IOS -Tabbar not showing after navigating from a contentpage where Shell.TabBarIsVisible="False"

Hello,

This issue stems from iOS's native UITabBarController behavior, where the tab bar visibility state is maintained at the navigation controller level rather than per-page. Unlike Android, iOS doesn't automatically reset this state when navigating to new pages.

Recommended Workarounds

To restore the tab bar visibility, explicitly set it in code-behind before navigating:

Shell.SetTabBarIsVisible(this, true);
await Shell.Current.GoToAsync("yourNextPageRoute");

Alternative

If you're already on the destination page, set it in OnAppearing:

protected override void OnAppearing()
{
    base.OnAppearing();
    Shell.SetTabBarIsVisible(this, true);
}

For maximum reliability on iOS, use this pattern:

protected override void OnAppearing()
{
    base.OnAppearing();
   
    // Immediate setting
    Shell.SetTabBarIsVisible(this, true);
   
    // Delayed setting to ensure iOS processes the change
    MainThread.BeginInvokeOnMainThread(() =>
    {
        Shell.SetTabBarIsVisible(this, true);
    });
}

Additional Notes

• Avoid using modal navigation (PushModalAsync) unless required, as it bypasses Shell behavior
• Ensure that the navigation context is consistent—navigating from a hidden tab bar context can persist that state
• This issue affects .NET MAUI versions 6.0 through 9.0 and remains present in current releases
• Use MainThread.BeginInvokeOnMainThread instead of Device.BeginInvokeOnMainThread (deprecated in .NET 6+)
• Consider implementing a custom navigation service to centralize tab bar state management

Alternative Architecture Consideration

For apps heavily affected by this issue, consider:

• Using TabbedPage instead of Shell tabs for critical scenarios
• Implementing custom navigation patterns that avoid the problematic state transitions
• Creating a centralized navigation service that manages tab bar visibility

References:

• TabBar disappears when navigating back from page with hidden TabBar
• Shell Bottom Tabs Disappear When Using Shell.TabBarIsVisible
• Setting Shell.TabBarIsVisible="False" breaks content for other pages on iOS
• Official Shell.SetTabBarIsVisible Documentation

I hope this helps resolve the issue.