How do I check my WhatsApp Business Account review status?

Request the account_review_status field on the WABA. Call GET /{WABA_ID}?fields=account_review_status with a token that has whatsapp_business_management; the answer is PENDING, APPROVED or REJECTED. WhatsApp Manager shows the same state.

Can I send messages while my WABA review is pending?

No. Meta says an account whose review is pending or deferred cannot yet be used with its APIs. Finish setup that does not depend on sending, and subscribe to account_review_update so you know the moment it changes.

Why was my WhatsApp Business Account rejected?

Usually because the business or what it plans to message about conflicts with WhatsApp's policies. Prohibited goods, unclear business details and restricted categories are common causes; the reason appears in WhatsApp Manager or Business Support Home, where you can request a review.

Is the WABA account review the same as business verification?

No. Business verification confirms your company's legal identity across the whole business portfolio. Account review checks one WhatsApp Business Account against WhatsApp's policies, and each can pass or fail independently of the other.

Ledger entryNo. 079163

WABA Account Review

Also called: WhatsApp Business Account review · account_review_status · WABA review · Account review

Policy, consent & trust
Practitioner
Developers
Compliance

Definition: Meta's policy check of a new WhatsApp Business Account, shown as pending, approved or rejected, which can stop the account messaging if it fails.

Policy, consent & trust

Mode · http exchange

Work it out

Ask Meta: is this account cleared to send?

2 / 2

GEThttps://graph.facebook.com/v26.0/104996229225431?fields=account_review_status

Your app

GET 200 in 420 ms(simulated)

API

Request

2 headers

GET /v26.0/104996229225431?fields=account_review_status HTTP/1.1

Host: graph.facebook.com

Authorization: Bearer {ACCESS_TOKEN}

Response

200 OK

HTTP/1.1 200 OK

Content-Type: application/json

{

"account_review_status": "PENDING",

"id": "104996229225431"

}

Try another response

Press Send to read a new account's account_review_status from the Graph API, then switch responses to see what an approved, rejected or unauthorised check returns.

What is the WABA account review?

A WABA account review is Meta's policy review of a newly created WhatsApp Business Account (WABA). Before the account can send or receive messages through the Cloud API, Meta checks the business behind it and what it intends to do against the WhatsApp Business Messaging Policy and the WhatsApp Commerce Policy — whether it sells something prohibited, whether its details look genuine, whether it belongs to one of the restricted industries that need extra conditions.

The outcome is stored on the account as account_review_status, which you read with GET /{WABA_ID}?fields=account_review_status. It is PENDING while no decision has been made, APPROVED when the account is ready for use and REJECTED when it does not meet policy requirements. Meta also sends an account_review_update webhook whenever a decision lands, with value.decision set to APPROVED, REJECTED, PENDING or DEFERRED — deferred meaning the decision has been postponed or Meta is waiting for more information. In every state other than approved, the account cannot be used with the APIs.

Account review is easy to confuse with Business Verification, but they answer different questions. Verification asks whether the company legally exists and is done once per business portfolio with documents; account review asks whether this account's use of WhatsApp is allowed and is done per WABA. A verified business can still have a WABA rejected for prohibited products, and an unverified business can have its WABA approved and start sending at the entry messaging limit. Neither is Meta App Review, which grants an app its API permissions.

Key takeaways

The WABA account review is Meta's policy check of a new WhatsApp Business Account before it can use the WhatsApp APIs.
Its result is the WABA's account_review_status field: PENDING, APPROVED or REJECTED.
Meta pushes each decision in the account_review_update webhook; the webhook can also report DEFERRED.
Until the status is APPROVED, Meta says the account cannot be used with its APIs.
Account review checks the account against policy; business verification separately confirms the company's legal identity.

In code

The WABA account review in code

1curl "https://graph.facebook.com/v26.0/{WABA_ID}?fields=account_review_status" \
2  -H "Authorization: Bearer {ACCESS_TOKEN}"
3 
4# {
5#   "account_review_status": "APPROVED",
6#   "id": "{WABA_ID}"
7# }

Needs a token with the whatsapp_business_management permission.

How does the WABA account review work?

The account is created
A new WABA is created in WhatsApp Manager or through Embedded Signup. Meta starts the review automatically; there is nothing to submit separately.
Meta reviews it against policy
The review looks at the business, its stated activity and its details against WhatsApp's messaging and commerce policies. Meta does not publish a turnaround time, so design for the account staying PENDING for a while.
Read or receive the decision
Call GET /{WABA_ID}?fields=account_review_status with a token that has whatsapp_business_management, and subscribe to the account_review_update webhook so a change reaches you without polling.
Approved: finish setup
Register the phone number, create templates and start sending. Store the decision with a timestamp so support can see when the account went live.
Rejected or deferred: act on the reason
Read the reason in WhatsApp Manager or Business Support Home. If Meta asks for more information, provide it; if you believe the rejection is wrong, request a review there with evidence such as your website and product list.

The figures

The WABA account review: key facts and limits

Field: account_review_status on the WABA
Field values: PENDING, APPROVED, REJECTED
Webhook: account_review_update · value.decision
Extra webhook value: DEFERRED (postponed or awaiting information)
Scope: One WhatsApp Business Account, not the whole portfolio
Permission to read it: whatsapp_business_management

Why does the WABA account review matter?

For anyone onboarding businesses — a partner running Embedded Signup or an in-house team creating its first account — review status is the gate between "account created" and "can send". Integrations that skip it let customers queue campaigns into an account that cannot deliver, and show a generic failure instead of a clear "under review". A rejection is also an early warning that the business model itself may conflict with WhatsApp's policies, which is better learned before any templates, numbers or campaigns are built.

Costly mistakes

Common mistakes with the WABA account review

Treating account creation as go-live
A created WABA is not an approved one. Check account_review_status before registering numbers or scheduling campaigns, and show the review state in your UI.
Confusing it with business verification
Verifying the company does not approve the account, and an approved account does not mean the company is verified. Track both statuses separately; they unlock different things.
Polling instead of subscribing
Polling every account on a timer burns rate limit and still reacts late. Subscribe to account_review_update and keep a slow reconciliation job only as a safety net.
Handling only three values
Code that expects PENDING, APPROVED or REJECTED breaks on DEFERRED. Treat any non-approved value as "cannot send yet" and log unknown values instead of crashing.

Example: A partner's onboarding screen in Indore

An Indore software company onboards local retailers through Embedded Signup. Instead of sending each new customer straight to the campaign builder, its dashboard reads account_review_status right after signup and listens for account_review_update. A grocery chain's account shows "Under review" for part of an afternoon, then flips to approved and unlocks number registration. A second customer, who sells hookah accessories, receives REJECTED; the dashboard explains that tobacco-related products fall under WhatsApp's commerce restrictions and links to the review request, instead of letting the shop build templates it can never send.