[Due for payment 2026-07-13] Android - LHN - Blank space is shown below the empty state content

[applause-bot]

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Version Number: 9.4.7-0
Reproducible in staging?: Yes
Reproducible in production?: N/A - new feature, doesn't exist in prod
If this was caught during regression testing, add the test name, ID and link from BrowserStack: #92146
Email or phone of affected tester (no customers): jsodinjosdjsoinjsiojs@gmail.com
Issue reported by: Applause Internal Team
Bug source: Exploratory - Significant User Experience Deterioration
Device used: Samsung Galaxy S25 FE / Android 16
App Component: Search

Action Performed:

1. Launch Expensify app.
2. Go to Unread tab (make sure it is empty).
3. Rotate the device to landscape.
4. Scroll down the page.

Expected Result:

There will be no blank space below the empty state content. The whole page is scrollable.

Actual Result:

Blank space is shown below the empty state content. The blank area is not scrollable.

Workaround:

Unknown

Platforms:

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

Screenshots/Videos

Bug7179402_1781302302173.Screen_Recording_20260613_060945_Expensify.mp4

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Applause Internal Information
Exported by: Mita Rachim
Bug ID: 7179402

Issue Owner

Current Issue Owner: @mallenexpensify

[applause-bot]

While Applause doesn't embed attachments for this bug, here are the links for quick view:
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[melvin-bot]

@Gonals recently merged #92146, but they are OOO right now, so I'll auto-assign someone else.

[melvin-bot]

Triggered auto assignment to @madmax330 (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]

Proposal

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

On Android native in landscape, when an Inbox LHN tab is empty (commonly the new Unread / To-dos tabs), a fixed blank strip appears below the centered empty-state content and that strip is not scrollable.

What is the root cause of that problem?

The empty state is wrapped in a View that carries a hard marginBottom: variables.bottomTabHeight (72px) which lives outside the BlockingView's ScrollView.

• SidebarLinks.tsx:97-100 — renders <View style={[styles.flex1, styles.emptyLHNWrapper]}><LHNEmptyState /></View>.
• styles/index.ts:3456-3458 — emptyLHNWrapper: { marginBottom: 72 }.
• BlockingView.tsx:131-137 — the ScrollView is flex: 1, so it can only ever fill availableHeight − 72px. Those 72px sit below the scrollable area and can never receive content → a permanent, non-scrollable gap.

The bottom NavigationTabBar actually overlays the screen at zero flex cost (negative marginTop), so reserving 72px in a sibling layout layer is the wrong place — it produces dead space rather than clearance. In portrait the gap is masked by the tall content area; in landscape the short screen makes it obvious. This wrapper is shared by all empty states (shouldShowEmptyLHN), so it's a pre-existing layout bug — newly reachable because an empty Unread tab is the common case introduced by PR #92146.

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

Move the 72px bottom clearance inside the scrollable container so it scrolls with the content and justifyContent: center accounts for it:

1. Drop styles.emptyLHNWrapper from SidebarLinks.tsx:98 (leaving just styles.flex1).
2. In LHNEmptyState.tsx pass containerStyle={{paddingBottom: variables.bottomTabHeight}} to both BlockingView returns. BlockingView already spreads containerStyle into the ScrollView's contentContainerStyle, so the clearance becomes part of the scrollable content — keeping bottom-tab clearance in portrait while removing the dead strip in landscape.

Alternatives & evidence

• Alternative: keep the wrapper but make it a ScrollView — heavier and duplicates what BlockingView already provides.
• Bottom tab bar overlay confirmed in TabNavigatorBar.tsx / getTabBarNarrowStyle (marginTop: -(bottomTabHeight + safeAreaPaddingBottom)), and it's always present on this screen via BaseSidebarScreen.tsx bottomContent. useResponsiveLayout hard-codes isSmallScreenWidth = true on native, so the bar renders in landscape too — the gap is not from the bar being hidden, it's from the misplaced margin.
• This is a pure layout bug, reproducible from code alone — no production logs needed.

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Next Steps for Contributor+ team:
To accept: @MelvinBot implement [this](https://github.com/Expensify/App/issues/93498) to create a draft PR.
To refine: @MelvinBot <your feedback>
To reject: Explain why you are rejecting Melvin's proposal.