diff --git a/scripts/gate-lane-candidate-binding.test.mjs b/scripts/gate-lane-candidate-binding.test.mjs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..ed3250d14
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/gate-lane-candidate-binding.test.mjs
@@ -0,0 +1,194 @@
+import { test } from "node:test";
+import assert from "node:assert/strict";
+import { execFileSync, spawn, spawnSync } from "node:child_process";
+import {
+  chmodSync,
+  existsSync,
+  mkdirSync,
+  mkdtempSync,
+  readFileSync,
+  symlinkSync,
+  writeFileSync,
+} from "node:fs";
+import net from "node:net";
+import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
+import { dirname, join } from "node:path";
+import { fileURLToPath } from "node:url";
+
+const GATE_SCRIPT = fileURLToPath(new URL("./gate-lane.mjs", import.meta.url));
+
+function write(path, text) {
+  mkdirSync(dirname(path), { recursive: true });
+  writeFileSync(path, text);
+}
+
+function git(root, ...args) {
+  return execFileSync("git", args, { cwd: root, encoding: "utf8" }).trim();
+}
+
+function makeRepo() {
+  const root = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "gate-candidate-"));
+  write(join(root, ".gitignore"), "node_modules/\npackages/cli/daemon/\n");
+  write(join(root, "tracked.txt"), "one\n");
+  write(join(root, "packages/cli/index.js"), "export {};\n");
+  const packages = {
+    "": { workspaces: ["packages/cli"] },
+    "node_modules/@openrig/cli": { resolved: "packages/cli", link: true },
+    "packages/cli": { name: "@openrig/cli" },
+  };
+  write(join(root, "package-lock.json"), `${JSON.stringify({ name: "fixture", lockfileVersion: 3, packages }, null, 2)}\n`);
+  mkdirSync(join(root, "node_modules/@openrig"), { recursive: true });
+  symlinkSync("../../packages/cli", join(root, "node_modules/@openrig/cli"));
+  git(root, "init", "-q");
+  git(root, "config", "user.email", "gate@example.invalid");
+  git(root, "config", "user.name", "Gate Test");
+  git(root, "add", ".");
+  git(root, "commit", "-qm", "fixture");
+  return root;
+}
+
+async function freePort() {
+  const server = net.createServer();
+  await new Promise((resolve) => server.listen(0, "127.0.0.1", resolve));
+  const { port } = server.address();
+  await new Promise((resolve) => server.close(resolve));
+  return port;
+}
+
+async function runGate(root, extraEnv = {}) {
+  const port = await freePort();
+  return spawnSync(process.execPath, [GATE_SCRIPT], {
+    cwd: root,
+    encoding: "utf8",
+    env: {
+      ...process.env,
+      OPENRIG_GATE_LANE_PORT: String(port),
+      OPENRIG_GATE_LANE_SMOKE: "1",
+      OPENRIG_GATE_VERDICT: join(root, "gate-lane-verdict.json"),
+      ...extraEnv,
+    },
+  });
+}
+
+function assertCandidateRefusal(result, pattern) {
+  assert.notEqual(result.status, 0, `gate must refuse\nstdout:\n${result.stdout}\nstderr:\n${result.stderr}`);
+  assert.match(`${result.stdout}\n${result.stderr}`, pattern);
+}
+
+test("candidate binding: tracked dirt refuses before the first cleanup mutation", async () => {
+  const root = makeRepo();
+  const sentinel = join(root, "packages/cli/daemon/sentinel.txt");
+  write(sentinel, "must survive refusal\n");
+  write(join(root, "tracked.txt"), "dirty\n");
+  const result = await runGate(root);
+  assertCandidateRefusal(result, /candidate.*dirty|tracked.*change/i);
+  assert.equal(existsSync(sentinel), true, "pre-mutation refusal preserves the stale-bundle sentinel");
+});
+
+test("candidate binding: a Git-visible untracked file refuses", async () => {
+  const root = makeRepo();
+  write(join(root, "untracked.test.mjs"), "// visible\n");
+  assertCandidateRefusal(await runGate(root), /candidate.*dirty|untracked/i);
+});
+
+test("candidate binding: same verdict basename at a different path is not excluded", async () => {
+  const root = makeRepo();
+  write(join(root, "sub/dir/gate-lane-verdict.json"), "{}\n");
+  assertCandidateRefusal(await runGate(root), /sub\/dir\/gate-lane-verdict\.json|candidate.*dirty/i);
