Microsoft MDF Guide: Co-op Funds, MDF and Partner Center Claims

Microsoft partners can fund marketing from two pots. Co-op funds accrue from your incentive earnings and are claimed in Partner Center against an approved plan, pre-approval and proof of execution. MDF is discretionary money Microsoft allocates to specific campaigns, and agency sources say it usually runs on a 50:50 cost share tied to Solutions Partner status.

Checked September 2026. Microsoft rewrites incentive rules every fiscal year, so treat everything below as a starting point and confirm it in Partner Center and your current program guide before you commit spend.

This guide is for SIs and consulting partners in the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program who want to turn funds into pipeline. For the cross-vendor view, start with our partner MDF guide.

MDF vs co-op: two different pots

Most confusion starts here. Microsoft Learn documents co-op in detail. We could not find an equivalent public Microsoft playbook for MDF, so most MDF detail comes from agencies and needs confirming with your Microsoft contact.

Naming is unsettled. Opollo's July 2026 guide says MDF is now listed under the Cooperative Marketing Funds (Co-op) program, while Fifty Five and Five, updated March 2026, treats them as separate. Ask your partner development manager which fund name and workspace applies to you before writing anything.

One official signal on direction: the August 2026 Partner Center announcements point partners to the FY27 co-op guide and to Partner Marketing Center Pro for demand generation activity.

Who is eligible

Start with designations. Microsoft's Solutions Partner program page lists three badges (Cloud & AI Platforms, Security, AI Business Solutions) built from six pathways: Data & AI, Infrastructure, Digital & App Innovation, Modern Work, Business Applications and Security.

To qualify, the Partner Capability Score documentation requires at least 70 points in the solution area, every metric above zero, and qualification on any day in the eligibility window. Points come from Performance, Skilling and Customer success.

For MDF, Fifty Five and Five says you need a Solutions Partner designation or a Partner Capability Score of 25 or more in the relevant solution area, and that FY26 changes tied incentive access more closely to designations. The 25-point figure does not appear on Microsoft's public score page, so treat it as unverified until your portal shows it.

Your pre-flight checklist:

• Active Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program membership and a PartnerID.
• A Solutions Partner designation in the solution area your campaign promotes, or written confirmation of an alternative route.
• Someone with the Incentives admin role in Partner Center, since plans, claims and disputes need it.
• Co-op earnings above your program's threshold. Below it, Microsoft pays the co-op portion as a rebate at the end of the semester.
• A named Microsoft account manager, because the plan form asks for their Microsoft email as reviewer.

Fund periods and the claim timeline

Microsoft splits co-op into two halves of its fiscal year: H1 runs July 1 to December 31 and H2 runs January 1 to June 30. You accrue in an earning period, spend in the following six-month usage period, and claim in a six-month claiming period. Funds not used by the end of the usage period are forfeited.

Microsoft's own example: earnings from July to December 2023 (FY24 H1) were used January to June 2024 and claimed February 16 to August 15, 2024. If that pattern holds, FY27 H1 earnings would be used January to June 2027. Confirm the real date, which Partner Center shows under the Remaining co-op chart in Co-op management.

The Partner Center workflow, step by step

This is the co-op path as Microsoft documents it. Your screens may differ, because Partner Center only shows what your role and enrolled programs allow.

1. Sign in to Partner Center, select Incentives, then Program. Find the market and select Create plan. No Plan Management option usually means you are not enrolled in a program with plans.
2. On New plan, set Currency and Reviewer email (your Microsoft account manager's address). Save.
3. Select New campaign, then New activity. Activities can cover multiple countries or regions.
4. Review, then Submit and Confirm. You cannot edit a submitted plan.
5. Get materials pre-approved. Microsoft issues a Pre-approval ID after approving your marketing materials, and the claim asks for it.
6. Run the activity. The execution date on your proof must fall between the campaign start and end dates.
7. In Plan Management, open the plan, find the activity under Campaigns and select Add PoE. Enter Name, Date and Amount, then Estimated impressions and Pre-approval ID. Select Create claim.
8. Upload a third-party invoice or a Certification Service Report, add proof documents with explanatory notes, and select Submit claim.
9. Track Co-op earned, Co-op claimed and Remaining co-op in Co-op management.
10. If rejected, read the History field, fix the gap and select Dispute.

For MDF, Fifty Five and Five describes a similar flow: confirm eligibility, write a proposal covering objectives, audience, activities, budget, outcomes and timeline, submit in Partner Center, execute while collecting proof, then claim promptly.

Activities that typically qualify

Microsoft's core requirements page groups co-op activities into demand generation, market development and partner readiness. The pipeline-relevant ones:

Two caveats. First, this table is co-op; MDF approvals are case by case. Second, Fifty Five and Five says most MDF activities need at least 30% Microsoft content, rising to 100% for telemarketing and proof of concept. Microsoft's public page requires Microsoft content but, outside internal training, does not state a percentage, so confirm yours.

