WhatsApp Business Calling API in India: the rules, call permissions and what it costs
Indian businesses can receive and make voice calls on their WhatsApp Business Platform number. Calls from customers are free. Calls you place need the customer's permission first, are billed by Meta per six-second pulse at the INR rate card, and need a messaging limit of at least 2,000 and a payment method. You may ask for permission once a day and twice a week.
Prices as on 22 October 2026. Figures were checked against the provider's official pages on that date. Providers change prices and rules without notice, so confirm on the official page before you budget. Convo360 adds no markup: you pay the provider directly with your own account. Convo360 is not affiliated with Meta or WhatsApp. This summarises Meta's published documentation on the date shown; Meta's own pages prevail.
- Business-initiated calling works for Indian business numbers; Meta excludes only the US, Canada, Egypt, Vietnam and Nigeria.
- All customer-initiated calls are free; calls you place are billed in six-second pulses with monthly volume tiers.
- You need the customer's permission to call: temporary for 7 days, or permanent until they revoke it.
- Permission requests are limited to 1 per 24 hours and 2 per 7 days for each customer, and they are charged as messages.
- Four unanswered calls in a row automatically revoke a customer's permission.
What the Calling API lets you do
Meta made the WhatsApp Business Calling API generally available on 15 July 2025. It adds internet voice calls to the same number you already use for chat, in two directions:
- User-initiated: a customer taps the call icon on your business profile or a call button in your message.
- Business-initiated: your team or your AI agent calls a customer who has given permission.
According to Meta's Calling documentation, user-initiated calling is available wherever the Cloud API is, and business-initiated calling is too, except for business numbers from the United States, Canada, Egypt, Vietnam and Nigeria. India is not excluded, so a +91 business number can place calls.
You can also set business call hours, so customers are directed to chat when you are closed, offer callback requests, send call buttons with an expiry, and use call deep links. Video and screen sharing are listed by Meta as planned, not live.
What you need before switching it on
| Requirement | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Number on the WhatsApp Business Platform (Cloud API) | Calling is not available for numbers used only in the consumer WhatsApp Business app |
| Messaging limit of at least 2,000 | New portfolios start at 250; verify your business to move up |
| Calling enabled on the number | It is a setting per phone number |
| Payment method in Meta Billing Hub | Required to place calls |
The 2,000 limit catches many small businesses. Meta's messaging limits are set per business portfolio, and the quickest way from 250 to 2,000 is usually completing business verification in Meta Business Manager.
The call permission rules, explained
You cannot simply dial a customer. Meta requires their permission, and only the customer can grant or revoke it.
- How you ask: inside an open 24-hour chat window you can send a free-form call permission request. Outside it, you need an approved call permission request template.
- Other ways: when a customer calls you, they give temporary permission automatically if your callback setting is on. They can also allow calls from your business profile.
- How long it lasts: a temporary permission lasts 7 days from approval. Since 3 November 2025 customers can choose permanent permission, which lasts until they revoke it.
- How often you can ask: at most 1 request in 24 hours and 2 in 7 days per customer, counting free-form and template requests together. Both limits reset after any connected call between you.
- Unanswered calls: after 2 unanswered calls in a row the customer is asked to reconsider, and after 4 the permission is revoked automatically.
Meta's current permission rules also cap connected calls at 100 every 24 hours, applied on the business phone number. Check how this affects your volume before planning a large outbound campaign.
How Meta bills WhatsApp calls
- Customer calls you: free. Meta's pricing page states that all user-initiated calls are free.
- You call the customer: billed by duration in six-second pulses, rounded up, so a 56-second call counts as 10 pulses. The rate depends on the country code of the number called and a monthly volume tier.
- Permission requests: charged as normal messages, at the template or service rate that applies.
- Recording and transcription: currently free on top of call rates; Meta says separate pricing is planned with advance notice.
Indian businesses are billed from Meta's INR calling rate card. Rates change from time to time, so read the current figure on Meta's Calling API pricing page before you budget. One useful side effect: a call from the customer opens or refreshes the 24-hour chat window, whether or not you answer, so you can follow up in chat.
WhatsApp calls versus regular phone calls
| WhatsApp call | Phone call via Exotel, Plivo, Twilio or SIP | |
|---|---|---|
| Reaches | Customers with internet and WhatsApp | Any mobile or landline |
| Outbound needs | The customer's call permission | Consent, DND checks and calling-hour rules |
| Caller identity | Your verified WhatsApp business profile | A phone number |
| Billed by | Meta, per pulse | Your telephony provider |
WhatsApp calls suit customers already chatting with you, such as a buyer asking about a flat in Navi Mumbai who would rather talk than type. Phone calls still win for first contact and for customers on patchy data. Read AI calling compliance in India before running any outbound programme.
Using WhatsApp calling on Convo360
On Convo360, AI voice calls over WhatsApp are available as an early feature, alongside regular AI phone calls through Exotel, Plivo, Twilio or your own SIP trunk. WhatsApp calling is enabled after you move from the free trial to a paid plan; AI voice calls are part of the Pro plan and above.
- Make sure your number has a messaging limit of 2,000 or more and a payment method in Meta Billing Hub.
- Build a voice agent with a system prompt, a knowledge base and a Sarvam, ElevenLabs, Smallest.ai or OpenAI voice. See the voice documentation.
- In a chat flow, ask customers whether they would like a call before you place one, and keep a transfer-to-human step in the voice flow.
For what the AI can and cannot do on these calls today, read AI voice calls over WhatsApp. Meta bills calls directly, and Convo360 adds no per-minute fee.
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Frequently asked questions
Can Indian businesses make WhatsApp calls to customers?
Yes. Meta's Calling API allows business-initiated calls everywhere the Cloud API is available except business numbers from the US, Canada, Egypt, Vietnam and Nigeria. You need the customer's permission, a messaging limit of at least 2,000 and a payment method.
Are WhatsApp business calls free?
Calls that customers make to your business are free. Calls your business places are billed by Meta by duration in six-second pulses, at the rate for the country called and your monthly volume tier. Permission request messages are billed as messages.
How long does a WhatsApp call permission last?
A temporary permission lasts 7 days from when the customer approves it. Since 3 November 2025 customers can also give permanent permission, which stays until they revoke it from your business profile. Only the customer can grant or revoke permission.
How often can I ask a customer for call permission?
At most once in 24 hours and twice in 7 days per customer, counting free-form and template requests together. Both limits reset after any connected call between your business and that customer.
Can I use WhatsApp calling with the WhatsApp Business app?
No. Meta's Calling API requires the number to be on the WhatsApp Business Platform through the Cloud API. Numbers used only in the consumer WhatsApp Business app do not get the Calling API features described here.
Official sources
- Meta: Cloud API Calling (availability, requirements, changelog)
- Meta: Calling API pricing
- Meta: Obtain user call permissions
- Meta: Messaging limits
Related reading
Available across India — see WhatsApp & AI calling automation by state and city.