Kick Member From A Group

Guide to kicking, banning, and unbanning group members using the CometChat iOS SDK (admin/moderator only).

Quick Reference for AI Agents & Developers

• Kick member: CometChat.kickGroupMember(UID:GUID:onSuccess:onError:)
• Ban member: CometChat.banGroupMember(UID:GUID:onSuccess:onError:)
• Unban member: CometChat.unbanGroupMember(UID:GUID:onSuccess:onError:)
• Fetch banned: BannedGroupMembersRequest.BannedGroupMembersRequestBuilder(guid:).build()
• Permission: Only admin or moderator can perform these actions
• Related: Add Members · Change Member Scope · Groups Overview

There are certain actions that can be performed on the group members:

1. Kick a member from the group
2. Ban a member from the group
3. Unban a member from the group
4. Update the scope of the member of the group

All the above-mentioned actions can only be performed by the Admin or the Moderator of the group.

Kick vs Ban Comparison

Action	Can Rejoin?	Appears in Banned List?
Kick	Yes	No
Ban	No	Yes (until unbanned)

---

Kick a Group Member

The Admin or Moderator of the group can kick a member out of the group using the kickGroupMember() method.

Parameter	Type	Description
UID	String	The UID of the user to be kicked
GUID	String	The GUID of the group from which user is to be kicked

Swift

let uid = "cometchat-uid-2"
let guid = "cometchat-guid-1"

CometChat.kickGroupMember(UID: uid, GUID: guid, onSuccess: { (response) in
    print("\(uid) is kicked from the group \(guid) successfully.")
}, onError: { (error) in
    print("Error: \(error?.errorDescription)")
})

Objective C

NSString *UID = @"cometchat-uid-2";
NSString *GUID = @"cometchat-guid-1";

[CometChat kickGroupMemberWithUID:UID GUID:GUID onSuccess:^(NSString * response) {
    NSLog(@"%@ kicked from the group %@ successfully", UID, GUID);
} onError:^(CometChatException * error) {
    NSLog(@"Error: %@", [error errorDescription]);
}];

The kicked user will be no longer part of the group and can not perform any actions in the group, but the kicked user can rejoin the group.

Sample Payload - Kick Member

Request Parameters:

Parameter	Type	Description
UID	String	Unique identifier of the user to kick. Example: "cometchat-uid-2"
GUID	String	Unique identifier of the group. Example: "cometchat-guid-1"

Success Response:

Parameter	Type	Description
response	String	Success message. Example: "cometchat-uid-2 is kicked from the group successfully."

After Kick:

Effect	Description
Membership	User is removed from the group
Rejoin	User CAN rejoin the group
Banned List	User does NOT appear in banned list
Event	Other members receive onGroupMemberKicked event

Error Response (CometChatException):

Parameter	Type	Description
errorCode	String	Unique error code. Example: "ERR_GROUP_NOT_JOINED"
errorDescription	String	Human-readable error message. Example: "The user with UID cometchat-uid-2 is not a member of the group"

---

Ban a Group Member

The Admin or Moderator of the group can ban a member from the group using the banGroupMember() method.

Parameter	Type	Description
UID	String	The UID of the user to be banned
GUID	String	The GUID of the group from which user is to be banned

Swift

let uid = "cometchat-uid-2"
let guid = "cometchat-guid-1"

CometChat.banGroupMember(UID: uid, GUID: guid, onSuccess: { (response) in
    print("\(uid) is banned from the group \(guid) successfully.")
}, onError: { (error) in
    print("Error: \(error?.errorDescription)")
})

Objective C

NSString *UID = @"cometchat-uid-2";
NSString *GUID = @"cometchat-guid-1";

[CometChat banGroupMemberWithUID:UID GUID:GUID onSuccess:^(NSString * response) {
    NSLog(@"%@ banned from the group %@ successfully", UID, GUID);
} onError:^(CometChatException * error) {
    NSLog(@"Error: %@", [error errorDescription]);
}];

The banned user will be no longer part of the group and can not perform any actions in the group. A banned user cannot rejoin the same group without being unbanned.

Sample Payload - Ban Member

Request Parameters:

Parameter	Type	Description
UID	String	Unique identifier of the user to ban. Example: "cometchat-uid-2"
GUID	String	Unique identifier of the group. Example: "cometchat-guid-1"

Success Response:

Parameter	Type	Description
response	String	Success message. Example: "cometchat-uid-2 is banned from the group successfully."

After Ban:

Effect	Description
Membership	User is removed from the group
Rejoin	User CANNOT rejoin until unbanned
Banned List	User appears in banned members list
Event	Other members receive onGroupMemberBanned event

Error Response (CometChatException):

Parameter	Type	Description
errorCode	String	Unique error code. Example: "ERR_CANNOT_BAN_OWNER"
errorDescription	String	Human-readable error message. Example: "Cannot ban the group owner"

---

Unban a Banned Group Member

Only Admin or Moderators of the group can unban a previously banned member from the group using the unbanGroupMember() method.

