[Due for payment 2026-07-08] [$250] Expense-Clicking outside RHP does not close expense creation RHP when recipient list is opened

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Version Number: 9.4.17-0
Reproducible in staging?: Yes
Reproducible in production?: No
If this was caught during regression testing, add the test name, ID and link from BrowserStack: #94134
Email or phone of affected tester (no customers): joisjdnosjdoijso@gmail.com
Issue reported by: Applause Internal Team
Bug source: Exploratory - Significant User Experience Deterioration
Device used: Mac 26.5 / Chrome
App Component: Money Requests

Action Performed:

1. Go to staging.new.expensify.com
2. Open FAB > Create expense > Manual.
3. Click To field.
4. Click outside RHP.

Expected Result:

Expense creation RHP will close.

Actual Result:

Expense creation RHP does not close. Only the participant list closes.

Workaround:

Unknown

Platforms:

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

Screenshots/Videos

Bug7188071_1782170668940.3.mp4

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Applause Internal Information
Exported by: Mita Rachim
Bug ID: 7188071

Issue Owner

Current Issue Owner: @mallenexpensify

Upwork Automation - Do Not Edit

• Upwork Job URL: https://www.upwork.com/jobs/~022071486462513367078
• Upwork Job ID: 2071486462513367078
• Last Price Increase: 2026-06-29
• Automatic offers:
• thelullabyy | Reviewer | 111858408

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[melvin-bot]

You have been assigned to this deploy blocker because you recently merged this PR: #94134

[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]

Proposal

Posted by MelvinBot 🤖 — Root cause confidence: High (code-traced). Regression from Expensify/App#94134.

What is the root cause of that problem?

The new manual expense flow (shipped by #94134, which removed the newManualExpenseFlow beta) embeds the confirmation form directly inside the expense‑creation RHP. The To field no longer navigates to a participants page inside that same RHP — it now opens the recipient list as a separate RIGHT_DOCKED Modal stacked on top of the RHP.

Clicking outside the panel hits the picker modal's backdrop, which fires onClose={closeParticipantPicker}. That handler only flips local visibility state — it never dismisses the underlying navigation RHP:

• ParticipantPicker.tsx:80-101 — picker renders as its own RIGHT_DOCKED Modal layer.
• IOURequestStepConfirmation.tsx:296-302 — closeParticipantPicker just resets manuallyOpened…/dismissedAutoOpen… state; no Navigation.dismiss….

So clicking outside closes only the top modal (the participant list) and leaves the expense RHP open. This is consistent with the report: not reproducible in production (the old navigation‑based flow lived in the same RHP stack, so one outside‑click dismissed the whole panel) but reproducible in staging where the new flow is now on for everyone.

Why production behaved differently

Before #94134, the "To" tap called Navigation.navigate(ROUTES.MONEY_REQUEST_STEP_PARTICIPANTS…) — the participants step was another screen in the same RHP navigator, so the RHP backdrop dismissed everything. The diff replaced that Navigation.navigate(...) with onOpenParticipantPicker?.() and removed the isNewManualExpenseFlowEnabled && guard that previously gated the stacked ParticipantPicker modal (see the MoneyRequestConfirmationList.tsx and IOURequestStepConfirmation.tsx hunks in the PR diff).

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

Make an outside/backdrop click on the picker dismiss the entire expense RHP, not just the picker layer. Two viable directions:

1. Distinguish backdrop dismiss from the back button. Keep the back button (onBackButtonPress) returning to the confirmation form, but on backdrop press also dismiss the parent RHP (e.g. call Navigation.dismissModal() / the RHP close in addition to closeParticipantPicker). The Modal component exposes separate backdrop vs. back-button handlers, so these can be wired independently in ParticipantPicker.tsx.
2. Don't stack a second modal. Render the recipient list as a screen swap within the existing RHP (closer to the pre‑feat: remove isNewManualExpenseFlowEnabled beta flag #94134 navigation model) instead of a separate RIGHT_DOCKED Modal, so there is only one dismissable layer.

Option 1 is the smaller, lower‑risk change for a deploy blocker; option 2 is the more architecturally consistent fix. This is a UX decision for the team — confirm whether an outside click on the open recipient list should close the whole flow or just the list.

What alternative solutions did you explore? (Optional)

Considered leaving the stacked behavior as-is (clicking outside closes only the list). Rejected — it contradicts the reported expected behavior and standard RHP dismissal, and was flagged as a significant UX deterioration.

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Next Steps for Contributor+ team:
To accept: @MelvinBot implement [this](https://github.com/Expensify/App/issues/94246) to create a draft PR.
To refine: @MelvinBot <your feedback>
To reject: Explain why you are rejecting Melvin's proposal.