Meta may reject WhatsApp message templates for issues such as invalid variables, policy violations, character limits, or duplicate content. This guide explains the common reasons for rejection, how to fix them, and how to check the rejection reason and request a review in Meta Business Support Home.

When you submit a template, Meta reviews it with a mix of automated systems and manual review to make sure it meets WhatsApp's policies and quality standards. A decision usually takes up to 24 hours. If your template is rejected, you can edit and resubmit it, or file an appeal. This guide covers the most common reasons templates are rejected and how to fix each one.

Variables (also called parameters) are placeholders in your template that get filled in with real values when the message is sent — for example, a customer's name or an order number. Formatting mistakes in variables are one of the most common causes of template rejection.

In Wati, you can use either numbered variables or named variables — both do the same job: they pull the right value for each contact when the template message is sent.

You don't need to worry about the order or sequence of numbered variables. Wati takes care of this automatically at the product level when your template is submitted to Meta for approval, so you can focus on your message content.

Throughout this guide, {{1}} and {{2}} are used only as examples to illustrate the rules. Your own template may use numbered variables (like {{1}}) or named variables (like {{name}}).

Below are the specific formatting problems that can lead to rejection, and how to fix each one.

Every variable must be wrapped in double curly braces on both sides — for example, {{1}} or {{customer_name}}. A variable with missing or unbalanced braces (like {1}} or {{1}) will be rejected.
​How to fix: Check that every variable has two opening {{ and two closing }} braces.

A variable's contents can't include special characters such as #, $, or %.
For named variables, this is even stricter: names may only use lowercase letters and underscores — no capital letters, numbers, spaces, or symbols. So {{order_id}} is valid, but {{Order ID}}, {{orderID}}, and {{order#1}} are not.
​How to fix: Remove special characters. For named variables, use only lowercase letters and underscores (for example, {{order_id}}).

A template can be rejected if it has too many variables relative to how much fixed text it contains — for example, a short message that is almost entirely placeholders.
​How to fix: Reduce the number of variables, or add more fixed wording to the message.

A template can't begin or end with a variable. These are called dangling parameters and are not allowed.
For example, {{1}}, your order is ready (starts with a variable) and Your order is ready {{1}} (ends with a variable) would both be rejected.
​How to fix: Add fixed text before the first variable and after the last one — for example, Hi {{1}}, your order is ready to collect.

Commerce Policy violations
If you offer goods or services for sale, Meta treats all related messages and media — descriptions, prices, fees, taxes, and any required legal disclosures — as transactions, and they must comply with the WhatsApp Commerce Policy.
​How to fix: Review your template against the Commerce Policy and remove any non-compliant content.

Requesting sensitive personal identifiers (Business Policy violation)
Templates must not ask customers to share sensitive identifiers such as full payment card numbers, financial account numbers, or national identification numbers. This also applies to asking for documents that might contain those identifiers. Requesting a partial identifier — for example, the last 4 digits of a Social Security number — is allowed.
​How to fix: Remove requests for full sensitive identifiers; ask only for partial values if you need them.

Abusive or threatening content
Templates cannot contain abusive or threatening content, such as threatening a customer with legal action or threatening to publicly shame them.
​How to fix: Rewrite the message in a neutral, non-threatening tone.

The body of a template has character limits that vary depending on the template's format and tag, and there may also be a limit on the number of emojis allowed in the body.
​How to fix: Shorten the body text and reduce the number of emojis if your template exceeds these limits.

A template is rejected as a duplicate when it has the same wording in both the body and footer as an existing template.
​How to fix: Change the wording of the body and/or footer so the template is meaningfully different, or use the existing template instead.

If your template is rejected, Meta notifies you in three places:

Follow these steps to find out why your template message was rejected and how to submit a review request:

If your template was submitted as a Utility template but automatically recategorized as Marketing:

Meta may reject WhatsApp message templates for invalid variables, policy violations, character or formatting limits, or duplicate content.

Templates that use variables must include sample values, such as sample text or media. These samples help reviewers understand how the template will appear to customers, and an appeal cannot be filed without a sample.

A template can be rejected if variables have missing or mismatched curly braces, contain invalid special characters, use too many variables relative to the fixed text, or appear at the very beginning or end of the message. Named variables must use only lowercase letters and underscores.

A template can be rejected for violating the WhatsApp Commerce Policy, requesting sensitive personal identifiers such as full payment card or financial account numbers, or containing abusive or threatening content. Templates may request partial identifiers, such as the last four digits of a Social Security number.

A template is rejected as a duplicate when it has the same wording in both the body and footer as an existing template. This duplicate check does not apply to templates in the AUTHENTICATION category.

You can request a review for a rejected template through Business Support Home in your Meta Business Account. The review requires a reason for the appeal and a sample, and appeals are reviewed within 24 hours.