Sensitivity labels not showing in "Sensitive info types" when creating a custom policy in Purview DLP

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Sensitivity labels not showing in "Sensitive info types" when creating a custom policy in Purview DLP

Mark G Lomas 20

Sensitivity labels not showing in "Sensitive info types" when creating a custom policy in Purview DLP. Sensitivity labels have been set-up and published, and they appear in apps such as Word.

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Answer 1

Srikanth Chavithina 265 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Hi @Mark G Lomas

Thanks for your question.

Sensitivity labels won't appear under Sensitive info types in a DLP policy because they're different conditions.

Instead, when creating or editing the rule, go to:

Conditions → Content contains → Add → Sensitivity labels

Since you've confirmed the labels are published and visible in Word, the labels themselves appear to be configured correctly.

If you still don't see the Sensitivity labels option, could you let us know:

Are you creating a DLP policy or an Auto-labeling policy?
Which locations are selected for the policy (Exchange, SharePoint, OneDrive, Devices, Teams, etc.)?
Are the labels configured for Files and emails (Items)?
This information will help us narrow down the cause.

Mark G Lomas 20 Reputation points

2026-07-19T00:39:26.4733333+00:00

Sensitivity labels now appear in drop-down. Must have been delay in propagating through the account?
Srikanth Chavithina 265 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-07-19T08:03:02.3666667+00:00

Hi @Mark G Lomas

Thank you for the update.

Yes, that's certainly possible. Changes to sensitivity labels and label policies can take some time to propagate across Microsoft 365 services. While Microsoft notes that it can take up to 24 hours in some cases, the changes are often available much sooner.

Since the labels are now appearing in the drop-down, it does suggest the issue was likely due to a propagation delay rather than a configuration issue.
Mark G Lomas 20 Reputation points

2026-07-19T09:15:46.0233333+00:00

Having installed PurviewInfoProtection to help me apply Sensitivity labels to files in batches via Windows File Explorer, can I expect a similar propagation delay in the labels appearing on the files? Installed PurviewInfoProtection > so "Apply sensitivity label with Microsoft Purview" now appears under right-click > show more options > then I did this for an entire folder > Purview generated a CSV showing success (and a few failures against ZIP files) for each file in the folder > but several hours later on opening these files, no Sensitivity label has been applied. What am I missing?
Srikanth Chavithina 265 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-07-19T09:41:16.37+00:00
Hi @Mark G Lomas
Thank you for the update.

No, you shouldn't expect the same propagation delay in this case. If the Microsoft Purview Information Protection File Labeler reports Success, the sensitivity label is normally applied to the file during the labeling process.

Since the labels still aren't showing after several hours, it looks like something else may be causing the issue rather than a propagation delay.

Could you let us know:

What type of files are you labeling (Word, Excel, PDF, etc.)?

Are you opening the files in the Microsoft 365 desktop apps?

If you right-click one of the files and select Apply sensitivity label with Microsoft Purview again, does it show the label as already applied?

Are the files stored locally, on a network share, or in SharePoint/OneDrive?

The ZIP file failures are expected, as ZIP files have some limitations with the Microsoft Purview Information Protection client.

With this information, we can help determine why the labels are not appearing.

Thanks.
Mark G Lomas 20 Reputation points

2026-07-19T09:50:09.0533333+00:00
Yes, 2. Yes, 3. No - labels not set.
Srikanth Chavithina 265 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-07-19T10:26:24.9166667+00:00

Hi @Mark G Lomas
Thank you for confirming.

Based on what you've shared, this doesn't look like a propagation delay. If Apply sensitivity label with Microsoft Purview shows that no label is applied, it means the label was not added to the file, even though the CSV shows Success.

This isn't the expected behavior. As a quick test, try applying the label to one supported file and check if the label appears. If it still doesn't, the issue is likely with the labeling process, not with propagation.

Thanks.
Mark G Lomas 20 Reputation points

2026-07-19T10:44:18.9833333+00:00

Thanks Srikanth, I will re-run the exercise and see the results