diff --git a/.github/workflows/release.yml b/.github/workflows/release.yml
index 2dad33cce..0cfbb345e 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/release.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/release.yml
@@ -200,8 +200,7 @@ jobs:
           git add package.json package-lock.json
           git commit -m "chore: bump to ${PRE_VERSION}"
 
-      - name: Ensure npm supports trusted publishing
-        run: npm install -g npm@latest
+      # npm bundled with Node 24 (pinned via setup-node) already supports trusted publishing (#318)
 
       - name: Dry-run publish validation
         run: npm publish --dry-run --tag next
@@ -326,8 +325,7 @@ jobs:
           scripts/check-npm-integrity.sh
           npm run test:coverage:unit
 
-      - name: Ensure npm supports trusted publishing
-        run: npm install -g npm@latest
+      # npm bundled with Node 24 (pinned via setup-node) already supports trusted publishing (#318)
 
       - name: Dry-run publish validation
         run: npm publish --dry-run
diff --git a/tests/policy-release-no-npm-self-upgrade.test.cjs b/tests/policy-release-no-npm-self-upgrade.test.cjs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..753593cfa
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/policy-release-no-npm-self-upgrade.test.cjs
@@ -0,0 +1,67 @@
+'use strict';
+
+// allow-test-rule: source-text-is-the-product
+// Workflow YAML is a runtime contract; these assertions verify that the
+// anti-pattern of runtime global npm self-upgrade never re-enters release lanes.
+
+const { describe, test } = require('node:test');
+const assert = require('node:assert/strict');
+const fs = require('node:fs');
+const path = require('node:path');
+
+const REPO_ROOT = path.join(__dirname, '..');
+const WORKFLOWS_DIR = path.join(REPO_ROOT, '.github', 'workflows');
+
+// Matches: npm install -g npm@..., npm i -g npm, npm install --global npm@11, etc.
+// Does NOT match: npm ci, npm install (no -g / --global followed by npm)
+const NPM_SELF_UPGRADE_RE = /\bnpm\s+(install|i)\s+(-g|--global)\b[^\n]*\bnpm(@|\b)/;
+
+describe('policy: no runtime npm self-upgrade in release lanes (#318)', () => {
+  const releaseFile = path.join(WORKFLOWS_DIR, 'release.yml');
+  const hotfixFile = path.join(WORKFLOWS_DIR, 'hotfix.yml');
+
+  test('release.yml must not contain a runtime global npm self-upgrade step', () => {
+    const content = fs.readFileSync(releaseFile, 'utf8');
+    const lines = content.split('\n');
+    const violations = lines
+      .map((line, idx) => ({ line, lineNo: idx + 1 }))
+      .filter(({ line }) => NPM_SELF_UPGRADE_RE.test(line));
+
+    assert.strictEqual(
+      violations.length,
+      0,
+      `release.yml contains ${violations.length} runtime npm self-upgrade line(s) — ` +
+        `remove them and rely on Node 24 bundled npm (pinned via setup-node). ` +
+        `Violations: ${violations.map(({ lineNo, line }) => `line ${lineNo}: ${line.trim()}`).join('; ')}`
+    );
+  });
+
+  test('hotfix.yml must not contain a runtime global npm self-upgrade step', () => {
+    const content = fs.readFileSync(hotfixFile, 'utf8');
+    const lines = content.split('\n');
+    const violations = lines
+      .map((line, idx) => ({ line, lineNo: idx + 1 }))
+      .filter(({ line }) => NPM_SELF_UPGRADE_RE.test(line));
+
+    assert.strictEqual(
+      violations.length,
+      0,
+      `hotfix.yml contains ${violations.length} runtime npm self-upgrade line(s) — ` +
+        `Violations: ${violations.map(({ lineNo, line }) => `line ${lineNo}: ${line.trim()}`).join('; ')}`
+    );
+  });
+
+  test('NPM_SELF_UPGRADE_RE correctly matches the antipattern', () => {
+    // Positive cases — must match
+    assert.ok(NPM_SELF_UPGRADE_RE.test('npm install -g npm@latest'), 'should match npm install -g npm@latest');
+    assert.ok(NPM_SELF_UPGRADE_RE.test('npm i -g npm'), 'should match npm i -g npm');
+    assert.ok(NPM_SELF_UPGRADE_RE.test('npm install --global npm@11'), 'should match npm install --global npm@11');
+    assert.ok(NPM_SELF_UPGRADE_RE.test('  run: npm install -g npm@latest'), 'should match indented run step');
+
+    // Negative cases — must NOT match
+    assert.ok(!NPM_SELF_UPGRADE_RE.test('npm ci'), 'should not match npm ci');
+    assert.ok(!NPM_SELF_UPGRADE_RE.test('npm install'), 'should not match plain npm install');
+    assert.ok(!NPM_SELF_UPGRADE_RE.test('npm install -g some-other-tool'), 'should not match -g some-other-tool');
+    assert.ok(!NPM_SELF_UPGRADE_RE.test('npm run build'), 'should not match npm run');
+  });
+});