Upcoming deprecation: Starting April 15, 2026, the PendingIntent-based handshake method for authentication templates will be deprecated. If you are currently using PendingIntent to initiate handshakes or verify app identity, the OTP Android SDK is the preferred way to migrate.

One-tap autofill authentication templates allow you to send a one-time password or code along with an one-tap autofill button to your users. When a WhatsApp user taps the autofill button, the WhatsApp client triggers an activity which opens your app and delivers it the password or code.

One-tap autofill button authentication templates consist of:

Preset text: <VERIFICATION_CODE> is your verification code.

An optional security disclaimer: For your security, do not share this code.

An optional expiration warning (optional): This code expires in <NUM_MINUTES> minutes.

A one-tap autofill button.

Note: The OTP Android SDK is in beta and features a simplified workflow for implementing one-tap and zero-tap authentication templates. You can learn how to use it below.

Limitations

One-tap autofill buttons are only supported on Android. If you send an authentication template to a WhatsApp user who is using a non-Android device, the WhatsApp client will display a copy code button instead.

URLs, media, and emojis are not supported.

Creating authentication templates

Use the WhatsApp Business Account > Message Templates endpoint to create authentication templates.

Request syntax

curl 'https://graph.facebook.com/v25.0/<WHATSAPP_BUSINESS_ACCOUNT_ID>/message_templates' \
-H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
-H 'Authorization: Bearer EAAJB...' \
-d
'{
  "name": "<TEMPLATE_NAME>",
  "language": "<TEMPLATE_LANGUAGE>",
  "category": "authentication",
  "message_send_ttl_seconds": <TIME_T0_LIVE>, // Optional
  "components": [
    {
      "type": "body",
      "add_security_recommendation": <SECURITY_RECOMMENDATION> // Optional
    },
    {
      "type": "footer",
      "code_expiration_minutes": <CODE_EXPIRATION> // Optional
    },
    {
      "type": "buttons",
      "buttons": [
        {
          "type": "otp",
          "otp_type": "one_tap",
          "text": "<COPY_CODE_BUTTON_TEXT>",  // Optional
          "autofill_text": "<AUTOFILL_BUTTON_TEXT>", // Optional
          "supported_apps": [
            {
              "package_name": "<PACKAGE_NAME>",
              "signature_hash": "<SIGNATURE_HASH>"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}'

Note that in your template creation request the button type is designated as otp, but upon creation the button type will be set to url. You can confirm this by performing a GET request on a newly created authentication template and analyzing its components.

Request parameters

Placeholder	Description	Example Value
`<AUTOFILL_BUTTON_TEXT>` String	Optional. One-tap autofill button label text. If omitted, the autofill text will default to a pre-set value, localized to the template’s language. For example, `Autofill` for English (US). Maximum 25 characters.	`Autofill`
`<CODE_EXPIRATION>` Integer	Optional. Indicates the number of minutes the password or code is valid. If included, the code expiration warning and this value will be displayed in the delivered message. The button will be disabled in the delivered message the indicated number of minutes from when the message was sent. If omitted, the code expiration warning will not be displayed in the delivered message. In addition, the button will be disabled 10 minutes from when the message was sent. Minimum 1, maximum 90.	`5`
`<COPY_CODE_BUTTON_TEXT>` String	Optional. Copy code button label text. If omitted, the text will default to a pre-set value localized to the template’s language. For example, `Copy Code` for English (US). If included, the authentication template message will display a copy code button with this text if the message fails the eligibility check. Maximum 25 characters.	`Copy Code`
`<PACKAGE_NAME>` String	Required. Your Android app’s package name. The string must have at least two segments (one or more dots), and each segment must start with a letter. All characters must be alphanumeric or an underscore [`a-zA-Z0-9_`]. If using Graph API version 20.0 or older, you can define your app’s package name outside of the `supported_apps` array, but this is not recommended. See Supported Apps below. Maximum 224 characters.	`com.example.luckyshrub`
`<SECURITY_RECOMMENDATION>` Boolean	Optional. Set to `true` if you want the template to include the string, For your security, do not share this code. Set to `false` to exclude the string.	`true`
`<SIGNATURE_HASH>` String	Required. Your app signing key hash. See App Signing Key Hash below. All characters must be either alphanumeric, `+`, `/`, or `=` (`a-zA-Z0-9+/=`). If using Graph API version 20.0 or older, you can define your app’s signature hash outside of the `supported_apps` array, but this is not recommended. See Supported Apps below. Must be exactly 11 characters.	`K8a/AINcGX7`
`<TEMPLATE_LANGUAGE>` String	Required. Template language and locale code.	`en_US`
`<TEMPLATE_NAME>` String	Required. Template name. Maximum 512 characters.	`verification_code`
`<TIME_TO_LIVE>` Integer	Optional. Authentication message time-to-live value, in seconds. See Customizing Time-To-Live.	`60`

