Message template approvals and statuses

WhatsApp generally rejects a template for one of the following reasons:

1. The format is incorrect (for example, misplaced or malformed placeholders).
2. The content violates WhatsApp's Terms of Service, Commerce Policy, or Business Policy, or is considered abusive.
3. The template is too generic and includes placeholders that could be used for abuse.

Because placeholders can resolve to many words, WhatsApp does not allow a placeholder at the beginning or end of the message. Such placement results in automatic rejection.

After you submit a template, WhatsApp typically approves or rejects it within minutes through a machine-learning assisted process. Templates that cannot be triaged automatically are routed for human review and can take up to 48 hours. If a template remains in the Pending state for more than 48 hours, open a Twilio support ticket and include the template name.

WhatsApp templates can have the following statuses:

• Pending: The template is under review. Review can take up to 48 hours.
• Approved: The template was approved and can be sent to customers.
• Rejected: The template was rejected during review.
• Paused: The template was paused because of recurring negative user feedback (for example, blocks or spam reports). Messages that use this template cannot be sent.
• Disabled: The template was disabled because of repeated negative feedback or a policy violation. Messages that use this template cannot be sent.

The next sections explain how to gain approval and how to resolve paused or deactivated statuses.

• If you are unsure how to phrase a template, submit an initial version, review the outcome, and iterate. You can create a new version and delete the old one at any time.
• When you need to reopen the 24-hour user-initiated window, reference the previous conversation thread. Example: "I'm sorry I could not respond to your concerns yesterday. If you would like to continue, reply with YES."
• A friendly tone can improve engagement. Selective use of emojis (fewer than 10 per template) may help.

If WhatsApp rejects a template, the Twilio Console displays a rejection code that explains why. Submit a new template with a different name and delete the rejected one. WhatsApp prevents reuse of the same template name for 30 days.

WhatsApp discloses the following rejection codes:

• TAG_CONTENT_MISMATCH – The selected language or category does not match the content.
• INVALID_FORMAT – The template includes incorrectly formatted placeholders or elements.

If resubmissions continue to be rejected, add more detail to clarify the template's intended use. For example: "You asked us to let you know about [Topic]." If you believe a template was rejected in error, open a Twilio support ticket with a detailed explanation so Twilio can request a review from WhatsApp.

• 👋 Welcome {{1}}. What company do you work for?
• Your {{1}} appointment is coming up on {{2}}. Have a nice day.
• Your {{1}} appointment is coming up on {{2}}. Reply with {{3}} or {{4}}. Thank you.
• Dear {{1}}: Unfortunately your pending booking did not go through.
No charges were made to your bank account.
You can try to rebook the hotel.
We apologize for the inconvenience.

Templates that lack sufficient context:

• Reminder: {{1}}
• {{1}} was added
• {{1}}, {{2}}!

Templates considered spam:

• I am Jenn, the virtual assistant.
• Hi, are you available?
• We will put our platform up and running soon. I would like to get to know you better by asking 5 questions.
• Do not worry, I will not share your answers with anyone.

Meta enforces strict definitions for Authentication and Utility templates:

• Authentication templates follow a predefined structure for one-time passwords.
• Utility templates relate to a specific, user-initiated transaction and do one of the following: confirm, suspend, or change a transaction or subscription. Since 30 October 2023, Utility also includes feedback surveys, managing user-requested opt-in, or continuing a conversation started by the user in another channel.

Any template that does not meet these definitions is categorized as Marketing, including any mix of Marketing and Utility content. For details, see Meta's template guidelines.

If you require a specific category (for example, Utility), use the Content Editor or Content API to select the category explicitly. When you create a template in the WhatsApp Templates section of the Twilio Console, Meta may override the category.

Meta's categorization engine can misclassify legitimate Utility templates as Marketing. To reduce the likelihood of misclassification:

• Avoid generic placeholders such as "Important message: {{1}}." Spell out the expected content.
• Make it clear that the user requested the interaction. For example: "We are following up on your inquiry."
• Some keywords trigger a Marketing classification. Consider A/B testing alternative phrases.
• Utility templates may include media. You can submit a generic image for review and replace it with a specific image at send time without additional approval.
• Use a descriptive title such as safety_alert or account_update to indicate the Utility nature of the template.