WhatsApp Change in JUNE/2026 · AI Automation Society

Nei E Maldaner

May 23 • General Discussion 💬

WhatsApp Change in JUNE/2026

## What this Meta/WhatsApp change is

Meta is preparing a major WhatsApp change involving two new concepts:

**1. WhatsApp Username**

This is a public username, similar to Instagram or Telegram.

Examples:

```text

@johnsmith

@yourbrand

@espacoinema

```

For regular users, the main purpose is **privacy**: people may be able to talk to businesses without always exposing their personal phone number.

For companies, the username helps with **branding and discoverability**, making it easier for customers to find the business.

**2. BSUID — Business-Scoped User ID**

This is a technical identifier automatically generated by Meta. The company does **not** choose it and does **not** register it manually.

It is created when a WhatsApp user interacts with a business.

Example:

```text

BR.1A2B3C4D5E6F7G8H9

```

The BSUID allows a business to recognize a customer even when the customer’s phone number is not visible.

## What is going to happen

Today, many systems identify WhatsApp contacts only by phone number.

With this change, that will no longer be enough.

Before:

```text

Customer = phone number

```

After:

```text

Customer = phone number + username + BSUID

```

If a user activates a WhatsApp username and chooses more privacy, their phone number may be hidden in some interactions. In that case, the business will receive the BSUID to keep identifying that contact inside the CRM, chatbot, or customer service system.

According to the guide, BSUIDs started appearing in production webhooks in March 2026, and the username rollout starts first in pilot countries, with global expansion, including Brazil, expected in the second half of 2026.

## What changes for regular users

As a regular WhatsApp user, you may be able to create your own username.

Your phone number will still exist and remain linked to your WhatsApp account. The difference is that, in some situations, you may use a username instead of exposing your phone number.

Simple summary:

```text

Phone number = still exists

Username = chosen by the user

BSUID = automatically generated by Meta for each business

```

## What changes for businesses

Businesses should stop depending only on the phone number to identify customers.

The CRM or customer database should store:

```text

Customer name

WhatsApp phone number

WhatsApp username

WhatsApp BSUID

Source channel

Last interaction date

```

The technical guide recommends treating the BSUID as the main unique identifier for the WhatsApp channel, because the phone number may be empty when the user chooses to hide it.

## Recommended procedures

**1. Create new CRM fields**

Add fields such as:

```text

WhatsApp Username

WhatsApp BSUID

WhatsApp Phone Number

```

The BSUID field must be text, not a number.

**2. Update the customer lookup rule**

The ideal logic is:

```text

1. A WhatsApp message arrives.

2. Check whether a BSUID was received.

3. If a BSUID exists, search the customer by BSUID.

4. If not found, search by phone number.

5. If found by phone number, save the BSUID in that customer profile.

6. If nothing is found, create a new contact.

```

**3. Do not delete the phone number**

The phone number is still useful. The business should store both:

```text

Phone number + BSUID

```

The mistake would be replacing one with the other.

**4. Check with your WhatsApp provider**

Each provider may expose the BSUID using a different webhook field name. Examples from the guide:

```text

Meta Cloud API: messages.user_id

Twilio: ExternalUserId

Azure: fromBSUID / toBSUID

Infobip: contact.userId

Take Blip: metadata["#wa.bsuid"]

```

**5. Prepare the company username**

Businesses should already define possible username options:

```text

@yourbrand

@yourcompany

@yourcompanyofficial

```

The company name should be consistent across WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook, the website, and Meta Business Suite.

**6. Verify the business account on Meta**

To improve legitimacy and readiness, the business should verify its Meta Business portfolio, complete the WhatsApp business profile, and, when eligible, request or maintain an Official Business Account through Meta Business Suite and WhatsApp Manager.

## Final summary

The main change is:

```text

WhatsApp will no longer depend only on phone numbers.

Users may have usernames.

Businesses will receive a BSUID to identify customers without always seeing their phone number.

```

For users, this is mainly a **privacy change**.

For businesses, this is a **CRM, API, chatbot, database, and customer service change**.

The recommended action is to create fields for **Username** and **BSUID**, update systems to search customers by **BSUID**, keep the phone number when available, and confirm with the WhatsApp provider exactly where this data appears in the webhook or API.

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WhatsApp Change in JUNE/2026