The NHS.net platform allows you to securely share Office 365 (O365) data and collaborate across O365 applications with guest users from external organisations. This is done via a simple invitation and redemption process, allowing guests to use their own username and password to access NHSmail O365 services.
Users that have the Eligible Guest Inviter role can follow the steps below to create guest accounts for external users. If you do not have the Eligible Guest Inviter role, please ask your Local Administrator to provide this for you.
Please note: guest users can only be invited to NHS.net if they belong to an approved external organisation.
Creating Guest Accounts in NHSmail Portal
Manual Creation of Guest accounts
- Log in to the NHSmail Portal and navigate to Guest Access in the Top Banner. Select Add, then Add Guest Users.
2. Complete the required email field for each guest user that requires access and select Submit. Select + to add up to 5 guests.
3. Submitting this request will generate the following two automated emails:
a) To the requester providing a status update on the request
b) To the external guest with confirmation and account verification steps
4. After submitting, the portal will re-direct you to the View Guest Users screen and a success / fail notification will appear. You must refresh the page to see your additional guests.
5. After refreshing the page, the new users will be added to your ‘View Guest Users’ list as shown below.
Bulk Create Guest accounts
- Log in to the NHSmail portal and navigate to the ‘Guest Access’ tab. Select Bulk Upload, then Bulk Upload Guest Users.
2. Enter the guest user details into a CSV file to prepare for a bulk upload.
3. Select Browse / Upload to locate and attach the CSV file containing the guest user information.
4. Once uploaded, your file will be visible on the portal and ready for submitting. As with the manual upload process, both the inviter and guests will receive automated emails as shown in step 3 within the Manually Adding section.
5. After submitting, the NHS Portal will re-direct you to the View Guest Users screen and a success / fail notification will appear in the top right hand corner. You must refresh the page to see your additional guests
6. After refreshing the page, the new users will be added to your ‘View Guest Users’ list as shown below.
Setting Up Guest Accounts
Once guest accounts have been created, the external user will need to follow the steps below to enable their nhs.net guest account:
- The guest user will receive an email (to the email address provided by the eligible guest inviter) similar to the screenshot below. This confirms they have been invited as a guest user. They will need to select Get Started to create their account.
2. The guest user will be directed to the ‘Create account’ page. They must select Next.
3. The guest user will then need to create a password for the account. The password will need to be at least 8-characters. They will then need to select Next.
4. The guest user will be asked for the Country / region they are in and their date of birth. Once entered, select Next.
5. The guest user will then need to verify their email address. A security code will be sent to their email address which they will need to enter in the box below. Select Next.
6. As part of additional account verification, they will be asked to enter the characters they see in the box below and then select Next
7. Finally, the guest user will need to review and Accept the below permissions. Once the account has been created, NHSmail O365 users will be able to search for and collaborate with the newly created guest user account.
Delete and Re-invite Guest Users in NHS.net Connect
Delete a Guest User
- Log in to the NHS.net Connect Launchpad with your NHS.net Connect credentials.
- Select My Account from the top navigation bar, then select My guests.
- Locate the guest you want to delete by entering their full email address in the search bar.
- After confirming their details, open the action menu by selecting the dotted icon under Take action for the guest.
- From the dropdown menu, select Delete.
- A dialogue box will then appear on-screen. Review the warning message, then select Yes, delete to confirm the deletion. Once selected, a the success notification will appear. Please record the reference number shown for audit purposes.
Re-invite a Guest User
- Log in to the NHS.net Connect Launchpad with your NHS.net Connect credentials.
- Select My Account from the top navigation bar, then select My guests.
- Find the guest you want to re-invite. You can search by their full email address.
- Confirm that you are the guest’s sponsor. Only the original sponsor or an LA can use the Re-invite option.
If you are not listed as their sponsor, contact the guest’s sponsor or your LA to take action instead. - Once you have confirmed that you have the correct guest, open the action menu by selecting the 3 dots (⋯) next to their name.
- Optional: To change how long their access lasts, select Extend and set a new expiry date that follows your organisation’s policy.
- Select Re-invite. A confirmation window will appear showing the guest’s name and email. A new access link will be generated for the existing account.
- Optional: Add a short, clear personal message to provide context to the external user.
- Optional: Tick the Share a copy with me box if you want a copy of the invitation email for your records.
- Review the details, then select Re-invite.
- Wait for the confirmation message, then ask the guest to check their inbox (and junk folder) for the new invitation.
Delete and Restore Guest Users in NHSmail Portal
Guest inviters can remove/restore an external user’s guest access using the NHSmail Portal. Guest access can be removed when it is no longer required and subsequently restored.
Delete a Guest User
- Click on Guest access
2. On the View Guest users page tick the checkbox for the account of the guest user to be deleted
3. Click on the Delete button
4. A dialog box will pop up, click Confirm
5. The message shown will appear once the guest user account is successfully deleted.
Restore Guest Access
Please note: Guest user’s access can be restored within 30 days from the date of deletion.
- Click on Guest access
2. On the View guest users page tick the checkbox for the deleted account’s guest access to be restored
3. Click the Restore button
4. A dialog box will pop up to confirm restore, click Confirm
5. The message will appear once the guest user account is restored successfully.