+});
+
+test("candidate binding: only the canonical verdict path may be present and the verdict binds HEAD", async () => {
+  const root = makeRepo();
+  const verdictPath = join(root, "receipts/current-verdict.json");
+  write(verdictPath, "{}\n");
+  const head = git(root, "rev-parse", "HEAD");
+  const result = await runGate(root, { OPENRIG_GATE_VERDICT: verdictPath });
+  assert.equal(result.status, 0, result.stderr);
+  const verdict = JSON.parse(readFileSync(verdictPath, "utf8"));
+  assert.equal(verdict.candidateSha, head);
+  assert.equal(verdict.gate, "pass");
+});
+
+test("candidate binding: HEAD drift during the gate refuses before writing a verdict", async () => {
+  const root = makeRepo();
+  const verdictPath = join(root, "gate-lane-verdict.json");
+  const fakeBin = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "gate-fake-npm-"));
+  const marker = join(tmpdir(), `gate-drift-marker-${process.pid}-${Date.now()}`);
+  const fakeNpm = join(fakeBin, "npm");
+  write(fakeNpm, `#!/bin/sh\n: > "$OPENRIG_TEST_MARKER"\nsleep 1\nexit 0\n`);
+  chmodSync(fakeNpm, 0o755);
+  const port = await freePort();
+
+  const child = spawn(process.execPath, [GATE_SCRIPT], {
+    cwd: root,
+    env: {
+      ...process.env,
+      PATH: `${fakeBin}:${process.env.PATH}`,
+      OPENRIG_TEST_MARKER: marker,
+      OPENRIG_GATE_LANE_PORT: String(port),
+      OPENRIG_GATE_VERDICT: verdictPath,
+    },
+    stdio: ["ignore", "pipe", "pipe"],
+  });
+  let stdout = "";
+  let stderr = "";
+  child.stdout.on("data", (chunk) => { stdout += chunk; });
+  child.stderr.on("data", (chunk) => { stderr += chunk; });
+  const closed = new Promise((resolve) => child.on("close", resolve));
+
+  const deadline = Date.now() + 5000;
+  while (!existsSync(marker) && Date.now() < deadline) {
+    await new Promise((resolve) => setTimeout(resolve, 20));
+  }
+  assert.equal(existsSync(marker), true, "the real gate reached its first injected leg");
+  write(join(root, "tracked.txt"), "two\n");
+  git(root, "add", "tracked.txt");
+  git(root, "commit", "-qm", "move head during gate");
+
+  const status = await closed;
+  assertCandidateRefusal({ status, stdout, stderr }, /HEAD.*(drift|changed)|candidateSha/i);
+  assert.equal(existsSync(verdictPath), false, "a drifted run writes no verdict");
+});
+
+test("candidate binding: Git-visible input added during the gate refuses before writing a verdict", async () => {
+  const root = makeRepo();
+  const verdictPath = join(root, "gate-lane-verdict.json");
+  const fakeBin = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "gate-fake-npm-"));
+  const marker = join(tmpdir(), `gate-dirty-marker-${process.pid}-${Date.now()}`);
+  const release = join(tmpdir(), `gate-dirty-release-${process.pid}-${Date.now()}`);
+  const fakeNpm = join(fakeBin, "npm");
+  write(fakeNpm, `#!/bin/sh\n: > "$OPENRIG_TEST_MARKER"\nwhile [ ! -e "$OPENRIG_TEST_RELEASE" ]; do sleep 0.02; done\nexit 0\n`);
+  chmodSync(fakeNpm, 0o755);
+  const port = await freePort();
+
+  const child = spawn(process.execPath, [GATE_SCRIPT], {
+    cwd: root,
+    env: {
+      ...process.env,
+      PATH: `${fakeBin}:${process.env.PATH}`,
+      OPENRIG_TEST_MARKER: marker,
+      OPENRIG_TEST_RELEASE: release,
+      OPENRIG_GATE_LANE_PORT: String(port),
+      OPENRIG_GATE_VERDICT: verdictPath,
+    },
+    stdio: ["ignore", "pipe", "pipe"],
+  });
+  let stdout = "";
+  let stderr = "";
+  child.stdout.on("data", (chunk) => { stdout += chunk; });
+  child.stderr.on("data", (chunk) => { stderr += chunk; });
+  const closed = new Promise((resolve) => child.on("close", resolve));
+
+  const deadline = Date.now() + 5000;
+  while (!existsSync(marker) && Date.now() < deadline) {
+    await new Promise((resolve) => setTimeout(resolve, 20));
+  }
+  if (!existsSync(marker)) write(release, "abort\n");
+  assert.equal(existsSync(marker), true, "the real gate reached its first injected leg");
