Microsoft Foundry shows Free Tier and zero GPT-5.5 and GPT-5.6 Data Zone quota on Startup sponsorship

Yes, the billing configuration you've described appears reasonable for a Microsoft for Startups sponsored subscription. Startup credits can be used for eligible Azure-billed services, while the attached payment method is generally used for charges that exceed available credits or for services not covered by the sponsorship.

That said, the information provided suggests the main issue is not billing itself, but model quota entitlement.

What appears correct

• Microsoft for Startups sponsored subscription (Sponsored_2016-01-01)
• Active sponsorship with remaining credits
• Valid payment method attached
• Spending limit disabled
• Azure OpenAI resource deployed as S0
• Sweden Central resource region
• Data Zone Standard requirement for EU data residency

None of these settings would normally guarantee access to a specific Foundry model or quota allocation.

Important distinction: billing entitlement vs model quota entitlement:

Having:

• an active sponsorship
• available startup credits
• a valid payment card
• an Azure OpenAI resource

does not automatically grant quota for every available model.

Quota is allocated separately and is typically evaluated based on:

• subscription
• model
• region
• deployment type
• available platform capacity

As a result, a subscription can be fully configured for billing while still showing 0 TPM quota for a specific model deployment.

About the zero quota

The most significant detail in your description is that:

• GPT‑5.5 and GPT‑5.6 Data Zone deployments show 0 quota
• quota increase requests were denied
• the same behaviour is observed across supported regions

This suggests a quota or entitlement limitation rather than a billing configuration problem.

Also note that model visibility does not necessarily imply deployment eligibility or quota allocation. A model can appear in Foundry while the subscription still has no assigned capacity for that specific model and deployment type.

About the "Free Tier" status

The Free Tier designation is worth noting, but it should not automatically be assumed to be the direct cause of the zero quota.

Based on the information provided, it is difficult to determine whether:

• the subscription remains in Free Tier because of its current entitlement state, or
• the Free Tier designation is simply being displayed alongside a separate quota restriction.

The two may be related, but the available evidence does not establish a direct causal relationship.

EU Data Zone consideration

For your healthcare workload, the most important requirement is the Data Zone Standard deployment type rather than the Sweden Central region alone.

Quota is evaluated against the full combination of:

• Model: GPT‑5.6 Luna/Terra/Sol
• Deployment type: Data Zone Standard
• Data Zone: European Union
• Region: Sweden Central
• Subscription

Therefore, any entitlement review should be performed against that exact combination rather than against generic GPT‑5.6 quota.

Based on the details provided, nothing in the sponsorship, credit balance, payment method, or Azure OpenAI resource configuration obviously explains the zero quota allocation. The more likely explanation is that the subscription currently lacks the required quota entitlement for the requested GPT‑5.6 Data Zone deployments, even though the models are visible in Microsoft Foundry.

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Hi Hossein Shokri Ghadikolaei,

Thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A and for providing the detailed information.

Based on the details provided, we do not see any indication that the Azure subscription, Azure OpenAI resource configuration, or Sweden Central region selection is incorrect. Your Microsoft for Startups sponsorship subscription can continue to use available startup credits for eligible Azure consumption, subject to the program terms and supported services.

For the GPT-5.6 Luna, GPT-5.6 Terra, and GPT-5.6 Sol models, the key requirement is model quota allocation. Microsoft Foundry manages quota separately from model visibility. As a result, a model may appear in the catalog and show support for Data Zone Standard deployments while the subscription still has a quota allocation of 0, which prevents deployment creation. Microsoft documentation confirms that quota is managed at the subscription level for supported Foundry models and Data Zone deployments.

Based on the information shared:

Your billing setup and Sweden Central Azure OpenAI resource appear valid. The issue does not appear to be related to the resource SKU, region selection, or startup credit configuration.

An attached payment method alone does not automatically grant GPT-5.6 quota. Model deployment requires quota entitlement/allocation for the subscription in addition to having an eligible billing configuration.

The "Free Tier" indicator shown in Foundry is not sufficient to determine model eligibility. The determining factor is whether quota has been allocated to the subscription for the requested model. We cannot verify from our side whether the displayed tier is contributing to the issue.

Since quota requests have already been submitted and denied, the appropriate next step is a quota entitlement review by the Azure AI Foundry/Azure OpenAI Quota team. They can validate the subscription's eligibility for GPT-5.6 Data Zone Standard quota and determine whether any additional entitlement requirements apply.