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At the end of this page, you have a template submitted to Meta, and you can read, edit, duplicate, or delete any template on your WhatsApp Business Account.

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Before you start

Before you start, sign in to the dashboard and select the organization you want to work in.
This capability needs the plan or higher.
  • You need a connected WhatsApp number. See Connect WhatsApp.
  • Templates live under Campaigns, so your campaign wallet must be funded once. See Fund your campaign wallet.
  • To create, edit, or delete templates you need the Admin or Member role. Syncing templates from Meta needs the Admin role. See Roles and permissions.

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Open the Templates tab

Go to Campaigns, then select the Templates tab. Templates belong to one WhatsApp number. The list shows the templates of the number selected in the account picker. Each row is one template name. The columns are Template Name, Status, Category, and Languages. A template with more than one language shows one status badge for each state its languages are in. The toolbar has:
  • An account picker, shown only when more than one WhatsApp number is connected.
  • Search templates…, which matches the template name.
  • A status filter: All status, Submission failed, Approved, Pending, Rejected, Paused, In Appeal, Disabled.
  • A category filter: All categories, Utility, Marketing, Authentication.
  • Sync Now, which pulls the latest templates and statuses from Meta. Only Admins can run it.
  • Create Template, which opens the editor.
Select a row to open the template detail page.

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Read the status badges

Meta decides the status. Tars shows it as a badge and keeps it current through Meta status updates and Sync Now.

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Create a template

Select the number in the account picker, then select Create Template. The editor opens with the title Create Message Template, a form on the left, and a phone preview on the right. A line under the title starts with For and names the number the template is created for. After you create or delete a template, the Templates tab opens again on the same number.

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Template Details

1

Enter the template name

Use lowercase letters, numbers, and underscores only, for example order_confirmation.
2

Choose the category

Choose Marketing or Utility. Authentication is listed but not yet supported.
3

Choose the language

English, Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Italian, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Hindi are available.
Meta never allows a change of name or language after submission. To use another name or language, duplicate the template.

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Content

1

Choose a header type under Header (optional)

Choose None, Text, Image, Video, or Document.
2

If the header is Text, enter the header text

The counter shows the limit of 60 characters. Variables are not supported in text headers.
3

If the header is media, upload a sample file

Meta reviews the sample only. You choose the media sent to end users when you create a campaign.
4

Write the body

The body is required and the counter shows the limit of 1024 characters.
5

Add variables to the body

Write {{1}}, {{2}}, and so on, in order. Named placeholders are not accepted.
6

Enter an example for each variable

An Example for {{1}} field appears for each variable. Meta reads these examples during review.
7

Add a footer under Footer (optional)

The counter shows the limit of 60 characters.
Accepted sample files are JPG or PNG images up to 5 MB, MP4 videos up to 16 MB, and PDF documents up to 16 MB.

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Buttons

You can add up to three buttons. Select Add Button for each one and choose its type.
  • Quick Reply: button text only.
  • URL: button text and a link. The link can include a {{1}} variable, and an Example value (for Meta’s review) field then appears.
  • Phone Number: button text and a phone number.
The Add Button action disappears after the third button.

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Phone preview

The preview on the right updates as you type. It shows the header, body, footer, and buttons as they render on a phone, with each variable shown as a highlighted placeholder such as {{1}}.

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Submit for approval

1

Select Submit for Approval

Tars submits the template to Meta and returns you to the Templates tab with the status Pending.
2

If Meta rejects the submission at once, read the alert

A Meta rejected this template alert appears above the form. Fix the fields it names and submit again.
If the submission fails for a temporary reason, a toast reports it and the template appears with the Submission failed badge.

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Read a template

Select a row in the Templates tab to open the template detail page. The header shows the template name, its status badge, its category, and a language picker when the template has more than one language. The actions are:
  • Edit: opens the editor. Disabled when Meta does not allow edits, and the tooltip tells you why.
  • Duplicate: opens the editor with a copy of the content and an empty name.
  • Use in campaign: opens the campaign builder with this template selected. Enabled only for approved templates.
  • Sync: refreshes every template on this number from Meta. Only Admins can run it.
  • Delete: removes the template from your WhatsApp Business Account.
Below the actions, Used by campaigns lists every campaign that references the template, with each campaign’s status. The phone preview shows the template’s current content. A rejected template shows a Meta rejected this template alert with the reason and a Fix & resubmit button. A template with the Submission failed badge shows a Template submission failed alert with only two actions, Edit & resubmit and Dismiss failed attempt. Dismissing removes only the local attempt and sends nothing to Meta.

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Edit a template

1

Open the template and select Edit

The editor opens with the title Edit Message Template.
2

Change the content, then select Save & Resubmit

Saving resubmits the template to Meta. It goes live at once if automated checks pass, otherwise it returns to review.
Meta rules apply in the editor:
  • Approved templates can be edited once per 24 hours, and 10 times in 30 days. That limit applies to approved templates only, and rejected and paused templates can also be edited.
  • The category of an approved template cannot change.
  • Pending, In Appeal, and Disabled templates cannot be edited, as the status table above states. Duplicate a Disabled template instead.

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Templates in use by campaigns

You cannot edit a template while a scheduled, running, active, or paused campaign uses it. Selecting Edit opens the Template in use by active campaigns dialog instead of the editor. The dialog lists each campaign with its status and a Go to campaign button. Select Close to go back, or Duplicate instead to open the editor with a copy. Pausing a campaign does not release the template, because a paused campaign still counts as in use. A launched campaign pins the template version it was launched with. If the template changes after launch, the remaining deliveries fail with the error code template_version_drift.

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Delete a template

Deleting removes the template and all of its languages from your WhatsApp Business Account. Meta blocks reuse of the name for 30 days, and the action cannot be undone.
1

Open the template and select Delete

The Delete Template dialog opens and names the template and its language count.
2

Confirm with Delete Template

Tars deletes the template on Meta. It leaves the list once Meta confirms the delete.

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Use templates in campaigns and the API

Campaigns accept approved templates only. When Meta reports that an approved template lost its approval, Tars pauses the scheduled, running, and webhook campaigns that use it. See Create a campaign for parameter mapping and pre-send checks, and Send channel messages for template sends through the API.

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Verify

Open Campaigns, then Templates. Your new template appears with the Pending badge, and later with Approved or Rejected after Meta’s review.