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Hi ,
I’m facing an issue with Power Automate Approvals and I’d really appreciate some guidance or ideas on a free solution (without premium connectors).
Here’s the situation:
I’m using the standard “Start and wait for an approval” action to send approvals to multiple approvers (via Teams and Outlook).
Sometimes, we need to cancel the request while the approval is still pending — for example, when the requester withdraws it or the data becomes obsolete.
When I cancel the flow (using “Terminate” or conditional logic), the pending approval cards still remain active in the approvers’ Teams or Outlook “Approvals” inbox.
Even if they respond later, it doesn’t affect any data (since the flow is already terminated), but it creates confusion because approvers think their response still matters.
My goal:
I want a free or creative workaround to:
Disable or retract approvals after the flow/request is cancelled,
Or at least ensure approvers can’t take action (or know that their approval is void),
Without using any premium connectors or Dataverse updates
My question:
If not, what’s the best recommended free-tier practice to handle this scenario cleanly?
Thanks
Mohd Anas
You're right to look for a workaround. Unfortunately, approvals are stored as rows in Dataverse tables, so there’s no way to cancel or delete them once sent without using premium connectors.
If you want to keep things simple, the easiest solution is to notify approvers (via email or Teams message) and ask them to decline or ignore the approval in question. For that, it helps to include a recognizable Approval ID or title so they know which one to ignore.
Alternatively, you could build your own lightweight approval system using a SharePoint list and a Power Apps app. Instead of creating an actual approval flow, you'd log the request data into the list and then use a simple app where approvers can see their pending approvals, respond with Accept or Reject, and even add comments. You can support multiple approvers, define your own rules, and, best of all, allow for approvals to be deleted or cancelled at any time. If you embed the app in Teams, it can feel very similar to the standard experience.
You can still send an email with a direct link to the app (or even to a specific approval), or use "Send email with options" if needed,.... just keep in mind that those options also can’t be revoked once sent.
It’s a bit more effort upfront, but gives you full flexibility and control.
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Thanks, and happy building!
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