Proof of execution checklist

Build this pack while the campaign runs, not after.

• Third-party invoice or Certification Service Report, dated inside the campaign window, with line items that match the plan activity.
• Pre-approval ID for the materials used.
• Final creative showing your company name, contact details and Microsoft content.
• Timestamped screenshots of live ads, landing pages and emails. Fifty Five and Five flags timestamps as the step partners skip.
• Results: click-through reports, estimated reach, registrations, call counts and durations.
• Event proof: invitation, agenda, photos of the room or booth.
• Explanatory notes for every uploaded proof document.
• A file naming convention that maps invoice to activity to claim, archived for 24 months.

MDF and co-op proposal template

Use this as the internal draft before you type anything into Partner Center or email your partner development manager.

CAMPAIGN NAME: [Solution area] [Offer] for [Segment], [Fiscal half]
FUND: [Co-op / MDF / confirm with PDM]   PARTNERID: [ ]
DESIGNATION: [Solutions Partner pathway] [Score on date: ]
MICROSOFT REVIEWER: [account manager email]

1. Objective
   Pipeline goal: [number] qualified opportunities, [value] pipeline
   Microsoft outcome: [workload or consumption the deals drive]

2. Audience
   ICP: [industry, size, region]   Accounts: [count], list attached
   Roles: [CIO, CFO, Head of Ops]

3. Activities (one row each, matches plan activity names)
   A1 [Multitouch digital: ads + email + landing page] [dates]
   A2 [Customer seminar] [date, city or virtual]
   A3 [Telemarketing follow-up] [dates]

4. Microsoft content
   [Which Microsoft solution, share of content, approved assets used]

5. Budget (third-party costs only)
   A1 [ ]  A2 [ ]  A3 [ ]  Total [ ]
   Requested: [amount or share, per confirmed cost share]

6. Measurement
   Reach, CTR, registrations, meetings held, opportunities, pipeline

7. Proof plan
   Evidence per activity, owner, storage folder, claim date target

Worked example

Illustrative example: a hypothetical Dynamics 365 partner with a Business Applications designation. None of these figures are Microsoft amounts; they show the mechanics.

1. Check the pot. Co-op management shows remaining co-op and an expiration date. The partner also asks their partner development manager whether MDF is available for a manufacturing push and what cost share applies.
2. Pick the offer. ERP modernization for mid-market manufacturers, 200 named accounts pulled from a partner account list.
3. Plan activities. A1 multitouch digital (LinkedIn ads, email, landing page), A2 a virtual customer seminar, A3 telemarketing to seminar no-shows.
4. Budget. Suppose third-party costs total $40,000. If MDF is confirmed at 50:50, the request is $20,000; if co-op covers it, the claim cannot exceed remaining co-op.
5. Execute with proof. Screenshots the day ads go live, dated email headers, seminar recording and registration export, call logs with durations.
6. Claim. Submit the largest invoice first, which Fifty Five and Five recommends, then the rest as each activity closes.

The output that matters to the partner is meetings and pipeline, not the reimbursement. Track both in the same sheet so next half's plan uses real conversion data.

Common rejection reasons

• Thin evidence. Microsoft says claims with insufficient materials are rejected, and the reason appears in the History field.
• Dates outside the campaign window. The proof date must sit between campaign start and end.
• No pre-approval ID for materials that needed approval.
• Invoice mismatch. Internal costs submitted instead of a third-party invoice, or line items that do not match the activity.
• Too little Microsoft content, or no clear tie to a Microsoft solution area (Fifty Five and Five, Secondary).
• Looks like brand marketing rather than demand generation (Fifty Five and Five, Secondary).
• Ineligible spend. Opollo lists alcohol, entertainment, gifts and pre-activation expenses. Note Microsoft does allow giveaways within some activities, subject to caps.
• Expired funds. Claiming after the usage or claiming period closes.

Where an agency fits

Microsoft's core requirements list agency marketing and creative fees as eligible expense lines for most activity types, and the agency invoice becomes your third-party invoice. That means the agency's paperwork quality directly affects your approval rate.

Ask any agency for invoices split by plan activity, a proof pack per activity, Microsoft content built in from the brief, and reporting that shows meetings and pipeline next to reach. Lemniscate runs ABM, outbound, webinars and appointment setting for SI partners, packaged so each activity maps to a claimable line. See our Microsoft partners page for campaign angles, and partner ecosystem AI visibility for making your marketplace and directory listings work harder.

What to do this week

1. Open Co-op management and write down remaining co-op and the expiration date for each program.
2. Check your Solutions Partner status and score in the Membership workspace.
3. Email your partner development manager: which funds apply, what cost share, which workspace, which content rules.
4. Draft one campaign with the template above and a 200-account list.
5. Set up the proof folder before the first dollar is spent.

Confidence notes

Working several ecosystems? Compare the AWS MDF guide, Snowflake and Databricks partner funds, ServiceNow MDF, the Salesforce Partner Fund guide and SAP development funds.