+  write(join(root, "late-input.test.mjs"), "// introduced while the gate was running\n");
+  write(release, "continue\n");
+
+  const status = await closed;
+  assertCandidateRefusal({ status, stdout, stderr }, /candidate.*dirty|late-input\.test\.mjs/i);
+  assert.equal(existsSync(verdictPath), false, "a late-dirty run writes no verdict");
+});
diff --git a/scripts/gate-lane-consume.mjs b/scripts/gate-lane-consume.mjs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..29b8d255e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/gate-lane-consume.mjs
@@ -0,0 +1,54 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env node
+import { existsSync, readFileSync, unlinkSync } from "node:fs";
+import { spawnSync } from "node:child_process";
+import { join, resolve } from "node:path";
+import { fileURLToPath } from "node:url";
+
+function refuse(message) {
+  throw new Error(`[gate-consume] REFUSED: ${message}`);
+}
+
+/** Honor one exact real-gate verdict, then remove it so it cannot be reused. */
+export function consumeGateVerdict({ verdictPath, headSha, log = console.log }) {
+  if (!existsSync(verdictPath)) refuse(`verdict is missing: ${verdictPath}`);
+  let verdict;
+  try {
+    verdict = JSON.parse(readFileSync(verdictPath, "utf8"));
+  } catch (error) {
+    refuse(`verdict is not valid JSON: ${error?.message ?? error}`);
+  }
+  if (typeof verdict?.candidateSha !== "string" || verdict.candidateSha.length === 0) {
+    refuse("candidateSha is required");
+  }
+  if (verdict.candidateSha !== headSha) {
+    refuse(`candidateSha does not match current HEAD (verdict=${verdict.candidateSha}, HEAD=${headSha})`);
+  }
+  if (verdict.gate !== "pass") refuse(`gate must be "pass" (received ${JSON.stringify(verdict.gate)})`);
+  if (verdict.smoke !== false) refuse("smoke must be strictly false; only a real gate may be consumed");
+
+  unlinkSync(verdictPath);
+  if (existsSync(verdictPath)) refuse(`consumed verdict still exists after unlink: ${verdictPath}`);
+  log(`[gate-consume] honored and consumed candidate ${headSha}; removed ${verdictPath}`);
+  return verdict;
+}
+
+function readHead(root) {
+  const result = spawnSync("git", ["rev-parse", "HEAD"], { cwd: root, encoding: "utf8" });
+  if (result.status !== 0) refuse(`cannot derive current HEAD: ${result.stderr.trim()}`);
+  return result.stdout.trim();
+}
+
+function main() {
+  const root = process.cwd();
+  const verdictPath = resolve(process.argv[2] ?? process.env.OPENRIG_GATE_VERDICT ?? join(root, "gate-lane-verdict.json"));
+  consumeGateVerdict({ verdictPath, headSha: readHead(root) });
+}
+
+if (process.argv[1] && resolve(process.argv[1]) === fileURLToPath(import.meta.url)) {
+  try {
+    main();
+  } catch (error) {
+    console.error(error?.message ?? error);
+    process.exitCode = 1;
+  }
+}
diff --git a/scripts/gate-lane-consume.test.mjs b/scripts/gate-lane-consume.test.mjs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..f05f6a676
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/gate-lane-consume.test.mjs
@@ -0,0 +1,93 @@
+import { test } from "node:test";
+import assert from "node:assert/strict";
+import { execFileSync, spawnSync } from "node:child_process";
+import { existsSync, mkdirSync, mkdtempSync, writeFileSync } from "node:fs";
+import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
+import { dirname, join } from "node:path";
+import { fileURLToPath } from "node:url";
+
+const CONSUMER = fileURLToPath(new URL("./gate-lane-consume.mjs", import.meta.url));
+
+function write(path, text) {
+  mkdirSync(dirname(path), { recursive: true });
+  writeFileSync(path, text);
+}
+
+function git(root, ...args) {
+  return execFileSync("git", args, { cwd: root, encoding: "utf8" }).trim();
+}
+
+function makeRepo() {
+  const root = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "gate-consume-"));
+  write(join(root, "tracked.txt"), "one\n");
+  git(root, "init", "-q");
+  git(root, "config", "user.email", "gate@example.invalid");
