[Due for payment 2025-12-03] [$250] Inbox - On larger screens, some clickable elements appear in blank spaces

@bfitzexpensify

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Version Number: 9.2.49-1
Reproducible in staging?: Y
Reproducible in production?: Y
If this was caught during regression testing, add the test name, ID and link from TestRail: N/A
Email or phone of affected tester (no customers): biruknew45+186ssas5@gmail.com
Issue reported by: Applause - Internal Team

Action Performed:

Precondition -
On a Larger Screen

Go to https://staging.new.expensify.com/
Go to a 1:1 chat
Create two expenses
Click on the "View" button to open the expenses.
Click on any expense
Send a message to the chat
Attempt to click on the blank area below the message

Expected Result:

Blank areas should be completely inactive — no clickable or interactive elements should appear

Actual Result:

On larger screens, blank areas below the main content contain clickable or interactive elements

Workaround:

Unknown

Platforms:

Select the officially supported platforms where the issue was reproduced:

Platforms Tested:

On which of our officially supported platforms was this issue tested:

Screenshots/Videos

Add any screenshot/video evidence

Bug7000677_1762874089652.bandicam_2025-11-11_17-50-12-817.mp4

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Upwork Automation - Do Not Edit

Upwork Job URL: https://www.upwork.com/jobs/~021989314796236370370
Upwork Job ID: 1989314796236370370
Last Price Increase: 2025-11-14

Issue Owner

Current Issue Owner: @bfitzexpensify

@bfitzexpensify

Triggered auto assignment to @bfitzexpensify (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.

Proposal

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

On larger screens, blank areas below the main chat content are clickable/interactive when they should be completely inactive. This occurs when viewing a 1:1 chat with expenses - clicking on blank areas triggers unintended interactions with invisible elements.

What is the root cause of that problem?

In ReportActionsList.tsx, on larger screens when shouldScrollToEndAfterLayout is true, the component renders both:

renderTopReportActions() - visible content shown at the top
InvertedFlatList - hidden with opacity: 0 but still in the DOM

The InvertedFlatList with opacity: 0 (line 866) remains interactive and captures click events on what appears to be "blank areas" below the visible content. The opacity CSS property only controls visibility, not interactivity - elements with opacity: 0 can still receive pointer events and block clicks.

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

Add the pointerEvents prop to the InvertedFlatList to disable pointer events when the list is hidden. Setting pointerEvents="none" prevents the invisible list from capturing any click or touch events while keeping it in the DOM for layout calculations.

Changes in src/pages/home/report/ReportActionsList.tsx:

--- a/src/pages/home/report/ReportActionsList.tsx
+++ b/src/pages/home/report/ReportActionsList.tsx
@@ -856,6 +856,7 @@
                 <InvertedFlatList
                     accessibilityLabel={translate('sidebarScreen.listOfChatMessages')}
                     ref={reportScrollManager.ref}
+                    pointerEvents={shouldScrollToEndAfterLayout ? 'none' : 'auto'}
                     testID="report-actions-list"
                     style={styles.overscrollBehaviorContain}
                     data={sortedVisibleReportActions}

What alternative solutions did you explore? (Optional)

Alternative 1: Replace opacity with display: none

Could change the style from opacity: 0 to display: none when hidden:

shouldScrollToEndAfterLayout ? styles.dNone : styles.dFlex

However, this approach:

Completely removes the element from the layout flow, which might affect scroll calculations
Could cause layout shifts during the transition from hidden to visible
May break any dependencies that rely on the FlatList being rendered (even if invisible) for measuring purposes

Alternative 2: Conditionally render the InvertedFlatList

Could use {!shouldScrollToEndAfterLayout && <InvertedFlatList ... />} to completely unmount when not visible. However:

Causes expensive unmount/remount cycles
Loses internal state of the FlatList component
Forces re-initialization of scroll position and measurements
Much more complex change affecting component lifecycle

Alternative 3: Wrap in View with pointerEvents="box-none"

Could wrap the FlatList in a View with controlled pointer events. However:

Adds unnecessary nesting
The pointerEvents prop works directly on FlatList, so wrapper is redundant

Proposal

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

On larger screens, some clickable elements appear in blank spaces

What is the root cause of that problem?

In our case, in larger screens, shouldScrollToEndAfterLayout‎ is true and we render renderTopReportActions() and just hide InvertedFlatList (which has the same content with renderTopReportActions) with opacity: 0.

App/src/pages/home/report/ReportActionsList.tsx

Lines 855 to 868 in 435662d

    
           {shouldScrollToEndAfterLayout && topReportAction ? renderTopReportActions() : undefined} 
        
           <InvertedFlatList 
        
               accessibilityLabel={translate('sidebarScreen.listOfChatMessages')} 
        
               ref={reportScrollManager.ref} 
        
               testID="report-actions-list" 
        
               style={styles.overscrollBehaviorContain} 
        
               data={sortedVisibleReportActions} 
        
               renderItem={renderItem} 
        
               renderScrollComponent={renderActionSheetAwareScrollView} 
        
               contentContainerStyle={[ 
        
                   styles.chatContentScrollView, 
        
                   shouldScrollToEndAfterLayout ? styles.opacity0 : styles.opacity1, 
        
                   shouldFocusToTopOnMount ? styles.justifyContentEnd : undefined, 
        
               ]}

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

We can use visiblity style instead of opacity

                    contentContainerStyle={[
                        styles.chatContentScrollView,
                        shouldScrollToEndAfterLayout ? styles.visibilityHidden : styles.visibilityVisible,
                        shouldFocusToTopOnMount ? styles.justifyContentEnd : undefined,
                    ]}

