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Ledger entryNo. 132810

Partner-Led Business Verification(PLBV)

Also called: Partner-led verification · Partner verification

Definition
A route in which an approved Meta partner submits a client's business verification documents by API, so Meta can decide in minutes rather than days.

Policy, consent & trust

Mode · flow diagram

Work it out

Follow one client's verification through the partner route

9 / 9
Embedded SignupClient portfolio ID
Partner collects documents≤ 3 files · 5 MB each
self_certify_whatsapp_businessPOST · system user token
Meta reviewAbout 5 minutes on average
APPROVEDverification_status: verified
Path to the 2,000 limitAfter Meta's quality check
FAILEDrejection_reasons
Fix and resubmitAttempts 2 and 3
Client verifies directlyAfter 3 rejections
  • Embedded Signup to Partner collects documents: client onboarded
  • Partner collects documents to self_certify_whatsapp_business: upload
  • self_certify_whatsapp_business to Meta review: attempt counted
  • Meta review to APPROVED: account_update
  • APPROVED to Path to the 2,000 limit: scaling path
  • Meta review to FAILED: account_update
  • FAILED to Fix and resubmit: read the reasons
  • Fix and resubmit to self_certify_whatsapp_business: attempt ≤ 3
  • Fix and resubmit to Client verifies directly: third rejection

Hop 9 of 9

APPROVEDPath to the 2,000 limitscaling path

Arrives at Path to the 2,000 limit — After Meta's quality check.

From Embedded Signup to a verified portfolio: watch the documents travel to Meta's review and the webhook come back, including the rejection loop and the three-attempt fallback.

Hop 9 of 9: APPROVED to Path to the 2,000 limit — scaling path.

What is partner-led business verification?

Partner-led business verification (PLBV) is Meta's programme that lets an approved Solution Partner submit business verification for a client who onboarded through the partner's Embedded Signup. Instead of the client uploading documents in Meta Business Suite and waiting for a review, the partner collects the documents and sends them to Meta through the Graph API. Meta says decisions on submissions made this way can come in minutes instead of days.

The partner does not verify anyone itself. It gathers and submits; Meta reviews the documents and returns APPROVED or FAILED. The feature is limited to approved Select Solution and Premier Solution Partners that have requested access, and the call is POST /{BUSINESS_PORTFOLIO_ID}/self_certify_whatsapp_business, made with the partner's System User Access Token, naming the client's portfolio in end_business_id and attaching up to three files in business_documents[]. The outcome arrives through the Account Update Webhook as event: PARTNER_CLIENT_CERTIFICATION_STATUS_UPDATE, and a failure lists rejection_reasons such as a legal name that could not be found in the documents.

The end state is the same as the standard route's: the client's business portfolio reads verification_status: verified, and Meta lists partner verification as one of the paths that can lift a new portfolio's messaging limit from 250 to 2,000. What changes is who does the paperwork and how quickly the answer comes. Self-serve Business Verification remains the fallback, because a partner gets three submissions per client; after three rejections the client has to verify directly.

Key takeaways

  • Partner-led business verification (PLBV) lets an approved Select or Premier Solution Partner submit a client's business documents to Meta by API.
  • Meta still decides; the partner gathers and submits. Decisions average about 5 minutes but can take several hours.
  • Each client gets three partner submissions; after three rejections the client must complete verification on their own.
  • A submission takes up to 3 documents of 5 MB each (PDF, JPEG, JPG or PNG) and is answered through the account_update webhook.
  • Partner verification is one of Meta's scaling paths from a new portfolio's 250 messaging limit to 2,000.

The figures

Partner-led business verification: key facts and limits

Who can use it
Approved Select and Premier Solution Partners
Endpoint
POST /{portfolio-id}/self_certify_whatsapp_business
Documents
Up to 3, max 5 MB each, PDF, JPEG, JPG or PNG
Attempts per client
3, then the client verifies directly
Typical decision
About 5 minutes on average; can take hours
Outcome webhook
account_update · PARTNER_CLIENT_CERTIFICATION_STATUS_UPDATE
No answer after 24 hours
Open a Direct Support ticket
What it unlocks
Verified status; a scaling path to the 2,000 limit

How does partner-led business verification work?

  1. The client onboards through Embedded Signup

    The partner needs the client's business portfolio ID, from the client or by requesting owner_business_info on the client's WhatsApp Business Account with the client's business token.