+  git(root, "config", "user.name", "Gate Test");
+  git(root, "add", ".");
+  git(root, "commit", "-qm", "fixture");
+  return { root, head: git(root, "rev-parse", "HEAD"), verdictPath: join(root, "gate-lane-verdict.json") };
+}
+
+function runConsumer(root, verdictPath) {
+  return spawnSync(process.execPath, [CONSUMER, verdictPath], { cwd: root, encoding: "utf8" });
+}
+
+function assertRefused(result, verdictPath, pattern) {
+  assert.notEqual(result.status, 0, `consumer must refuse\nstdout:\n${result.stdout}\nstderr:\n${result.stderr}`);
+  assert.match(`${result.stdout}\n${result.stderr}`, pattern);
+  if (verdictPath) assert.equal(existsSync(verdictPath), true, "a refused verdict is retained");
+}
+
+function put(path, value) {
+  write(path, `${JSON.stringify(value)}\n`);
+}
+
+test("consumer refuses loudly when no verdict exists", () => {
+  const { root, verdictPath } = makeRepo();
+  const result = runConsumer(root, verdictPath);
+  assert.notEqual(result.status, 0);
+  assert.match(`${result.stdout}\n${result.stderr}`, /verdict.*(missing|does not exist)/i);
+});
+
+test("consumer refuses and retains a verdict with no candidateSha", () => {
+  const { root, verdictPath } = makeRepo();
+  put(verdictPath, { gate: "pass", smoke: false });
+  assertRefused(runConsumer(root, verdictPath), verdictPath, /candidateSha.*required|missing.*candidateSha/i);
+});
+
+test("consumer derives current HEAD and refuses a stale candidateSha", () => {
+  const { root, head, verdictPath } = makeRepo();
+  put(verdictPath, { candidateSha: head, gate: "pass", smoke: false });
+  write(join(root, "tracked.txt"), "two\n");
+  git(root, "add", "tracked.txt");
+  git(root, "commit", "-qm", "move head");
+  assertRefused(runConsumer(root, verdictPath), verdictPath, /candidateSha.*(mismatch|does not match)|current HEAD/i);
+});
+
+test("consumer refuses and retains a matching-SHA failed verdict", () => {
+  const { root, head, verdictPath } = makeRepo();
+  put(verdictPath, { candidateSha: head, gate: "fail", smoke: false });
+  assertRefused(runConsumer(root, verdictPath), verdictPath, /gate.*pass/i);
+});
+
+test("consumer refuses and retains a smoke:true verdict", () => {
+  const { root, head, verdictPath } = makeRepo();
+  put(verdictPath, { candidateSha: head, gate: "pass", smoke: true });
+  assertRefused(runConsumer(root, verdictPath), verdictPath, /smoke.*false|real gate/i);
+});
+
+test("consumer refuses and retains a verdict whose smoke field is absent", () => {
+  const { root, head, verdictPath } = makeRepo();
+  put(verdictPath, { candidateSha: head, gate: "pass" });
+  assertRefused(runConsumer(root, verdictPath), verdictPath, /smoke.*false|missing.*smoke/i);
+});
+
+test("consumer honors only a matching real PASS and removes the consumed artifact", () => {
+  const { root, head, verdictPath } = makeRepo();
+  put(verdictPath, { candidateSha: head, gate: "pass", smoke: false });
+  const result = runConsumer(root, verdictPath);
+  assert.equal(result.status, 0, result.stderr);
+  assert.match(result.stdout, /consum|honor/i);
+  assert.match(result.stdout, new RegExp(head));
+  assert.equal(existsSync(verdictPath), false, "successful consume removes the verdict");
+});
diff --git a/scripts/gate-lane-hermeticity.mjs b/scripts/gate-lane-hermeticity.mjs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..4a7eb51ba
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/gate-lane-hermeticity.mjs
@@ -0,0 +1,88 @@
+import { lstatSync, readFileSync, realpathSync } from "node:fs";
+import { isAbsolute, join, relative } from "node:path";
+
+function fail(message) {
+  throw new Error(`[gate-hermeticity] REFUSED: ${message}`);
+}
+
+function inside(parent, child) {
+  const rel = relative(parent, child);
+  return rel === "" || (!rel.startsWith("..") && !isAbsolute(rel));
+}
+
+/**
+ * Verify that this worktree owns the dependency root and every lock-derived
+ * @openrig workspace link. The check reports only; it never repairs.
