diff --git a/lib/pregate/context.ts b/lib/pregate/context.ts
index 754f535b5..8e4bb5209 100644
--- a/lib/pregate/context.ts
+++ b/lib/pregate/context.ts
@@ -220,7 +220,7 @@ export function buildContext(o: BuildContextOptions): ContextLoad {
     const user = rejected ? null : loadConfigFromUser(o.userConfigPath, o.knownChecks);
     if (user) configLoad = user;
     else explain.push(`user policy: ${o.userConfigPath} ${rejected ? `ignored (${rejected})` : '(absent)'}`);
-    if (!user && !rejected && o.policyFrom === 'base') absentUserPolicy = o.userConfigPath;
+    if (!user && !rejected) absentUserPolicy = o.userConfigPath;
   }
   if (isConfigUnavailable(configLoad)) return { refused: { code: 'POLICY_SOURCE_UNAVAILABLE', message: configLoad.detail } };
   if (o.policyFrom === 'head' && !configLoad.errors.length) {
@@ -246,7 +246,7 @@ export function buildContext(o: BuildContextOptions): ContextLoad {
   return {
     ctx: {
       repoRoot: o.repoRoot, base, baseRef, baseSha: baseSha.out, mergeBase, head, wtree, touched: touchedFiles(o.repoRoot, mergeBase),
-      config, configLabel: configLoad.label, configKind: configLoad.kind, scratch, configFile: configLoad.kind === 'user' && o.userConfigPath ? o.userConfigPath : PREGATE_CONFIG_PATH, ...(configLoad.kind === 'user' && configLoad.digest ? { configDigest: configLoad.digest } : {}), ...(absentUserPolicy ? { absentUserPolicy } : {}), registry: registryLoad.registry as Registry, registryLabel: registryLoad.source.label,
+      config, configLabel: configLoad.label, configKind: configLoad.kind, scratch, configFile: configLoad.kind === 'user' && o.userConfigPath ? o.userConfigPath : PREGATE_CONFIG_PATH, ...(configLoad.digest ? { configDigest: configLoad.digest } : {}), ...(absentUserPolicy ? { absentUserPolicy } : {}), registry: registryLoad.registry as Registry, registryLabel: registryLoad.source.label,
       lanes, platform, allowRepoCommands: o.allowRepoCommands, timeoutMs: o.timeoutMs ?? (config.timeout_s ?? 600) * 1000, timeoutSource: o.timeoutMs !== undefined ? '--timeout' : config.timeout_s ? `timeout_s from ${configLoad.label}` : 'the 600 s default',
       stallTimeoutMs: o.stallTimeoutMs ?? (config.stall_timeout_s ?? DEFAULT_STALL_TIMEOUT_S) * 1000,
       progress: o.progress ?? (line => process.stderr.write(`${line}\n`)),
diff --git a/lib/pregate/index.ts b/lib/pregate/index.ts
index 925c88f84..4a579e57e 100644
--- a/lib/pregate/index.ts
+++ b/lib/pregate/index.ts
@@ -182,7 +182,7 @@ export function verifyPregate(repoRoot: string, file: PregateFile, treeNow: Wtre
  * environment: the policy file and its digest, or under the defaults the path that was looked for and absent.
  */
 function userPolicyChange(file: PregateFile): string | null {
-  const recorded = file.policy?.startsWith('user ') ? file.policy.slice('user '.length) : null;
+  const recorded = file.policy?.startsWith('user ') ? file.policy.slice('user '.length) : file.policy?.startsWith('head ') ? / over user (.+)$/.exec(file.policy)?.[1] ?? null : null;
   if (recorded) {
     if (!file.policy_digest) return `pregate.json names the user-owned policy ${recorded} without its digest; rerun gstack-pregate`;
     let text: string;
diff --git a/test/pregate-head-policy.test.ts b/test/pregate-head-policy.test.ts
index fee996f98..b8ead3d72 100644
--- a/test/pregate-head-policy.test.ts
+++ b/test/pregate-head-policy.test.ts
@@ -99,6 +99,12 @@ describe('gstack-pregate --policy-from head: additive only (GST-419)', () => {
     expect(dropped.err).toContain('guards');
     commit(repo, { '.gstack/pregate.json': JSON.stringify({ ...user, dependencies: NEW_LANE }) });
     expect(pregate(repo, ['--policy-from', 'head']).status).toBe(EXIT.ok);
+    const verify = () => runBin(repo, 'gstack-pregate', ['verify'], { GSTACK_PROJECT_SLUG: SLUG });
+    expect(verify().status).toBe(EXIT.ok);
+    fs.writeFileSync(userPolicy, JSON.stringify({ ...user, guards: [] }));
+    const stale = verify();
+    expect(stale.status).not.toBe(EXIT.ok);
+    expect(stale.err + stale.out).toContain('changed after pregate.json was recorded');
   }, 60_000);
 
   // Value: protects=a PR that introduces the first policy still bootstraps under head; fails_when=the bootstrap path is refused; why_new=rule scope; seam=none; no_claim=none
diff --git a/test/pregate-remote.test.ts b/test/pregate-remote.test.ts
index 4a88a40d3..2fe9b2c2e 100644
--- a/test/pregate-remote.test.ts
+++ b/test/pregate-remote.test.ts
@@ -172,7 +172,7 @@ describe('gstack-pregate --remote (C-c)', () => {
     const changed = remote(repo, ['--remote', '--allow-repo-commands', '--policy-from', 'head', '--spend-cap', '2']);
     expect(changed.status).toBe(EXIT.refused);
     expect(changed.err).toContain('remote_gate differs from the trusted policy');
-  });
+  }, 60_000);
 
   test('a wrong tree, zero tests, a failure, a missing line or a non-zero exit leaves the obligation uncleared and the check incomplete; unreported spend counts at the cap', () => {
     const repo = gated();