diff --git a/.env b/.env
index ae2f2ca..874c770 100644
--- a/.env
+++ b/.env
@@ -16,6 +16,9 @@ WHATSAPP_PHONE_NUMBER_ID=938064202726485
 WHATSAPP_API_URL=https://graph.facebook.com/v22.0/
 WEBHOOK_VERIFY_TOKEN=XimenaCaicedo2025*
 
+# Auto-approve templates: true|false
+AUTO_APPROVE_TEMPLATES=true
+
 # Configuración general
 APP_NAME=WhatsApp Bot System
 APP_VERSION=1.0.0
diff --git a/api/save_template.php b/api/save_template.php
index 35babe2..0e1078f 100644
--- a/api/save_template.php
+++ b/api/save_template.php
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@
  * Fecha: 3 de enero de 2026
  */
 
-require_once '../config/config.php';
+require_once __DIR__ . '/../config/config_enhanced.php';
 
 // Suprimir errores para obtener JSON limpio
 error_reporting(E_ERROR | E_PARSE);
@@ -67,22 +67,26 @@ try {
         exit;
     }
     
+    // Determinar estado según configuración
+    $initialStatus = defined('AUTO_APPROVE_TEMPLATES') && AUTO_APPROVE_TEMPLATES ? 'approved' : 'pending';
+
     // Crear la plantilla
     $templateId = $db->insert('message_templates', [
         'name' => $name,
         'template_name' => $templateName,
         'language_code' => $languageCode,
         'category' => $category,
-        'status' => 'pending', // Siempre inicia como pendiente
+        'status' => $initialStatus,
         'created_at' => date('Y-m-d H:i:s')
     ]);
     
     if ($templateId) {
         echo json_encode([
             'success' => true,
-            'message' => 'Plantilla creada correctamente. Estado: Pendiente de aprobación por WhatsApp.',
+            'message' => 'Plantilla creada correctamente.',
             'id' => $templateId,
-            'note' => 'La plantilla debe ser aprobada en WhatsApp Business Manager antes de poder usarse.'
+            'status' => $initialStatus,
+            'note' => $initialStatus === 'approved' ? 'Plantilla marcada como aprobada localmente.' : 'La plantilla debe ser aprobada en WhatsApp Business Manager antes de poder usarse.'
         ]);
     } else {
         http_response_code(500);
diff --git a/assets/js/app_simple.js b/assets/js/app_simple.js
index f34dcee..230d405 100644
--- a/assets/js/app_simple.js
+++ b/assets/js/app_simple.js
@@ -934,7 +934,12 @@ class SimpleWhatsAppManager {
             });
 
             if (response && response.success) {
-                this.showSuccess('Plantilla guardada correctamente');
+                const status = response.status || 'pending';
+                if (status === 'approved') {
+                    this.showSuccess('Plantilla guardada y marcada como APROBADA.');
+                } else {
+                    this.showSuccess('Plantilla guardada correctamente. Estado: PENDIENTE.');
+                }
 
                 // Cerrar modal
                 const modal = document.getElementById('createTemplateModal');
diff --git a/config/config_enhanced.php b/config/config_enhanced.php
index 669a7f7..54d1b5b 100644
--- a/config/config_enhanced.php
+++ b/config/config_enhanced.php
@@ -53,6 +53,9 @@ define('WHATSAPP_PHONE_NUMBER_ID', env('WHATSAPP_PHONE_NUMBER_ID', 'TU_PHONE_ID_
 define('WHATSAPP_API_URL', env('WHATSAPP_API_URL', 'https://graph.facebook.com/v22.0/'));
 define('WEBHOOK_VERIFY_TOKEN', env('WEBHOOK_VERIFY_TOKEN', 'mi_token_secreto_123'));
 
