Microsoft Outage Hits Global Operations: From Airlines To Visas - Newsweek

A global outage impacting many Microsoft services has continued into Friday causing disruption to government services and private companies around the world.

According to Downdetector, a website that monitors internet outages, problems with Microsoft services including Outlook began to be reported at shortly after 12 p.m. ET on Thursday, with disruption ongoing as of 2 a.m. ET on Friday.

In addition to Outlook Microsoft said services include Microsoft Copilot 365, Microsoft 365 Education, Microsoft Fabric, Microsoft Planner and Microsoft Teams had been impacted to varying extents.

In a post on X the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office in Colorado said that due to the Microsoft outage bond payments for those held at Arapahoe County Detention Facility must be made in person.

They wrote: “The Microsoft outage is affecting online bond payments for individuals being held at the Arapahoe County Detention Facility. Because of the outage, jail officials are not receiving the email notifications needed to process online bond payments.

“Until Outlook email is restored, anyone needing to post bond for immediate release must do so in person at the jail. We apologize for the inconvenience and appreciate your patience.”

In a statement the United States Court of Appeal for the Tenth Circuit said its clerk’s office had “been unable to send or receive emails for much of the day today, November 12, 2026” adding “individuals who rely upon Microsoft for email may experience delays in receipt of notices of docket activity.” However they said telephone and live chat remained available during regular business hours.

Electric Vehicle manufacture Workhorse Group announced it had postponed its third-quarter financial results announcement from November 12 to November 16 due to disruption caused by the Microsoft outage.

South African based airline CemAir posted on Facebook that it is “currently experiencing some system disruptions due to the global Microsoft outage” adding: “We apologize for any inconvenience and thank you for your patience and understanding.”

The New Zealand Herald reports the Microsoft outage has impacted “major government agencies, schools, businesses, health services, property settlements and court appearances” across the country.

New Zealand's immigration service has noted that visa applications will be impacted, writing, "Because of the global Microsoft outage Immigration New Zealand has paused the processing of all visa applications. We will update you once our systems are restored."

At a press conference the Director-General of the Australian Security Intelligence Organization, Mike Burgess, and Australian Federal Police Commissioner Krissy Barrett, said both the spy agency and federal police had been impacted by the outage.

In Singapore the country’s Government Technology Agency (GovTech) said on Friday that government systems had been impacted by the disruption. In a statement to CAN GovTech said: “For updates on e-services, please check the relevant agency’s official website or social media channels. The email disruption may delay responses to enquiries.”

According to Reuters in Taiwan one securities company had to cancel a previously planned bond repurchase transaction due to the disruption.

Indian airlines IndiGo and Air India both said they had been impacted by the Microsoft outage. IndiGo said its email support services had been disrupted, impacting its ability to receive customer queries, while Air India said it had successfully rerouted its email services to minimize the impact.

On X the Supreme Court of the Philippines said that due to “the ongoing worldwide Microsoft 365 service outage” replies “to emails and other transactions may be delayed.”

According to the South China Morning Post bankers working for Goldman Sachs and Nomura in Hong Kong's financial district were impacted by the disruption.

Speaking to the Post one Nomura employee said they were unable to send or receive emails and consequently were in the office with little work they could do.

Newsweek contacted Microsoft for comment by email on Friday outside of regular office hours.

This is a developing story and will be updated.