diff --git a/src/main/ipc/worktree-remote.ts b/src/main/ipc/worktree-remote.ts
index e0a2bbf5d..43ef357ee 100644
--- a/src/main/ipc/worktree-remote.ts
+++ b/src/main/ipc/worktree-remote.ts
@@ -477,7 +477,11 @@ async function refreshRemoteTrackingBaseForWorktreeCreate(
   return getOrStartSshWorktreeCreateFetch(
     getSshWorktreeCreateBaseFetchKey(repo, base),
     getSshWorktreeCreateRemoteQueueKey(repo, base.remote),
-    () => provider.fetchRemoteTrackingRef(repo.path, base.remote, base.branch, base.ref)
+    () =>
+      // Why: the exact-base refresh gates create; unrelated repo housekeeping must not extend it.
+      provider.fetchRemoteTrackingRef(repo.path, base.remote, base.branch, base.ref, {
+        skipAutoMaintenance: true
+      })
   )
 }
 
diff --git a/src/main/ipc/worktrees.test.ts b/src/main/ipc/worktrees.test.ts
index 43c943257..7b4f699cd 100644
--- a/src/main/ipc/worktrees.test.ts
+++ b/src/main/ipc/worktrees.test.ts
@@ -3733,7 +3733,8 @@ describe('registerWorktreeHandlers', () => {
       '/remote/repo',
       'origin',
       'master',
-      'refs/remotes/origin/master'
+      'refs/remotes/origin/master',
+      { skipAutoMaintenance: true }
     )
   })
 
@@ -3800,7 +3801,8 @@ describe('registerWorktreeHandlers', () => {
       '/remote/repo',
       'origin',
       'main',
-      'refs/remotes/origin/main'
+      'refs/remotes/origin/main',
+      { skipAutoMaintenance: true }
     )
     expect(provider.addWorktree).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
       '/remote/repo',
@@ -4032,7 +4034,8 @@ describe('registerWorktreeHandlers', () => {
       '/remote/repo',
       'origin',
       'main',
-      'refs/remotes/origin/main'
+      'refs/remotes/origin/main',
+      { skipAutoMaintenance: true }
     )
     expect(provider.addWorktree).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(2)
   })
diff --git a/src/main/providers/ssh-git-provider.test.ts b/src/main/providers/ssh-git-provider.test.ts
index acfaefaed..0974367ef 100644
--- a/src/main/providers/ssh-git-provider.test.ts
+++ b/src/main/providers/ssh-git-provider.test.ts
@@ -850,14 +850,16 @@ describe('SshGitProvider', () => {
       '/home/user/repo',
       'origin',
       'main',
-      'refs/remotes/origin/main'
+      'refs/remotes/origin/main',
+      { skipAutoMaintenance: true }
     )
 
     expect(mux.request).toHaveBeenCalledWith('git.fetchRemoteTrackingRef', {
       worktreePath: '/home/user/repo',
       remote: 'origin',
       branch: 'main',
-      ref: 'refs/remotes/origin/main'
+      ref: 'refs/remotes/origin/main',
+      skipAutoMaintenance: true
     })
   })
 
diff --git a/src/main/providers/ssh-git-provider.ts b/src/main/providers/ssh-git-provider.ts
index 5ba6a29e3..0cde62d53 100644
--- a/src/main/providers/ssh-git-provider.ts
+++ b/src/main/providers/ssh-git-provider.ts
@@ -553,14 +553,16 @@ export class SshGitProvider implements IGitProvider {
     worktreePath: string,
     remote: string,
     branch: string,
-    ref: string
+    ref: string,
+    options?: { skipAutoMaintenance?: boolean }
   ): Promise<void> {
     await this.runWithDiffDedupeClear(async () => {
       await this.mux.request('git.fetchRemoteTrackingRef', {
         worktreePath,
         remote,
         branch,
-        ref
+        ref,
+        ...(options?.skipAutoMaintenance ? { skipAutoMaintenance: true } : {})
       })
     })
   }
diff --git a/src/main/runtime/fetch-remote-cache.test.ts b/src/main/runtime/fetch-remote-cache.test.ts
index fce2a5e6d..14c181156 100644
--- a/src/main/runtime/fetch-remote-cache.test.ts
+++ b/src/main/runtime/fetch-remote-cache.test.ts
@@ -22,10 +22,19 @@ vi.mock('../git/runner', async (importOriginal) => {
 // normally — none of them trigger IO until a runtime method is called.
 import { OrcaRuntimeService } from './orca-runtime'
 