Example request

This example creates a template named “authentication_code_autofill_button” categorized as authentication with all optional text strings enabled and a one-tap autofill button.

curl 'https://graph.facebook.com/v25.0/102290129340398/message_templates' \
-H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
-H 'Authorization: Bearer EAAJB...' \
-d '
{
  "name": "authentication_code_autofill_button",
  "language": "en_US",
  "category": "authentication",
  "message_send_ttl_seconds": 60,
  "components": [
    {
      "type": "body",
      "add_security_recommendation": true
    },
    {
      "type": "footer",
      "code_expiration_minutes": 10
    },
    {
      "type": "buttons",
      "buttons": [
        {
          "type": "otp",
          "otp_type": "one_tap",
          "text": "Copy Code",
          "autofill_text": "Autofill",
          "package_name": "com.example.luckyshrub",
          "signature_hash": "K8a/AINcGX7"
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}'

Example response

{
  "id": "594425479261596",
  "status": "PENDING",
  "category": "AUTHENTICATION"
}

Webhooks

The button messages webhook is triggered whenever a user taps the “I didn’t request a code” button within the message.

Example webhook

{
  "object": "whatsapp_business_account",
  "entry": [
    {
      "id": "320580347795883",
      "changes": [
        {
          "value": {
            "messaging_product": "whatsapp",
            "metadata": {
              "display_phone_number": "12345678",
              "phone_number_id": "1234567890"
            },
            "contacts": [
              {
                "profile": {
                  "name": "John"
                },
                "wa_id": "12345678"
              }
            ],
            "messages": [
              {
                "context": {
                  "from": "12345678",
                  "id": "wamid.HBgLMTIxMTU1NTE0NTYVAgARGBJDMDEyMTFDNTE5NkFCOUU3QTEA"
                },
                "from": "12345678",
                "id": "wamid.HBgLMTIxMTU1NTE0NTYVAgASGCBBQ0I3MjdCNUUzMTE0QjhFQkM4RkQ4MEU3QkE0MUNEMgA=",
                "timestamp": "1753919111",
                "from_logical_id": "131063108133020",
                "type": "button",
                "button": {
                  "payload": "DID_NOT_REQUEST_CODE",
                  "text": "I didn't request a code"
                }
              }
            ]
          },
          "field": "messages"
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

App signing key hash

You must include your app signing key hash in your post body.

To calculate your hash, follow Google’s instructions for computing your app’s hash string⁠.

Alternatively, if you follow Google’s instructions and download your app signing key certificate (step 1), you can use your certificate with the sms_retriever_hash_v9.sh⁠ shell script to compute the hash. For example:

./sms_retriever_hash_v9.sh --package "com.example.myapplication" --keystore ~/.android/debug.keystore

Supported apps

The supported_apps array allows you define pairs of app package names and signing key hashes for up to 5 apps. This can be useful if you have different app builds and want each of them to be able to initiate the handshake:

"buttons": [
  {
    "type": "otp",
    ...
    "supported_apps": [
      {
        "package_name": "<PACKAGE_NAME_1>",
        "signature_hash": "<SIGNATURE_HASH_1>"
      },
      {
        "package_name": "<PACKAGE_NAME_2>",
        "signature_hash": "<SIGNATURE_HASH_2>"
      },
      ...
    ]
  }
]

Alternatively, if you are using Graph API version 20.0 or older and have only a single app, you can define the app’s package name and signing key hash as buttons object properties, but this is not recommended as we will stop supporting this method starting with version 21.0:

"buttons": [
  {
    "type": "otp",
    ...
    "package_name": "<PACKAGE_NAME>",
    "signature_hash": "<SIGNATURE_HASH>"
  }
]

Handshake

You must signal to the WhatsApp client to expect imminent delivery of a password or code. You can do this by initiating a “handshake”.

