According to WABetaInfo, the WhatsApp beta for iOS version 22.9.0.70 includes the “My contacts except” feature under the privacy settings. The feature is, however, being rolled out in increments, so you may not see it even if you’re on the very same WhatsApp version.
The last seen status, your profile avatar, and the About section have all been updated. You’ll be able to hide your profile picture, about section, and last seen status from anyone you want in the latter. Whenever the feature is available, go to Settings > Account > Privacy to use it.
Please remember that just because you hide your last seen status from someone doesn’t mean they won’t be able to see your online status. Even if you hide your last seen status from WhatsApp users, they will see the ‘Online’ indication below your name in the chat screen. In addition, you won’t be able to see the last seen status of people who are on your “hidden” lists in WhatsApp.
Earlier this week, the company announced a number of upcoming features, such as message reactions, a 2GB file sharing limit, up to 32-person in a group call, and communities, including administrator controls for deleting messages in the group, etc.