Guide · Singapore
How to get the WhatsApp Business API in Singapore: number, ACRA documents and Meta business verification
A setup guide for Singapore businesses: the number, the Meta business portfolio, ACRA documents for business verification, display name, first templates and PDPA consent, before your first send.
By Broadchat teamPublished 10 min read
In short
To get the WhatsApp Business API in Singapore you need a Meta business portfolio, a number that can receive a code by SMS or call, and a provider that connects it through Meta's Embedded Signup. You can message 250 people a day straight away. To go higher, verify the business with Meta using official documents in your legal name: usually your ACRA Business Profile (with your UEN) plus a document that proves your address or phone. Meta decides, and says verification can take up to 14 business days.
Key takeaways
- You can connect a number and send templates before business verification, but only to 250 unique people outside the 24-hour window per rolling 24 hours.
- An ACRA Business Profile from BizFile, showing your UEN, is the usual Singapore proof of legal name and registered address.
- A utility bill or bank statement proves address or phone only, never the legal name on its own; an IRAS GST registration letter can support the name.
- Enter the legal name exactly as registered with ACRA; the brand customers know goes into the WhatsApp display name, not the verification form.
- Collect WhatsApp opt-in separately from the Do Not Call Registry check before sending any marketing template to a Singapore number.
Get the WhatsApp Business API working in Singapore
Time needed: 2 h.
Choose the number
Pick a Singapore number (+65) that can receive a verification SMS or call and that you will keep for years. If it is active on the WhatsApp app today, check whether Meta's coexistence option covers Singapore before relying on it, or use a new number for the API.
Prepare the Meta business portfolio
Use the business portfolio your company already uses for Facebook and Instagram ads, or create one in Meta Business Suite in the company's name. Make sure a director or owner has full control of it.
Connect the number through Embedded Signup
From your provider's panel, open Meta's Embedded Signup window, choose the business portfolio, create or pick the WhatsApp Business account, enter the display name and confirm the number with the code Meta sends.
Verify the business with ACRA documents
In Meta Business Suite, open Settings, then Security Center, and start verification. Enter the legal name exactly as registered with ACRA, and upload your ACRA Business Profile plus a document that proves your address or phone.
Get your first templates approved
Write one utility template, such as a booking confirmation or invoice reminder, and one marketing template with an opt-out line, and submit them for review. Meta's review can take up to 24 hours.
Check consent, the Do Not Call Registry and your first sends
Import only customers who agreed to WhatsApp messages from you, record where consent came from, check the number against the Do Not Call Registry before any marketing send without clear consent, and start with utility messages while your messaging limit grows.
Before you start
This guide is for a Singapore business connecting its own number to the WhatsApp Business API. You need three things: a Meta business portfolio, a phone number, and a provider whose panel opens Meta's Embedded Signup. Plan for about two hours of your own time spread over one to two weeks; most of it is waiting for Meta.
Connecting a number costs nothing from Meta. You start paying when you send templates, at Meta's rates for Singapore numbers, billed in SGD or US dollars depending on how your account is set up.
Step 1: choose the number
Any number that can receive an SMS or a voice call works: a mobile line on Singtel, StarHub or M1, or a fixed line that can take the verification call. Choose one you will keep for years. Customers save it, and your display name, templates and quality history are tied to it.
If the number is in use on the WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business app, check first. Meta's coexistence feature, which keeps a number on the WhatsApp Business app while it is connected to the API, is offered only in countries Meta lists, and the list is specific; check Meta's current coexistence documentation for Singapore before you rely on it. Until you have confirmed it, delete the number from the app before connecting it, since its chat history in the app does not move to the API. Many Singapore businesses keep an old number on the app and connect a new line for the API.
Step 2: prepare the Meta business portfolio
The business portfolio (formerly Business Manager) is the account in Meta Business Suite that owns your WhatsApp Business account, ad accounts and Facebook Page. If the business already runs ads, use that portfolio rather than creating a second one, and check that a director or owner has full control; only someone with full control can start verification.
