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This is the Meta side of getting started — the part where most people get stuck because the dashboard recently changed. Follow it once and your WhatsApp number is production-ready.

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The big concept: Business Portfolio

Think of your Business Portfolio as the central building everything hangs off — Instagram, WhatsApp, ad accounts, and developer apps all live inside one portfolio so they can work together. Create this first; nothing connects without it.

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Set it up

1

Create your Business Portfolio

At business.facebook.com — this is the hub for everything that follows.
2

Create a Meta app

In the new UI, go to Business Messaging → “Connect with customers through WhatsApp” (this replaces the old “Other” option path).
3

Add your phone number

It must not already be active on any WhatsApp app. Verify it with the OTP, then set your display name.
4

Generate a permanent access token

The temporary developer token expires in ~1 hour and is not safe for production. Create a System User in business.facebook.com (Settings → System User) and generate a token with the WhatsApp Business Messaging permission. See Access tokens for the full walkthrough.
5

Confirm business verification status

You can start without it (250 unique customers/day); verify later to raise limits.
Don’t use the temporary token you see in the developer dashboard for anything real — it dies in about an hour. Always use the System User permanent token for a live setup.
The phone number must be completely free of any existing WhatsApp account. If it’s been used before, remove WhatsApp from it first, then add it here — this is the #1 thing that blocks beginners at the number step.

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About the webhook & “going live” parts

The video continues into webhooks, going live, and sending messages via code/n8n. With ChatSyncs you don’t have to do any of that by hand — connecting your number does the webhook and live-mode wiring for you. Those developer steps are covered separately in the Advanced module if you ever want to drive the API directly.

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What’s next

Your Meta account is ready. Head to Getting Started to connect this number to ChatSyncs and send your first message.