Guide · South Africa
How to get the WhatsApp Business API in South Africa: number, CIPC documents and Meta business verification
Setup for South African businesses: the number and coexistence, the Meta portfolio, Embedded Signup, which CIPC, SARS, bank and municipal documents Meta accepts, templates and POPIA.
By Broadchat teamPublished 9 min read
In short
To get the WhatsApp Business API in South Africa you need a Meta business portfolio, a phone number that can receive a code, and a provider that connects it through Meta's Embedded Signup (Meta's In-App Signup is not offered in South Africa). You can send to 250 people a day straight away. To go higher, verify the business with Meta using documents in your legal name, usually the CIPC registration certificate plus a bank or utility document for the address or phone. Meta 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 people a day outside the 24-hour window.
- Meta asks for documents proving your legal business name and your address or phone; for a company or close corporation, the CIPC registration certificate is the usual proof of name.
- A municipal account or phone bill proves an address or phone number only, never the legal name.
- Enter the legal name exactly as CIPC shows it, including '(Pty) Ltd'; the trading name belongs in the WhatsApp display name.
- Since 15 Apr 2026 a South African number on the WhatsApp Business app can often stay on the app while connected to the API (coexistence).
Get the WhatsApp Business API working in South Africa
Time needed: 2 h.
Choose the number
Pick a South African mobile or landline number that can receive a verification SMS or call and that you will keep. If it is on the WhatsApp Business app, decide whether to keep it there with coexistence or move it fully to the API.
Prepare the Meta business portfolio
Use the business portfolio that already runs your Facebook and Instagram ads, or create one in Meta Business Suite in the company's name, and make sure a director or owner has full control.
Connect the number through Embedded Signup
From your provider's panel, open Meta's Embedded Signup window, pick the business portfolio, create or choose the WhatsApp Business account, enter the display name and confirm the number with Meta's code.
Verify the business with CIPC documents
In Meta Business Suite, open Settings, then Security Center, and start verification. Enter the legal name exactly as on the CIPC certificate and upload it with a document that proves your address or phone.
Get your first templates approved
Write one utility template, such as an order or appointment confirmation, and one marketing template with an opt-out line, and submit them. Meta's review can take up to 24 hours.
Import contacts with consent and send
Import only people who agreed to WhatsApp messages from you or existing customers who were given a chance to object, record where consent came from, and start with utility messages while the limit grows.
Before you start
This guide is for a South African business connecting its own number. 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 or two weeks; most of the elapsed time is waiting for Meta.
One South Africa-specific point: Meta's newer In-App Signup flow is not offered in South Africa (Meta's changelog lists it as unavailable here), so every provider connects South African numbers through Embedded Signup. That is the standard route and works the same way for a sole trader in Polokwane as for a listed retailer in Sandton.
Nothing in the setup costs money from Meta. You start paying when templates are delivered, at Meta's rates for South Africa.
Step 1: choose the number
Any number that can receive an SMS or a voice call works: a cellphone number on Vodacom, MTN, Cell C or Telkom, or a landline or VoIP number that can take the verification call. Choose one you will keep for years, because customers save it and your display name and templates are tied to it.
If the number is already on the WhatsApp Business app, you have a choice. Meta added South Africa to coexistence on 15 Apr 2026: the number stays on the WhatsApp Business app (version 2.24.17 or later) while it is connected to the API, contacts and up to six months of chat history sync, and messages you send from the phone stay free. Some app features are switched off (broadcast lists, for example), and the phone must be opened about every two weeks to stay connected. If the number is on the ordinary WhatsApp app, or you want the API only, move it fully or use a new number.
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 pages. If the business already advertises on Facebook or Instagram, use that portfolio, and check that an owner or director, not only an agency, has full control.
A common South African situation: the portfolio was set up years ago by a former marketing agency or a staff member who has since left. Ask them to give a director full control, or create a fresh portfolio in the company's name. Verifying a portfolio that does not own your WhatsApp account does nothing for WhatsApp.
Step 3: connect the number through Embedded Signup
Start the connection in your provider's panel. 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, the name customers see, which should match your brand and your website.
- Enter the number with +27 and confirm it with the code Meta sends by SMS or 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 CIPC documents
Business verification is how Meta confirms that your portfolio belongs to a real, registered business. Once Meta has reviewed your messaging quality, it lifts your messaging limit from 250 to 2,000 people a day and raises other caps. Start it in Meta Business Suite under Settings → Security Center → Start verification.