+function isFetchArgs(argv: unknown): argv is string[] {
+  if (!Array.isArray(argv)) {
+    return false
+  }
+  let commandIndex = 0
+  while (argv[commandIndex] === '-c' && typeof argv[commandIndex + 1] === 'string') {
+    commandIndex += 2
+  }
+  return argv[commandIndex] === 'fetch'
+}
+
 function fetchCallCount(): number {
-  return gitExecFileAsyncMock.mock.calls.filter(
-    ([argv]) => Array.isArray(argv) && argv[0] === 'fetch'
-  ).length
+  return gitExecFileAsyncMock.mock.calls.filter(([argv]) => isFetchArgs(argv)).length
 }
 
 function exactBaseRefreshOptions(cwd: string): {
@@ -36,6 +45,21 @@ function exactBaseRefreshOptions(cwd: string): {
   return { cwd, timeout: 60_000, useConfiguredSshCommandForNetwork: true }
 }
 
+function exactBaseRefreshArgs(branch = 'main'): string[] {
+  return [
+    '-c',
+    'maintenance.auto=false',
+    '-c',
+    'maintenance.commit-graph.auto=0',
+    '-c',
+    'gc.auto=0',
+    'fetch',
+    '--no-tags',
+    'origin',
+    `+refs/heads/${branch}:refs/remotes/origin/${branch}`
+  ]
+}
+
 // Why (STA-1292): the broad create-path fetch must carry a timeout so a Windows
 // credential-manager GUI hang can't wedge worktree creation forever.
 function fullRemoteFetchOptions(cwd: string): { cwd: string; timeout: number } {
@@ -188,11 +212,23 @@ describe('OrcaRuntimeService.fetchRemoteWithCache', () => {
     })
 
     expect(gitExecFileAsyncMock).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
-      ['fetch', '--no-tags', 'origin', '+refs/heads/main:refs/remotes/origin/main'],
+      exactBaseRefreshArgs(),
       exactBaseRefreshOptions('/repo/f')
     )
   })
 
+  it('keeps automatic maintenance enabled for ordinary full remote fetches', async () => {
+    mockFetchResults([{ stdout: '', stderr: '' }])
+    const runtime = new OrcaRuntimeService(null)
+
+    await runtime.getOrStartRemoteFetch('/repo/full-maintenance', 'origin')
+
+    expect(gitExecFileAsyncMock).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
+      ['fetch', 'origin'],
+      fullRemoteFetchOptions('/repo/full-maintenance')
+    )
+  })
+
   it('shares an in-flight remote-tracking base refresh and reuses exact-base freshness', async () => {
     let resolveFetch!: () => void
     const pending = new Promise<{ stdout: string; stderr: string }>((resolve) => {
@@ -297,14 +333,9 @@ describe('OrcaRuntimeService.fetchRemoteWithCache', () => {
       { ok: true },
       { ok: true }
     ])
-    const fetchCalls = gitExecFileAsyncMock.mock.calls.filter(
-      ([argv]) => Array.isArray(argv) && argv[0] === 'fetch'
-    )
+    const fetchCalls = gitExecFileAsyncMock.mock.calls.filter(([argv]) => isFetchArgs(argv))
     expect(fetchCalls).toEqual([
-      [
-        ['fetch', '--no-tags', 'origin', '+refs/heads/main:refs/remotes/origin/main'],
-        exactBaseRefreshOptions('/repo/h')
-      ],
+      [exactBaseRefreshArgs(), exactBaseRefreshOptions('/repo/h')],
       [['fetch', 'origin'], fullRemoteFetchOptions('/repo/h')]
     ])
   })
@@ -343,15 +374,10 @@ describe('OrcaRuntimeService.fetchRemoteWithCache', () => {
       { ok: true },
       { ok: true }
     ])
-    const fetchCalls = gitExecFileAsyncMock.mock.calls.filter(
-      ([argv]) => Array.isArray(argv) && argv[0] === 'fetch'
-    )
+    const fetchCalls = gitExecFileAsyncMock.mock.calls.filter(([argv]) => isFetchArgs(argv))
     expect(fetchCalls).toEqual([
       [['fetch', 'origin'], fullRemoteFetchOptions('/repo/i')],
-      [
-        ['fetch', '--no-tags', 'origin', '+refs/heads/main:refs/remotes/origin/main'],
-        exactBaseRefreshOptions('/repo/i')
-      ]
+      [exactBaseRefreshArgs(), exactBaseRefreshOptions('/repo/i')]
     ])
   })
 