+ */
+export function checkDependencyRoot(repoRoot, { log = console.log } = {}) {
+  const root = realpathSync(repoRoot);
+  const nodeModules = join(root, "node_modules");
+  let nodeModulesStat;
+  try {
+    nodeModulesStat = lstatSync(nodeModules);
+  } catch {
+    fail(`node_modules is absent at ${nodeModules}`);
+  }
+  if (nodeModulesStat.isSymbolicLink()) {
+    let actual = "<unresolved>";
+    try { actual = realpathSync(nodeModules); } catch { /* reported below */ }
+    log(`[gate-hermeticity] node_modules actual=${actual} expected=${nodeModules}`);
+    fail(`node_modules is a symlink: ${nodeModules}`);
+  }
+  if (!nodeModulesStat.isDirectory()) fail(`node_modules is not a directory: ${nodeModules}`);
+
+  let lock;
+  try {
+    lock = JSON.parse(readFileSync(join(root, "package-lock.json"), "utf8"));
+  } catch (error) {
+    fail(`cannot read package-lock.json: ${error?.message ?? error}`);
+  }
+  const entries = Object.entries(lock?.packages ?? {})
+    .filter(([path]) => path.startsWith("node_modules/@openrig/"))
+    .sort(([a], [b]) => a.localeCompare(b));
+  if (entries.length === 0) fail("zero scoped @openrig links were derived from package-lock.json");
+
+  const packagesRoot = realpathSync(join(root, "packages"));
+  const pairs = [];
+  const failures = [];
+  for (const [linkPath, metadata] of entries) {
+    const name = linkPath.slice("node_modules/".length);
+    if (metadata?.link !== true || typeof metadata.resolved !== "string" || metadata.resolved.trim() === "") {
+      log(`[gate-hermeticity] ${name} actual=<unchecked> expected=<missing lock-derived target>`);
+      failures.push(`${name} has no lock-derived workspace target`);
+      continue;
+    }
+
+    const expectedPath = join(root, metadata.resolved);
+    let expected;
+    try {
+      expected = realpathSync(expectedPath);
+    } catch (error) {
+      log(`[gate-hermeticity] ${name} actual=<unchecked> expected=<unresolved:${expectedPath}>`);
+      failures.push(`${name} expected target cannot be resolved: ${error?.message ?? error}`);
+      continue;
+    }
+    if (!inside(packagesRoot, expected)) {
+      log(`[gate-hermeticity] ${name} actual=<unchecked> expected=${expected}`);
+      failures.push(`${name} lock-derived target escapes ${packagesRoot}`);
+      continue;
+    }
+
+    const actualPath = join(root, linkPath);
+    let actual;
+    try {
+      actual = realpathSync(actualPath);
+    } catch (error) {
+      log(`[gate-hermeticity] ${name} actual=<unresolved:${actualPath}> expected=${expected}`);
+      failures.push(`${name} actual target cannot be resolved: ${error?.message ?? error}`);
+      continue;
+    }
+    const line = `[gate-hermeticity] ${name} actual=${actual} expected=${expected}`;
+    log(line);
+    pairs.push({ name, actual, expected });
+    if (actual !== expected) failures.push(`${name} actual target does not equal its lock-derived expected target`);
+  }
+
+  if (failures.length > 0) fail(failures.join("; "));
+  return { checked: pairs.length, pairs };
+}
diff --git a/scripts/gate-lane-hermeticity.test.mjs b/scripts/gate-lane-hermeticity.test.mjs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..093fc44e0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/gate-lane-hermeticity.test.mjs
@@ -0,0 +1,191 @@
+import { test } from "node:test";
+import assert from "node:assert/strict";
+import { execFileSync, spawn, spawnSync } from "node:child_process";
+import {
+  chmodSync,
+  existsSync,
+  mkdirSync,
+  mkdtempSync,
+  rmSync,
+  symlinkSync,
+  writeFileSync,
+} from "node:fs";
+import net from "node:net";
+import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
+import { dirname, join } from "node:path";
+import { fileURLToPath } from "node:url";
+
+const GATE_SCRIPT = fileURLToPath(new URL("./gate-lane.mjs", import.meta.url));
+const CONSUMER_SCRIPT = fileURLToPath(new URL("./gate-lane-consume.mjs", import.meta.url));
+
+function write(path, text) {
+  mkdirSync(dirname(path), { recursive: true });
+  writeFileSync(path, text);
+}
+
