Resolved: How can a Telegram bot post messages to a channel?

Other Questions Telegram bot
1

I recently created a Telegram bot that functions well for one-on-one conversations in groups. Now, I need it to post messages directly to my channel. Here’s the current script I’m using (after activating the bot with the /start command):

import telebot
api_token = '...'
bot_instance = telebot.TeleBot(api_token)

@bot_instance.message_handler(commands=['start'])
def greet_user(message):
    response = 'Hello!'
    bot_instance.send_message('@mychannelname', response)

bot_instance.polling(none_stop=True, interval=0)

Alternatively, I tried sending an HTML query:

https://api.telegram.org/bot/sendMessage?chat_id=@mychannelname&text=Hello

However, I receive an error message:
{"ok":false,"error_code":400,"description":"Bad Request: chat not found"}.

I’ve already taken several steps following online guides:

  1. Ensured the bot has administrator access.
  2. Used @mychannelname instead of message.chat.id for send_message.
  3. Posted in the channel first, as the bot can only respond after being triggered.
2

Hey there! Seems like an issue with the chat ID. Try using the channel’s chat_id without the @ symbol. You can get it by forwarding a message from the channel to @userinfobot. It should give you the right ID. Hope this helps!

3

In addition to ensuring that your bot has administrator rights and the correct chat ID, I would recommend double-checking the permissions for the bot within the channel settings. Sometimes, even if a bot is added as an administrator, specific posting permissions might be disabled. You can confirm this by visiting the channel settings and reviewing the bot’s permission under the administrator tab in Telegram. If permissions are correctly configured and issues persist, consider regenerating the bot’s token and testing with a minimal script.