On this page
The green tick, a small checkmark badge next to a business's name on WhatsApp, marks what Meta calls an Official Business Account (OBA), a status reserved for a small number of well-known, high-profile brands rather than something most businesses, including large and fully legitimate ones, ever have or need. It is entirely Meta's decision, distinct from business verification and template approval, and cannot be purchased or expedited by VGraple CRM or any other provider.
Green tick (OBA)
- 1Check your current status from VGraple CRM
- 2Read the naming distinction on the WhatsApp
- 3If you decide to pursue it, request
- 4Wait for Meta's decision
- 5Recheck your status from the Groups eligibility
Before you start
- Business verification completed in Meta Business Manager, since Meta treats OBA eligibility as a separate, higher bar on top of a verified account, not a replacement for it. See completing business verification.
- Realistic expectations about who this is for: Meta's stated purpose for OBA is protecting customers from impersonation of already widely recognised brands, not rewarding good WhatsApp usage. A local business doing everything right on WhatsApp is not the target audience for this status.
- If your interest in OBA is specifically to use the WhatsApp Groups API, know that Meta requires OBA status plus a minimum monthly conversation volume for that specific capability; this page's eligibility check reflects that combination, not general messaging.
Steps
- Check your current status from VGraple CRM. Go to Settings, then Channels, then WhatsApp, then WhatsApp Groups (this page is reached from the Broadcasts area of the app). It runs an eligibility check specifically for the Groups API, and one of its three checks is your account's current OBA status.
Read the naming distinction on the WhatsApp channel settings page. Settings, then Channels, then WhatsApp includes an explainer distinguishing business verification, template approval, and the green tick as three separate things, since confusing them is the most common source of frustration around this status.
If you decide to pursue it, request OBA status directly through Meta. VGraple CRM has no API call, button, or workflow that requests OBA on your behalf, because Meta does not expose that as something a Tech Provider can submit for a customer; the request happens through WhatsApp Manager or Meta's own business help channels.
Wait for Meta's decision. Meta evaluates factors including verification status, brand recognition, and, for some use cases, account activity; there is no published guaranteed timeline, and most requests from small and mid-size businesses are not approved, since the badge is intentionally scarce.
Recheck your status from the Groups eligibility page. If Meta grants OBA status, the eligibility check on Settings, then Channels, then WhatsApp Groups reflects it the next time VGraple CRM's health check runs against your number (within 24 hours), turning that specific check from a cross to a tick.
Why is OBA status so hard to get?
Meta designed OBA scarcity on purpose. The badge exists to solve one specific problem: a customer receiving a message from what looks like their bank, airline, or a major retailer has no easy way to confirm the number is genuine, and a widely recognisable green tick next to an already-famous name solves that in a glance. Extending the same badge to every business that verifies its Meta Business Manager or sends high-quality templates would dilute the one thing that makes it useful, so Meta keeps the bar high and largely reserved for brands a broad audience would already recognise by name, independent of WhatsApp.
How does this compare to verification and template approval?
| Process | What it checks | Who decides | Typical outcome for a small or mid-size business |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business verification | Is the Business Manager tied to a real, registered business | Meta, per submitted documents | Achievable; most businesses complete it |
| Template approval | Does a specific message template follow content policy | Meta, per template | Achievable; routine part of using templates |
| Official Business Account (green tick) | Is this an already widely recognised brand | Meta, subjectively, no fixed criteria published | Rare; most legitimate businesses never receive it, and that is normal |
What you will see
For the overwhelming majority of VGraple CRM customers, the Groups eligibility page shows Official Business Account as a cross with a short explanation, alongside a direct link to Meta's own request page and a link to Meta's public explainer on what OBA actually is. This is expected and normal; it does not indicate any problem with your account, your verification, or anything VGraple CRM has or has not done. Nothing else in the product changes based on this status, since no other feature gates on it.
Settings and options
| Setting or field | What it does | Default |
|---|---|---|
| OBA eligibility check | Shown on Settings, then Channels, then WhatsApp Groups; reflects whether Meta has granted your account Official Business Account status | Rechecked from Meta on the same 24-hour health-check cycle as quality rating and messaging tier |
| WhatsApp Groups access | Gated behind OBA status plus a Meta-set conversation volume threshold; unavailable without both | Locked until Meta grants OBA status |
| Verification, template approval, green tick explainer | An in-app reference distinguishing the three separate Meta processes | Always visible on the WhatsApp channel settings page |
Troubleshooting
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Eligibility page shows OBA as a cross even after business verification completed | Business verification and OBA status are separate; verification alone does not grant OBA | Verification is a prerequisite, not a guarantee; request OBA separately through Meta if it is genuinely needed |
| A vendor or agency offers to "get the green tick" for a fee | No third party, VGraple CRM included, can grant or sell OBA status | Treat this as a red flag; only Meta decides OBA status, and it is never for sale |
| WhatsApp Groups still locked after requesting OBA | The conversation-volume threshold (100,000+ monthly conversations) is also required, separate from the OBA badge itself | Both conditions have to be met; check the eligibility page for which specific check is still failing |
| Confusing OBA rejection with a template rejection | The two processes are unrelated; a template rejection notice never mentions OBA | Check whether the rejection came from Templates (a specific template) or from an OBA request (Business Manager); see template rejected: reasons and fixes if it is the former |
| Status not updating after Meta grants OBA | VGraple CRM's health check runs on a roughly 24-hour cycle per channel, not instantly | Wait for the next scheduled check, or reconnect the channel to force an immediate refresh |
Related reading
Business verification is the realistic, achievable step most businesses should focus on; see completing business verification for that process, and messaging tiers and limits for how sending volume and verification actually move your account's real limits, independent of whether it ever earns the green tick.