+function git(root, ...args) {
+  return execFileSync("git", args, { cwd: root, encoding: "utf8" }).trim();
+}
+
+function makeRepo({ lockEntries = true, dependencyRoot = "exact" } = {}) {
+  const root = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "gate-hermeticity-"));
+  write(join(root, ".gitignore"), "node_modules/\npackages/cli/daemon/\n");
+  write(join(root, "package.json"), '{"private":true}\n');
+  write(join(root, "packages/cli/index.js"), "export {};\n");
+  write(join(root, "packages/other/index.js"), "export {};\n");
+  const packages = lockEntries
+    ? {
+        "": { workspaces: ["packages/cli"] },
+        "node_modules/@openrig/cli": { resolved: "packages/cli", link: true },
+        "packages/cli": { name: "@openrig/cli" },
+      }
+    : { "": { workspaces: [] } };
+  write(join(root, "package-lock.json"), `${JSON.stringify({ name: "fixture", lockfileVersion: 3, packages }, null, 2)}\n`);
+
+  if (dependencyRoot === "symlink") {
+    const foreign = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "gate-hermeticity-root-"));
+    mkdirSync(join(foreign, "node_modules"), { recursive: true });
+    symlinkSync(join(foreign, "node_modules"), join(root, "node_modules"));
+  } else if (dependencyRoot !== "absent") {
+    mkdirSync(join(root, "node_modules/@openrig"), { recursive: true });
+    const target = dependencyRoot === "swapped"
+      ? "../../packages/other"
+      : dependencyRoot === "cross-tree"
+        ? join(mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "gate-hermeticity-cross-")), "packages/cli")
+        : "../../packages/cli";
+    if (dependencyRoot === "cross-tree") mkdirSync(target, { recursive: true });
+    symlinkSync(target, join(root, "node_modules/@openrig/cli"));
+  }
+
+  git(root, "init", "-q");
+  git(root, "config", "user.email", "gate@example.invalid");
+  git(root, "config", "user.name", "Gate Test");
+  git(root, "add", ".");
+  git(root, "commit", "-qm", "fixture");
+  return root;
+}
+
+async function freePort() {
+  const server = net.createServer();
+  await new Promise((resolve) => server.listen(0, "127.0.0.1", resolve));
+  const { port } = server.address();
+  await new Promise((resolve) => server.close(resolve));
+  return port;
+}
+
+async function runGate(root) {
+  const port = await freePort();
+  return spawnSync(process.execPath, [GATE_SCRIPT], {
+    cwd: root,
+    encoding: "utf8",
+    env: {
+      ...process.env,
+      OPENRIG_GATE_LANE_PORT: String(port),
+      OPENRIG_GATE_LANE_SMOKE: "1",
+      OPENRIG_GATE_VERDICT: join(root, "gate-lane-verdict.json"),
+    },
+  });
+}
+
+function assertHermeticRefusal(result, pattern) {
+  assert.notEqual(result.status, 0, `gate must refuse\nstdout:\n${result.stdout}\nstderr:\n${result.stderr}`);
+  assert.match(`${result.stdout}\n${result.stderr}`, pattern);
+}
+
+test("dependency root: absent node_modules refuses before the gate mutates", async () => {
+  const result = await runGate(makeRepo({ dependencyRoot: "absent" }));
+  assertHermeticRefusal(result, /node_modules.*absent|missing dependency root/i);
+});
+
+test("dependency root: a symlinked node_modules root refuses", async () => {
+  const root = makeRepo({ dependencyRoot: "symlink" });
+  const sentinel = join(root, "packages/cli/daemon/sentinel.txt");
+  write(sentinel, "must survive refusal\n");
+  const result = await runGate(root);
+  assertHermeticRefusal(result, /node_modules.*symlink/i);
+  assert.equal(existsSync(sentinel), true, "the hermeticity refusal runs before cleanup mutation");
+});
+
+test("dependency root: a scoped link escaping to another tree refuses and prints both operands", async () => {
+  const result = await runGate(makeRepo({ dependencyRoot: "cross-tree" }));
+  assertHermeticRefusal(result, /@openrig\/cli[\s\S]*actual[\s\S]*expected/i);
+});
+
+test("dependency root: a scoped link swapped to another in-tree package refuses", async () => {
+  const result = await runGate(makeRepo({ dependencyRoot: "swapped" }));
+  assertHermeticRefusal(result, /@openrig\/cli[\s\S]*packages\/other[\s\S]*packages\/cli/i);
