Forum Discussion
Azure for Students - Locations now restricted by policy
Heads-up! Microsoft now enforces the “Allowed locations” policy on Azure for Students. This means students can only deploy resources in specific regions.
Why does it vary?
Allowed regions depend on:- Datacenter capacity
- Local compliance rules
- Microsoft’s allocation for free-tier accounts
Impact:
Some services (like Azure AI Foundry) only work in certain regions. If those aren’t allowed, students can’t use them.Workarounds:
- Use services available in allowed regions
- Upgrade to Pay-As-You-Go
- Contact support for help
How to check:
Azure Portal → Subscriptions → Policies → “Allowed locations”
I have a whole class of students who cannot create resources using their Azure for Students subscription.
Students are trying to simply add a VM in any region but they are getting errors.
DisplayName : Allowed resource deployment regions
PolicyDefinitionId : /providers/Microsoft.Authorization/policyDefinitions/b86dabb9-b578-4d7b-b842-3b45e95769a1
As far as I can see, there are no allowed regions? Please send halp Carlos_Chaves
What are the 'allowed regions'? I can't find any.
Carlos_ChavesMicrosoft
This issue frequently occurs with Azure for Students subscriptions due to stringent policy assignments that restrict resource deployment to certain regions.
Why the Error Occurs
The relevant policy:
Allowed resource deployment regions PolicyDefinitionId: /providers/Microsoft.Authorization/policyDefinitions/b86dabb9-b578-4d7b-b842-3b45e95769a1
indicates that resource creation is limited to specific regions permitted by Microsoft for student and free-tier offers. If no regions are displayed, it generally signifies either:
- The subscription is limited to a small number of regions (typically US regions only), or
- The subscription has not been fully activated.
How to Verify Allowed Regions
Execute the following command in Azure CLI or Cloud Shell:
```Shell
az policy assignment list --query "[?policyDefinitionId=='/providers/Microsoft.Authorization/policyDefinitions/b86dabb9-b578-4d7b-b842-3b45e95769a1']"
```
Review the output for parameters.allowedLocations.value to determine the list of permitted regions.
Commonly Permitted Regions for Azure for Students
- East US
- West US
- Occasionally Central US
Other geographic areas (Europe, Asia, LATAM) are usually restricted to manage costs.
Resolution / Workaround
Deploy virtual machines in East US or West US where possible.
If no regions appear, ensure your subscription is active and not expired.
If the issue persists, submit a support request: Microsoft Azure Support (Select Billing/Subscription → “Azure for Students”)
The following Azure CLI command retrieves the allowed regions for this policy:
```Shell
az policy assignment list \
--query "[?policyDefinitionId=='/providers/Microsoft.Authorization/policyDefinitions/b86dabb9-b578-4d7b-b842-3b45e95769a1'].parameters.allowedLocations.value[]" \
--output tsv
```
Description:
- Filters policy assignments to locate the Allowed resource deployment regions policy
- Extracts the values of the allowedLocations parameter
- Outputs these values as a list
Run this command in Azure Cloud Shell or your local CLI session (after logging in via `az login`). If no results are returned, your subscription may lack any configured allowed regions; in this case, please contact support: https://azure.microsoft.com/support/create-ticket/