Copilot Chat shows "Your account appears to have an issue" in VS Code

[jinxu96]

Select Topic Area

Question

Copilot Feature Area

VS Code

Body

### Description

GitHub Copilot Chat is not working in Visual Studio Code.
When I try to open Copilot Chat or click "Ask Copilot", I receive the message:

"Your account appears to have an issue. Please contact GitHub Support."

The chat panel never finishes loading and shows:

"Chat took too long to get ready."

Environment

• IDE: Visual Studio Code
• GitHub Copilot extension: Installed and enabled
• GitHub Copilot Chat extension: Installed and enabled
• OS: Windows
• Account type: Personal account
• Copilot access: Enabled via organization (managed by hucjohnson57-org)

What I’ve tried

• Verified I am signed in to GitHub in VS Code
• Restarted VS Code
• Reinstalled GitHub Copilot and Copilot Chat extensions
• Tried different models (GPT-4, GPT-5, GPT-5 mini)
• Confirmed Copilot is enabled in GitHub settings

None of the above resolved the issue.

Expected behavior

Copilot Chat should initialize normally and allow interaction in VS Code.

Actual behavior

Copilot Chat fails to start and always shows an account-related error.

Any help or guidance would be appreciated.

[aryanthopate]

This error is almost always account-side, not a VS Code or extension bug.

What’s likely happening

Your Copilot access is granted via an organization, and there’s a billing, seat assignment, or policy issue on that org.

When Copilot Chat can’t validate entitlement, it fails with “account appears to have an issue” and never finishes loading.

What to do (in order):

Ask the org admin to:

Re-assign your Copilot seat (remove → save → re-add).

Confirm Copilot Chat is enabled for members (not just Copilot).

Check org billing status (expired card / payment failure breaks Chat).

In GitHub web → Settings → Copilot:

Make sure Copilot Chat is enabled for your account and not restricted by policy.

In VS Code:

Sign out of GitHub → restart VS Code → sign in again.

Run Developer: Reload Window.

If it still fails:

Contact GitHub Support and include:

Org name

VS Code version

Copilot + Copilot Chat extension versions

Exact error messages (you already have these)

Important note
Reinstalling extensions or changing models will not fix this if the org entitlement/billing is broken.

[ramonloganjr]

Based on the error "Your account appears to have an issue" and the fact that your access is managed by an organization (hucjohnson57-org), this is almost certainly an issue with the organization's subscription status or your specific seat assignment, not your local software.

Here is the straightforward fix:

1. The Most Likely Cause: Organization Billing/Seat Issue
   Since you've already reinstalled the extensions, the problem is likely upstream. If hucjohnson57-org has a failed payment, an expired credit card, or if an admin accidentally revoked your seat, you will see exactly this error.

Action: Contact the owner/admin of hucjohnson57-org.

Ask them: "Can you confirm my Copilot Business seat is still active and that the organization's billing is current?"

2. The "Deep" Sign-Out
   Sometimes VS Code holds onto a stale permission token even after a restart. Try this specific sequence to force a fresh token fetch from the server:

In VS Code, click the Accounts icon (bottom left) and Sign Out of GitHub completely.

Close VS Code.

Wait 10 seconds.

Open VS Code and sign back in.

Watch the bottom right for a prompt asking to "Grant Access" to the organization specifically—you must click allow if this pops up.

3. Check the Output Logs
   If the above fails, let's see exactly why GitHub is rejecting you.

Go to View > Output.

In the dropdown menu (usually set to "Tasks" or "Log"), select GitHub Copilot Chat.

Look for lines starting with [ERROR]. This will tell you if it's a "401 Unauthorized" (auth issue) or a "402 Payment Required" (billing issue).

[pushkarkumarsaini2006]

What the Error Actually Means

“Your account appears to have an issue. Please contact GitHub Support.”

This message is returned directly by GitHub’s Copilot service, not by VS Code. When it appears together with “Chat took too long to get ready”, it indicates that:

Copilot authentication succeeds, but

GitHub refuses to issue a Copilot Chat session token for your account

This typically happens for one of three reasons.

Most Likely Causes (in Order)

1. Copilot Chat Is Not Enabled for You at the Organization Level

You mentioned:

Copilot access: Enabled via organization (managed by hucjohnson57-org)

Important distinction:

Copilot (autocomplete) and Copilot Chat are separately controlled

Many organizations enable Copilot but do not enable Copilot Chat

What to check (ask the org admin to verify):

GitHub → Organization → Settings

Copilot → Policies

Confirm that:

Copilot Chat is enabled

Your user is explicitly assigned a Copilot seat

No policy restricts Chat by region or IDE

If Chat is disabled at org level, VS Code will fail exactly as you described.

2. Account Flagged by GitHub Compliance / Trade Controls

Your earlier messages indicate you are located in Syria. Even though sanctions have been eased, Copilot (especially Chat) is still subject to additional export-control checks beyond regular GitHub features.

This results in:

Copilot extension loads

Authentication succeeds

Chat fails with a generic “account issue” error

This cannot be fixed locally.

3. Broken Copilot Entitlement Cache (Common but Fixable)

Sometimes Copilot entitlements get out of sync between:

GitHub web

VS Code GitHub auth

Copilot service

Step-by-Step Resolution (Do These in Order)
Step 1: Fully Reset GitHub Auth in VS Code

Open VS Code

Command Palette → Sign Out of GitHub

Close VS Code

Delete:

%APPDATA%\Code\User\globalStorage\github.copilot*
%APPDATA%\Code\User\globalStorage\github.copilot-chat*

Reopen VS Code

Sign in again using the same GitHub account tied to the organization

Then test Copilot Chat again.

Step 2: Verify Copilot Chat on GitHub Web

Log into GitHub in a browser and check:

https://github.com/settings/copilot

Confirm:

Copilot is enabled

No warning banners about account or regional restrictions

If Copilot Chat fails on the web as well, the issue is definitively account-level.

Step 3: Confirm Organization Policy (Critical)

Ask the organization owner to verify:

You are assigned a Copilot seat

Copilot Chat is enabled in org settings

No restrictions on:

Country/region

IDE usage

Personal accounts

This is the most common root cause when Copilot works but Chat does not.

Step 4: Contact GitHub Support (Required if Step 1–3 Fail)

At this point, GitHub Support is the only fix.

Open a ticket and include exactly this information:

Error message text

That Copilot autocomplete works but Chat does not

That access is via an organization

Your location (important for compliance review)

That the issue reproduces across restarts and reinstalls

This triggers an account compliance / entitlement review, which is not automatic.

What Will Not Fix This

Reinstalling VS Code again

Changing models

Switching extensions

Clearing VS Code settings only

Using VPNs (this often worsens compliance flags)

Summary

Your setup is correct

The error is not a bug

The issue is almost certainly:

Org-level Copilot Chat disabled or

Account flagged under Copilot compliance rules

Once GitHub Support clears or confirms the entitlement, Copilot Chat will start working immediately without any code or IDE changes.