diff --git a/.github/workflows/close-draft-prs.yml b/.github/workflows/close-draft-prs.yml
index 690ae5fbf..f2d361e89 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/close-draft-prs.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/close-draft-prs.yml
@@ -14,7 +14,10 @@ permissions:
 jobs:
   close-if-draft:
     name: Reject draft PRs
-    if: github.event.pull_request.draft == true
+    # Maintainers may use draft PRs for internal coordination.
+    if: >-
+      github.event.pull_request.draft == true &&
+      contains(fromJSON('["OWNER","MEMBER","COLLABORATOR"]'), github.event.pull_request.author_association) == false
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
       - name: Comment and close draft PR
diff --git a/.github/workflows/pr-target-validator.yml b/.github/workflows/pr-target-validator.yml
index 18b59d6cf..ade2c8fea 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/pr-target-validator.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/pr-target-validator.yml
@@ -22,6 +22,9 @@ permissions:
 
 jobs:
   validate-target:
+    # Maintainers may open internal release/backport coordination PRs against main.
+    if: >-
+      contains(fromJSON('["OWNER","MEMBER","COLLABORATOR"]'), github.event.pull_request.author_association) == false
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     timeout-minutes: 2
     env:
diff --git a/tests/workflow-maintainer-skip.test.cjs b/tests/workflow-maintainer-skip.test.cjs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..64233d25c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/workflow-maintainer-skip.test.cjs
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+// allow-test-rule: source-text-is-the-product
+// These workflow files are deployed policy; the tests lock the maintainer
+// carve-out so future edits do not accidentally re-enable enforcement.
+'use strict';
+
+const { describe, test } = require('node:test');
+const assert = require('node:assert/strict');
+const fs = require('node:fs');
+const path = require('node:path');
+
+const MAINTAINER_SKIP_EXPR = 'contains(fromJSON(\'["OWNER","MEMBER","COLLABORATOR"]\'), github.event.pull_request.author_association) == false';
+
+function readWorkflow(relativePath) {
+  return fs.readFileSync(path.join(process.cwd(), relativePath), 'utf8');
+}
+
+function assertMaintainerSkip(source) {
+  assert.ok(
+    source.includes(MAINTAINER_SKIP_EXPR),
+    `Expected workflow to include maintainer skip expression: ${MAINTAINER_SKIP_EXPR}`
+  );
+}
+
+describe('PR policy workflow maintainer carve-outs', () => {
+  test('draft PR auto-close does not run for maintainer-authored PRs', () => {
+    const workflow = readWorkflow('.github/workflows/close-draft-prs.yml');
+
+    assert.match(workflow, /github\.event\.pull_request\.draft == true/);
+    assertMaintainerSkip(workflow);
+  });
+
+  test('PR target validator does not run for maintainer-authored PRs', () => {
+    const workflow = readWorkflow('.github/workflows/pr-target-validator.yml');
+
+    assertMaintainerSkip(workflow);
+  });
+});