Corporate policy
On this page, you will learn more about Facebook’s structured corporate policy regarding WhatsApp accounts.
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Please ensure that your use of WhatsApp business products complies with the following policies.
WhatsApp business products include:
- The WhatsApp Business app.
- WhatsApp for companies, consisting of the WhatsApp Business app and WhatsApp Business APIs. If you are using WhatsApp for Business as service provider on behalf your clients, these policies apply to your use and the use your business customers make of WhatsApp.
- Other WhatsApp Business offerings or functions that we may provide to you in the future.
Create a quality experience
Follow the guidelines and instructions in our technical and product documentation.
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Keep a WhatsApp Business profile with customer support contact information, including the following data: e-mail address, website address, or phone number. Maintain all the information accurate and updated. You should not impersonate another company or mislead customers about the nature of your business.
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You should only contact WhatsApp users if: (a) they have provided their mobile phone numbers; and (b) they have agreed to be contacted by you through WhatsApp. When communicating with users, do not confuse, cheat, defraud, send spam, or surprise them.
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Do not send promotional, advertising, or marketing messages. You are allowed to respond to a user who has contacted you directly as a result of an advertisement posted on platforms outside WhatsApp conversations, as long as the advertising does not conflict with the commercial policy.
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You should respect all requests (on and off WhatsApp) made by the user to block, stop, or, otherwise, not want to receive your messages sent via WhatsApp, including the removal from your contact list.
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You must not create games or support the use of games in WhatsApp, including interactive single or multi-player programs that involve skill, competition, or chance.
Terms specific to WhatsApp for business (WhatsApp Business API)
The sections below about “Membership” and “Acceptable Message Types” apply only to the WhatsApp for business, which means a WhatsApp Business API.
Membership:
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To send a message to a customer through WhatsApp regarding a specific business interaction, you must receive an clear, particular adhesion to that interaction. For example: To receive a receipt through WhatsApp, the client must adhere to the receipt during a purchase. Subscriptions obtained out of context and not related to an action the customer is already taking, do not obey this policy.
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Membership messages must be clearly labeled, including a visual element (e.g., a checkbox) next to your WhatsApp name and logo, with an adjacent language that indicates: (a) to what type of information the customer will be sending and (b) that they will be sending this information through WhatsApp. You must give the customer full control over which WhatsApp number will be used and offer him the possibility to edit their phone number.
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The membership described above may or may not be sufficient under the laws applicable to your communications with recipients. You are the only one responsible for providing notices and obtaining permission as necessary by applicable law.
Acceptable messages types:
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You can only initiate conversations by sending transactional notifications and only through approved message templates (as defined in our documentation), subject to applicable fees. All message templates must follow our terms and policies, and may only be used for their designed purpose. We have the right to review, approve, and reject messages templates at any time.
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If a user initiates a conversation with you, you can continue through WhatsApp for up to 24 hours after the last message sent by the user free of charge (“Customer Service Time Window”). Outside this period, you can only send messages utilizing approved messages templates, and we will charge you the appropriate fee.
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You can use the automated service during this time window, but you must also provide quick, precise, and direct service with humans operators when needed.
Data protection and law enforcement
You are responsible for and must protect all notices, permissions, and consent necessary to collect, use, and share third-party information and content. This includes maintaining a public privacy policy and complying with applicable laws.
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Do not use user data obtained through our platform via WhatsApp, except for the context of the conversations, for a better exchange with the user in question.
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Do not disclose or ask customers to disclose total individual payment card numbers, financial account numbers, ID numbers, or other confidential information.
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Do not use WhatsApp to send or request health information if the applicable laws limits the distribution of such information to systems that do not meet the requirements to process that health information. Also, WhatsApp is not intended to be used for telemedicine.
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You should not forward or share information form a customer conversation with any other customer.
Prohibited organizations and uses
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We prohibit organizations and individuals involved in terrorism or organized crime from using WhatsApp business products.
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We forbid the use of WhatsApp business products to facilitate or organize a criminal activity, including exploiting or causing physical, financial, or any other harm to persons, enterprises, or animals.
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If you are negotiating, offering, or selling products or services, including sending messages regarding such offers and sales, you must also comply with WhatsApp’s Commercial Policy.
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If your organization’s primary purpose or business (as determined by us in our sole discretion) is to distribute, sell, offer for sale, trade, market, promote, endorse, or commercially operate any of the prohibited products and services by the policy, we may prevent your organization from using WhatsApp’s business products.
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Messages must not include offensive content, such as sexually explicit material or nudity, as determined by us in our discretion.
App and updates
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We may restrict or eliminate your access to WhatsApp’s business products if you receive excessive negative feedback, harm WhatsApp or our users, or violate or encourage others to violate our terms and policies, as determined in our sole discretion.
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If you use or operate a service that uses WhatsApp and you violate our terms or policies, such as sending messages en masse in an unauthorized way, we have the right to restrict or remove your access to WhatsApp’s services.
WhatsApp can update its commercial policy (“Amendment”) without notice. By continuing to use WhatsApp business products after such changes, you certify your consent to the content that has been modified.
- If we close your account for material violations of WhatsApp policies or commercial terms, we may prohibit you and your organization from future use of WhatsApp products.
Reference: https://www.whatsapp.com/legal/business-policy/?lang=en