Microsoft Teams auto attendants and call queues

See also

Sources

1. 1
   If business hours are left unchanged, an auto attendant follows its business-hours call flow from 09:00 to 17:00 every day and the after-hours flow at all other times; each day can have multiple time ranges.

   Setup - Auto Attendant - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 2: Call handling hours > Business and after hours · Checked 2026-09-24
2. 2
   Dial scope defaults to all online users; a user in both the include and exclude groups, or hidden from the Exchange GAL, is excluded, and a new user can take up to 36 hours to appear in the directory.

   Setup - Auto Attendant - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 6: Dial scope (optional) · Checked 2026-09-24
3. 3
   Dial keys are matched before directory search, so Microsoft recommends setting directory search to None on menus with mapped keys and using a separate auto attendant for dial-by-name or dial-by-extension.

   Setup - Auto Attendant - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 3: Business-hours call flow > Directory search · Checked 2026-09-24
4. 4
   The advanced auto attendant wizard runs in this order: general info, call handling hours, business-hours call flow, after-hours call flow, holidays call flow (optional), dial scope (optional), authorized users (optional).

   Setup - Auto Attendant - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Steps 1 to 7 · Checked 2026-09-24
5. 5
   Auto attendants support 54 text-to-speech locales but only 14 speech-recognition locales; choosing a locale without speech recognition disables voice inputs and limits dial-by-name to keypad entry.

   Reference - Supported Configurations - Microsoft Teams · Auto Attendants > Auto Attendant languages / locales (and Note) · Checked 2026-09-24
6. 6
   There is no per-tenant limit on auto attendants; each auto attendant has one after-hours call flow and up to 20 holiday sets of up to 50 holidays each.

   Reference - Supported Configurations - Microsoft Teams · Auto Attendants (limits list) · Checked 2026-09-24
7. 7
   Auto attendant menu options can map keys 0-9, * and # to destinations, and the mappings need not be contiguous; the operator only works if a menu key is mapped to it.

   Setup - Auto Attendant - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 3: Business-hours call flow > Set menu options; Step 1 Operator (optional) > Note · Checked 2026-09-24
8. 8
   Each auto attendant has one language and one time zone, and the time zone is used to calculate business hours.

   Setup - Auto Attendant - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 2: Call handling hours > Time zone · Checked 2026-09-24
9. 9
   An authorized user can change a voice app only if they have a voice applications policy that allows at least one change and are listed as an authorized user on at least one auto attendant or call queue; either one alone grants nothing.

   Manage - Voice applications policies - Microsoft Teams · Assign a custom voice applications policy to users · Checked 2026-09-24
10. 10
    All authorized users must be Enterprise Voice enabled.

    Reference - Voice applications prerequisites and licensing - Microsoft Teams · Prerequisites > Authorized users · Checked 2026-09-24
11. 11
    The global (org-wide default) voice applications policy disables every configuration change and should not be edited; custom policies must be created and assigned instead.

    Manage - Voice applications policies - Microsoft Teams · Introduction > Important · Checked 2026-09-24
12. 12
    An auto attendant or call queue can have at most 15 authorized users.

    Reference - Supported Configurations - Microsoft Teams · Auto Attendants; Call Queues (limits lists) · Checked 2026-09-24
13. 13
    Agent monitoring (monitor, whisper, barge, takeover) by an authorized user requires Teams Premium and Queues App, and the queue must have conference mode and presence-based routing on; an authorized user who is also a member must opt out first.

    Manage - Voice applications policies - Microsoft Teams · Voice applications policy settings > Call queues - Agent actions (Notes 1-4) · Checked 2026-09-24
14. 14
    Authorized users can make delegated day-to-day changes to voice apps without Teams admin center access or any Teams administrator role.

    Planning - Authorized users for voice applications - Microsoft Teams · Authorized users · Checked 2026-09-24
15. 15
    Authorized users can change greetings and music on hold without Teams Premium, but changing business hours, holiday schedules, routing, membership, routing method, presence-based routing, opt-out or exception routing requires Teams Premium.

    Manage - Voice applications policies - Microsoft Teams · Voice applications policy settings > Auto attendants - Features; Call queues - Features (Teams Premium required column) · Checked 2026-09-24
16. 16
    Greeting audio files may be WAV (uncompressed linear PCM), WMA (mono) or MP3, up to 5 MB, and typed greetings may be up to 1,000 characters.

    Reference - Supported Configurations - Microsoft Teams · Audio file formats and maximum size; Greeting message maximum characters · Checked 2026-09-24
17. 17
    Enabling auto attendant and call queue services requires at least one Teams Phone license in the tenant.

