---
title: "Create a channel"
slug: "create-a-channel-whatsapp-otp"
description: "Documents the POST /v1/channel/create endpoint for creating a WhatsApp OTP verification channel, covering required parameters, limits, and error responses."
tags: ["whatsapp verify api", "whatsapp otp"]
updated: 2026-10-07T11:38:46Z
published: 2026-10-07T11:38:46Z
canonical: "academy.insiderone.com/create-a-channel-whatsapp-otp"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://academy.insiderone.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Create a Channel

Before sending OTP messages, you need to create a WhatsApp channel for your brand. The request below helps you set up the channel and connect it with your WhatsApp Business Account.

## Endpoint and Headers

> **POST** https://verify.useinsider.com/v1/channel/create [](https://developers.insiderone.com/#eb65bec0-0cb5-4d5a-9185-57c3b3ed3939)

> [!WARNING]
> This API key is sensitive and should never be used on the frontend or mobile SDK; it should only be implemented on the backend.

> Visit our Postman collection to test this request.

| Header | Sample Value | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| X-INS-AUTH-KEY | 1a2b3c4d5e6f | This key is required to authorize your request. Refer to [API Authentication Tokens](https://academy.insiderone.com/docs/api-authentication-tokens) to generate your token. |
| Content-Type | application/json | This header specifies the media type of the resource. |

## Body Parameters

| Parameter | Description | Data Type | Required | Rules |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| channel | The channel that you will send the OTP code to. It will be WhatsApp. | String | Yes | oneof:whatsapp |

## Sample Request

Every request made to the request endpoint requires a request body formatted in JSON and containing your parameters.

Make sure to replace the sample values in the request header(s) and body where required before sending your request.

Below is a sample request to create a new WhatsApp verification channel.

```bash
curl --location 'https://verify.useinsider.com/v1/channel/create' \
--header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
--header 'x-ins-auth-key: 1a2b3c4d5e6f' \
--data '{
    "channel": "whatsapp"
}'
```

## Sample Responses

### 201 Created

This response indicates that your request was successfully completed.

```json
{
    "status": "success"
}
```

### 400 Bad Request

**Invalid request payload:**

```json
{
    "errors": [
        {
            "message": "invalid request payload"
        }
    ]
}
```

**Invalid channel value:**

```json
{
    "errors": [
        {
            "message": "this field must be one of these:whatsapp",
            "field": "channel"
        }
    ]
}
```

**Channel already exists:**

```json
{
    "errors": [
        {
            "message": "channel already exists"
        }
    ]
}
```

### 401 Unauthorized

```json
{
    "errors": [
        {
            "message": "unauthorized"
        }
    ]
}
```

### 429 Too Many Requests

```json
{
    "errors": [
        {
            "message": "rate limit exceeded"
        }
    ]
}
```

### 500 Internal Server Error

```json
{
    "errors": [
        {
            "message": "server error"
        }
    ]
}
```

## Limitations

- All functions must be executed with a simple **HTTPS POST** request.
- The **API Key** should be provided as the authorization key in the request header. If the key is incorrect, the operation will not be executed, and an authorization error will be returned in the response.
- The service is subject to a rate limit of **25 requests per minute** to ensure optimal system performance, and clients exceeding this limit will receive an HTTP **429 Too Many Requests** response.

> The default limit shown here is a standard baseline. If your use case requires higher capacity, feel free to reach out to the Insider One team. We can adjust it to fit your needs.

## Suggested Next

Once your WhatsApp channel and templates are ready, see [Generate OTP Codes (WhatsApp)](/v1/docs/generate-otp-codes-whatsapp) to generate and send an OTP to a test user.

## Related

- [Generate OTP Codes](/generate-otp-codes-whatsapp.md)
- [Update OTP Templates](/update-otp-templates-whatsapp.md)
- [List OTP Templates](/list-otp-templates-whatsapp.md)
- [Create an OTP Template from the Template Creation API](/create-otp-template-from-template-creation-api.md)
- [Verify OTP Codes](/verify-otp-codes-whatsapp.md)
- [API Authentication Tokens](/api-authentication-tokens.md)
- [API Rate Limits](/api-rate-limits.md)
- [API Status and Error Codes](/api-status-and-error-codes.md)
- [Insider One APIs in Postman](/insider-apis-in-postman.md)