@@ -389,15 +415,10 @@ describe('OrcaRuntimeService.fetchRemoteWithCache', () => {
       { ok: false, errorKind: 'git_error' },
       { ok: true }
     ])
-    const fetchCalls = gitExecFileAsyncMock.mock.calls.filter(
-      ([argv]) => Array.isArray(argv) && argv[0] === 'fetch'
-    )
+    const fetchCalls = gitExecFileAsyncMock.mock.calls.filter(([argv]) => isFetchArgs(argv))
     expect(fetchCalls).toEqual([
       [['fetch', 'origin'], fullRemoteFetchOptions('/repo/i-fail')],
-      [
-        ['fetch', '--no-tags', 'origin', '+refs/heads/main:refs/remotes/origin/main'],
-        exactBaseRefreshOptions('/repo/i-fail')
-      ]
+      [exactBaseRefreshArgs(), exactBaseRefreshOptions('/repo/i-fail')]
     ])
   })
 })
diff --git a/src/main/runtime/orca-runtime.test.ts b/src/main/runtime/orca-runtime.test.ts
index ef1401327..b5fb46e50 100644
--- a/src/main/runtime/orca-runtime.test.ts
+++ b/src/main/runtime/orca-runtime.test.ts
@@ -2312,7 +2312,7 @@ describe('OrcaRuntimeService', () => {
       if (args[0] === 'rev-parse' && args[1] === '--verify') {
         return { stdout: 'base-sha\n', stderr: '' }
       }
-      if (args[0] === 'fetch') {
+      if (args.includes('fetch')) {
         return refresh.promise
       }
       return { stdout: '', stderr: '' }
@@ -2325,7 +2325,18 @@ describe('OrcaRuntimeService', () => {
 