    Reference - Voice applications prerequisites and licensing - Microsoft Teams · Licensing > Base licensing > Auto Attendant and Call Queue · Checked 2026-09-24
18. 18
    Only a Global or Teams Administrator can fully manage a call queue that uses a Teams channel or a Shifts schedule group; other admin roles must be the channel's creator or owner or a team member to add it.

    Setup - Call Queue - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 3: Call answering > Shifts > Important · Checked 2026-09-24
19. 19
    Web click-to-call into auto attendants and call queues is capped at 40 calls per minute across the whole tenant.

    Reference - Supported Configurations - Microsoft Teams · Click-to-call restrictions · Checked 2026-09-24
20. 20
    A call queue supports up to 200 agents, of which at most 20 can be added as individual users; for larger teams, groups, channels or shifts only the first 200 Enterprise Voice-enabled members in alphabetical order become agents.

    Reference - Supported Configurations - Microsoft Teams · Call Queues (limits list) · Checked 2026-09-24
21. 21
    Call queue agents must be Enterprise Voice enabled and in TeamsOnly mode if they use the Teams app; if the queue's resource account uses Direct Routing, agents who conference or transfer also need an online voice routing policy (in transfer mode) and either an Audio Conferencing license or an online voice routing policy.

    Reference - Voice applications prerequisites and licensing - Microsoft Teams · Prerequisites > Call queue representatives · Checked 2026-09-24
22. 22
    Agent alert time can be set from 15 to 180 seconds, but agents using Teams on Windows with a Bluetooth audio device whose call buttons control Teams calls are capped at 120 seconds.

    Reference - Supported Configurations - Microsoft Teams · Call Queues (limits list) and its Note 1 · Checked 2026-09-24
23. 23
    To be offered callback, a caller's number must be a publicly dialable, non-premium E.164 number; the offer comes after the music on hold finishes, and the call timeout must be long enough for eligibility, the request and the callback to complete.

    Setup - Call Queue - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 5: Callback; Callback and call queue timeouts · Checked 2026-09-24
24. 24
    Automatic recording, compliance recording, shared call history, and monitor/whisper/barge/takeover for call queues all require conference mode.

    Reference - Supported Configurations - Microsoft Teams · Call Queue feature compatibility by call queue type > Notes 12, 13, 14 · Checked 2026-09-24
25. 25
    Conference mode shortens the time to connect a caller after an agent accepts; Teams users need it to consult or transfer with call queues, agents must be in TeamsOnly mode, and it is unsupported for calls from a Direct Routing gateway enabled for Location-Based Routing.

    Setup - Call Queue - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 3: Call answering > Conference mode · Checked 2026-09-24
26. 26
    Each call queue exception (overflow, timeout, no agents) can disconnect the call or redirect it to a routing destination such as a person, shared voicemail, another voice app or an external number.

    Setup - Call Queue - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 6: Exception handling (introduction) · Checked 2026-09-24
27. 27
    A known issue: with longest idle routing, the no-agents treatment does not work when New Calls Only is selected and new calls queue; All Calls works as expected.

    Setup - Call Queue - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 6: Exception handling > No Agents ... > Important: Known issues 1 · Checked 2026-09-24
28. 28
    Choosing longest idle automatically enables presence-based routing; when there are fewer queued calls than available agents, only the two longest-idle agents are offered calls.

    Setup - Call Queue - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 4: Agent selection > Presence-based call routing > Note · Checked 2026-09-24
29. 29
    A call queue built on a Teams channel can take up to 24 hours to become fully operational, and a user newly added to a group can take up to eight hours to receive their first call.

    Setup - Call Queue - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 3: Call answering > Teams channel (Note); Users and groups (Note) · Checked 2026-09-24
30. 30
    The no-agents exception fires when no agent is opted in (presence-based routing off) or when no agent is logged in or all are Appear Offline (presence-based routing on); it can apply to all calls (default) or new calls only.

    Setup - Call Queue - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 6: Exception handling > No Agents Opted/Logged In · Checked 2026-09-24
31. 31
    Call queues have no separate after-hours or holiday routing, so Microsoft recommends putting an auto attendant in front of a call queue even if it is staffed 24/7.

    Planning - Overview of voice applications · Call Queue (final paragraph) · Checked 2026-09-24
32. 32
    Each call queue has a setting that controls whether agents may opt out of taking calls (Microsoft recommends turning it on); an opted-out agent gets no queue calls whatever their presence.

    Setup - Call Queue - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 4: Agent selection > Call agents can opt out of taking calls; Presence-based call routing · Checked 2026-09-24
33. 33
    Call queue overflow triggers when Maximum calls in the queue is reached; that limit defaults to 50, can be set from 0 to 200, counts only calls still waiting, and at 0 the greeting cannot play.

