First, work out what actually happened
| What you see | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
131042 | A payment problem on your WhatsApp Business Account, not a ban. | Add a payment method and currency in Meta Business Settings. |
131047 | It has been over 24 hours since the customer’s last message. | Send an approved template instead of a free-text reply. |
190 | Your access token expired or was revoked. | Generate a new System User token. |
| A template shows as paused | It reached Meta’s lowest quality rating. The first pause lasts 3 hours and the second 6. The third time it is disabled. | Wait for the pause to end, then fix the template and its audience. |
| A campaign stops part-way through | You may have reached your daily limit of unique recipients outside the 24-hour windows. | Check the Messaging limits panel, and send the rest in smaller batches. |
| The number’s status isn’t “Connected” | Meta says a number must be connected to send and receive through the API. | Open the number in WhatsApp Manager and follow what it asks for. |
| A policy notice from Meta | Meta has limited or removed access for a policy breach. | Read the notice, fix the cause, and use Meta’s appeal route if you think it is wrong. |
These checks are for numbers on the API. If your number is banned on the regular WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business app, use the review option the app shows you.
Where to check your rating
- Number status: WhatsApp Manager → Account tools → Phone numbers, in the Status column. Meta says this reflects the number’s quality rating and its messaging limit.
- Messaging limit: WhatsApp Manager → Account tools → Messaging limits. The limit is shared by every number in your business portfolio, so one number can use up all of it.
- Each template: the Manage templates panel shows high, medium or low quality.
Why quality drops
Customers can block or report you, and the WhatsApp Business Messaging Policy says Meta’s systems may limit how many messages you can send based on that feedback. Template ratings look at negative feedback and low read rates. These habits usually sit behind it:
- Messaging people who never agreed. Bought lists, scraped numbers and old customer files top this list.
- Sending too often, or sending the same offer to everyone whether it fits or not.
- Unclear sender. If people don’t recognise you in the first line, “block” is the easy choice.
- No easy way out. A customer who can’t stop your messages will block you instead.
How to recover
- Pause broadcasts. Keep answering customers who message you, and stop sending campaigns.
- Find the campaign that caused it. Look at what you sent just before the drop, who received it and how many people read it.
- Rewrite or retire low-rated templates. Say who you are in the first line, and make the message useful to the person reading it. If a template was disabled, you can edit and resubmit it.
- Cut the audience down to people who have messaged or bought from you recently and clearly agreed to hear from you. Remove everyone else.
- Add an opt-out line such as “Reply STOP to stop these messages”, and honour every request.
- Restart small. Send to a small group first, watch the rating for a few days, and grow only if it holds.
- Appeal if the enforcement is a mistake. Meta’s policy enforcement page explains the route.
We couldn’t find a recovery time in Meta’s documentation, so be wary of anyone promising one, or offering to “unblock” a number for a fee.
How to stay out of trouble
- Get real opt-in. Meta’s policy requires both that the person gave you their number and that they agreed to receive messages from you. Having the number isn’t enough on its own.
- Use the official API. Unofficial bulk-sender tools are a common route to a ban. WapTalk runs only on Meta’s official platform, although Meta can still limit any number that spams.
- Segment your list so people only get what applies to them. Sending fewer messages also costs less: 500 delivered marketing messages is ₹431.55 before GST.
- Watch failures after each send. WapTalk’s campaign screen groups failures by Meta’s error code and says what to do about common ones. It skips opted-out contacts and handles STOP automatically.