A handshake is an Android intent and public class that you implement but that the WhatsApp client can start.

When a user in your app requests a one-time password or verification code and chooses for it to be delivered to their WhatsApp number, first perform the handshake, then call our API to send the authentication template message. When the WhatsApp client receives the message, it will perform an eligibility check, and if there are no errors, start the intent and display the message to the user. Finally, when the user taps the message’s one-tap autofill button, we automatically load your app and pass it the password or code.

If you do not perform a handshake before sending the message, or the message fails an eligibility check, the delivered message will display a copy code button instead of a one-tap button.

Eligibility check

The WhatsApp client performs the following checks when it receives an authentication template message. If any check fails, the one-tap autofill button will be replaced with a copy code button.

The handshake was initiated no more than 10 minutes ago (or no more than the number of minutes indicated by the template’s code_expiration_minutes property, if present).

The package name in the message (defined in the package_name property in the components array upon template creation) matches the package name set on the intent. The match is determined through the getCreatorPackage method called in the PendingIntent object provided by your application.

None of the other apps that you included in the template’s list of supported_apps initiated a handshake in the last 10 minutes (or the number of minutes indicated by the template’s code_expiration_minutes property, if present).

The app signing key hash in the message (defined in the signature_hash property in the components array upon template creation) matches your installed app’s signing key hash.

The message includes the one-tap autofill button text.

Your app has defined an activity to receive the password or code.

Android notifications

Android notifications indicating receipt of a WhatsApp authentication template message will only appear on the user’s Android device if:

The user is logged into the WhatsApp app or WhatsApp Business app with the phone number (account) that the message was sent to.

The user is logged into your app.

Android OS is KitKat (4.4, API 19) or above.

Show notifications is enabled (Settings > Notifications) in the WhatsApp app or WhatsApp Business app.

Device level notification is enabled for the WhatsApp app or WhatsApp Business app.

Prior message threads in the WhatsApp app or WhatsApp Business app between the user and your business are not muted.

Using the SDK (Beta)

The OTP Android SDK is available in beta. It can be used to perform handshakes, as well as other functions in both one-tap and zero-tap authentication templates.

To access SDK functionality, add the following configuration to your Gradle file:

dependencies {
…
    implementation 'com.whatsapp.otp:whatsapp-otp-android-sdk:0.1.0'
…
}

To your repositories, add mavenCentral():

repositories {
…
    mavenCentral()
…
}

Activity

Declare an activity and intent filter that can receive the one-time password or code. The intent filter must have the action name com.whatsapp.otp.OTP_RETRIEVED.

<activity
   android:name=".ReceiveCodeActivity"
   android:enabled="true"
   android:exported="true"
   android:launchMode="standard">
   <intent-filter>
       <action android:name="com.whatsapp.otp.OTP_RETRIEVED" />
   </intent-filter>
</activity>

This is the activity that the WhatsApp app or WhatsApp Business app will start once the authentication template message is received and it passes all eligibility checks.

Activity class

Using the SDK (Preferred)

Define the activity public class and instantiate a WhatsAppOtpIncomingIntentHandler object to handle the intent. The .processOtpCode() method validates the handshake ID against the expected value you stored during handshake initiation and handles errors.

public class ReceiveCodeActivity extends AppCompatActivity {

      @Override
      protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
          super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
          WhatsAppOtpIncomingIntentHandler incomingIntentHandler = new WhatsAppOtpIncomingIntentHandler();

          // Retrieve the expected handshake ID that was stored during handshake initiation
          String expectedHandshakeId = retrieveStoredHandshakeId();

          incomingIntentHandler.processOtpCode(
                                 getIntent(),
                                 expectedHandshakeId,
                                 (code) -> {
                                   // The handshake ID has been validated by the SDK
                                   validateCode(code);
                                 },
                                 // call your function to handle errors
                                 (error, exception) -> handleError(error, exception));
    }

Without the SDK

Define the activity public class that can accept the code once it has been passed to your app. The activity should validate the request_id (handshake ID) to ensure the OTP code is coming from a legitimate handshake initiated by your app.

public class ReceiveCodeActivity extends AppCompatActivity {

   @Override
   protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
       super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
       Intent intent = getIntent();

       // Extract the handshake ID from the intent
       String incomingRequestId = intent.getStringExtra("request_id");

