[$250] Profile-Timezone is not specified, only GMT is shown in user's profile/ local time on iOS

[nlemma]

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Version Number: 9.3.9-1
Reproducible in staging?: Yes
Reproducible in production?: Yes
If this was caught during regression testing, add the test name, ID and link from BrowserStack: https://test-management.browserstack.com/projects/2219752/folder/13176687/test-cases/41236639
Email or phone of affected tester (no customers): N/A
Issue reported by: Applause Internal Team
Bug source: Exploratory - Significant User Experience Deterioration
Device used: iPhone 15 iOS 26.1
App Component: User Settings

Action Performed:

Preconditions: User A's timezone is set to America/Los Angeles, GMT-8

1. Sign in to ND on iOS as User A, verify the account if needed
2. Create a workspace, invite User B as a member
3. As User B, navigate to Profile/ Timezone and change the timezone to Indian/Maldives (GMT+5)
4. As User A, open Workspace - Members
5. Click on any member - Profile, observe theLocal time

Expected Result:

Timezone is shown correctly under the Local time - GMT-8, GMT+5

Actual Result:

Timezone shows only GMT

Workaround:

Unknown

Platforms:

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

Screenshots/Videos

Bug7058950_1769482056584.GMT.MP4

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Issue Owner

Current Issue Owner: @robertjchen

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[daledah]

Proposal

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

When viewing a member's profile in the Workspace Members section on iOS, the timezone display shows only "GMT" instead of the correct timezone offset like "GMT-8" or "GMT+5".

What is the root cause of that problem?

The root cause is that the getZoneAbbreviation function in DateUtils.ts uses the 'zzz' format pattern which behaves inconsistently on iOS:

App/src/libs/DateUtils.ts

Lines 231 to 233 in 70603fd

	function getZoneAbbreviation(datetime: string | Date, selectedTimezone: SelectedTimezone): string {
	return formatInTimeZone(datetime, selectedTimezone, 'zzz');
	}

The 'zzz' format pattern returns timezone abbreviations (like "PST", "EST") on some platforms but can return just "GMT" on iOS Safari due to differences in how the underlying JavaScript Intl.DateTimeFormat API handles timezone names on different platforms.

This is a known issue with Safari/iOS where timezone formatting behaves differently compared to other browsers/platforms. The formatInTimeZone function from date-fns-tz relies on the browser's Intl.DateTimeFormat API for timezone name formatting, which has inconsistent behavior across platforms.

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

Change the format pattern from 'zzz' (timezone name) to 'O' (GMT offset format) in the getZoneAbbreviation function. The 'O' format provides consistent output across all platforms:

• America/Los_Angeles → "GMT-8"
• Indian/Maldives → "GMT+5"
• Europe/London → "GMT" or "GMT+1" (depending on DST)

function getZoneAbbreviation(datetime: string | Date, selectedTimezone: SelectedTimezone): string {
-    return formatInTimeZone(datetime, selectedTimezone, 'zzz');
+    return formatInTimeZone(datetime, selectedTimezone, 'O');
}

The 'O' format pattern:

• Provides consistent GMT offset format across all platforms (iOS, Android, Web)
• Matches the expected output format mentioned in the bug report ("GMT-8", "GMT+5")
• Works reliably for all timezone identifiers including less common ones

What alternative solutions did you explore? (Optional)

1. Use 'OOOO' format for more detailed offset: This would give "GMT-08:00" format which is more verbose but less commonly used in UIs.

2. Use a fallback approach: Keep 'zzz' as primary and fall back to 'O' when the result is just "GMT":

   function getZoneAbbreviation(datetime: string | Date, selectedTimezone: SelectedTimezone): string {
       const abbreviation = formatInTimeZone(datetime, selectedTimezone, 'zzz');
       if (abbreviation === 'GMT') {
           return formatInTimeZone(datetime, selectedTimezone, 'O');
       }
       return abbreviation;
   }

   This approach would preserve abbreviations like "PST" where available but adds complexity.

3. Platform detection: Check if running on iOS and use different format patterns. This was rejected as it adds complexity and the GMT offset format is universally understandable.

The recommended solution (using 'O' format) is preferred because it provides consistent, predictable output across all platforms while displaying the timezone in a universally understood format.

[daledah]

@nlemma It seems you've missed the Bug label here.

[melvin-bot]

Triggered auto assignment to @garrettmknight (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.