+});
+
+test("dependency root: a lock deriving zero scoped links refuses instead of vacuously passing", async () => {
+  const result = await runGate(makeRepo({ lockEntries: false }));
+  assertHermeticRefusal(result, /zero|no scoped @openrig/i);
+});
+
+test("dependency root: exact lock-derived target passes and prints the actual/expected pair", async () => {
+  const result = await runGate(makeRepo());
+  assert.equal(result.status, 0, result.stderr);
+  assert.match(result.stdout, /@openrig\/cli[\s\S]*actual[\s\S]*expected/i);
+  assert.match(result.stdout, /packages\/cli/i);
+});
+
+test("dependency root: a later refusal invalidates a same-HEAD prior PASS", async () => {
+  const root = makeRepo();
+  const verdictPath = join(root, "gate-lane-verdict.json");
+  const first = await runGate(root);
+  assert.equal(first.status, 0, first.stderr);
+  assert.equal(existsSync(verdictPath), true, "the first gate writes a PASS receipt");
+
+  rmSync(join(root, "node_modules/@openrig/cli"), { force: true });
+  symlinkSync("../../packages/other", join(root, "node_modules/@openrig/cli"));
+
+  const second = await runGate(root);
+  assertHermeticRefusal(second, /@openrig\/cli[\s\S]*packages\/other[\s\S]*packages\/cli/i);
+  assert.equal(existsSync(verdictPath), false, "the refused retry invalidates the prior PASS");
+  const consume = spawnSync(process.execPath, [CONSUMER_SCRIPT, verdictPath], { cwd: root, encoding: "utf8" });
+  assert.notEqual(consume.status, 0, "the prior PASS is no longer consumable");
+  assert.match(`${consume.stdout}\n${consume.stderr}`, /verdict.*missing/i);
+});
+
+test("dependency root: drift during the gate refuses before writing a verdict", async () => {
+  const root = makeRepo();
+  const verdictPath = join(root, "gate-lane-verdict.json");
+  const fakeBin = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "gate-hermeticity-fake-npm-"));
+  const marker = join(tmpdir(), `gate-root-marker-${process.pid}-${Date.now()}`);
+  const release = join(tmpdir(), `gate-root-release-${process.pid}-${Date.now()}`);
+  const fakeNpm = join(fakeBin, "npm");
+  write(fakeNpm, `#!/bin/sh\n: > "$OPENRIG_TEST_MARKER"\nwhile [ ! -e "$OPENRIG_TEST_RELEASE" ]; do sleep 0.02; done\nexit 0\n`);
+  chmodSync(fakeNpm, 0o755);
+  const port = await freePort();
+
+  const child = spawn(process.execPath, [GATE_SCRIPT], {
+    cwd: root,
+    env: {
+      ...process.env,
+      PATH: `${fakeBin}:${process.env.PATH}`,
+      OPENRIG_TEST_MARKER: marker,
+      OPENRIG_TEST_RELEASE: release,
+      OPENRIG_GATE_LANE_PORT: String(port),
+      OPENRIG_GATE_VERDICT: verdictPath,
+    },
+    stdio: ["ignore", "pipe", "pipe"],
+  });
+  let stdout = "";
+  let stderr = "";
+  child.stdout.on("data", (chunk) => { stdout += chunk; });
+  child.stderr.on("data", (chunk) => { stderr += chunk; });
+  const closed = new Promise((resolve) => child.on("close", resolve));
+
+  const deadline = Date.now() + 5000;
+  while (!existsSync(marker) && Date.now() < deadline) {
+    await new Promise((resolve) => setTimeout(resolve, 20));
+  }
+  if (!existsSync(marker)) write(release, "abort\n");
+  assert.equal(existsSync(marker), true, "the real gate reached its first injected leg");
+  rmSync(join(root, "node_modules/@openrig/cli"), { force: true });
+  symlinkSync("../../packages/other", join(root, "node_modules/@openrig/cli"));
+  write(release, "continue\n");
+
+  const status = await closed;
+  assertHermeticRefusal({ status, stdout, stderr }, /@openrig\/cli[\s\S]*packages\/other[\s\S]*packages\/cli|gate-hermeticity/i);
+  assert.equal(existsSync(verdictPath), false, "a late dependency-root drift writes no verdict");
+});
diff --git a/scripts/gate-lane.mjs b/scripts/gate-lane.mjs
index 652304cc8..894f25bce 100644
--- a/scripts/gate-lane.mjs
+++ b/scripts/gate-lane.mjs
@@ -5,12 +5,13 @@
 //   (advisory, recorded) → run BOTH legs (typecheck AND vitest AND vitest:ui — the two honesty gaps) →
 //   write the C2 verdict (green carries the load it ran under) → release (kernel also frees on death).
