Verify WABA phone number via OTP authentication

Verify the business phone number you registered for your WhatsApp Business Account (WABA) by requesting and validating a one-time password (OTP) code.

WhatsApp verifies business phone numbers to help protect users from spam and fake accounts.

⚠️
WARNING
OBA status and the green tick badge are granted exclusively by Meta based on specific eligibility criteria. Verification is not guaranteed for all businesses, and meeting the requirements does not ensure automatic approval. Meta evaluates eligibility on a case-by-case basis.

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NOTE
To initiate a verification request for your WhatsApp Business account, contact your Account Manager. They will guide you through the process and submit the request on your behalf, but final approval is subject to Meta's review and criteria.

Prerequisites

Before you request the OTP code:

Confirm that you are an authorized representative of the business.
Confirm that you can receive an OTP code on the phone number you registered when setting up the WABA account.
Remove the phone number from the WhatsApp mobile app if it is currently active there.
Confirm that the phone number can receive international SMS messages or voice calls.

Verify the phone number

Open Preferences > Channel management.
Find the row where Type is WhatsApp WABA.
Click the Edit icon.

The WhatsApp Business Account view opens and displays the phone numbers assigned to the WABA.
In the phone number row, click Verify in the Verify column.
Select the validation method you want to use: SMS or Voice.
Click Next.
Enter the verification code sent to the phone number.
Click Validate.

⚠️
WARNING
Meta limits how many times you can request a verification code. If you make multiple attempts in a short period, the number may be temporarily blocked and you may see errors such as “servers not available”. Wait up to 24 hours before trying again, because additional attempts can extend the waiting period.
If the SMS code does not arrive, wait for the voice call option. Voice call verification is often more reliable.

Verification statuses

After you validate the code, the phone number displays one of the following statuses:

Verified: The phone number was successfully verified with the OTP authentication code.
Unknown: Meta does not know the status of the phone number registered in the WABA account.

If neither status appears, the Verify button remains enabled. This means the phone number is in one of these states:

Not Verified: The phone number could not be verified.
Expired: The phone number was previously verified, but the 14-day verification period has ended. If the phone number is not registered, verify it again.

⚠️
WARNING
Phone number verification does not display the green tick badge immediately. Contact the support team to request this checkmark.

After verification, wait 60 to 120 minutes for the phone number to become active and ready to use with WhatsApp messaging in this Workspace.

Next step

Configure your brand's WhatsApp Business Profile.