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This thread is resolved. Here is a description of the problem and solution.

Problem:
You are building a managed WordPress CMS and need to pre-configure WPML automatically, skipping the initial Setup Wizard. You want to set the default language to English, secondary language to Deutch (hidden), and mark the setup as "Complete". You are currently manipulating the

icl_sitepress_settings

option in the database via a custom PHP function and are concerned about the safety and recommendation of this method.
Solution:
We currently do not provide an option to skip the initial setup wizard through an API, hook, or WP-CLI command. The recommended approach is to complete the setup wizard using the WPML user interface.

If this solution does not apply to your case because it might be outdated or not suitable, we highly recommend checking related known issues at https://wpml.org/known-issues/, verifying the version of the permanent fix, and confirming that you have installed the latest versions of themes and plugins. If you still need assistance, please open a new support ticket at WPML support forum.

This is the technical support forum for WPML - the multilingual WordPress plugin.

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This topic contains 1 reply, has 0 voices.

Last updated by Andrey 1 month, 4 weeks ago.

Assisted by: Andrey.

Author Posts
December 15, 2025 at 12:10 pm #17664023

mirac-yigitA

Hello,

We are building a managed WordPress CMS and need to pre-configure WPML automatically, skipping the initial Setup Wizard for our clients.
We dont use AI features.

Our Goal: Initialize WPML programmatically with:

Default Language: English.

Secondary Language: Deutch (set to Hidden immediately to enable String Translation without affecting the frontend).

Wizard: Mark setup as "Complete" so the user lands directly on the dashboard.

My Question: I am currently achieving this by directly manipulating the icl_sitepress_settings option in the database via a custom PHP function.

Is this the safe/recommended way for a silent installation? Or does WPML provide a specific API, Hook, or WP-CLI command to handle this initialization without risking database corruption?

Best,
Yigit

December 15, 2025 at 4:39 pm #17665381

Andrey
WPML Supporter since 06/2013

Languages: English (English ) Russian (Русский )

Timezone: Europe/Kyiv (GMT+02:00)

Hello Yigit,

Thank you for contacting WPML support.

Currently, WPML does not provide an option to skip the initial setup wizard. There is no API, hook, or WP-CLI command available for this at the moment.

For now, the recommended approach is to complete the setup wizard using the WPML user interface.