       await vi.waitFor(() => {
         expect(gitSpy).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
-          ['fetch', '--no-tags', 'origin', '+refs/heads/main:refs/remotes/origin/main'],
+          [
+            '-c',
+            'maintenance.auto=false',
+            '-c',
+            'maintenance.commit-graph.auto=0',
+            '-c',
+            'gc.auto=0',
+            'fetch',
+            '--no-tags',
+            'origin',
+            '+refs/heads/main:refs/remotes/origin/main'
+          ],
           {
             cwd: TEST_REPO_PATH,
             useConfiguredSshCommandForNetwork: true,
@@ -2443,7 +2454,7 @@ describe('OrcaRuntimeService', () => {
       if (args[0] === 'rev-parse' && args.includes('refs/remotes/origin/main^{commit}')) {
         return { stdout: 'base-sha\n', stderr: '' }
       }
-      if (args[0] === 'fetch') {
+      if (args.includes('fetch')) {
         throw new Error('network unavailable')
       }
       return { stdout: '', stderr: '' }
@@ -2505,7 +2516,7 @@ describe('OrcaRuntimeService', () => {
       if (args[0] === 'rev-parse' && args.includes('refs/heads/develop^{commit}')) {
         return { stdout: 'develop-sha\n', stderr: '' }
       }
-      if (args[0] === 'fetch') {
+      if (args.includes('fetch')) {
         throw new Error('network unavailable')
       }
       return { stdout: '', stderr: '' }
@@ -2559,7 +2570,7 @@ describe('OrcaRuntimeService', () => {
       if (args[0] === 'rev-parse' && args.includes('refs/heads/team/feature^{commit}')) {
         return { stdout: 'team-feature-sha\n', stderr: '' }
       }
-      if (args[0] === 'fetch') {
+      if (args.includes('fetch')) {
         throw new Error('network unavailable')
       }
       return { stdout: '', stderr: '' }
@@ -2580,7 +2591,18 @@ describe('OrcaRuntimeService', () => {
         false
       )
       expect(gitSpy).not.toHaveBeenCalledWith(
-        ['fetch', '--no-tags', 'team', '+refs/heads/feature:refs/remotes/team/feature'],
+        [
+          '-c',
+          'maintenance.auto=false',
+          '-c',
+          'maintenance.commit-graph.auto=0',
+          '-c',
+          'gc.auto=0',
+          'fetch',
+          '--no-tags',
+          'team',
+          '+refs/heads/feature:refs/remotes/team/feature'
+        ],
         expect.any(Object)
       )
     } finally {
@@ -2604,7 +2626,7 @@ describe('OrcaRuntimeService', () => {
       if (args[0] === 'rev-parse' && args[1] === '--verify') {
         throw new Error('missing ref')
       }
-      if (args[0] === 'fetch') {
+      if (args.includes('fetch')) {
         throw new Error('network unavailable')
       }
       return { stdout: '', stderr: '' }
diff --git a/src/main/runtime/orca-runtime.ts b/src/main/runtime/orca-runtime.ts
index a16fcca9f..f420ebd00 100644
--- a/src/main/runtime/orca-runtime.ts
+++ b/src/main/runtime/orca-runtime.ts
@@ -49,6 +49,7 @@ import {
   getClonePathComparisonKey
 } from '../git/repo-clone-path'
 import { getGitCloneFailureMessage } from '../../shared/git-clone-failure-message'
+import { GIT_FETCH_SKIP_AUTO_MAINTENANCE_CONFIG_ARGS } from '../../shared/git-fetch-auto-maintenance'
 import { createHash, randomUUID } from 'node:crypto'
 import { homedir } from 'node:os'
 import { isAbsolute, join, resolve } from 'node:path'
@@ -14620,8 +14621,15 @@ export class OrcaRuntimeService {
       if (this.getFreshFetchCompletedAt(key) !== null) {
         return { ok: true }
       }
+      // Why: this exact refresh gates worktree create; ordinary fetches still own maintenance.
       return gitExecFileAsync(
-        ['fetch', '--no-tags', base.remote, `+refs/heads/${base.branch}:${base.ref}`],
+        [
+          ...GIT_FETCH_SKIP_AUTO_MAINTENANCE_CONFIG_ARGS,
+          'fetch',
+          '--no-tags',
+          base.remote,
+          `+refs/heads/${base.branch}:${base.ref}`
+        ],
         {
           cwd: repoPath,
           ...gitOptions,
diff --git a/src/relay/git-handler.test.ts b/src/relay/git-handler.test.ts
index 07b84db43..ba8f631d8 100644
--- a/src/relay/git-handler.test.ts
+++ b/src/relay/git-handler.test.ts
@@ -1222,7 +1222,8 @@ describe('GitHandler', () => {
         worktreePath: tmpDir,
         remote: 'origin',
         branch: 'main',
-        ref: 'refs/remotes/origin/main'
+        ref: 'refs/remotes/origin/main',
+        skipAutoMaintenance: true
       })
 
