This guide outlines the steps to pay your WhatsApp/Meta invoices via Facebook, reactivate your BusinessChat account after a successful Meta payment, and troubleshoot common payment or automation failures.
1. How to Pay A WhatsApp/Meta Invoice
To ensure your account remains active, you need to check your account regularly. Usually, when your payment method has sufficient funds, Meta will attempt to automatically withdraw the bill. If it fails, you must pay it manually.
IMPORTANT NOTE: you will be notified via the Businesschat interface that you have an outstanding Meta invoice, but you need to log in to your Facebook Business Manager to see the bill and all relevant details. You cannot see the Meta bill amount from BusinessChat.
Follow these steps to clear your dues directly through Meta:
Log in to your Facebook account and navigate to business.facebook.com/settings.
Select WhatsApp Accounts from the menu.
Choose the specific WhatsApp account you need to pay for (this is necessary only if you have multiple accounts).
Click on Settings (within the WhatsApp account menu), then select Payment Settings.
Review the Amount Due, then click Pay Now.
Follow the on-screen prompts to complete the transaction.
IMPORTANT: Once the payment is successful on Meta, you must sync this status with BusinessChat by following these steps:
Go to your BusinessChat dashboard.
Look for the banner at the top of the page that asks, "Did you resolve the issue?" and click it.
Send a test message to any WhatsApp number of your choice. This action forces the system to refresh and reactivate your account.
2. Troubleshooting: Meta Payment Failed
If you receive a "Payment Failed" error or your Automatic Payment did not go through, check the following common causes and solutions.
Common Causes & Basic Solutions:
Insufficient Funds (Check Tax Buffer): Ensure your card has enough balance to cover the bill plus extra for potential tax fees. Meta often deducts a small tax percentage, so having the exact bill amount may cause the transaction to fail.
Bank Restrictions: Some banks automatically block international transactions or online payments. Contact your bank to authorize the transaction.
Card limit reached: your card may have strict payment limits, and you may have reached this threshold. Contact your bank to verify.
Expired Card: The card on file may have expired or needs to be updated. Check the card status from your Facebook Business Manager Account. You should see an alert next to the card if it's exoired.
Advanced Solution: "Something Went Wrong" Error
If you have sufficient funds but keep seeing a generic "Something went wrong" error, the card might need to be added at the Business Portfolio level.
Follow these steps to fix it:
Go to the main Payment Settings page in Facebook Business Manager via this link: business.facebook.com/settings
Choose Payment Methods.
Click Add, then follow the instructions on the screen to enter your card details here. (Note: You must be an admin with the necessary permissions to do this.)
You need to determine the payment method as default, by going back to the first page and Click Add Payment method
From the pop up , Click the checkbox in front of the Business Payment method, and click Next.
Click Set As Default from the new popup
A new popup will apear prompting you to pay the pending invoice, click Done and the payment should be processed successfully.
Important note: Note that Meta accepts only Visa and Master Cards. If you're trying to add a different type of card it will not go through.
3. Reactivation: Syncing Your Account with BusinessChat after a successful Meta payment
Once the payment is successful on Meta, you must sync this status with BusinessChat to reactivate your automations. Follow this step-by-step troubleshooting flow.
Step 1: The Banner Check
Go to your BusinessChat dashboard and look for a red banner at the top asking, "Did you resolve the issue?"
If you see it: Click the banner and follow the on-screen prompts to send a test message.
If successful: Your account is reactivated.
Step 2: The Hard Refresh (If Banner is Missing)
If you do not see the red banner, then perform a Hard Refresh:
Windows: Press Ctrl + F5
Mac: Press Cmd + Shift + R
Action: Check again. If the banner appears, go back to Step 1. If the account is still inactive/loading, proceed to Step 3.
Step 3: The Manual Trigger (Force Reactivation)
If the banner is still missing even after a hard refresh and the account is not yet active, you can force the system to recheck your status manually.
Action: Send a WhatsApp message from your personal phone to your Business WhatsApp number (the number connected to the platform).
Why this works: Receiving a message on your business line forces the system to "wake up," re-check your payment status, and reactivate the automations.
Step 4: Wait & Retry
If the account is still inactive, wait 5 minutes to allow Meta's servers to synchronize with BusinessChat, then perform a Hard Refresh again.
Troubleshooting Edge Case: Stuck on "Loading..."
If you clicked the banner, but it is stuck spinning on "Loading...":
Perform a hard refresh, then try clicking it again.
If it persists, double-check your Facebook Business Manager to ensure a valid payment method is linked and set as the default, even if the bill has been paid.
IMPORTANT: If you’ve completed all the solutions and your account is still inactive, there might be another reason. Open any automation page and hover over the yellow note that says “Stopped,” and you should understand the reason.