding for inactive accounts.
  • Monitor Email Flow: Use admin tools to track forwarded emails sent and adjust settings as needed.
  • Enable Notifications: Set up alerts to track unauthorized changes to email forwarding settings.

Avoid Overloading Mailboxes

  • Limit Forwarding to Relevant Emails: Use filters to forward only critical or relevant messages to avoid cluttering the destination inbox.
  • Test Forwarding Regularly: Ensure forwarding rules are functioning as expected and forwarding to the correct email address.

FAQs

1. Can I forward emails to multiple addresses in Office 365?

Yes, but you’ll need to create a rule for each recipient or use a distribution list that contains all the required email addresses.

2. Is it possible to forward emails without keeping a copy in the original mailbox?

Absolutely. During setup, uncheck the option to keep a copy of forwarded messages in the original inbox.

3. How do I enable external email forwarding?

Admins can enable this in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center by adjusting anti-spam and mail flow policies to allow external forwarding.

4. What should I do if I see a “5.7.520 Access Denied” error?

This error often indicates that external email forwarding is disabled. Review your organization’s anti-spam settings and adjust them to enable forwarding to external addresses.

5. Can I forward emails automatically based on specific criteria?

Yes. Use automatic forwarding rules in Outlook to filter and forward emails based on sender, subject, or other conditions.

6. How do I stop email forwarding in Office 365?

To disable forwarding, go to your email settings in Outlook or the Admin Center, uncheck the forwarding option, and save your changes.

7. Are there limitations to forwarding emails in Office 365?

Yes. Limitations may include restrictions on forwarding to external email addresses due to compliance policies, or mailbox size constraints that could block forwarded messages.

Conclusion

Email forwarding in Microsoft 365 is a powerful tool for streamlining communication. Whether you’re a small business owner handling customer inquiries, a marketer managing campaigns, or an enterprise team coordinating tasks, it ensures critical messages reach the right address without delay.

By following the steps to set up forwarding, monitoring forwarded emails, and applying best practices, you can maintain seamless communication while safeguarding your business’s data. For those managing team-wide forwarding, using the Admin Center provides control and visibility to keep operations running smoothly.

Next Steps:

  • Check your current email forwarding setup to confirm it aligns with your organizational needs.
  • Regularly review your forwarding rules and security settings to prevent unauthorized changes.
  • Implement the recommended practices to optimize and secure your mail flow system.

With these strategies, you’re ready to make the most of email forwarding in Microsoft 365.