How to Auto-Approve members automatically and Control WhatsApp Groups

Step by step in the 9bot dashboard

First, in WhatsApp, turn on Approve new participants in the group settings, so people who use the link arrive as join requests. Then, in the dashboard, select the group at the top and open Automations in the side menu. The screenshots below come from the real dashboard, in a test group called "Seu Grupo", with member names and contacts blurred. The numbers on the images follow the order of the clicks. When the problem is one specific person, see how to handle difficult members.

Step 1: Open automatic approval

1. On the Automations tab, find the Automatic member approval card ("Automatically approve join requests with country, Area Codes/DDD, and custom filters").
2. Click Configure. The card toggle is off by default.

Step 1: in Automations, find Automatic member approval and click Configure.

Step 2: Set the rule

1. At the top, the counters show Requests received, Approved, Pending and Rejected, and Recent analyzed requests keeps the history.
2. In Main rule, the default is Approve all requests. Other options: approve all except selected countries, approve only selected country codes, approve only a country code plus selected Area Codes/DDD, approve only allowed numbers, approve all except blocked numbers, or custom approval.
3. In Orders outside the rule, the default is Keep pending for manual review. The other option is to reject automatically.
4. In Wait time before approval, the default is Immediately, with options from 10 to 300 seconds.
5. To set a cap, tick Limit approvals per day and adjust Maximum automatic approvals per day, which starts at 100.

Step 2: choose the main rule, what happens to requests outside it, the wait time and the daily limit.

Step 3: Test and save

1. Tick Use operating hours if approvals should only happen at certain times, and Send message after approval if you want to message approved members. Both are unticked by default.
2. In Test number, type a number and click Test rule to check the rule before using it.
3. Click Save.

Step 3: tick the extra options if needed, test a number and click Save.

Why automate member approval?

Managing the entry of new participants into a rapidly growing WhatsApp group is a tiring task. As the flow of requests increases, it becomes impossible to review every profile manually without wasting precious time that could be spent engaging your community.

Queue automation solves this pain from end to end. It ensures absolute speed in welcoming participants, reduces the entry of fake profiles or spammers, and ensures that the administrator does not need to stay online or glued to their phone all day to keep the community running.

With clear rules and automatic filters, the group gains continuous traction, and you drastically reduce the manual effort of the support and moderation team. For one to one chats, a WhatsApp Business auto reply handles the greeting and the after hours away message.

The problem in practice

Without a structured entry funnel, WhatsApp groups are vulnerable to massive invasions of advertising bots and spammers. Malicious links and inappropriate sharing can be posted at any time, destroying the brand's reputation and scattering the attention of real members.

If you don't have control over who enters the community, the professional and safe environment is lost in a few hours. Worse yet, manual approval of dozens of members accumulates annoying delays, making legitimate users wait hours or days to access your community.

What you will configure

By the end of this tutorial, you will have:

• An active automatic approval system based on WhatsApp's native pending list.
• Automatic safety filters and criteria for new members.
• A smart welcome message programmed for new members.
• A practical test to validate the entry flow.

Your group's digital receptionist

Think of 9bot's auto-approval as the reception and guest list system of an exclusive VIP event or a corporate seminar.

Without automation (manual approval), the host of the event (the admin) would need to stand at the front entrance all night long, checking each guest's badge, confirming the details on a physical list, and opening the door person by person. The host would end up exhausted, missing the entire party, and guests would face long, frustrating lines.

By activating 9bot's auto-approval, it is like hiring a highly efficient digital receptionist. You hand over the entry criteria to them, and they take over the door. The smart receptionist checks credentials in fractions of a second, instantly opens the door for the correct participants, hands them the venue's rules (Welcome Message), and bars scammers immediately.

Checklist of a protected group

• "Approve new participants" option active in the WhatsApp group settings.
• Bot promoted to group administrator to have technical release privileges.
• Auto-Approval key saved and active in the Automations screen of 9bot.
• Welcome Message configured containing the rules and terms of coexistence.
• Moderation logs and reports consulted weekly to refine settings.

Test it now in your group

1. Ask a test contact (without administrative privileges and who is not in the chat yet) to click on your group's invite link.
2. Confirm that they were placed in WhatsApp's native queue (awaiting approval).
3. Wait a few seconds and confirm if 9bot identified the request, approved the entry of the number automatically, and sent the welcome message mentioning the contact in the chat.

Read also

Frequently asked questions