AI coding tools · Copilot ·

You have exceeded your monthly quota in Copilot harness

Your Copilot agent session in VS Code stops with “You have exceeded your monthly quota”, but the Copilot usage view says you still have quota left, and the Chat panel keeps answering. As of October 2026, one open GitHub user report describes exactly this in Copilot harness (agent host) sessions. This guide covers how to check whether you’re really out of quota and what you can do while the report is open.

If you want the next step, read VS Code Local vs Copilot harness: settings to stay on Local.

Quick fix

  • Check your real usage first. Click the Copilot icon in the VS Code status bar to see your progress towards plan limits and the reset date.
  • If you still have quota, reload the window. The reporter says that got agent sessions working again for a while.
  • Or start the chat on Local. The reporter says the Chat panel kept completing requests with the same account.

What the user report shows

As of October 2026, in microsoft/vscode#343806 (opened 23 Oct 2026, still open), one user on VS Code 1.143.0 with Copilot Chat 0.71.0 and a Copilot Business seat reports that turns in Agent Sessions on the bundled Copilot harness runtime fail with HTTP 402 quota_exceeded:

Payment required error: 402 You have exceeded your monthly quota

The reporter says that in the same minute the Chat panel, with the same account, kept completing requests, and that their premium-request usage went from 18% to 19%. They also say the agent host logged “Found 0 models” and fell back to Auto, and that reloading the window made agent sessions work again until the 402 came back. This is one user report, not a confirmed bug. The issue is assigned but has no reply from the VS Code team and no fix as of 25 Oct 2026, and it has no +1 reactions.

Step 1: check whether you’re really over quota

As of October 2026, GitHub’s AI credits usage docs say that in Visual Studio Code you can click the Copilot icon in the status bar to see “your progress towards any limits on your plan, and the date your allowance resets”. If that view shows you’re at your limit, the error is likely genuine, and GitHub’s usage-based billing docs explain that Copilot Business and Enterprise usage is billed in GitHub AI Credits, based on the model and the number of tokens used. In that case, wait for the reset or ask whoever manages your plan.

Step 2: if you have quota left, reload the window

If the usage view shows quota left and only agent sessions fail, run Developer: Reload Window from the Command Palette. In the report, this made agent sessions work again for a while, so expect to repeat it. It isn’t a fix.

Step 3: or start the chat on Local

VS Code’s agent harnesses page says Local “remains an editor harness option while you adapt integrations that depend on it”. Start a new session in the editor’s Chat view and select Local from Session Target. The reporter’s working Chat panel requests may have been on that path, but this is designed as a workaround and we haven’t confirmed it avoids the 402. To keep Local as your default, see step 2 of Copilot run_in_terminal missing.

If you can reproduce the error with quota left, add your details to the issue, so the VS Code team can see more than one report.

Keep Local while the report is open, with the kit

Disclosure: this is our own paid product. The Copilot Harness Port Kit is designed to help you keep chat on Local, move personal skills to folders the Copilot harness reads, and port your hooks. Its keep-Local script adds the three user settings the VS Code docs give to keep Local visible and turn off automatic Copilot preference, with a dry run and undo. It doesn’t fix the 402 error, and it doesn’t change your quota. We haven’t confirmed that Local avoids the 402. Its 63 automated tests ran against local fixtures and temporary folders, not a live Copilot session or VS Code install. It costs $12 (plus VAT where applicable).

Sources

As of October 2026 (sources checked 25 Oct 2026):

GitHub, GitHub Copilot, Visual Studio Code (VS Code), Microsoft and other names belong to their owners. Names are used only to identify products and compatibility. Stack & Ship is not affiliated with or endorsed by any of them.

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