{"registry_version":"preview-2026-10-24","disclaimer":"Preview data. Not yet verified through the signed registry process; provider rules change. Plain-English summaries, not legal advice. Check the linked sources.","provider":"meta/whatsapp","display_name":"WhatsApp Business Platform (Cloud API)","category":"messaging","status":"preview","last_verified":null,"summary":"A chain of Meta gates: personal account, Business Portfolio, Business Verification, developer app, display-name approval, then a system-user token.","steps":["Have a Meta (Facebook) personal account in good standing (human)","Create a Meta Business portfolio (human)","Create a Meta developer app with the WhatsApp product","Add and verify a phone number not already on WhatsApp","Complete Business Verification (human uploads documents directly to Meta)","Display-name approval","Create a system user and a permanent access token; verapli captures the token by selector","Write WHATSAPP_TOKEN and WHATSAPP_PHONE_NUMBER_ID to .env.local"],"gates":[{"gate":"Business Verification (documents)","human_only":true},{"gate":"Display name approval","human_only":true},{"gate":"Payment method for conversations","human_only":true}],"lead_times":[{"what":"Business Verification","official":"[to verify]","reported":"10 days \"not unusual\"; some reviews stuck for months"},{"what":"Display name review","official":"[to verify]","reported":"hours to days [ASSUMPTION]"}],"have_ready":["Legal business name and address exactly as on official documents","Business website on a domain you control","Business email on that domain","A phone number that can receive SMS/voice and is not registered on WhatsApp","Company registration document or utility bill","Payment card"],"env_vars":["WHATSAPP_TOKEN","WHATSAPP_PHONE_NUMBER_ID"],"facts":[{"text":"One developer reports Business Verification \"in review\" for six months after an identical earlier submission cleared in a week.","kind":"people_report","source_url":"https://developers.secure.facebook.com/community/threads/993499068934986"},{"text":"A pending Business Verification blocks App Review for advanced permissions; one reply calls a 10-day wait \"not unusual anymore\".","kind":"people_report","source_url":"https://communityforums.atmeta.com/questions-and-discussions-26/business-verification-in-review-10-days-blocking-app-review-submission-177498"},{"text":"Documents must exactly match your Business Manager details, and you should not resubmit while a review is pending.","kind":"people_report","source_url":"https://communityforums.atmeta.com/questions-and-discussions-26/business-verification-in-review-10-days-blocking-app-review-submission-177498"},{"text":"There is no official API for creating or verifying Meta apps.","kind":"people_report","source_url":"https://communityforums.atmeta.com/discussions/WebXRDevelopment/business-verification-automation/1287463"}]}