[Due for payment 2025-11-11] [$250] Travel - Inconsistency of message when try to booking travel

[vincdargento]

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Version Number: v9.2.15-12
Reproducible in staging?: Yes
Reproducible in production?: Yes
If this was caught during regression testing, add the test name, ID and link from TestRail: https://test-management.browserstack.com/projects/2219752/folder/13177079/test-cases/41237922
Email or phone of affected tester (no customers): expensifail account
Issue reported by: Applause Internal Team
Device used: Windows 11 / Chrome, MacOS Big Sur
App Component: Other

Action Performed:

Preconditions:

1. Sign in to a expensifail account in staging.new.expensify.com
2. Create one or 2 group workspaces if there is no existing workspaces.
3. Set the default policy as individual in OD.

STR:

1. Sign to NewDot with the same account
2. Click on "Book travel" in the FAB
3. Click on book travel
4. Verify shows an error message asking them to select a default group policy
5. Go to Reports > Expenses
6. Set Type > Trip
7. Click Book trip

Expected Result:

An error message asking user to select a default group policy (as on step 4).

Actual Result:

An error message asking user to use work email 'You'll need to use your work email (e.g., name@company.com) with Expensify Travel, not your personal email (e.g., name@gmail.com).'

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

bug.mp4

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• situchan | Contributor | 109262702

Issue Owner

Current Issue Owner: @bfitzexpensify

[melvin-bot]

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.

[lorretheboy]

Proposal

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

Inconsistency of message when try to booking travel

What is the root cause of that problem?

Here is the error when we click Book trip in search trip expenses

App/src/languages/en.ts

Lines 3409 to 3412 in 02abb32

	publicDomainError: {
	title: 'Get started with Expensify Travel',
	message: `You'll need to use your work email (e.g., name@company.com) with Expensify Travel, not your personal email (e.g., name@gmail.com).`,
	},

We check and redirect to error modal here which is before we check group paid policies

App/src/components/BookTravelButton.tsx

Lines 98 to 112 in dc0c4a9

	const adminDomains = getAdminsPrivateEmailDomains(policy);
	if (adminDomains.length === 0) {
	Navigation.navigate(ROUTES.TRAVEL_PUBLIC_DOMAIN_ERROR.getRoute(Navigation.getActiveRoute()));
	return;
	}
	if (groupPaidPolicies.length < 1) {
	Navigation.navigate(ROUTES.TRAVEL_UPGRADE.getRoute(Navigation.getActiveRoute()));
	return;
	}
	if (!isPaidGroupPolicy(policy)) {
	setErrorMessage(translate('travel.termsAndConditions.defaultWorkspaceError'));
	return;
	}

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

We should move this check down here - after group paid policies check

        const adminDomains = getAdminsPrivateEmailDomains(policy);
        if (adminDomains.length === 0) {
            Navigation.navigate(ROUTES.TRAVEL_PUBLIC_DOMAIN_ERROR.getRoute(Navigation.getActiveRoute()));
            return;
        }

Maybe the expectation in OP wrong, it should popup the modal to ask to upgrade/create ws - I think this is what we expected since we have created a specific modal to handle this case - however, we just put it in wrong order so that it wouldn't be reached for this case

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

NA

What alternative solutions did you explore? (Optional)

We check policy requirements first - this ensures users see the correct error message when they have an individual policy set as default

        if (groupPaidPolicies.length < 1) {
            setErrorMessage(translate('travel.termsAndConditions.defaultWorkspaceError'));
            return;
        }

        if (!isPaidGroupPolicy(policy)) {
            setErrorMessage(translate('travel.termsAndConditions.defaultWorkspaceError'));
            return;
        }

        const adminDomains = getAdminsPrivateEmailDomains(policy);
        if (adminDomains.length === 0) {
            Navigation.navigate(ROUTES.TRAVEL_PUBLIC_DOMAIN_ERROR.getRoute(Navigation.getActiveRoute()));
            return;
        }

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.

[ShridharGoel]

Proposal

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

The Expensify Travel booking feature shows inconsistent error messages depending on the entry point used by the user. When a user with a personal email (e.g., @gmail.com) and group workspaces with default policy set as individual tries to book travel:

1. Clicking "Book travel" in the FAB shows the correct "default workspace" error message
2. Going to Reports > Expenses > Type > Trip > "Book trip" shows the incorrect "work email" error message

What is the root cause of that problem?

The root cause is in the BookTravelButton.tsx component's bookATrip function, where the error condition checks are performed in the wrong order.

const adminDomains = getAdminsPrivateEmailDomains(policy);
if (adminDomains.length === 0) {
    Navigation.navigate(ROUTES.TRAVEL_PUBLIC_DOMAIN_ERROR.getRoute(Navigation.getActiveRoute()));
    return;
}

if (groupPaidPolicies.length < 1) {
    Navigation.navigate(ROUTES.TRAVEL_UPGRADE.getRoute(Navigation.getActiveRoute()));
    return;
}

if (!isPaidGroupPolicy(policy)) {
    setErrorMessage(translate('travel.termsAndConditions.defaultWorkspaceError'));
    return;
}

The issue occurs because:

1. getAdminsPrivateEmailDomains(policy) returns an empty array when the user's email is from a public domain (like @gmail.com)
2. The code immediately navigates to the "work email" error page and returns early
3. It never reaches the !isPaidGroupPolicy(policy) check that would show the correct "default workspace" error message

This creates a situation where users with group workspaces but personal email addresses see the wrong error message, as the domain check takes precedence over the policy type check.

