[Due for payment 2025-05-20] [$250] Safari - Left navigation bar disappears when onboarding modal/RHP is opened

[mitarachim]

If you haven’t already, check out our contributing guidelines for onboarding and email [email protected] to request to join our Slack channel!

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Version Number: 9.1.40-0
Reproducible in staging?: Yes
Reproducible in production?: No
If this was caught during regression testing, add the test name, ID and link from TestRail: Exp
Email or phone of affected tester (no customers): [email protected]
Issue reported by: Applause Internal Team
Device used: Mac 15.3 / Safari
App Component: Left Hand Navigation (LHN)

Action Performed:

1. Go to staging.new.expensify.com
2. Log in with a new Gmail account.
3. Note that the left navigation bar disappears when onboarding modal is opened.
4. Complete the onboarding.
5. Click FAB > New workspace.
6. Note that left navigation bar disappears when Confirm workspace modal is opened.
7. Go to Concierge.
8. Click on the Concierge avatar on the message row.
9. Note that left navigation bar disappears when profile details page is opened.

Expected Result:

The left navigation bar will not disappear when onboarding modal/RHP is opened.

Actual Result:

The left navigation bar disappears when onboarding modal/RHP is opened.

Workaround:

Unknown

Platforms:

• Android: App
• Android: mWeb Chrome
• iOS: App
• iOS: mWeb Safari
• iOS: mWeb Chrome
• Windows: Chrome
• MacOS: Chrome / Safari
• MacOS: Desktop

Screenshots/Videos

Bug6822862_1746517314802.20250506_153515.mp4

View all open jobs on GitHub

Upwork Automation - Do Not Edit

• Upwork Job URL: https://www.upwork.com/jobs/~021919709527143328309
• Upwork Job ID: 1919709527143328309
• Last Price Increase: 2025-05-06
• Automatic offers:
• ikevin127 | Reviewer | 107212312

Issue Owner

Current Issue Owner: @lydiabarclay

[melvin-bot]

Triggered auto assignment to @lydiabarclay (Bug), see https://stackoverflow.com/c/expensify/questions/14418 for more details. Please add this bug to a GH project, as outlined in the SO.

[melvin-bot]

Triggered auto assignment to @pecanoro (DeployBlockerCash), see https://stackoverflowteams.com/c/expensify/questions/9980/ for more details.

[melvin-bot]

💬 A slack conversation has been started in #expensify-open-source

[github-actions]

👋 Friendly reminder that deploy blockers are time-sensitive ⏱ issues! Check out the open `StagingDeployCash` deploy checklist to see the list of PRs included in this release, then work quickly to do one of the following:

1. Identify the pull request that introduced this issue and revert it.
2. Find someone who can quickly fix the issue.
3. Fix the issue yourself.

[pecanoro]

I was able to reproduce this on production as well, so it's not a deploy blocker:

[melvin-bot]

Job added to Upwork: https://www.upwork.com/jobs/~021919709527143328309

[melvin-bot]

Triggered auto assignment to Contributor-plus team member for initial proposal review - @ikevin127 (External)

[WojtekBoman]

Hi, I'll take a look at it as I worked on the left navigation tab bar 👀

[huult]

Proposal

Please re-state the problem that we are trying to solve in this issue.

Left navigation bar disappears when onboarding modal/RHP is opened

What is the root cause of that problem?

When we open the right modal, topLevelNavigationTabBar returns opacity: 0, which causes the issue of the content becoming transparent inside

App/src/components/Navigation/TopLevelNavigationTabBar/index.tsx

Line 62 in 7ea0eec

styles.topLevelNavigationTabBar(isReadyToDisplayBottomBar, shouldUseNarrowLayout, paddingBottom),

What changes do you think we should make in order to solve the problem?

To resolve this issue, we should update the opacity when the right modal is opening.

App/src/components/Navigation/TopLevelNavigationTabBar/index.tsx

Line 62 in 7ea0eec

styles.topLevelNavigationTabBar(isReadyToDisplayBottomBar, shouldUseNarrowLayout, paddingBottom),

update to:

 {
      ...styles.topLevelNavigationTabBar(isReadyToDisplayBottomBar, shouldUseNarrowLayout, paddingBottom),
      ...(isRightModalOpening && {opacity: 0.72}),
  },

Screen.Recording.2025-05-06.at.22.24.35.mov

What specific scenarios should we cover in automated tests to prevent reintroducing this issue in the future?

None

What alternative solutions did you explore? (Optional)

Reminder: Please use plain English, be brief and avoid jargon. Feel free to use images, charts or pseudo-code if necessary. Do not post large multi-line diffs or write walls of text. Do not create PRs unless you have been hired for this job.

[huult]

I saw that this ticket is marked as 'help wanted'.

[nabi-ebrahimi]

Proposal

---

Please re-state the problem that we are trying to solve in this issue.

When an overlay such as the onboarding modal or right-hand pane (RHP) is opened in Safari, the left navigation tab bar (leftNavigationTabBarContainer) disappears, even though it is a persistent UI element and should remain visible. This issue only occurs in Safari due to differences in how it handles stacking contexts with position: fixed elements inside hidden containers.

---

What is the root cause of that problem?

The root cause is that Safari handles position: fixed differently from other browsers, particularly when a parent element is hidden using opacity: 0 and pointerEvents: 'none'. The TopLevelNavigationTabBar wraps both the left and bottom tab bars and applies these styles when isReadyToDisplayBottomBar is false. While the left tab bar (leftNavigationTabBarContainer) is position: fixed and should be visually independent, Safari incorrectly treats it as part of the hidden context, causing it to disappear.

---

What changes do you think we should make in order to solve the problem?