A common Singapore situation: the portfolio was set up by a former agency or a staff member who has since left, under a personal Facebook profile. Ask them to give a director full control before you begin, or create a new portfolio in the company's name. Verifying a portfolio that does not own the WhatsApp account does nothing for your messaging limit.
Step 3: connect the number through Embedded Signup
In your provider's panel, start the WhatsApp connection. On Broadchat that is Channels → All Channels, then connect WhatsApp. Meta's window opens and asks you to:
- Log in with Facebook and choose the business portfolio.
- Create a WhatsApp Business account or pick an existing one.
- Enter the display name customers will see. It should match your brand and the name on your website, for example 'BrightPath Learning' rather than 'Office Line'.
- Enter the number in international format (+65…) and confirm it with the code Meta sends by SMS or voice call.
When the window closes, the number appears in the panel with its status, quality rating and messaging limit as Meta reports them.
Step 4: verify the business with ACRA documents
Business verification is how Meta confirms that the portfolio belongs to a real, registered business. Together with good messaging quality it is one of the routes from the starting limit of 250 people a day to 2,000, and it raises other caps such as the number of phone numbers and templates. Start it in Meta Business Suite under Settings → Security Center → Start verification, and enter the legal name, address, phone number and website exactly as they appear on your documents.
Meta lists the kinds of document it accepts, not Singapore document names. The documents must show your legal business name, or your address or phone number, must be current and must come from an official source. The table below is our general guidance on how common Singapore documents line up with Meta's categories. It is not Meta's list, and Meta's reviewers decide.
| Singapore document | Closest Meta category | What it proves | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| ACRA Business Profile from BizFile | Certificate of incorporation or business registration document | Legal name and UEN | Download it from BizFile with your Unique Entity Number; the name must match what you type exactly, including 'Pte Ltd' where it applies |
| IRAS GST registration letter in the business's name | Tax registration document | Legal name | Useful supporting evidence alongside the ACRA profile; only businesses registered for GST have one |
| Business bank statement in the business's name | Bank statement | Address | Recent statement showing the registered address |
| SP Group or other utility bill in the business's name | Utility bill | Address, and the phone on a bill | A utility bill never proves the legal name on its own |
Singapore registration documents are in English, so translation is rarely needed.
A worked example
Priya runs a tuition centre in Tampines that parents know as BrightPath Learning. The centre is owned by BrightPath Learning Pte Ltd. She enters 'BrightPath Learning Pte Ltd' as the legal name, the physical address exactly as on the ACRA Business Profile, the centre's landline, and the centre's website, whose footer says 'BrightPath Learning is operated by BrightPath Learning Pte Ltd, UEN 2019xxxxxK'. She uploads the ACRA Business Profile for the name and a recent business bank statement in the company's name for the address. 'BrightPath Learning' goes on WhatsApp as the display name, not into the verification form.
Confirm your connection to the business
Meta then asks you to show you represent the business: a code by email (an address on your own domain, such as office@brightpath-learning.sg, works best rather than a Gmail address), by phone, SMS or WhatsApp to the business number, or domain verification through a DNS TXT record or a meta tag on your website. Domain verification is often the easiest when the phone on your documents is an old landline.
Meta says a decision can take up to 14 business days. Do not change the legal name, address, phone or website after verification; a change means verifying again. Our global guide to Meta business verification lists the most common rejection reasons.
Step 5: get your first templates approved
Outside the 24-hour window you can only send approved message templates. Start with one utility and one marketing template, in the language your customers read, most often English:
Utility
Hi {{1}}, this confirms your enrolment for {{2}} starting {{3}}. Reply here if you have any questions.
Utility
Hi {{1}}, your invoice of {{2}} for {{3}} is due on {{4}}. Reply HELP if you need a payment plan.