What alternative solutions did you explore? (Optional)

Or we can use display: block instead of flex when shouldScrollToEndAfterLayout is false

Job added to Upwork: https://www.upwork.com/jobs/~021989314796236370370

@jjcoffee

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

Thanks for the proposals! Can either of you explain what the InvertedFlatlist is meant to be displaying? On the OP video it looks like it opens a date field.

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

@jjcoffee

The solution for this issue has been 🚀 deployed to production 🚀 in version 9.2.63-8 and is now subject to a 7-day regression period 📆. Here is the list of pull requests that resolve this issue:

fixed visibility of InvertedFlatList on larger screens #75626

If no regressions arise, payment will be issued on 2025-12-03. 🎊

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

@jjcoffee requires payment through NewDot Manual Requests
@mukhrr requires payment (Needs manual offer from BZ)

@jjcoffee

@jjcoffee @bfitzexpensify 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]

@mukhrr

$250 paid to @mukhrr ✅

@jjcoffee, please complete the BZ checklist

@bfitzexpensify

@bfitzexpensify thanks! Accepted

@jjcoffee

Payment Summary

Upwork Job

Reviewer: @jjcoffee owed $250 via NewDot
ROLE: @mukhrr paid $(AMOUNT) via Upwork (LINK)

BugZero Checklist (@bfitzexpensify)

(if NewFeature) I have created a PR for any necessary HelpDot updates, or I confirmed no updates are necessary.
I have verified the correct assignees and roles are listed above and updated the necessary manual offers
I have verified that there are no duplicate or incorrect contracts on Upwork for this job (https://www.upwork.com/ab/applicants/1989314796236370370/hired)
I have verified the PR was not reverted
I have applied any discounts due to bugs/regressions introduced by this PR
I have paid out the Upwork contracts or cancelled the ones that are incorrect
I have verified the payment summary above is correct

BugZero Checklist:

[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/71084/files#r2588079656
[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:

Regression Test Proposal

Test:

Go to a 1:1 chat
Create two expenses
Click on the "View" button to open the expenses.
Click on any expense
Send a message to the chat
Attempt to click on the blank area below the message
Verify you cannot click anything in the blank space

Do we agree 👍 or 👎

@jjcoffee

approved $250 for @jjcoffee.

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[Due for payment 2025-12-03] [$250] Inbox - On larger screens, some clickable elements appear in blank spaces #74827

Action Performed:

Expected Result:

Actual Result:

Workaround:

Platforms:

Screenshots/Videos

Proposal

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

What is the root cause of that problem?

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

What alternative solutions did you explore? (Optional)

Proposal

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

What is the root cause of that problem?

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

What alternative solutions did you explore? (Optional)

20 remaining items

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BugZero Checklist (@bfitzexpensify)

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Regression Test Proposal

Test:

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	{shouldScrollToEndAfterLayout && topReportAction ? renderTopReportActions() : undefined}
	<InvertedFlatList
	accessibilityLabel={translate('sidebarScreen.listOfChatMessages')}
	ref={reportScrollManager.ref}
	testID="report-actions-list"
	style={styles.overscrollBehaviorContain}
	data={sortedVisibleReportActions}
	renderItem={renderItem}
	renderScrollComponent={renderActionSheetAwareScrollView}
	contentContainerStyle={[
	styles.chatContentScrollView,
	shouldScrollToEndAfterLayout ? styles.opacity0 : styles.opacity1,
	shouldFocusToTopOnMount ? styles.justifyContentEnd : undefined,
	]}

[Due for payment 2025-12-03] [$250] Inbox - On larger screens, some clickable elements appear in blank spaces #74827

Description

Action Performed:

Expected Result:

Actual Result:

Workaround:

Platforms:

Screenshots/Videos

Activity

melvin-bot commented on Nov 11, 2025

abbasifaizan70 commented on Nov 11, 2025

Proposal

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

What is the root cause of that problem?

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

What alternative solutions did you explore? (Optional)

mukhrr commented on Nov 11, 2025

Proposal

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

What is the root cause of that problem?

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

What alternative solutions did you explore? (Optional)

melvin-bot commented on Nov 14, 2025

melvin-bot commented on Nov 14, 2025

jjcoffee commented on Nov 14, 2025

20 remaining items

melvin-bot commented on Nov 26, 2025

melvin-bot commented on Nov 26, 2025

melvin-bot commented on Nov 26, 2025

bfitzexpensify commented on Dec 3, 2025

mukhrr commented on Dec 3, 2025

melvin-bot commented on Dec 3, 2025

Payment Summary

BugZero Checklist (@bfitzexpensify)

jjcoffee commented on Dec 4, 2025

BugZero Checklist:

Regression Test Proposal

Test:

trjExpensify commented on Dec 5, 2025

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