We should move TopLevelNavigationTabBar to the same layout level as modals (e.g., OnboardingModal, RHP) and use zIndex to control its visibility layers, instead of relying on opacity hacks.

Specifically:

• Refactor the layout so that TopLevelNavigationTabBar is a sibling of modal components, rather than nested within a container that may be hidden.

• Within TopLevelNavigationTabBar, ensure the leftNavigationTabBarContainer and the bottom tab bar are split, and only the bottom bar is conditionally hidden.

• Use consistent zIndex values and position: fixed to:

  • Keep the left tab bar always visible beneath modals
  • Toggle the bottom bar visibility as needed without affecting the left bar

This structure avoids hidden stacking contexts entirely and ensures consistent rendering across browsers, including Safari.

---

What specific scenarios should we cover in automated tests to prevent reintroducing this issue in the future?

• On Safari, open any full-screen overlay (e.g., onboarding modal or RHP), and assert that the left navigation tab bar remains visible.
• Confirm that the bottom tab bar hides and shows as expected without affecting the left nav.
• Validate behavior in both mobile and desktop layouts.
• Ensure tooltips and interactive elements within the left tab bar are still rendered and accessible.
• Regression check that overlays stack visually above the navigation components.

---

What alternative solutions did you explore? (Optional)

• Using opacity: 0 and pointerEvents: 'none' only on the bottom bar – still caused the left bar to disappear in Safari.
• Switching to visibility: hidden and overriding with visibility: visible on children – ineffective in Safari for maintaining stacking order.
• Applying zIndex directly with absolute/fixed positioning – unreliable without full layout refactor.
• Rendering the left tab bar separately outside the hidden parent – resolved the issue but introduced layout divergence.
• The final approach — moving TopLevelNavigationTabBar to the root level and controlling it via zIndex — is the most reliable and cross-browser consistent solution.

---

[ikevin127]

Starting on reviewing the PR.

✅ Approved

[melvin-bot]

📣 @ikevin127 🎉 An offer has been automatically sent to your Upwork account for the Reviewer role 🎉 Thanks for contributing to the Expensify app!

Offer link
Upwork job

[melvin-bot]

⚠️ Looks like this issue was linked to a Deploy Blocker here

If you are the assigned CME please investigate whether the linked PR caused a regression and leave a comment with the results.

If a regression has occurred and you are the assigned CM follow the instructions here.

If this regression could have been avoided please consider also proposing a recommendation to the PR checklist so that we can avoid it in the future.

[lydiabarclay]

Looks like deploy blocker above was fixed, pr merged to staging - @ikevin127 all good here?

[ikevin127]

@lydiabarclay Yes all good, I will require payment which I think can be issued here once the regression period will be over. There should be a -50% penalty on the bounty for the regression, resulting in a total bounty of $125.

[lydiabarclay]

Thank you @ikevin127 !

[melvin-bot]

Reviewing label has been removed, please complete the "BugZero Checklist".

[melvin-bot]

The solution for this issue has been 🚀 deployed to production 🚀 in version 9.1.44-8 and is now subject to a 7-day regression period 📆. Here is the list of pull requests that resolve this issue:

• Safari - Left navigation bar disappears when onboarding modal/RHP is opened  #61506

If no regressions arise, payment will be issued on 2025-05-20. 🎊

For reference, here are some details about the assignees on this issue:

• @WojtekBoman does not require payment (Contractor)
• @ikevin127 requires payment automatic offer (Reviewer)

[melvin-bot]

@ikevin127 @lydiabarclay @ikevin127 The PR fixing this issue has been merged! The following checklist (instructions) will need to be completed before the issue can be closed. Please copy/paste the BugZero Checklist from here into a new comment on this GH and complete it. If you have the K2 extension, you can simply click: [this button]

[ikevin127]

Since the regression issue PR was deployed to production on the same date, the only thing left to do here is process the $125 payment (-50% penalty for 1 regression). Will complete the BZ Checklist before the payment date is due ✅

[ikevin127]

BugZero Checklist:

• [Contributor] Classify the bug:

Bug classification

Source of bug:

• 1a. Result of the original design (eg. a case wasn't considered)
• 1b. Mistake during implementation
• 1c. Backend bug
• 1z. Other:

Where bug was reported:

• 2a. Reported on production (eg. bug slipped through the normal regression and PR testing process on staging)
• 2b. Reported on staging (eg. found during regression or PR testing)
• 2d. Reported on a PR
• 2z. Other:

Who reported the bug:

• 3a. Expensify user
• 3b. Expensify employee
• 3c. Contributor
• 3d. QA
• 3z. Other:

• [Contributor] The offending PR has been commented on, pointing out the bug it caused and why, so the author and reviewers can learn from the mistake.

  Link to comment: https://github.com/Expensify/App/pull/61066/files#r2089980000.

• [Contributor] If the regression was CRITICAL (e.g. interrupts a core flow) A discussion in #expensify-open-source has been started about whether any other steps should be taken (e.g. updating the PR review checklist) in order to catch this type of bug sooner.

  Link to discussion: N/A

• [Contributor] If it was decided to create a regression test for the bug, please propose the regression test steps using the template below to ensure the same bug will not reach production again.

• [BugZero Assignee] Create a GH issue for creating/updating the regression test once above steps have been agreed upon.

  Link to issue: https://github.com/Expensify/Expensify/issues/502967

Regression Test Proposal

Note: Test on both MacOS: Web Safari and Android: mWeb Chrome.

1. Verify that the LHB is visible while the RHP or onboarding modal is opened.

Do we agree 👍 or 👎.

[lydiabarclay]

Payment Summary

(-50% penalty for 1 regression)

Contributor: @ikevin127 paid $125 via Upwork
Contributor: @WojtekBoman does not require payment (Contractor)

✅ Regression test filed