Prepare an email exit plan before cancelling or replacing a provider. The plan should explain how the business will retain required information, continue receiving messages and remove old access after the destination is verified.
01 Build the plan
- Inventory mailboxes, aliases, groups, calendars, contacts, shared files, archives and applications that send through the service. Record account ownership and administrator access.
- Identify the source export methods and the destination import methods. Test a representative mailbox and document what does not transfer, such as rules, sharing permissions or calendar features.
- Record subscription commitments, renewal dates and cancellation effects from the current order and terms. Confirm how long source access must remain available for migration and verification.
- Define the destination accounts and required security controls. Prepare authorised data transfer and a protected location for any temporary exports.
- Set acceptance checks for mail delivery, historical data, replies, shared resources and application sending. Assign an owner to approve each result.
- Prepare a cutover and fallback procedure, including handling messages delivered to the old service during the transition.
- After acceptance, revoke migration credentials and retire only the services marked for cancellation. Keep required records and remove temporary copies under the agreed retention policy.
Common questions
Does an IMAP migration move everything?
It transfers supported email data, not every collaboration feature. Plan calendars, contacts, files and permissions as separate workstreams where necessary.
Can I cancel as soon as DNS changes?
First confirm that data reconciliation and the planned overlap are complete. A DNS change does not prove every sender or device has moved.
What is a useful completion record?
Keep the account inventory, migration results, unresolved exceptions and the approved retirement date. That record helps the business answer later questions about missing data or recurring charges.