  2. The partner collects documents

    Up to three documents, each no larger than 5 MB, as PDF, JPEG, JPG or PNG, of a type Meta accepts. The legal name must appear in them and match the client's business profile.

  3. Submit by API

    Call self_certify_whatsapp_business with a system user token whose user is an admin on the partner's portfolio and has granted the app business_management. The response counts verification_attempts.

  4. Meta reviews

    The average turnaround is about 5 minutes, but it can take several hours. If no webhook arrives within 24 hours, open a Direct Support ticket under WABiz: Onboarding.

  5. Handle the outcome

    APPROVED means the business is verified. FAILED comes with rejection_reasons: fix the mismatch or the documents and resubmit, remembering there are three attempts in total.

  6. Confirm the status

    Read verification_status on the client's business portfolio with their business token, or business_verification_status on the client's WhatsApp Business Account.

In code

Partner-led business verification in code

curl -X POST "https://graph.facebook.com/v26.0/{PARTNER_BUSINESS_PORTFOLIO_ID}/self_certify_whatsapp_business" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer {SYSTEM_USER_ACCESS_TOKEN}" \
  -F 'end_business_id="{CLIENT_BUSINESS_PORTFOLIO_ID}"' \
  -F 'business_documents[]=@"certificate_of_incorporation.pdf"' \
  -F 'business_documents[]=@"gst_registration.pdf"'
 
# {"success": true, "message": "Your request has been received and will be reviewed shortly.", "verification_attempts": 1}

Up to three business_documents[] parameters, one per file, 5 MB each.

Example: A physiotherapy chain in Pune

A partner onboards a Pune physiotherapy chain through Embedded Signup and submits a shop-and-establishment licence issued in the clinics' trade name. Eight minutes later the webhook reports FAILED with LEGAL_NAME_NOT_FOUND_IN_DOCUMENTS, because the business profile carries the private limited company's legal name. The partner's onboarding team asks for the certificate of incorporation, which shows that legal name, and submits it as attempt two. It is approved within minutes, and after Meta's quality check the portfolio's messaging limit rises from 250 to 2,000 in time for the chain's appointment-reminder launch.

Costly mistakes

Common mistakes with partner-led business verification

  • Name mismatches

    The legal name in the documents must match the client's business profile, and the address country and website domain are checked too. Fix the profile, or choose documents that show the legal name, before submitting.

  • Burning attempts on unreadable files

    Corrupted, password-protected or unsupported files fail as malformed and still use one of three attempts. Check type, size and legibility locally first.

  • Missing the webhook

    The decision arrives only if the app is subscribed to account_update and to webhooks on the client's WhatsApp Business Account. Subscribe before submitting, not after.

  • Using the wrong token

    Submissions use the partner's system user token; reading verification_status on the client's portfolio uses the client's business token. Mixing them up returns permission errors.

  • Promising the blue badge

    Verification is only one prerequisite for an Official Business Account. Display-name approval, two-step verification and the notability review are separate.

Why does partner-led business verification matter?

Verification is the slowest step in many WhatsApp onboardings, and until it is done a new portfolio is held at 250 unique users in a moving 24 hours unless it qualifies through Meta's quality path. For a partner onboarding many small businesses, such as clinics in Nagpur or coaching institutes in Kota, PLBV turns a days-long, error-prone upload process into an API call with a structured answer, and the rejection codes say exactly what to fix.

Best practices for partner-led business verification

  • Validate documents before submitting: file type, size, legibility and that the legal name appears in the text.
  • Store verification_attempts per client and require a human review before the third submission.
  • Log rejection_reasons next to the client's profile fields so support can fix the mismatch on the first call.
  • Tell clients what PLBV does not change: policy compliance, display-name review and Official Business Account criteria still apply.

PLBV FAQs

Can any WhatsApp BSP use partner-led business verification?
No. It is limited to approved Select Solution and Premier Solution Partners that have requested access, and only for clients onboarded through that partner's Embedded Signup.
Is a business verified by a partner different from one verified directly?
No. The client's portfolio ends up with the same verification_status of verified, and partner verification is one of the paths Meta lists for raising the messaging limit to 2,000.
What happens after three rejected PLBV submissions?
The partner can no longer submit for that client. The client must complete business verification on their own in Meta Business Suite, and Meta suggests pointing them to its How to Verify Your Business guide.
How long does partner-led business verification take?
About 5 minutes on average, though it can take several hours. If no webhook has arrived after 24 hours, Meta asks partners to open a Direct Support ticket.

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