       // Retrieve the previously stored handshake ID
       String storedRequestId = retrieveStoredRequestId();

       // Validate the handshake ID matches
       if (storedRequestId != null && storedRequestId.equals(incomingRequestId)) {
         // use OTP code
         String otpCode = intent.getStringExtra("code");
         // ...
       }
   }
}

Initiating the handshake

Using the SDK (Preferred)

Performing a handshake can be done by instantiating the WhatsAppOtpHandler object and passing in your context to the .sendOtpIntentToWhatsApp() method. The method returns a UUID (handshake ID) that must be stored and used to validate the incoming OTP code later:

WhatsAppOtpHandler whatsAppOtpHandler = new WhatsAppOtpHandler();
UUID handshakeId = whatsAppOtpHandler.sendOtpIntentToWhatsApp(context);
// Store handshakeId to validate the received OTP code later

Without the SDK

This example demonstrates one way to initiate a handshake with the WhatsApp client. The handshake includes a request_id (UUID) that must be stored and validated when receiving the OTP code.

private String currentRequestId;

public void sendOtpIntentToWhatsApp() {
   // Generate a unique handshake ID
   currentRequestId = UUID.randomUUID().toString();
   // Store this ID for later validation when receiving the OTP
   storeRequestId(currentRequestId);

   // Send OTP_REQUESTED intent to both WA and WA Business App
   sendOtpIntentToWhatsApp("com.whatsapp", currentRequestId);
   sendOtpIntentToWhatsApp("com.whatsapp.w4b", currentRequestId);
}

private void sendOtpIntentToWhatsApp(String packageName, String requestId) {

  /**
  * Starting with Build.VERSION_CODES.S, it will be required to explicitly
  * specify the mutability of  PendingIntents on creation with either
  * (@link #FLAG_IMMUTABLE} or FLAG_MUTABLE
  */
  int flags = Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.S ? FLAG_IMMUTABLE : 0;
  PendingIntent pi = PendingIntent.getActivity(
      getApplicationContext(),
      0,
      new Intent(),
      flags);

  // Send OTP_REQUESTED intent to WhatsApp
  Intent intentToWhatsApp = new Intent();
  intentToWhatsApp.setPackage(packageName);
  intentToWhatsApp.setAction("com.whatsapp.otp.OTP_REQUESTED");
  // WA will use this to verify the identity of the caller app.
  Bundle extras = intentToWhatsApp.getExtras();
  if (extras == null) {
     extras = new Bundle();
  }
  extras.putParcelable("_ci_", pi);
  // Add the handshake ID for secure validation
  intentToWhatsApp.putExtra("request_id", requestId);
  intentToWhatsApp.putExtras(extras);
  getApplicationContext().sendBroadcast(intentToWhatsApp);
}

Checking if WhatsApp is installed on Android

You can check WhatsApp installation before offering WhatsApp as an option if you expect both WhatsApp and your app to be on the same device.

First, you need to add the following to your AndroidManifest.xml file:

<queries>
    <package android:name="com.whatsapp"/>
    <package android:name="com.whatsapp.w4b"/>
</queries>

Using the SDK (Preferred)

Instantiate the WhatsAppOtpHandler object:

WhatsAppOtpHandler whatsAppOtpHandler = new WhatsAppOtpHandler();

Check if the WhatsApp client is installed by passing the isWhatsAppInstalled method as the clause in an If statement:

If (whatsAppOtpHandler.isWhatsAppInstalled(context)) {
    // ... do something
}

Without the SDK

if (this.isWhatsAppInstalled(context)) {
    // ... do something
}

public boolean isWhatsAppInstalled(final @NonNull Context context){
    return isWhatsAppInstalled(context, "com.whatsapp") ||
           isWhatsAppInstalled(context, "com.whatsapp.w4b");
  }

  public boolean isWhatsAppInstalled(final @NonNull Context context,
      final @NonNull String type){
    final Intent intent = new Intent();
    intent.setPackage(type);
    intent.setAction("com.whatsapp.otp.OTP_REQUESTED");
    PackageManager packageManager = context.getPackageManager();
    List<ResolveInfo> receivers = packageManager.queryBroadcastReceivers(intent, 0);
    return !receivers.isEmpty();
  }
}

Checking if WhatsApp is installed on iOS

Use the following code in your iOS application to check if WhatsApp is installed

let schemeURL = URL(string: "whatsapp://otp")!
let isWhatsAppInstalled = UIApplication.shared.canOpenURL(schemeURL)

Error signals

See Error Signals that can help with debugging.

