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MESSAGING AND TEMPLATES
Session message
A session message is any WhatsApp message sent by a business inside an open 24-hour customer service window without using a template: text, images, documents, audio, video, stickers, locations, contacts and interactive messages. It cannot be sent once the window closes. From 1 October 2026 Meta charges for replies too; the first 1,000 each month on each WhatsApp number are free.
free form messagecustomer service windowerror 131047meta october 2026 pricing change
Why it matters
Session messages are where almost all support and sales conversation happens. The term matters because Meta's error 131047 (re-engagement) means exactly "you tried to send a session message outside a session", and because of cost: session messages were free until 30 September 2026, and from 1 October 2026 each number's first 1,000 a month are free and the rest are charged at the utility rate. Fewer, fuller replies now matter as much as fast ones. What the change means for you.
In VGraple CRM
The inbox composer sends session messages while the window is open and switches to templates when it closes; flows do the same automatically. The window countdown on each conversation tells agents how long they have, and once charging has started a short line under the reply box shows how many of its 1,000 free replies the number has left this month.