Parameter	Type	Description
UID	String	The UID of the user to be unbanned
GUID	String	The GUID of the group from which user is to be unbanned

Swift

let uid = "cometchat-uid-2"
let guid = "cometchat-guid-1"

CometChat.unbanGroupMember(UID: uid, GUID: guid, onSuccess: { (response) in
    print("\(uid) is unbanned from the group \(guid) successfully.")
}, onError: { (error) in
    print("Error: \(error?.errorDescription)")
})

Objective C

NSString *UID = @"cometchat-uid-2";
NSString *GUID = @"cometchat-guid-1";

[CometChat unbanGroupMemberWithUID:UID GUID:GUID onSuccess:^(NSString * response) {
    NSLog(@"%@ unbanned from the group %@ successfully", UID, GUID);
} onError:^(CometChatException * error) {
    NSLog(@"Error: %@", [error errorDescription]);
}];

The unbanned user can now rejoin the group.

Sample Payload - Unban Member

Request Parameters:

Parameter	Type	Description
UID	String	Unique identifier of the user to unban. Example: "cometchat-uid-2"
GUID	String	Unique identifier of the group. Example: "cometchat-guid-1"

Success Response:

Parameter	Type	Description
response	String	Success message. Example: "cometchat-uid-2 is unbanned from the group successfully."

After Unban:

Effect	Description
Banned List	User is removed from banned list
Rejoin	User can now rejoin the group
Event	Other members receive onGroupMemberUnbanned event

Error Response (CometChatException):

Parameter	Type	Description
errorCode	String	Unique error code. Example: "ERR_USER_NOT_BANNED"
errorDescription	String	Human-readable error message. Example: "User is not in the banned list"

---

Get List of Banned Members

In order to fetch the list of banned groups members for a group, you can use the BannedGroupMembersRequest class.

BannedGroupMembersRequestBuilder Methods

Method	Parameter	Returns	Description
init(guid:)	String	BannedGroupMembersRequestBuilder	Constructor with GUID
set(limit:)	Int	BannedGroupMembersRequestBuilder	Number to fetch (1-100)
set(searchKeyword:)	String	BannedGroupMembersRequestBuilder	Search keyword
build()	-	BannedGroupMembersRequest	Build request

Swift

let limit = 30
let guid = "cometchat-guid-1"

let bannedGroupMembersRequest = BannedGroupMembersRequest.BannedGroupMembersRequestBuilder(guid: guid)
    .set(limit: limit)
    .build()

bannedGroupMembersRequest.fetchNext(onSuccess: { (groupMembers) in
    for bannedMember in groupMembers {
        print("Banned member: \(bannedMember.stringValue())")
    }
}, onError: { (error) in
    print("Error: \(error?.errorDescription)")
})

Objective C

NSString *GUID = @"cometchat-guid-1";
NSInteger limit = 30;

BannedGroupMembersRequest *bannedGroupMemberRequest = [[[[BannedGroupMembersRequestBuilder alloc]initWithGuid:GUID] setLimitWithLimit:limit] build];

[bannedGroupMemberRequest fetchNextOnSuccess:^(NSArray<GroupMember *> * bannedMembers) {
    for (GroupMember *member in bannedMembers) {
        NSLog(@"Banned member: %@", [member stringValue]);
    }
} onError:^(CometChatException * error) {
    NSLog(@"Error: %@", [error errorDescription]);
}];

Sample Payload - Fetch Banned Members

Request Parameters:

Parameter	Type	Description
guid	String	Unique group identifier. Example: "cometchat-guid-1"
limit	Int	Maximum number of banned members to fetch. Example: 30

Success Response (Array of GroupMember Objects):

Parameter	Type	Description
uid	String?	Unique identifier of the banned member. Example: "banned-user1"
name	String?	Display name of the member. Example: "Banned User"
avatar	String?	URL to the member’s avatar image. Example: "https://example.com/avatar.png"
scope	MemberScope	Member’s scope before ban. Example: .participant
joinedAt	Double	Unix timestamp when member originally joined. Example: 1699700000.0

Sample Banned Member Entries:

uid	name	scope	joinedAt
banned-user1	Banned User	.participant	1699700000.0
banned-user2	Another Banned	.participant	1699750000.0

Error Response (CometChatException):

Parameter	Type	Description
errorCode	String	Unique error code. Example: "ERR_GROUP_NOT_JOINED"
errorDescription	String	Human-readable error message. Example: "The user is not a member of the group"

---

Real-Time Group Member Kicked/Banned Events

In order to receive user Events for kick/ban/unban you must add protocol conformance CometChatGroupDelegate:

Swift

class ViewController: UIViewController, CometChatGroupDelegate {
    
    override func viewDidLoad() {
        super.viewDidLoad()
        CometChat.groupdelegate = self
    }
    
    func onGroupMemberKicked(action: ActionMessage, kickedUser: User, kickedBy: User, kickedFrom: Group) {
        print("\(kickedUser.name ?? "") kicked from \(kickedFrom.name ?? "") by \(kickedBy.name ?? "")")
    }
    
    func onGroupMemberBanned(action: ActionMessage, bannedUser: User, bannedBy: User, bannedFrom: Group) {
        print("\(bannedUser.name ?? "") banned from \(bannedFrom.name ?? "") by \(bannedBy.name ?? "")")
    }
    
    func onGroupMemberUnbanned(action: ActionMessage, unbannedUser: User, unbannedBy: User, unbannedFrom: Group) {
        print("\(unbannedUser.name ?? "") unbanned from \(unbannedFrom.name ?? "") by \(unbannedBy.name ?? "")")
    }
}

