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

# Telegram Bot API

> Format of Telegram updates received by the bot — messages, edits, callbacks, and other event types

Telegram uses a model called **Updates** to notify bots about any interaction: received messages, edits, inline button clicks, group joins, and more. When you connect a Telegram bot in Timely.ai, the platform automatically configures a webhook in the Telegram Bot API to receive those updates and transform them into workspace events.

This page documents the raw update format — useful for debugging or direct integrations with the Telegram API.

## How the webhook is registered

Timely.ai calls the `setWebhook` method of the Bot API pointing to its servers:

```
POST https://api.telegram.org/bot{TOKEN}/setWebhook
{
  "url": "https://webhooks.timelyai.com.br/telegram/{CHANNEL_ID}",
  "allowed_updates": ["message", "edited_message", "callback_query", "my_chat_member"]
}
```

To check the current webhook configuration of your bot, use:

```bash theme={null}
curl https://api.telegram.org/bot{YOUR_TOKEN}/getWebhookInfo
```

<Info>
  If you manage the bot directly (without Timely as an intermediary), never configure two webhooks on the same token — Telegram delivers each update to only one endpoint.
</Info>

## Base structure of an Update

Every Telegram update has a unique and incrementing `update_id`, plus exactly one field with the event type:

```json theme={null}
{
  "update_id": 123456789,
  "message": { ... }
}
```

Possible fields at the root level are: `message`, `edited_message`, `channel_post`, `edited_channel_post`, `inline_query`, `callback_query`, `my_chat_member`, `chat_member`, among others.

## Payload: message

The most common type — a new message sent to the bot.

```json theme={null}
{
  "update_id": 123456789,
  "message": {
    "message_id": 42,
    "from": {
      "id": 987654321,
      "is_bot": false,
      "first_name": "Ana",
      "last_name": "Souza",
      "username": "anasouza",
      "language_code": "pt-br"
    },
    "chat": {
      "id": 987654321,
      "first_name": "Ana",
      "last_name": "Souza",
      "username": "anasouza",
      "type": "private"
    },
    "date": 1713456789,
    "text": "Quero cancelar minha assinatura",
    "entities": [
      {
        "offset": 0,
        "length": 6,
        "type": "bold"
      }
    ]
  }
}
```

### Message with media

```json theme={null}
{
  "update_id": 123456790,
  "message": {
    "message_id": 43,
    "from": { "id": 987654321, "first_name": "Ana", "is_bot": false },
    "chat": { "id": 987654321, "type": "private" },
    "date": 1713456850,
    "photo": [
      {
        "file_id": "AgACAgIAAxkBAAIBK2...",
        "file_unique_id": "AQADrN8xG...",
        "width": 320,
        "height": 240,
        "file_size": 12345
      },
      {
        "file_id": "AgACAgIAAxkBAAIBLG...",
        "file_unique_id": "AQADrN8xH...",
        "width": 1280,
        "height": 960,
        "file_size": 89012
      }
    ],
    "caption": "Segue a nota fiscal"
  }
}
```

Telegram sends multiple image sizes in the `photo` array. Always use the last element (highest resolution). To download: `GET https://api.telegram.org/bot{TOKEN}/getFile?file_id={FILE_ID}` then `https://api.telegram.org/file/bot{TOKEN}/{file_path}`.

## Payload: edited\_message

Sent when the user edits an already-sent message. Contains the same fields as `message` plus the `edit_date` field.

```json theme={null}
{
  "update_id": 123456791,
  "edited_message": {
    "message_id": 42,
    "from": { "id": 987654321, "first_name": "Ana", "is_bot": false },
    "chat": { "id": 987654321, "type": "private" },
    "date": 1713456789,
    "edit_date": 1713456900,
    "text": "Quero pausar minha assinatura (editado)"
  }
}
```

<Note>
  Timely.ai treats `edited_message` as an update to the original message. Edit history is not stored — only the most recent content is displayed in the conversation.
</Note>

## Payload: callback\_query

Triggered when the user clicks an inline keyboard button. Commonly used for interactive menu flows.

```json theme={null}
{
  "update_id": 123456792,
  "callback_query": {
    "id": "4382bfdwdsb323b2d9",
    "from": {
      "id": 987654321,
      "is_bot": false,
      "first_name": "Ana",
      "username": "anasouza"
    },
    "message": {
      "message_id": 45,
      "from": { "id": 111111111, "is_bot": true, "first_name": "Timely Bot" },
      "chat": { "id": 987654321, "type": "private" },
      "date": 1713456950,
      "text": "Como posso te ajudar?",
      "reply_markup": {
        "inline_keyboard": [
          [
            { "text": "Suporte", "callback_data": "menu_suporte" },
            { "text": "Financeiro", "callback_data": "menu_financeiro" }
          ]
        ]
      }
    },
    "chat_instance": "-1234567890",
    "data": "menu_suporte"
  }
}
```

After receiving a `callback_query`, you must reply with `answerCallbackQuery` to dismiss the loading indicator in the client:

```bash theme={null}
POST https://api.telegram.org/bot{TOKEN}/answerCallbackQuery
{
  "callback_query_id": "4382bfdwdsb323b2d9",
  "text": "Abrindo menu de suporte..."
}
```

## Chat types

| `chat.type`  | Description                            |
| ------------ | -------------------------------------- |
| `private`    | Direct conversation with the bot       |
| `group`      | Regular group                          |
| `supergroup` | Supergroup (groups with more features) |
| `channel`    | Telegram channel                       |

## Key Update fields

| Field                      | Type    | Description                                             |
| -------------------------- | ------- | ------------------------------------------------------- |
| `update_id`                | integer | Unique incrementing update ID                           |
| `message.message_id`       | integer | Message ID within the chat                              |
| `message.from.id`          | integer | User's Telegram ID                                      |
| `message.chat.id`          | integer | Chat ID (negative for groups)                           |
| `message.date`             | integer | Unix timestamp in seconds                               |
| `message.text`             | string  | Text content of the message                             |
| `message.entities`         | array   | Formatting and special entities (links, commands, etc.) |
| `callback_query.data`      | string  | Payload of the clicked button                           |
| `edited_message.edit_date` | integer | Edit timestamp                                          |

## Idempotency via update\_id

Telegram guarantees at-least-once delivery. In case of a network failure, the same update may be resent. Use `update_id` for deduplication:

```typescript theme={null}
const processed = new Set<number>();

function handleUpdate(update: TelegramUpdate) {
  if (processed.has(update.update_id)) return; // duplicate
  processed.add(update.update_id);
  // process...
}
```

In production, persist the processed IDs in Redis or a database — not in memory.

## Next steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Platform webhooks" icon="bell" href="/en/webhooks/overview">
    Normalized events that Timely.ai fires to your server.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Channels — API Reference" icon="plug" href="/en/api-reference/channels/referencia">
    Manage Telegram channels via API.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>