Meta lists kinds of documents, not South African document names. They must show your legal business name and your official address or phone number, be current, and come from an official source. The table is our general guidance on how common South African documents line up; Meta makes the decision.
| South African document | Closest Meta category | What it proves | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| CIPC registration certificate (CoR14.3 for companies; CK1 or CK2 for older close corporations) | Certificate of incorporation or business registration | Legal name, registration number, often the registered address | The usual first document for a (Pty) Ltd or CC |
| CIPC disclosure certificate or company information printout | Business registration document | Legal name, directors, registered address | Useful when the certificate shows an old address |
| SARS registration notice (income tax or VAT) in the business name | Tax registration document | Legal name, sometimes the address | Check that the name matches CIPC exactly |
| Bank confirmation letter or bank statement in the business name | Bank statement | Legal name and address | A stamped letter from the bank is the cleanest option |
| Municipal rates or utilities account, or a fixed-line or fibre invoice, in the business name | Utility bill | Address or phone only | Never accepted as proof of the legal name |
Sole proprietors are not registered with CIPC, so they often find verification harder: Meta wants a document in the business's name, and a sole trader's documents are usually in a personal name. A municipal business licence or a SARS document showing the trading name may help; many small businesses register a private company before applying. This is general guidance, not legal advice.
A worked example
Pieter and Ayesha run a property rental agency in Cape Town trading as Atlantic Keys, registered with CIPC as AK Residential Letting (Pty) Ltd. They enter 'AK Residential Letting (Pty) Ltd' as the legal name, the registered address exactly as on the CoR14.3, the office landline and the website, then upload the CoR14.3 and a bank confirmation letter showing the same name and address. The display name on WhatsApp is 'Atlantic Keys', which also appears on the website beside the company name in the footer, so Meta can link the two.
Confirm your connection to the business
Meta then asks you to prove you represent the business: a code by email (an address on your own .co.za domain works best), by phone or SMS, or domain verification by adding a DNS TXT record or a meta tag to your website. Domain verification is often the quickest when your web developer or hosting company can add the record.
Meta says a decision can take up to 14 business days. Avoid changing verified details afterwards: editing the legal name, address, phone or website of a verified business means verifying again.
Step 5: get your first templates approved
Outside the 24-hour window you can only send approved message templates. Start with two:
Utility (English)
Hi {{1}}, your viewing at {{2}} is confirmed for {{3}}. Directions: {{4}}. Reply 1 to confirm or 2 to reschedule.
Marketing (Afrikaans)
Hallo {{1}}, ons het nuwe huurwoonstelle aan die Atlantiese kus. Kyk na die lys hier: {{2}}. Antwoord STOP om af te meld.Keep promotion out of utility templates, because Meta recategorises promotional content as marketing. Submit one template per language rather than mixing English and Afrikaans in one, and include an opt-out line in every marketing template; POPIA section 69 requires contact details for opting out in each direct-marketing message. Review can take up to 24 hours.
Step 6: import contacts with consent and send
WhatsApp's policy requires opt-in that names your business. POPIA section 69 allows electronic direct marketing to people who consented, or to existing customers about similar products if they were given a free chance to object when you collected their details and in every message since. You may ask a non-customer for consent only once. Import only contacts that fit one of those, with a tag or custom field recording when and where consent was given. This is general guidance, not legal advice; the Information Regulator's guidance on direct marketing and your own adviser are the places to check.
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 your utility messages first, keep early marketing small and well targeted, and watch the quality rating in the panel.
After launch
- Add a WhatsApp chat link to your website, Google Business Profile and Instagram bio; the WhatsApp link generator builds one.
- Run a Click-to-WhatsApp ad: conversations it starts are free for up to 7 days.
- To be paid in the chat, add a payment link from PayFast, Yoco, Ozow or your own provider to a template's URL button.
- If you sell WhatsApp to clients rather than using it yourself, see the white-label WhatsApp API for South Africa.
Back to the overview: WhatsApp Business API in South Africa.
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
- Onboarding WhatsApp Business app users (coexistence) — Meta for Developers, checked 12 October 2026
- WhatsApp Business Platform changelog (In-App Signup availability) — Meta for Developers, checked 1 November 2026
- Template fundamentals (review time) — Meta for Developers, checked 12 October 2026
- POPIA section 69: direct marketing by means of unsolicited electronic communications — popia.co.za, 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 verify a business with Meta in South Africa?
Sometimes. Meta needs documents showing the business name and address, and sole proprietors are not registered with CIPC, so their documents are often in a personal name. A municipal business licence or a SARS document in the trading name may work; Meta decides. Many small businesses register a (Pty) Ltd first.
How long does Meta business verification take?
Meta says a decision can take up to 14 business days. Many are quicker, but plan launches around the full period.
Why was my verification rejected?
Most rejections are mismatches: the trading name entered instead of the CIPC name, '(Pty) Ltd' left off, an address that differs from the document, a utility bill used to prove the legal name, or a website that does not load on HTTPS. Fix the mismatch and resubmit.
Can I use a landline or VoIP number?
Yes, if it can receive Meta's verification code by voice call. Customers see the number in the chat, so choose one your team answers.
Why can't I use In-App Signup?
Meta's changelog lists In-App Signup as unavailable in South Africa, among a few other markets. Embedded Signup, which every official provider supports, is the route for South African numbers.