In Status, there are two kinds of communities: open and token-gated. If you want to join a token-gated community, you need to meet the token requirements set by the community Owner. To maintain access to a token-gated community, hold the necessary tokens at all times.
For example, a community Owner can set up owning 10 SNT as a requirement to join their community. In that case, you need a minimum of 10 SNT in one of your Status Wallet accounts to join that community.
There are three kinds of tokens in the Status app: assets, collectibles and ENS (Ethereum Name Service) names. Community Owners can set up any combination of these tokens as a requirement to join their communities.
Before you join a token-gated community, the Status app automatically checks if you meet the community requirements. If you meet the requirements, the option to join the community is available.
If the option to join the community is greyed out and unavailable, it means that you don't meet the token requirements to join a community in the Status app. To apply to join the community, you need to have the required amount of tokens. To buy the required tokens, read Buy crypto.