Migrating Phone Numbers
What is a number Migration Process?
A Migration Process refers to the necessary steps taken when moving a number from one WABA (WhatsApp Business Account) to another.
It is applicable in various scenarios, such as Migrating a number from one BSP (Business Solution Provider) to another, migrating from Classic signup to Embedded signup WABA, or making changes to payment settings like WABA currency.
Making sure the account is registered as WhatsApp Business API
These steps are only for numbers registered as WhatsApp Business API accounts. If you are not sure the number is registered as a WhatsApp Business API, try messaging it.
Note: In some cases, the call icon may not appear correctly on the business accounts of the current desktop version of WhatsApp. If this occurs, you can verify whether the number is registered by checking the message that appears when starting the conversation.
If the message is similar to the one below, it means that the number is still registered on the WhatsApp App.
How to identify if the WABA is registered in On-premise or Cloud API?
To determine whether a number is registered On-premise or on Cloud API, there are a few methods you can use. You can check directly in the 360dialog Hub (if the number is already registered with 360dialog). Another option is to start a new conversation with the number and check the message that appears when starting the conversation.
If the WABA is registered in Cloud API
This is the standard message when starting a conversation with a WABA registered on the Cloud API:
[will be deprecated] If the WABA is registered in On-premise API
This is the standard message when starting a conversation with a WABA registered on the On-premise API:
Migration Types
When migrating an account, there are the following possibilities:
Migrate number (alternate BSP or Meta) to 360dialog API
If the current number is registered in On-premise API, once migrated, it will have Cloud hosting with 360dialog, unless your Partner is not enabled for Cloud API or if your Partner specifies a different hosting type during Integrated Onboarding.
To migrate a number, from an alternate BSP or Meta to 360dialog API, please follow these steps.
Migrate to alternate BSP
Please refer to this process if you wish to migrate your number to an alternate BSP.
Other Possible Changes
In addition to migrations, there are other scenarios that may require adjustments to a WhatsApp Business Account (WABA) while maintaining the same phone number within the same WABA. These instances involve making Account changes, which are distinct from Migration processes.
Rather than transferring a phone number from one WABA to another, these changes focus on updating specific configurations or functionalities within the existing WABA. For instance, it could involve upgrading a number to a Multi-Connect Setup or moving the number from On-premise to Cloud API (vice versa).
When changing the settings of a WABA, there are the following possibilities
Hosting type Change
If you would like to change an existing number’s hosting type from 360dialog On-premise to 360dialog Cloud API please refer to this process.
As announced in November 2023, Meta is transitioning to a fully Cloud-hosted WhatsApp Business Platform and will stop supporting On-Premise API in October 2025.
Starting from On-Premise client v2.53, all new feature updates will be exclusively delivered to Cloud API. While the On-Premise API client will receive quarterly releases, they will focus solely on bug fixes and security patches. From May 15, 2024, 360dialog will not allow for new numbers to be onboarded with On-Premise API. We will continue supporting already registered On-Premise API throughout 2024, but we strongly recommend to start changing the hosting type of numbers to Cloud as soon as possible. Learn here how to integrate with Cloud API.
Partner change (between 360dialog Partners)
To transfer management of an existing WhatsApp Business Account to a new partner, the Partner Change process must be initiated through the 360dialog Client Hub. See Partner Change Process.
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