    Setup - Call Queue - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 6: Exception handling > Overflow: Set how to handle call overflow · Checked 2026-09-24
34. 34
    With presence-based routing on, only agents whose status is Available are offered calls; it works with any routing method, and Skype for Business client agents are excluded while it is enabled.

    Setup - Call Queue - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 4: Agent selection > Presence-based call routing · Checked 2026-09-24
35. 35
    Microsoft's recommended call queue settings are conference mode on, round robin or longest idle routing, presence-based routing on, and an agent alert time of at least 20 seconds.

    Setup - Call Queue - Microsoft Teams · Summary of recommended call queue settings · Checked 2026-09-24
36. 36
    Call queues offer four routing methods: attendant (ring all agents at once), serial (ring agents one by one in list order), round robin (equalise call counts) and longest idle (the Available agent idle the longest).

    Setup - Call Queue - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 4: Agent selection · Checked 2026-09-24
37. 37
    The call timeout, the maximum time a call can wait before being redirected or disconnected, can be set from 0 seconds to 45 minutes.

    Setup - Call Queue - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 6: Exception handling > Call timeout: Set how to handle call timeouts · Checked 2026-09-24
38. 38
    When a voice app transfers to an external number, Calling Plan and Operator Connect display the original caller's number; for Direct Routing the result depends on the SBC's P-Asserted-Identity setting (Disabled, the default, shows the caller; Enabled shows the resource account number).

    Reference - Supported Configurations - Microsoft Teams · Outbound calling line identification (number) · Checked 2026-09-24
39. 39
    Holidays are created in the Teams admin center under Voice > Holidays; for a full-day holiday, the end time is 12:00 AM on the following day.

    Setup - Holidays - Microsoft Teams · Steps to create Holidays > step 8 Note · Checked 2026-09-24
40. 40
    Authorized users in Queues App cannot edit a voice app that is nested without a resource account.

    Planning - Nested Call Flows - Microsoft Teams · Reference the resource account assigned to ... > Important · Checked 2026-09-24
41. 41
    Only the first Teams Phone Agent, auto attendant or call queue that answers a call needs a licensed resource account; voice apps nested behind it need none, even if they transfer calls externally.

    Planning - Nested Call Flows - Microsoft Teams · How to nest call flows > Directly reference the Teams Phone Agent, Auto Attendant, or Call Queue · Checked 2026-09-24
42. 42
    When a call reaches a queue by a direct voice-app reference, the agent's call toast shows the call queue name; when it arrives through a resource account, the toast shows the resource account's display name.

    Planning - Nested Call Flows - Microsoft Teams · How to nest call flows > Directly reference ... (final paragraph) · Checked 2026-09-24
43. 43
    Transfers between Calling Plan, Operator Connect and Direct Routing connectivity are not supported for these voice apps.

    Reference - Voice applications prerequisites and licensing - Microsoft Teams · Prerequisites > Inbound calls > Note · Checked 2026-09-24
44. 44
    For Direct Routing, outbound PSTN from a resource account requires an online voice routing policy on that resource account; a phone number is optional.

    Reference - Voice applications prerequisites and licensing - Microsoft Teams · Licensing > Outbound calls ... > For Direct Routing numbers · Checked 2026-09-24
45. 45
    The prerequisites page warns that outbound calls fail if Calling Plan resource accounts making outbound, callback or on-behalf-of calls had no pay-as-you-go license or Communications credits assigned by 2025-11-01.

    Reference - Voice applications prerequisites and licensing - Microsoft Teams · Important > For Calling Plan customers who received MC1123835 · Checked 2026-09-24
46. 46
    Microsoft lists no extra licensing requirement for Operator Connect numbers, but it says that from 2025-11-01 on-behalf-of outbound, callback and external-transfer calls may be unavailable depending on the operator and must be coordinated with the carrier.

    Reference - Voice applications prerequisites and licensing - Microsoft Teams · Licensing > Outbound calls ... > For Operator Connect numbers; For Operator Connect customers who received MC1123837 · Checked 2026-09-24
47. 47
    For Microsoft-provided numbers, outbound PSTN from a resource account needs a funded pay-as-you-go license, Communications credits, or Telco pay-as-you-go overage (New Commerce); Calling Plan licenses on resource accounts stopped being supported for this on 2025-11-01.

    Reference - Voice applications prerequisites and licensing - Microsoft Teams · Licensing > Outbound calls ... > For Microsoft-provided numbers; Important: Changes to licensing required for auto attendant and call queue outbound PSTN calling · Checked 2026-09-24
48. 48
    Transfers to an external number, call queue callback, and agent on-behalf-of outbound caller ID each require the resource account to have outbound PSTN provisioning beyond the Teams Phone Resource Account license.