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

The solution is to reorder the error condition checks so that policy-related validations are performed before domain-related validations. This ensures that users with group workspaces see the appropriate "default workspace" error message regardless of their email domain.

if (groupPaidPolicies.length < 1) {
    Navigation.navigate(ROUTES.TRAVEL_UPGRADE.getRoute(Navigation.getActiveRoute()));
    return;
}

if (!isPaidGroupPolicy(policy)) {
    setErrorMessage(translate('travel.termsAndConditions.defaultWorkspaceError'));
    return;
}

const adminDomains = getAdminsPrivateEmailDomains(policy);
if (adminDomains.length === 0) {
    Navigation.navigate(ROUTES.TRAVEL_PUBLIC_DOMAIN_ERROR.getRoute(Navigation.getActiveRoute()));
    return;
}

This change ensures that:

• Users with group workspaces but individual default policies see the correct "default workspace" error message
• Users with personal emails but no group workspaces still see the appropriate "work email" error message
• The error messages are consistent across all entry points (FAB, Reports page, etc.)

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

1. Personal email + group workspaces + individual policy → "default workspace" error (both FAB and Reports entry points)
2. Personal email + no group workspaces → "work email" error
3. Work email + group workspaces + individual policy → "default workspace" error
4. Work email + group workspaces + group policy → No error (proceeds to booking)
5. Any email + no paid policies → Navigate to upgrade page

[nyomanjyotisa]

Proposal

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

Travel - Inconsistency of message when try to booking travel

What is the root cause of that problem?

The current BookTravelButton component uses different error validation logic that depends on the current activePolicyID, but this active policy can be inconsistent between different navigation flows

The error checking logic follows this order:

1. If getAdminsPrivateEmailDomains(policy).length === 0 → Navigate to TRAVEL_PUBLIC_DOMAIN_ERROR (shows work email error)
2. If groupPaidPolicies.length < 1 → Navigate to TRAVEL_UPGRADE
3. If !isPaidGroupPolicy(policy) → Show defaultWorkspaceError (shows set default workspace error)

App/src/components/BookTravelButton.tsx

Lines 98 to 112 in d9ac728

	const adminDomains = getAdminsPrivateEmailDomains(policy);
	if (adminDomains.length === 0) {
	Navigation.navigate(ROUTES.TRAVEL_PUBLIC_DOMAIN_ERROR.getRoute(Navigation.getActiveRoute()));
	return;
	}
	if (groupPaidPolicies.length < 1) {
	Navigation.navigate(ROUTES.TRAVEL_UPGRADE.getRoute(Navigation.getActiveRoute()));
	return;
	}
	if (!isPaidGroupPolicy(policy)) {
	setErrorMessage(translate('travel.termsAndConditions.defaultWorkspaceError'));
	return;
	}

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

Reorder the error validation logic in BookTravelButton to prioritize the workspace/policy validation before the domain validation

        if (!isPaidGroupPolicy(policy)) {
            setErrorMessage(translate('travel.termsAndConditions.defaultWorkspaceError'));
            return;
        }

        const adminDomains = getAdminsPrivateEmailDomains(policy);
        if (adminDomains.length === 0) {
            Navigation.navigate(ROUTES.TRAVEL_PUBLIC_DOMAIN_ERROR.getRoute(Navigation.getActiveRoute()));
            return;
        }

        if (groupPaidPolicies.length < 1) {
            Navigation.navigate(ROUTES.TRAVEL_UPGRADE.getRoute(Navigation.getActiveRoute()));
            return;
        }

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

N/A

What alternative solutions did you explore? (Optional)

N/A

[bernhardoj]

Proposal

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

Different error shown to the user when trying to book a travel demo.

What is the root cause of that problem?

When we open from FAB, the error tells to set the non-personal policy as the default workspace. But in Reports page, it ask to use private domain because it can't find the default policy.

App/src/components/BookTravelButton.tsx

Lines 98 to 102 in d9ac728

	const adminDomains = getAdminsPrivateEmailDomains(policy);
	if (adminDomains.length === 0) {
	Navigation.navigate(ROUTES.TRAVEL_PUBLIC_DOMAIN_ERROR.getRoute(Navigation.getActiveRoute()));
	return;
	}

App/src/components/BookTravelButton.tsx

Line 61 in d9ac728

const policy = usePolicy(activePolicyID);

It's because the data is fetched from the snapshot_ because the empty search view is wrapped with SearchScopeProvider.

App/src/pages/Search/EmptySearchView.tsx

Lines 111 to 114 in d9ac728

	return (
	<SearchScopeProvider>
	<EmptySearchViewContent
	similarSearchHash={similarSearchHash}

App/src/hooks/useOnyx.ts

Line 64 in d9ac728

const shouldUseSnapshot = isOnSearch && !!currentSearchHash && isSnapshotCompatibleKey;

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

First, we need to update SearchScopeProvider to accept isOnSearch as a parameter with the default value of true.

App/src/components/Search/SearchScopeProvider.tsx

Lines 10 to 16 in d9ac728

	function SearchScopeProvider({children}: ChildrenProps) {
	const searchContext = useMemo(
	() => ({
	isOnSearch: true,
	}),
	[],
	);

Then wrap the book travel button with SearchScopeProvider with isOnSearch value as false.

App/src/pages/Search/EmptySearchView.tsx

Line 220 in d9ac728

<BookTravelButton text={translate('search.searchResults.emptyTripResults.buttonText')} />

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

N/A

[lorretheboy]

Proposal updated

Add more details in main solution & add alternative solution

[melvin-bot]

@bfitzexpensify Uh oh! This issue is overdue by 2 days. Don't forget to update your issues!