 import { spawnSync, execSync } from "node:child_process";
-import { writeFileSync, readFileSync, mkdirSync } from "node:fs";
+import { writeFileSync, readFileSync, mkdirSync, realpathSync, unlinkSync } from "node:fs";
 import { tmpdir, loadavg } from "node:os";
-import { join, dirname } from "node:path";
+import { join, dirname, basename, isAbsolute, relative, resolve, sep } from "node:path";
 import { fileURLToPath } from "node:url";
 import { acquireGateLane, GATE_LANE_PORT } from "./gate-lane-lock.mjs";
 import { renderRefusal, runGate, observeForeignLoad, cleanStaleVendoredBundle } from "./gate-lane-run.mjs";
+import { checkDependencyRoot } from "./gate-lane-hermeticity.mjs";
 
 const RUNTIME_DIR = (() => { const d = join(tmpdir(), "openrig-gate"); mkdirSync(d, { recursive: true }); return d; })();
 const HOLDER_INFO = join(RUNTIME_DIR, "gate-lane.holder.json");
@@ -37,6 +38,53 @@ function snapshotProcesses() {
   } catch { return []; }
 }
 
+function runGit(args, cwd) {
+  const result = spawnSync("git", args, { cwd, encoding: "utf8" });
+  if (result.status !== 0) throw new Error(`git ${args.join(" ")} failed: ${result.stderr.trim()}`);
+  return result.stdout;
+}
+
+function readCandidateSha(repoRoot) {
+  const sha = runGit(["rev-parse", "HEAD"], repoRoot).trim();
+  if (!sha) throw new Error("candidate HEAD is empty");
+  return sha;
+}
+
+function canonicalVerdictRelativePath(repoRoot) {
+  const verdictPath = resolve(VERDICT_PATH);
+  let canonicalPath = verdictPath;
+  try {
+    canonicalPath = realpathSync(verdictPath);
+  } catch {
+    try { canonicalPath = join(realpathSync(dirname(verdictPath)), basename(verdictPath)); } catch { /* absent parent: no status entry can match */ }
+  }
+  const rel = relative(realpathSync(repoRoot), canonicalPath);
+  if (rel === "" || rel.startsWith("..") || isAbsolute(rel)) return null;
+  return rel.split(sep).join("/");
+}
+
+function assertCandidateClean(repoRoot) {
+  const canonicalVerdict = canonicalVerdictRelativePath(repoRoot);
+  const records = runGit(["status", "--porcelain=v1", "-z", "--untracked-files=all"], repoRoot)
+    .split("\0")
+    .filter(Boolean);
+  const unexpected = records.filter((record) => {
+    if (record.length < 4 || record[2] !== " ") return true;
+    return record.slice(3).split(sep).join("/") !== canonicalVerdict;
+  });
+  if (unexpected.length > 0) {
+    throw new Error(`candidate worktree is dirty: ${unexpected.join(" | ")}`);
+  }
+}
+
+function invalidatePriorVerdict() {
+  try {
+    unlinkSync(VERDICT_PATH);
+  } catch (error) {
+    if (error?.code !== "ENOENT") throw error;
+  }
+}
+
 async function main() {
   const startedAt = new Date().toISOString();
   const lane = await acquireGateLane({ port: GATE_LANE_PORT, holderInfoPath: HOLDER_INFO });
@@ -46,8 +94,15 @@ async function main() {
   }
   let exitCode = 3;
   try {
+    // This acquired run supersedes every earlier receipt, including for the same HEAD.
+    invalidatePriorVerdict();
     const foreignLoad = observeForeignLoad({ loadavg: loadavg(), processes: snapshotProcesses() });
     if (foreignLoad.advisory.length) console.warn(`⚠ advisory (exit UNCHANGED, recorded in verdict): ${foreignLoad.advisory.join("; ")}`);
+    // Bind the run to one clean, worktree-local candidate BEFORE the first repository mutation.
+    const repoRoot = process.cwd();
+    const candidateSha = readCandidateSha(repoRoot);
+    assertCandidateClean(repoRoot);
+    checkDependencyRoot(repoRoot);
     // SOURCE-TRUTH: drop any stale vendored daemon bundle (a gitignored build:package leftover) before
     // the legs run, so test:repo's freshness guard is never poisoned by a desk leftover. Real package-time
     // assembly is still guarded; a fresh checkout is a no-op.
@@ -61,6 +116,13 @@ async function main() {
     // picks the executor AND flows into the verdict, so the two can never disagree. The gate's own
     // negative-control test calls THIS SAME runGate — it guards this shipped path, not a lookalike.
     const verdict = await runGate({ smoke: SMOKE, realExec, foreignLoad, startedAt, ledger, cutCeiling });
+    const endingSha = readCandidateSha(repoRoot);
+    if (endingSha !== candidateSha) {
+      throw new Error(`candidate HEAD changed during gate (started ${candidateSha}, ended ${endingSha})`);
+    }
+    assertCandidateClean(repoRoot);
+    checkDependencyRoot(repoRoot);
+    verdict.candidateSha = candidateSha;
     mkdirSync(dirname(VERDICT_PATH), { recursive: true }); // ensure the verdict's home exists
     writeFileSync(VERDICT_PATH, JSON.stringify(verdict, null, 2));
     console.log(verdict.ledgerState); // in-band LOUD: name every exclusion (or "0 exclusions")