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Troubleshooting: Email MFA forwarding is not working

If your agency is trying to forward emails (like carrier MFA codes) into ReFocus AI and nothing is showing up, this guide will help you quickly identify why.

➡️ Important: Always forward to the exact forwarding email shown in your ReFocus portal.

  • The address in your portal is your agency’s specific forwarding address.

  • mfa@refocusai.com is only an example/placeholder in this article.

Start here: a 2-minute test

➡️ Step 1: Confirm you’re using the right destination address

  1. Log into your ReFocus portal

  2. Find the forwarding email address provided for your agency

  3. Copy/paste it exactly into your email forwarding settings
    (Don’t type it manually if you can avoid it.)

➡️ Step 2: Send a fresh test email

  • Send a new email to the mailbox you’re forwarding from.

  • Use a clear subject like: “Forwarding Test”

➡️ Step 3: Look for clues

  • Did the sender receive a bounce-back / non-delivery report?

  • Did the email arrive in your mailbox but didn’t forward?

If you see language about external forwarding not allowed, skip ahead to Microsoft 365: external forwarding is blocked.

The #1 cause (especially in Outlook/Microsoft 365): external forwarding is blocked

Many agencies using Microsoft 365 / Outlook have a default security policy that blocks automatic forwarding to external domains. In plain terms:

➡️ Even if you set forwarding correctly, your organization may prevent emails from being forwarded outside your company—this includes forwarding to the ReFocus forwarding email shown in your portal.

Common signs

  • Forwarding looks enabled, but nothing arrives at the ReFocus forwarding address

  • You see a bounce message referencing external forwarding being blocked

  • IT says “we block auto-forwarding for security” (this is common)

Outlook / Microsoft 365 (work email) — principal steps

A) Confirm forwarding is enabled (Outlook Web / New Outlook)

➡️ Outlook on the web

  1. Open Outlook in your browser

  2. Click Settings (⚙️)

  3. Go to Mail ➝ Forwarding

  4. Toggle Enable forwarding

  5. Paste the forwarding email from your ReFocus portal (not a generic address)

  6. (Recommended) Check Keep a copy of forwarded messages

  7. Click Save

✅ Re-test by sending a brand-new email.

💡Microsoft provides this article on how to enable forwarding to external domains.

B) Check for a conflicting rule

Sometimes rules move/delete messages before forwarding happens.

➡️ In Outlook:

  1. Settings (⚙️) ➝ Mail ➝ Rules

  2. Look for rules that:

    • Move carrier emails to a folder

    • Delete messages

    • Mark as junk

  3. Temporarily disable any rules that might catch these messages and re-test.

C) If it’s set correctly but still fails: ask IT to allow external forwarding

If forwarding is enabled and still doesn’t work, your org likely blocks it at the security policy level.

➡️ Copy/paste this to your IT/admin:

Subject: Please allow external auto-forwarding for ReFocus mailbox

Hi team — we need one of our mailboxes to automatically forward certain emails to an external address provided by our vendor (ReFocus). Forwarding is enabled at the mailbox level, but messages aren’t leaving our tenant. Can you confirm whether automatic external forwarding is blocked by our Microsoft 365 outbound spam policy, and allow it for this mailbox (or create an exception/policy)?

Details:

  • Source mailbox: [YOUR MAILBOX]

  • Destination forwarding address: [PASTE THE ADDRESS FROM THE REFOCUS PORTAL]

  • Test time: [DATE/TIME + TIME ZONE]

  • Bounce/NDR text (if present): [PASTE HERE]

Gmail (consumer Gmail or Google Workspace) — principal steps

A) Confirm forwarding is enabled (and fully activated)

➡️ In Gmail:

  1. Click Settings (⚙️) ➝ See all settings

  2. Open Forwarding and POP/IMAP

  3. Click Add a forwarding address

  4. Paste the forwarding email from your ReFocus portal

  5. Follow the prompts and Save

✅ Some Gmail setups require a verification step before forwarding activates. If forwarding never “turns on,” this is often why.

➡️ Re-test with a fresh email after saving changes.

💡Google Workspace provides this article on how to enable forwarding to external domains.

B) If you use Google Workspace: forwarding may be blocked by your admin

Some agencies disable forwarding to external addresses for security.

Common signs

  • The forwarding option is missing, or

  • You can add the address but nothing forwards externally

✅ Fix: Ask your Google Workspace admin to allow external forwarding for the mailbox, specifically to the ReFocus forwarding address shown in your portal.

Quick checklist (common “gotchas”)

➡️ Are you using the exact ReFocus forwarding email from your portal? (This matters.)
➡️ Are you forwarding from the correct mailbox? (The one receiving carrier emails/MFA.)
➡️ Did you test with a brand-new email? (Forwarding usually applies only to new mail.)
➡️ Are the messages going to Spam/Junk first? (Some systems won’t forward junk.)
➡️ Do you have rules that move/delete emails before forwarding?