User Access Review Template Excel

Download the user access review template (.xlsx)

Use the sheet account by account

Start with a system export rather than a list supplied by managers. One row should represent one account in one system. Identify whether the account belongs to a person, service, integration or agent; name the responsible department or technical owner; and copy the actual role and privilege level from the system.

The reviewer records one decision: Keep when the access is still needed, Change when the role is too broad or wrong, or Remove when the account is no longer authorised. A blank decision is unfinished work. A privileged Keep decision needs a reason specific enough for a later reviewer to understand.

Turn decisions into completed changes

A spreadsheet row is not proof that access changed. Put the remediation ticket and due date in the evidence column, then verify the change in a fresh export. Close the review only when every Change or Remove decision has evidence, every exception has an owner and expiry, and the reviewer signs off the final population.

Common review mistakes

• Excluding service accounts and non-human identities.
• Letting a manager approve access without seeing the role or privilege level.
• Recording “remove” but never checking the ticket completed.
• Overwriting the original export, which removes evidence of what was reviewed.
• Reusing old approvals after a job or system change.