GitHub · Pull requests · Copilot code review · Checked October 27, 2026

GitHub: a Copilot review does not count as an approval

By default, Copilot leaves a "Comment" review, not an "Approve" review or a "Request changes" review, so by default its reviews do not count toward the required approvals for the pull request. If configured to do so, Copilot can leave "Approve" reviews (GitHub's using GitHub Copilot code review, checked October 27, 2026).

Copilot review (default)       Comment: not counted
approval assessment            in the overview comment: not counted
Copilot approvals              public preview, off by default
new commits after an approval  the approval is dismissed
new pushes                     not re-reviewed unless set to

What counts

The assessment is not an approval: every Copilot code review includes an approval assessment in the overview comment, saying whether Copilot considers the pull request ready to approve. On its own, it does not count toward the merge requirements.
Copilot approvals: they are in public preview. When approvals are enabled, Copilot can submit an approving review that meets the required-approval rule the same way a teammate's approval would. They are off by default and can be set at the enterprise, organization and repository levels; repository administrators can also use file paths to control which Copilot approvals count (GitHub's pull request approvals from Copilot).
The reviewers sidebar: GitHub's page on required reviews says that approvals by GitHub Copilot appear in the top section of the sidebar, with the approvals that count, even though Copilot reviews do not count toward those requirements (GitHub's approving a pull request with required reviews). The merge status in the pull request header and the merge box shows missing approvals (GitHub's pull requests).

What to do

Get an approval that counts: ask a reviewer whose approval meets the rule, or, where your organization wants them, turn Copilot approvals on at the enterprise, organization or repository level.
After a push: if new commits are pushed after Copilot approves, the approval is dismissed, and you can request a review again. Copilot does not re-review pushed changes on its own unless it is set to review new pushes after automatic reviews are enabled ("Review new pushes" in the ruleset settings). To ask by hand, click the re-request button next to Copilot's name in the Reviewers menu (GitHub's requesting a re-review from Copilot). A re-review may repeat comments you resolved or gave a thumbs down.
Replies go to people: Copilot review comments behave like comments from people: you can react, reply, resolve and hide them. Your replies are visible to people, but not to Copilot, and Copilot does not reply.
Files it skips: dependency management files, log files, SVG files, and files in places usually kept for vendor or generated files are left out of the review, such as package-lock.json, **/*.lock and **/vendor/**/* (GitHub's files excluded from GitHub Copilot code review).
From the REST API: request copilot-pull-request-reviewer[bot] as a reviewer.

GitHub pull requests in IntelliJ IDEA

Pull Request Inbox for GitHub, a plugin by Lesstep for JetBrains IDEs 2024.1 or later, shows a pull request's reviews, checks and conversations next to the diff, and merges it with the methods the target branch allows. It shows each review with its verdict as GitHub returns it, so a Copilot Comment review reads "commented" and an approval "approved". Whether the approvals are enough comes from GitHub: while GitHub still requires an approving review, the merge checks say so. The plugin does not request reviews, from Copilot or anyone else. The review inbox, diffs and conversations are free; approving, commenting, resolving and merging are Pro (US$1.50 a month, with a 30-day trial).

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