Handshake ID error codes

The following error codes may be returned when using the SDK with handshake ID validation:

Error Code	Description
`HANDSHAKE_ID_MISSING`	The handshake ID was not included in the intent from WhatsApp
`HANDSHAKE_ID_INVALID_FORMAT`	The handshake ID is not a valid UUID format
`HANDSHAKE_ID_MISMATCH`	The handshake ID in the intent does not match the expected value

Sample app

See our WhatsApp One-Time Password (OTP) Sample App⁠ for Android on Github. The sample app demonstrates how to send and receive OTP passwords and codes via the API, how to integrate the one-tap autofill and copy code buttons, how to create a template, and how to spin up a sample server.

Sending authentication template

This document explains how to send approved authentication templates with one-time password buttons.

Note that you must first initiate a handshake between your app and the WhatsApp client. See Handshake above.

Request

Use the WhatsApp Business Phone Number > Messages endpoint to send an authentication template message with a one-time password button.

Request syntax

curl -X POST "https://graph.facebook.com/v23.0/<WHATSAPP_BUSINESS_PHONE_NUMBER_ID>/messages" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer <ACCESS_TOKEN>" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "messaging_product": "whatsapp",
    "recipient_type": "individual",
    "to": "<CUSTOMER_PHONE_NUMBER>",
    "type": "template",
    "template": {
      "name": "<TEMPLATE_NAME>",
      "language": {
        "code": "<TEMPLATE_LANGUAGE_CODE>"
      },
      "components": [
        {
          "type": "body",
          "parameters": [
            {
              "type": "text",
              "text": "<ONE-TIME PASSWORD>"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "type": "button",
          "sub_type": "url",
          "index": 0,
          "parameters": [
            {
              "type": "text",
              "text": "<ONE-TIME PASSWORD>"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    }
  }'

Request parameters

Placeholder	Description	Sample Value
`<CUSTOMER_PHONE_NUMBER>`	The customer’s WhatsApp phone number.	`12015553931`
`<ONE-TIME PASSWORD>`	The one-time password or verification code to be delivered to the customer. Note that this value must appear twice in the payload. Maximum 15 characters.	`J$FpnYnP`
`<TEMPLATE_LANGUAGE_CODE>`	The template’s language and locale code.	`en_US`
`<TEMPLATE_NAME>`	The template’s name.	`verification_code`

Response

Upon success, the API will respond with:

{
  "messaging_product": "whatsapp",
  "contacts": [
    {
      "input": "<INPUT>",
      "wa_id": "<WA_ID>"
    }
  ],
  "messages": [
    {
      "id": "<ID>"
    }
  ]
}

Response parameters

Placeholder	Description	Sample Value
`<INPUT>` String	The customer phone number that the message was sent to. This may not match `wa_id`.	`+16315551234`
`<WA_ID>` String	WhatsApp ID of the customer who the message was sent to. This may not match `input`.	`+16315551234`
`<ID>` String	WhatsApp message ID. You can use the ID listed after “wamid.” to track your message status.	`wamid.HBgLMTY1MDM4Nzk0MzkVAgARGBI3N0EyQUJDMjFEQzZCQUMzODMA`

Example request

curl -L 'https://graph.facebook.com/v25.0/105954558954427/messages' \
-H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
-H 'Authorization: Bearer EAAJB...' \
-d '{
      "messaging_product": "whatsapp",
      "recipient_type": "individual",
      "to": "12015553931",
      "type": "template",
      "template": {
        "name": "verification_code",
        "language": {
          "code": "en_US"
      },
      "components": [
        {
          "type": "body",
          "parameters": [
            {
              "type": "text",
              "text": "J$FpnYnP"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "type": "button",
          "sub_type": "url",
          "index": "0",
          "parameters": [
            {
              "type": "text",
              "text": "J$FpnYnP"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    }
  }'

Example response

{
  "messaging_product": "whatsapp",
  "contacts": [
    {
      "input": "12015553931",
      "wa_id": "12015553931"
    }
  ],
  "messages": [
    {
      "id": "wamid.HBgLMTY1MDM4Nzk0MzkVAgARGBI4Qzc5QkNGNTc5NTMyMDU5QzEA"
    }
  ]
}

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