[Due for payment 2026-08-27] iOS - 2FA - Blank screen is displayed after enabling 2FA

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Version Number: 9.4.53-0
Reproducible in staging?: Yes
Reproducible in production?: No
If this was caught during regression testing, add the test name, ID and link from BrowserStack: https://test-management.browserstack.com/projects/2219752/test-runs/68879268/folder/52723519/41236669/1653444404?sort=%2Bidentifier
Email or phone of affected tester (no customers): n/a
Issue reported by: Applause Internal Team
Bug source: Regression TC Execution
Device used: iOS
App Component: User Settings

Action Performed:

1. Open the app
2. Navigate to Account > Security > Two Factor Authentication (2FA)
3. Save the file in the local machine
4. Enter the 6 digit code provided by the authenticator app
5. Click Next

Expected Result:

A success screen is displayed after enabling 2FA

Actual Result:

A blank screen appears briefly after enabling 2FA.

Workaround:

Unknown

Platforms:

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

Screenshots/Videos

Bug7232153_1786587008316.expensifail_account.mp4

Bug7232153_1786571941769.2FA_in_gmail_account.mp4

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Applause Internal Information
Exported by: Mita Rachim
Bug ID: 7232153

Issue Owner

Current Issue Owner: @linhvovan29546

[applause-bot]

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https://platform.applause.com/services/links/v1/external/6216ae45613409ccc3ccc9cefa24d4396e1bc84fa9cd7282e95314aa55fa9b61

https://platform.applause.com/services/links/v1/external/97c397dc0b964dd27621323d7b9195136409aacd2fafdfabe3f1fb84e00e36cd

[melvin-bot]

Triggered auto assignment to @cristipaval (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.

[MelvinBot]

🔍 Investigation Summary

Classification: Frontend bug (Expensify/App)
Causing PR: #96372 - "upgrade react native to 0.86.0" by @jakubstec (Medium confidence)
Related Issues: #98493 (iOS - page greyed out when swiping back — same class of RN 0.86 transition/rendering regression, already attributed to #96372), and a cluster of other blockers in this release (98490, 98502, 98504, etc.)

Recommendation: ROLL FORWARD

This is the React Native 0.85.3 → 0.86.0 core upgrade (63 files, plus dependent follow-up PRs #98293 and #98352 and Mobile-Expensify submodule bumps). A full revert is impractical and high-risk; the fix should be a targeted native patch for the iOS Fabric screen-transition / view-recycling behavior (the same approach being taken for sibling blocker #98493).

Assigned: @jakubstec (PR author), @mountiny and @roryabraham (approving reviewers) of #96372
Labels: No change. DeployBlockerCash is kept (an App PR caused this; the bug is an iOS-only staging regression). No DeployBlocker label was present.

📋 Detailed Analysis

Evidence

• The bug is a staging-only regression (not reproducible in production), so it was introduced by a PR in the current 9.4.53 StagingDeployCash.
• None of the files that render the 2FA success flow changed in this deploy. The latest commits touching DynamicVerifyPage.tsx, DynamicSuccessPage.tsx, SuccessPageBase.tsx, TwoFactorAuthWrapper.tsx, and ConfirmationPage.tsx all predate the production/staging merge-base (2026-08-10) and are already in production. The 2FA feature logic is therefore not the source.
• The only systemic change in this deploy that fits an iOS-only, transient "blank screen briefly" during a native screen transition is the React Native 0.86.0 upgrade (upgrade react native to 0.86.0 #96372), which is the oldest merged PR in this release.
• upgrade react native to 0.86.0 #96372 replaced the entire react-native+0.85.3+* patch set with react-native+0.86.0+* patches, several of which exist specifically to fix iOS Fabric view-recycling / stale-frame regressions introduced by 0.86 — the exact symptom class of a brief blank screen:
  • patches/react-native/react-native+0.86.0+032+fix-recycled-view-stale-frame.patch
  • patches/react-native/react-native+0.86.0+013+fix-mask-persisting-recycling.patch
  • patches/react-native/react-native+0.86.0+005+resetAutoresizingOnView.patch
  • patches/react-native/react-native+0.86.0+025+fix-display-contents-dirty-flag.patch
• Corroboration: sibling iOS deploy blocker [Due for payment 2026-08-31] iOS - Account - The page is greyed out when swiping back. #98493 ("The page is greyed out when swiping back") — another transient iOS rendering regression in this same release — was already investigated and attributed to upgrade react native to 0.86.0 #96372, with @roryabraham engaged on an upstream RN fix. This release also produced an unusually large cluster of blockers at once, a hallmark of a framework-level upgrade.

Verification

• Affected user-visible area: the 2FA enablement success screen shown after entering the 6-digit code and pressing Next (Settings → Security → Two Factor Authentication), iOS App only.
• Transition path (context, not the defect source): DynamicVerifyPage.tsx#L58-L63 calls Navigation.navigate(TWO_FACTOR_AUTH_SUCCESS, {forceReplace: true}), replacing the Verify screen with the Success screen in the RHP native stack. The brief blank appears during this native screen replacement on iOS under RN 0.86, before SuccessPageBase → ConfirmationPage paints.
• Confirmed the version bump lands in this deploy: package.json#L181 → "react-native": "0.86.0" (was 0.85.3).

Root Cause

React Native 0.86.0 changed iOS Fabric view lifecycle/recycling behavior. When the RHP native stack performs a forceReplace (Verify → Success), the outgoing view is torn down and the incoming Success view is not yet painted, leaving a blank frame for a moment. The 2FA screens themselves are unchanged; they merely surface the general 0.86 transition regression that is also producing the other iOS blockers in this release.