[HOLD for payment 2025-01-17] Upgrade RNTL to the newest version

[OlimpiaZurek]

Problem
We are currently using React Native Testing Library (RNTL) version 11.5.1, which is behind the latest version, 12.18.1. While the current version is functional, it lacks the updates, improvements, and breaking changes introduced in the newer version, particularly those focused on accessibility, API safety, and modern tooling. Staying on an outdated version risks missing these benefits and may make it harder to adopt the latest testing practices and standards.

Solution:
Upgrade to RNTL version 12.18.1 to leverage the latest features and ensure our testing practices align with modern standards

Key updates in version 12.x.x include:

• Built-in Jest Matchers : Built-in matchers are now the recommended approach by RNTL maintainers, offering more readable tests, better accessibility support, and an improved developer experience.
• **Query Behavior Updates : Queries like *ByText and *ByPlaceholderText now return host elements instead of React elements, ensuring consistent behavior. This aligns tests with how components behave and interact on actual devices, aligning more closely with user interactions.
• Accessibility Improvements: For example, *ByRole queries now exclusively return elements exposed to accessibility APIs, ensuring tests align with assistive technologies like screen readers.
• Safer APIs: The introduction of the new root API, alongside renaming container to UNSAFE_root, promotes safer and more explicit usage. The root API provides a more robust alternative for accessing the rendered output.

Issue Owner

Current Issue Owner: @lschurr

[melvin-bot]

Triggered auto assignment to @lschurr (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.

[OlimpiaZurek]

@mountiny I created an issue for upgrading RNTL, based on this thread on Slack:: https://callstack-hq.slack.com/archives/C05LX9D6E07/p1732530447619079.

Here is a draft PR: #53067

[OlimpiaZurek]

PR's ready for review: #53067

[OlimpiaZurek]

I will be off for the next two weeks. Someone from Callstack Team will keep eye on this.

[mountiny]

@OlimpiaZurek enjoy your holidays, can someone please sync main in the pr?

[melvin-bot]

Reviewing label has been removed, please complete the "BugZero Checklist".

[melvin-bot]

The solution for this issue has been 🚀 deployed to production 🚀 in version 9.0.82-12 and is now subject to a 7-day regression period 📆. Here is the list of pull requests that resolve this issue:

• [NoQA] Upgrade RNTL to the newest version #53067

If no regressions arise, payment will be issued on 2025-01-17. 🎊

For reference, here are some details about the assignees on this issue:

• @OlimpiaZurek does not require payment (Contractor)

[melvin-bot]

@mountiny @lschurr @OlimpiaZurek The PR fixing this issue has been merged! The following checklist (instructions) will need to be completed before the issue can be closed. Please copy/paste the BugZero Checklist from here into a new comment on this GH and complete it. If you have the K2 extension, you can simply click: [this button]

[melvin-bot]

Skipping the payment summary for this issue since all the assignees are employees or vendors. If this is incorrect, please manually add the payment summary SO.

[mountiny]

all good, no tests or payments here