Copilot Pro trial receives confusing error message due to temporary pause

[avanipai2026]

Describe the bug

Getting the following error when I try /model command. I am not able to change the model due to this.
Failed to load models: access denied by Copilot policy. (Request
ID: 15A1:16248:6AF693:743E2A:69DE1860)

Check your Copilot CLI policy setting.
└ Open in browser

I couldn't ifnd anything related to model in my Github Copilot settings.
I am on a premium plan. Not on an org plan.
Thanks
Avani

Affected version

No response

Steps to reproduce the behavior

Open Copilot Cli (copilot)
Enter /model at the terminal

Expected behavior

No response

Additional context

No response

[avanipai2026]

This was working fine earlier

[RubnSanchz]

I'm experiencing the same issue. I have an active paid GitHub Copilot subscription, but I only get "Language model unavailable". I'm using VS Code with WSL, and the problem persists even after restarting the editor and signing out/in again. I've tried different models and the 'Auto' option with no luck.
It was working perfectly fine yesterday.

[americodubas]

For me, the error is because I am on the trial period until Apr 22nd, but it says that the trials were temporarily suspended

using GitHub Copilot v1.0.25

! Failed to connect to MCP server 'github-mcp-server'. Execute '/mcp show github-mcp-server' to inspect or check the
  logs.

● Environment loaded: 1 custom instruction, 1 MCP server, 1 plugin, 4 skills, 1 agent

✗ Failed to load models: access denied by Copilot policy. (Request ID: E17A:1BC098:CFD1CF:E2EC14:69DE2BC5)

  Check your Copilot CLI policy setting. 
  └ Open in browser

 MCP Server: github-mcp-server

 Type:     http
 URL:      https://api.individual.githubcopilot.com/mcp/readonly
 Status:   ✗ Failed
 Error:   Streamable HTTP error: Error POSTing to endpoint: Copilot Pro trials have been temporarily paused. Please 
          upgrade your account or revert to Copilot Free

Active subscription
Copilot Pro (free trial)

Monthly payment
Free ($10.00 after trial)

Free until
Apr 23, 2026

Your free one-time 30 days trial expires in 8 days. You'll be billed $10.00/month after the trial ends on Apr 22, 2026.

[Jethro1107]

I am running into the same issue:

 Failed to connect to MCP server 'github-mcp-server'. Execute '/mcp show github-mcp-server' to
  inspect or check the logs.

● Environment loaded: 1 custom instruction, 3 MCP servers, 7 skills, 3 agents

✗ Failed to load models: access denied by Copilot policy. (Request ID:
  CC0D:1C061D:13A0ADB:155FF8E:69DE3D75)

  Check your Copilot CLI policy setting. 
  └ Open in browser

● Changelog for v1.0.25

  - You can now remote control your CLI sessions using --remote or /remote
  - Install MCP servers from the registry with guided configuration directly in the CLI
  - ACP clients can now provide MCP servers (stdio, HTTP, SSE) when starting or loading sessions
  - Add /env command to show loaded environment details (instructions, MCP servers, skills, 
  agents, plugins)
  - Esc key works correctly after a failed /resume session lookup
  - The --config-dir flag is now respected when selecting the active model
  - /share appends the correct file extension (.md or .html) when a custom output path is given 
  without one
  - /add-dir accepts relative paths (e.g. ./src, ../sibling) and resolves them to absolute paths
  - Custom instruction files preserve special characters like & and <placeholders>
  - Skill picker list scrolls correctly when the list exceeds the terminal height
  - MCP client reports the correct CLI version during server handshake
  - Alt+D now deletes the word in front of the cursor in text input
  - Skill instructions persist correctly across conversation turns
  - Share Research TOC sidebar anchor links navigate correctly within the page
  - Persist resolved model in session history and defer model changes during active turns
  - /logout shows a warning when signed in via gh CLI, PAT, API key, or environment variable, 
  since /logout only manages OAuth sessions
  - /share html shows a file:// URL and supports Ctrl+X O to open the file directly
  - MCP remote server connections automatically retry on transient network failure

My free trial ends in 2 days.

[danielnydrle]

Changing from trial to the paid subscription fixed it for me. 🤷‍♂️👀

[andyfeller]

@avanipai2026 : I believe the error you're receiving is due to a recent GitHub announcement around pausing Copilot Pro trials, which is producing the misleading Copilot policy error message you're seeing. This coincides with the note that @danielnydrle shared about converting from trial to paid fixed it.

While the broader efforts to address abuse are resolved, I believe Copilot Free accounts or paid accounts are unaffected. In the mean time, I'm going to work to provide better error messaging; my apologies for the confusion here 🙇