Objective C

@interface ViewController ()<CometChatGroupDelegate>
@end

@implementation ViewController

- (void)viewDidLoad {
    [super viewDidLoad];
    [CometChat setGroupdelegate:self];
}

- (void)onGroupMemberKickedWithAction:(Action *)action kickedUser:(User *)kickedUser kickedBy:(User *)kickedBy kickedFrom:(Group *)kickedFrom {
    // User was kicked
}

- (void)onGroupMemberBannedWithAction:(Action *)action bannedUser:(User *)bannedUser bannedBy:(User *)bannedBy bannedFrom:(Group *)bannedFrom {
    // User was banned
}

- (void)onGroupMemberUnbannedWithAction:(Action *)action unbannedUser:(User *)unbannedUser unbannedBy:(User *)unbannedBy unbannedFrom:(Group *)unbannedFrom {
    // User was unbanned
}

@end

Sample Payload - onGroupMemberKicked Event

Event Trigger: Received via CometChatGroupDelegate.onGroupMemberKicked(action:kickedUser:kickedBy:kickedFrom:)

ActionMessage Object:

Parameter	Type	Description
action	String	Action type. Example: "kicked"
actionBy	User	User who performed the kick. Example: {"uid": "admin-uid", "name": "Admin"}
actionOn	User	User who was kicked. Example: {"uid": "user123", "name": "John"}
actionFor	Group	Group where action occurred. Example: {"guid": "group123", "name": "My Group"}

kickedUser (User Object):

Parameter	Type	Description
uid	String?	Unique identifier of the kicked user. Example: "user123"
name	String?	Display name of the user. Example: "John Doe"

kickedBy (User Object):

Parameter	Type	Description
uid	String?	Unique identifier of the admin/moderator. Example: "admin-uid"
name	String?	Display name of the admin/moderator. Example: "Admin User"

kickedFrom (Group Object):

Parameter	Type	Description
guid	String	Unique group identifier. Example: "group123"
name	String?	Group display name. Example: "My Group"
membersCount	Int	Updated member count (decremented). Example: 14

Sample Payload - onGroupMemberBanned Event

Event Trigger: Received via CometChatGroupDelegate.onGroupMemberBanned(action:bannedUser:bannedBy:bannedFrom:)

ActionMessage Object:

Parameter	Type	Description
action	String	Action type. Example: "banned"
actionBy	User	User who performed the ban
actionOn	User	User who was banned
actionFor	Group	Group where action occurred

bannedUser (User Object):

Parameter	Type	Description
uid	String?	Unique identifier of the banned user. Example: "user123"
name	String?	Display name of the user. Example: "John Doe"

Sample Payload - onGroupMemberUnbanned Event

Event Trigger: Received via CometChatGroupDelegate.onGroupMemberUnbanned(action:unbannedUser:unbannedBy:unbannedFrom:)

ActionMessage Object:

Parameter	Type	Description
action	String	Action type. Example: "unbanned"
actionBy	User	User who performed the unban
actionOn	User	User who was unbanned
actionFor	Group	Group where action occurred

unbannedUser (User Object):

Parameter	Type	Description
uid	String?	Unique identifier of the unbanned user. Example: "user123"
name	String?	Display name of the user. Example: "John Doe"

Missed Group Member Kicked/Banned Events

In other words, as a member of a group, how do I know when someone is banned/kicked when my app is not running?

When you retrieve the list of previous messages if a member has been kicked/banned/unbanned from any group that the logged-in user is a member of, the list of messages will contain an Action message.

Event	action	actionBy	actionOn	actionFor
Kicked	"kicked"	User who kicked	User who was kicked	Group
Banned	"banned"	User who banned	User who was banned	Group
Unbanned	"unbanned"	User who unbanned	User who was unbanned	Group

---

MemberScope Enum

Scope	Raw Value	Description
.admin	”admin”	Full group management privileges
.moderator	”moderator”	Can kick/ban members, delete messages
.participant	”participant”	Default scope, can send/receive messages

Common Error Codes

Error Code	Description	Resolution
ERR_GROUP_NOT_FOUND	Group with specified GUID does not exist	Verify the GUID is correct
ERR_UID_NOT_FOUND	User with specified UID does not exist	Verify the user UID
ERR_GROUP_NOT_JOINED	User is not a member of the group	Join the group first
ERR_NOT_A_MEMBER	Target user is not a member of the group	User must be a member
ERR_PERMISSION_DENIED	Logged-in user is not admin or moderator	Only admin/moderator can kick/ban
ERR_CANNOT_KICK_OWNER	Cannot kick the group owner	Owner must transfer ownership first
ERR_CANNOT_BAN_OWNER	Cannot ban the group owner	Owner must transfer ownership first
ERR_USER_NOT_BANNED	User is not in the banned list	User must be banned to unban