    Reference - Voice applications prerequisites and licensing - Microsoft Teams · Licensing > Outbound calls from Teams Phone Agent, Auto Attendant, or Call Queue · Checked 2026-09-24
49. 49
    Teams Phone Agent, an AI conversational extension of auto attendants, was available only through the Frontier Public Preview program as of the page date; it entered that preview on 2026-06-15.

    Planning - Overview of voice applications · Top Note; What's new in Teams Phone Agent (last six months) · Checked 2026-09-24
50. 50
    Creating a resource account requires both a Teams administrator role (Teams Telephony Administrator, Teams Communications Administrator or Teams Administrator) and the User Administrator role.

    Manage - Resource accounts for voice applications - Microsoft Teams · Assign permissions for managing a resource account · Checked 2026-09-24
51. 51
    When a resource account is created in the Teams admin center (Voice > Resource accounts > Add), its type is set to Auto attendant or Call queue; the PowerShell equivalent is New-CsOnlineApplicationInstance.

    Manage - Resource accounts for voice applications - Microsoft Teams · Create a resource account > Teams admin center; PowerShell · Checked 2026-09-24
52. 52
    Editing an existing resource account currently requires either Global Administrator or both Skype for Business Administrator and User Administrator.

    Manage - Resource accounts for voice applications - Microsoft Teams · Edit a resource account > Note · Checked 2026-09-24
53. 53
    Each resource account needs a Microsoft Teams Phone Resource Account license, which Microsoft describes as free.

    Reference - Voice applications prerequisites and licensing - Microsoft Teams · Licensing > Base licensing > Auto Attendant and Call Queue · Checked 2026-09-24
54. 54
    A phone number on a resource account is optional; an auto attendant or call queue is directly reachable by phone number only if it has a resource account with an assigned number.

    Manage - Resource accounts for voice applications - Microsoft Teams · Obtain phone numbers · Checked 2026-09-24
55. 55
    The resource-accounts page opens by saying a resource account is required for each auto attendant or call queue, but the nesting and setup pages say nested voice apps need none.disputed

    Manage - Resource accounts for voice applications - Microsoft Teams · Opening paragraph · Checked 2026-09-24
56. 56
    The prerequisites page says a User Administrator or higher role is required to create and license resource accounts and does not mention a Teams administrator role, whereas the resource-accounts page requires a Teams administrator role plus User Administrator.disputed

    Reference - Voice applications prerequisites and licensing - Microsoft Teams · Licensing > Base licensing > Auto Attendant and Call Queue (paragraph after the Note) · Checked 2026-09-24
57. 57
    Setup order is: create the resource account in the Teams admin center, assign it the Teams Phone Resource Account license in the Microsoft 365 admin center, then assign a phone number in the Teams admin center if one is needed.

    Manage - Resource accounts for voice applications - Microsoft Teams · Sections Create a resource account; Assign a license; Assign a phone number (in page order) · Checked 2026-09-24
58. 58
    Tenants with Teams Phone Standard, Teams Phone with Calling Plan or Teams Shared Devices must still complete the purchase process for their Teams Phone Resource Account allocation; the allotment is zero cost at checkout and extra licenses can be bought at a cost.

    Manage - Resource accounts for voice applications - Microsoft Teams · Obtain Microsoft Teams Phone Resource Account licenses · Checked 2026-09-24
59. 59
    The auto attendant voicemail destination is the mailbox of a Microsoft 365 Group, and that group must have Let people outside the organization email this team enabled in the Microsoft 365 admin center.

    Setup - Auto Attendant - Microsoft Teams · Advanced setup > Step 3: Business-hours call flow > Call routing options > Voicemail · Checked 2026-09-24
60. 60
    Transfer mode (conference mode off) is legacy; Microsoft says deprecation is planned for the second half of 2026, with the exact timeline confirmed and a Message center post at least three months before removal.

    Reference - Supported Configurations - Microsoft Teams · Call Queue feature compatibility by call queue type > Notes > 8 · Checked 2026-09-24

Documents

Cite this page

WarmTransfer. (2026, September 24). Microsoft Teams auto attendants and call queues. WarmTransfer. https://warmtransfer.net/knowledge/teams-auto-attendant-call-queue

@misc{warmtransfer-teams-auto-attendant-call-queue,
  title  = {Microsoft Teams auto attendants and call queues},
  author = {{WarmTransfer}},
  year   = {2026},
  url    = {https://warmtransfer.net/knowledge/teams-auto-attendant-call-queue},
  note   = {Verified 2026-09-24}
}