Marketing
Hi {{1}}, our next term's enrolment is open until Friday, with an early-bird rate for sign-ups this week. Reply STOP to opt out.Keep promotion out of utility templates; Meta reviews categories and moves promotional content to marketing. Do not ask for NRIC numbers, passwords or full card numbers in any template. Review can take up to 24 hours.
Step 6: consent, the Do Not Call Registry and your first sends
WhatsApp's policy requires opt-in: the person agreed to receive messages from your named business. Singapore adds its own layer on top: the PDPA's Do Not Call provisions cover marketing messages to Singapore telephone numbers, and the Personal Data Protection Commission's guidance specifically addresses messages sent through apps like WhatsApp. Collect consent on your enrolment form or checkout ('Send me class reminders and offers on WhatsApp from BrightPath Learning. I can opt out any time.'), record the date and source in a tag or custom field, and check the Do Not Call Registry before sending marketing to any number without that clear consent. This is general guidance, not legal advice; our WhatsApp Business API in Singapore overview covers the PDPA and Do Not Call rules in more depth.
A new portfolio can message 250 unique people outside the 24-hour window in a rolling 24 hours. With good quality and steady use, Meta raises the messaging limit to 2,000, then 10,000, 100,000 and unlimited. Send utility messages first (confirmations, reminders, invoices), keep marketing small and targeted, and watch the quality rating for the first two weeks.
After launch
- Add a WhatsApp chat link to your website, Instagram bio and printed materials; the WhatsApp link generator builds one.
- Run a Click-to-WhatsApp ad on Facebook or Instagram: conversations it starts are free for up to 7 days.
- For payments, put a payment link from your own gateway in the message and send the receipt template once your system confirms payment; built-in WhatsApp payment collection is not available for Singapore.
- If you plan to sell WhatsApp to clients, see the white-label WhatsApp API for Singapore.
Back to the overview: WhatsApp Business API in Singapore.
Other editions of this page
Sources
- How to verify your business in Meta Business Suite — Meta Business Help Center, checked 12 October 2026
- Which official documents do I need to upload to verify my business in Meta Business Suite? — Meta Business Help Center, checked 12 October 2026
- Messaging limits — Meta for Developers, checked 12 October 2026
- Template fundamentals (review time) — Meta for Developers, checked 12 October 2026
- Do Not Call Registry and you — Personal Data Protection Commission Singapore, checked 1 November 2026
Broadchat team · Product and partner success team
The people who build and support Broadchat, the white-label WhatsApp Business API platform. We write from what we see while onboarding partners and their clients on the official WhatsApp Cloud API, and we check every article against Meta's current documentation.
Last updated:
Frequently asked questions
Can a sole proprietor in Singapore get verified by Meta?
Yes, if the business is registered with ACRA. Enter the registered name from your ACRA Business Profile as the legal name, upload that profile, and add a bank statement or utility bill in the business name for the address or phone. Meta makes the decision.
Is an IRAS GST registration letter enough for Meta verification?
Use it as supporting evidence of the legal name rather than on its own. The ACRA Business Profile with your UEN is the clearer proof of name, and you also need a document for the address or phone. Meta's reviewers decide what is enough.
How long does Meta business verification take in Singapore?
Meta says a decision can take up to 14 business days. Many submissions are faster, but plan your first big campaign after verification, not before.
Why was my verification rejected?
Most rejections are mismatches: a brand name typed instead of the ACRA-registered name, 'Pte Ltd' missing or wrong, a registered address that does not match the document, a utility bill used to prove the name, or a website that does not load on HTTPS. Fix the mismatch and resubmit.
Does the Do Not Call Registry apply to WhatsApp marketing?
The PDPA's Do Not Call provisions apply to marketing messages sent to Singapore telephone numbers, and the Personal Data Protection Commission's guidance specifically addresses apps like WhatsApp. Get clear and unambiguous consent, or check the number against the DNC Registry before sending marketing.
Do I need a website?
Meta expects a website on HTTPS that shows your business for verification. A simple site with your legal name in the footer, your address and a contact page is enough.