What business verification is
Business verification is Meta checking two things: that your business is a real, registered organisation, and that you are allowed to act for it. It is done once, for the business portfolio, at Meta. No part of it happens in xconversions.
It is not a badge. A verified business does not get a tick on WhatsApp. That is the Official Business Account, further down.
When you need it, and what it unlocks
You can connect a number and answer customers without it. It matters when you start writing first, to many people.
| Not verified | Verified | |
|---|---|---|
| Customers you can write to first in 24 hours | 250 | 2,000 once Meta approves the increase, then more by itself |
| Phone numbers for the business | 2 | Up to 20 |
| Templates | 250 | Up to 6,000, with an approved display name |
| Display name shown in chats | No | Yes, once Meta approves the name |
| Blue tick | Cannot apply | Can apply |
The higher limit, the extra numbers and the review of the display name also open up without verification, once you have a record of good messages: see how the limit grows. The larger template allowance and the blue tick need verification.
How to verify
You need full control of the business portfolio at Meta.
Open Security Centre in Meta Business Suite.
Security Centre shows Start verification. If it shows Ineligible for verification, Meta is not asking for it there. When one of its products needs it, Meta emails or notifies you with its own instructions.
Enter your business details.
Legal name, address, phone number and website, exactly as on your official documents. The website has to load and use https.
Confirm the business.
Pick your business if Meta finds it in its records. If it does not, upload documents that show the legal name and the address or phone number.
Prove you belong to it.
Choose how to receive a confirmation: email, phone call, text message, WhatsApp message, or by verifying the domain of your website.
Submit and wait.
Meta says a decision takes from about ten minutes to 14 working days, and notifies you when it is made.
Documents Meta accepts:
- a certificate or articles of incorporation;
- a business registration or licence;
- a business tax document issued by the government;
- a business bank statement;
- a utility bill, for the address or the phone number only.
They have to be current and issued by the authority concerned. Meta reads documents in Arabic, English and French among other languages; Meta’s list of documents has the rest, and Meta’s guide to verification has every step.
Why verification fails
Meta gives these reasons for refusing a submission:
- information that is false or misleading, or that Meta suspects is;
- a business the person is not authorised to represent;
- a website that does not load, does not use https, or has a link that leads to an error.
Before you submit, check that the legal name and address are written exactly as on the documents, that no document has expired, and that a utility bill is not your only proof of the name.
After a refusal, Security Centre shows the status and whether you can appeal.
The display name
The display name is the business name on your number’s WhatsApp profile. You choose it in Meta’s window when you connect the number, and xconversions shows it beside the number on Channels.
Meta’s rules for it, in short:
- It is your business, brand, product or department, as customers find it on your website. If the brand and the company have different names, link them: “Brand by Company”.
- It is not a generic word, and not only a place: “Fashion” and “Casablanca” are refused.
- No “Official” and no “Verified”.
- No mention of Meta, WhatsApp or Facebook.
- No slogan and no offer.
- It is not a web address or an email address.
You do not have to wait for a review of the name to start. Meta reviews it when your messaging limit first rises. Once it is approved, the name can appear at the top of the chat and in the chat list. Until then, customers who have not saved you see your number there.
You can change the name later in WhatsApp Manager, and Meta reviews the new one. Meta then requires the number to be registered again within 14 days before the new name shows, and xconversions does not do that by itself: write to support when the new name is approved. Meta’s display name guidelines have the full rules.
The blue tick
An Official Business Account is a number with a blue tick beside its name. Meta alone decides who gets one. xconversions cannot request it for you or speed it up.
Meta’s conditions before you can ask:
- the business is verified;
- the number has been on the WhatsApp Business Platform for at least 30 days;
- the display name is approved;
- two-step verification is switched on for the number;
- the business follows the WhatsApp Business Messaging Policy.
You ask in WhatsApp Manager: open the number, and on its profile find Official business account and Submit request. Meta’s Help Centre says the tick goes to authentic, well-known brands, so meeting the conditions is not enough by itself. After a refusal you can ask again in 30 days. Meta’s guide to the request.
A number that stays on the WhatsApp Business app cannot have the blue tick: Meta does not give it to numbers used with the app.
Without the tick, nothing is missing for messaging. The tick changes how the number looks: your name shows in place of the number, even to people who have not saved you.
Questions
Is business verification the same as the blue tick?
No. Verification proves the business exists and raises limits. The blue tick is a separate request, for one number, and needs verification first.
Do I have to verify before I connect a number?
No. You can connect, answer customers and send your first templates without it.
Can xconversions verify my business for me?
No. Only somebody with full control of your business portfolio can, in Meta’s Security Centre.
How do I know whether my business is verified?
Security Centre in Meta Business Suite shows the status.