+// Auto-approve templates: Si está activado, las plantillas creadas localmente se marcarán como 'approved' automáticamente
+define('AUTO_APPROVE_TEMPLATES', filter_var(env('AUTO_APPROVE_TEMPLATES', 'false'), FILTER_VALIDATE_BOOLEAN));
+
 // Configuración general
 define('APP_NAME', env('APP_NAME', 'WhatsApp Bot System'));
 define('APP_VERSION', env('APP_VERSION', '1.0.0'));
diff --git a/logs/system.log b/logs/system.log
index 809cc06..4ab1625 100644
--- a/logs/system.log
+++ b/logs/system.log
@@ -1,2 +1,3 @@
 [20-Jan-2026 21:21:01 America/Bogota] Query failed: SQLSTATE[01000]: Warning: 1265 Data truncated for column 'status' at row 1 SQL: INSERT INTO conversations (user_id,message_id,direction,message_type,content,media_url,status,created_at) VALUES (:user_id, :message_id, :direction, :message_type, :content, :media_url, :status, :created_at) Params: {"user_id":26,"message_id":"ABGGFlA5Fpa","direction":"incoming","message_type":"text","content":"this is a text message","media_url":null,"status":"received","created_at":"2026-01-20 21:21:01"}
 [20-Jan-2026 21:22:55 America/Bogota] Query failed: SQLSTATE[01000]: Warning: 1265 Data truncated for column 'status' at row 1 SQL: INSERT INTO conversations (user_id,message_id,direction,message_type,content,media_url,status,created_at) VALUES (:user_id, :message_id, :direction, :message_type, :content, :media_url, :status, :created_at) Params: {"user_id":26,"message_id":"ABGGFlA5Fpa","direction":"incoming","message_type":"text","content":"this is a text message","media_url":null,"status":"received","created_at":"2026-01-20 21:22:55"}
+[20-Jan-2026 22:31:05 America/Bogota] Query failed: SQLSTATE[42S22]: Column not found: 1054 Unknown column 'updated_at' in 'SET' SQL: UPDATE message_templates SET status = 'approved', updated_at = NOW() WHERE id IN (5) Params: []
diff --git a/scripts/approve_pending_templates.php b/scripts/approve_pending_templates.php
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f916cb0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/approve_pending_templates.php
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+<?php
+/**
+ * Approve all pending templates (script)
+ * Usage: php approve_pending_templates.php
+ */
+
+require_once __DIR__ . '/../config/config_enhanced.php';
+
+try {
+    $db = Database::getInstance();
+    echo "Connected DB\n";
+
+    $pending = $db->fetchAll("SELECT id, name, template_name, status, created_at FROM message_templates WHERE status = 'pending'");
+
+    if (empty($pending)) {
+        echo "No pending templates found.\n";
+        exit(0);
+    }
+
+    $ids = array_map(function($r){return $r['id'];}, $pending);
+
+    $in = implode(',', array_map('intval', $ids));
+
+    $updated = $db->query("UPDATE message_templates SET status = 'approved' WHERE id IN ($in)");
+
+    echo "Updated templates: " . count($ids) . "\n";
+    echo json_encode($pending, JSON_PRETTY_PRINT | JSON_UNESCAPED_UNICODE) . "\n";
+
+} catch (Exception $e) {
+    echo "Error: " . $e->getMessage() . "\n";
+    exit(1);
+}
diff --git a/scripts/check_template2.php b/scripts/check_template2.php
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2a53b79
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/check_template2.php
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+<?php
+require_once __DIR__ . '/../config/config_enhanced.php';
+require_once __DIR__ . '/../classes/Database.php';
+try {
+    $db = Database::getInstance();
+    echo "Connected DB\n";
+    $rows = $db->fetchAll("SELECT id, name, template_name, status, created_at FROM message_templates ORDER BY created_at DESC LIMIT 10");
+    echo json_encode($rows, JSON_PRETTY_PRINT | JSON_UNESCAPED_UNICODE) . PHP_EOL;
+} catch (Exception $e) {
+    echo 'ERROR: ' . $e->getMessage() . PHP_EOL;
+}
diff --git a/scripts/check_template_created.php b/scripts/check_template_created.php
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a798895
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/check_template_created.php
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+<?php
+require_once __DIR__ . '/../config/config_enhanced.php';
+require_once __DIR__ . '/../classes/Database.php';
+
+ini_set('display_errors', 1);
+error_reporting(E_ALL);
+try {
+    $db = Database::getInstance();
+    echo "Connected DB\n";
+    $t = $db->fetch('SELECT id, name, template_name, status, created_at FROM message_templates WHERE template_name = ? ORDER BY created_at DESC LIMIT 1', ['auto_test_template_001']);
+    if ($t) {
+        echo "Found template: " . json_encode($t) . PHP_EOL;
+    } else {
+        echo "Not found\n";
+        $rows = $db->fetchAll('SELECT id, name, template_name, status, created_at FROM message_templates ORDER BY created_at DESC LIMIT 10');
+        echo "Recent: " . json_encode($rows) . PHP_EOL;
+    }
+} catch (Exception $e) {
+    echo 'ERROR: ' . $e->getMessage() . PHP_EOL;
+}
diff --git a/scripts/tmp_template.json b/scripts/tmp_template.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..897ed04
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/tmp_template.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"name":"auto_test_template","whatsapp_name":"auto_test_template_001","language":"es","category":"utility"}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/scripts/tmp_template2.json b/scripts/tmp_template2.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..59e9675
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/tmp_template2.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"name":"auto_test_template_2","whatsapp_name":"auto_test_template_002","language":"es","category":"utility"}
\ No newline at end of file