WhatsApp adds usernames: what changes for your agency when a client hides their phone number

For years, a phone number was the client's identity on WhatsApp. An inquiry came in, the agency saved the number, added it to the CRM, called the client or sent a quote. That is starting to change: WhatsApp is adding usernames, and someone who enables one can contact your agency without showing their phone number.

Here's what Meta announced, when it takes effect, how it affects an agency's day-to-day work and what you can do now.

What's changing

On June 29, 2026, WhatsApp announced usernames. They are optional: each person decides whether to use one. If they enable a username, people or businesses they contact for the first time will see their username instead of their phone number.

For your agency, this means some new inquiries will arrive without a visible phone number.

This is already showing up in our work with agencies in Argentina: some chats appear as "Unknown user" instead of displaying a phone number.

Keep in mind: businesses can also have usernames, but Meta makes clear that this does not hide the business's phone number. It is the client's number that may stop appearing.

When it starts

• June 29, 2026: username reservations opened for individuals and businesses.
• Gradual rollout: WhatsApp said it is enabling usernames country by country and will notify users in the app when the feature becomes available in their country. It has not published a specific launch date for every country.
• For API users: according to Meta's developer documentation, each message has included a new client identifier since early April 2026. Since July 2026, businesses can use that identifier instead of a phone number to send messages.

Meta notes that the details may still change.

If you use the WhatsApp Business API: the new identifier

To let businesses keep serving people who do not share their phone number, Meta created the business-scoped user ID, or BSUID: a client identifier specific to each business. Here's what you need to know:

• It arrives with every message, even if the client does not use a username.
• It is different for each business: the same client has one BSUID with your agency and another with a different business.
• It does not change when the client changes their username, but it does when they change their phone number. In that case, Meta sends a system message with the old and new identifiers.
• You can use it to send almost any type of message. Some authentication templates are the exception: they still require the phone number.

Meta says supporting this identifier is mandatory for all businesses and providers connected to the API, because no business controls whether its clients enable a username.

When you will still see the phone number

Not every chat loses its phone number. If a client enables a username, Meta still shares their number with the business in any of these situations:

• You have messaged or called their phone number in the last 30 days.
• They have messaged or called you from their phone number in the last 30 days.
• They are in the contact book Meta maintains for your business.

Two details matter. The 30-day window applies to each business phone number: if a salesperson spoke to a client from one number, that does not count for another number at the same agency. And Meta's contact book only records interactions after that feature is activated; it does not recover earlier conversations.

In practice, clients you have been speaking with recently are more likely to keep appearing with their phone numbers. The change has a bigger impact on new inquiries, which are exactly what your ads bring in.

What this means for a travel agency

• Identifying the client. If you look up clients by phone number, someone who has already booked with you may appear to be a new person.
• CRM and spreadsheets. If the phone number is the key for each record, you may end up with records that have no number, or with duplicates.
• Follow-up. If the conversation goes quiet and you do not have the number, you cannot call the client or pass their inquiry to another salesperson outside that chat.
• Quotes by email or phone. If your process involves emailing a quote or confirming by phone, that contact information no longer comes automatically: you need to ask for it.

What you can do now

1. Ask for contact details at the right moment

Do not ask in the first message as if the conversation were a form. Ask when the client already sees the value: when you send a quote, make a booking or offer to email some options. Explain why you need the information.

"I'll put together a quote with these two options. Could you share an email address or phone number so I can send you all the details and let you know if the price changes?"

If you use the API, Meta provides a button to request contact information. When the client taps it, they share their phone number in the chat.

2. Organize your client database

Each record should have the client's name, email address and phone number when available, rather than relying only on their WhatsApp number. Use this opportunity to merge duplicates and fill in missing details for clients you have spoken with recently.

3. Save your clients' contact details

If a client is in your contact book or you have spoken with them recently, you are more likely to keep seeing their phone number. Do not let months go by without staying in touch with your most important clients.

4. Ask your provider whether they are ready

If you use a CRM or a platform connected to the WhatsApp API, ask how it handles clients without a phone number: whether it stores the new identifier, how it prevents duplicates and what happens when a client changes their number.

5. Reserve your agency's username

Since June 29, 2026, businesses can reserve their username through the WhatsApp Business app, WhatsApp Manager or Meta Business Suite. If you already use a name on Instagram or Facebook, WhatsApp may have reserved the same one for you.

What about trama.?

At trama., we are preparing for this change so inquiries from clients who use usernames keep reaching your team in an organized way. When it is ready, we will share the news on this blog.

In the meantime, trama.'s agent handles inquiries on WhatsApp, replies in the client's language using prices from your catalog and passes the salesperson an opportunity ready for a quote and a sale.

To see how it works, visit trama.so.

Frequently asked questions

Notes and sources

1. WhatsApp Blog, "It's time to reserve your WhatsApp username", June 29, 2026. Announcement, reservations and gradual rollout by country.
2. Meta for Developers, "Business-scoped user IDs", updated October 23, 2026. BSUIDs, the 30-day rule, contact book, contact request button and business usernames.
3. WhatsApp, frequently asked questions about usernames.