       const second = dispatcher.callRequest('git.diff', {
@@ -1238,7 +1239,18 @@ describe('GitHandler', () => {
 
       expect(gitBufferSpy).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(2)
       expect(gitSpy).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
-        ['fetch', '--no-tags', 'origin', '+refs/heads/main:refs/remotes/origin/main'],
+        [
+          '-c',
+          'maintenance.auto=false',
+          '-c',
+          'maintenance.commit-graph.auto=0',
+          '-c',
+          'gc.auto=0',
+          'fetch',
+          '--no-tags',
+          'origin',
+          '+refs/heads/main:refs/remotes/origin/main'
+        ],
         tmpDir
       )
     })
diff --git a/src/relay/git-handler.ts b/src/relay/git-handler.ts
index a5ae6d3cb..c878dfd56 100644
--- a/src/relay/git-handler.ts
+++ b/src/relay/git-handler.ts
@@ -60,6 +60,7 @@ import {
 import { getGitCloneFailureMessage } from '../shared/git-clone-failure-message'
 import { syncForkDefaultBranch, validateGitForkSyncExpectedUpstream } from '../shared/git-fork-sync'
 import { InFlightPromiseDedupe, stableInFlightKey } from '../shared/in-flight-promise-dedupe'
+import { GIT_FETCH_SKIP_AUTO_MAINTENANCE_CONFIG_ARGS } from '../shared/git-fetch-auto-maintenance'
 
 const execFileAsync = promisify(execFile)
 const MAX_GIT_BUFFER = 10 * 1024 * 1024
@@ -844,10 +845,14 @@ export class GitHandler {
     const remote = params.remote
     const branch = params.branch
     const ref = params.ref
+    const skipAutoMaintenance = params.skipAutoMaintenance
     try {
       if (typeof remote !== 'string' || typeof branch !== 'string' || typeof ref !== 'string') {
         throw new Error('Invalid remote-tracking fetch request.')
       }
+      if (skipAutoMaintenance !== undefined && typeof skipAutoMaintenance !== 'boolean') {
+        throw new Error('Invalid remote-tracking fetch maintenance option.')
+      }
       if (remote.startsWith('-') || branch.startsWith('-')) {
         throw new Error('Remote-tracking fetch inputs must not start with "-".')
       }
@@ -866,7 +871,16 @@ export class GitHandler {
         }
         await this.git(['check-ref-format', `refs/heads/${branch}`], worktreePath)
         await this.git(['check-ref-format', ref], worktreePath)
-        await this.git(['fetch', '--no-tags', remote, `+refs/heads/${branch}:${ref}`], worktreePath)
+        await this.git(
+          [
+            ...(skipAutoMaintenance ? GIT_FETCH_SKIP_AUTO_MAINTENANCE_CONFIG_ARGS : []),
+            'fetch',
+            '--no-tags',
+            remote,
+            `+refs/heads/${branch}:${ref}`
+          ],
+          worktreePath
+        )
       } catch (error) {
         // Why: create-worktree needs a write-capable fetch, but generic git.exec
         // intentionally rejects fetch. This narrow RPC keeps the relay allowlist
diff --git a/src/shared/git-fetch-auto-maintenance.ts b/src/shared/git-fetch-auto-maintenance.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..3723298ab
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/shared/git-fetch-auto-maintenance.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,10 @@
+// Why: Git 2.29 can auto-run commit-graph work before maintenance.auto became a gate.
+// The other keys cover modern maintenance and legacy auto-gc without changing user config.
+export const GIT_FETCH_SKIP_AUTO_MAINTENANCE_CONFIG_ARGS = [
+  '-c',
+  'maintenance.auto=false',
+  '-c',
+  'maintenance.commit-graph.auto=0',
+  '-c',
+  'gc.auto=0'
+] as const