@@ -59,12 +59,15 @@ describe('permissions', () => {
       // Issue #1407 (four-eyes): approve-own is intentionally absent from the
       // standard user permission set. Self-approval requires an explicit custom
       // group grant; ownership alone does not confer the right to approve.
+      // Issue #1401: view:config added (migration 000088) so non-admin users can
+      // read settings via GET /api/config and GET /api/ri-exchange/config.
       const perms = getRolePermissions('user');
       const expected = [
         'view:recommendations',
         'view:plans',
         'view:purchases',
         'view:history',
+        'view:config',  // #1401: allows reading settings (not writing)
         'create:plans',
         'update:plans',
         'delete:plans',
@@ -78,17 +81,22 @@ describe('permissions', () => {
       expected.forEach((p) => expect(perms.has(p)).toBe(true));
       // approve-own must NOT be in the standard user permission set (issue #1407).
       expect(perms.has('approve-own:purchases')).toBe(false);
+      // update:config must NOT be granted; only admins can write settings.
+      expect(perms.has('update:config')).toBe(false);
       expect(perms.size).toBe(expected.length);
     });
 
-    test('readonly role grants only view on recommendations/plans/history', () => {
+    test('readonly role grants view on recommendations/plans/history/config', () => {
+      // Issue #1401: view:config added so read-only users can view settings.
       const perms = getRolePermissions('readonly');
       expect(perms.has('view:recommendations')).toBe(true);
       expect(perms.has('view:plans')).toBe(true);
       expect(perms.has('view:history')).toBe(true);
+      expect(perms.has('view:config')).toBe(true);   // #1401 addition
       expect(perms.has('view:purchases')).toBe(false);
       expect(perms.has('create:plans')).toBe(false);
-      expect(perms.size).toBe(3);
+      expect(perms.has('update:config')).toBe(false); // read-only, not write
+      expect(perms.size).toBe(4);
     });
 
     test('unknown role grants no permissions', () => {
 
@@ -0,0 +1,149 @@
+/**
+ * loadAutomationSettings permission-gating tests (issue #1413).
+ *
+ * GET /api/ri-exchange/config requires view:config. Before migration 000088
+ * granted view:config to non-admin groups, the handler returned 403 and
+ * loadAutomationSettings showed an error paragraph ("Failed to load settings:
+ * permission denied: requires view on config") at the bottom of the Purchasing
+ * Policies panel. The page should degrade gracefully instead: clear the
+ * container and return without showing any error.
+ *
+ * After the migration non-admin users have view:config, so the 403 no longer
+ * occurs in normal operation. The graceful-degradation path remains as defense
+ * in depth for custom roles that do not include view:config.
+ */
+
+jest.mock('../api', () => ({
+  getRIExchangeConfig: jest.fn(),
+}));
+
+jest.mock('../settings', () => ({
+  applyReadOnlySettings: jest.fn(),
+  isPermissionDeniedError: jest.fn(),
+}));
+
+jest.mock('../state', () => ({
+  getCurrentUser: jest.fn(),
+}));
+
+import * as api from '../api';
+import * as settings from '../settings';
+import { loadAutomationSettings } from '../riexchange';
+
+function makePermissionError(status: number, message: string): Error & { status: number } {
+  const err = new Error(message) as Error & { status: number };
+  err.status = status;
+  return err;
+}
+
+const setupContainer = () => {
+  document.body.replaceChildren();
+  const container = document.createElement('div');
+  container.id = 'ri-exchange-automation-settings';
+  // Simulate the loading paragraph loadAutomationSettings prepends.
+  const loading = document.createElement('p');
+  loading.className = 'loading';
+  loading.textContent = 'Loading settings...';
+  container.appendChild(loading);
+  document.body.appendChild(container);
+  return container;
+};
+
+describe('loadAutomationSettings: graceful degradation on permission errors (issue #1413)', () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    jest.clearAllMocks();
+  });
+
+  test(
+    '403 permission-denied: container is cleared, no error paragraph shown',
+    async () => {
+      setupContainer();
+      const permErr = makePermissionError(403, 'permission denied: requires view on config');
+      (api.getRIExchangeConfig as jest.Mock).mockRejectedValueOnce(permErr);
+      // isPermissionDeniedError is imported from settings and must return true
+      // for the graceful-degradation branch to fire.
+      (settings.isPermissionDeniedError as jest.Mock).mockReturnValue(true);
+
+      await loadAutomationSettings();
+
+      const container = document.getElementById('ri-exchange-automation-settings');
+      // No error paragraph — the section should be empty (silently cleared).
+      const errorP = container?.querySelector('.error');
+      expect(errorP).toBeNull();
+      // The container itself must be present in the DOM (not removed).
+      expect(container).not.toBeNull();
+      // No child nodes: both the loading paragraph and any error content cleared.
+      expect(container?.childNodes.length).toBe(0);
+    },
+  );
+
+  test(
+    '403 permission-denied: no retry button is shown',
+    async () => {
+      setupContainer();
+      const permErr = makePermissionError(403, 'permission denied: requires view on config');
+      (api.getRIExchangeConfig as jest.Mock).mockRejectedValueOnce(permErr);
+      (settings.isPermissionDeniedError as jest.Mock).mockReturnValue(true);
+
+      await loadAutomationSettings();
+
+      const container = document.getElementById('ri-exchange-automation-settings');
+      const retryBtn = container?.querySelector('button');
+      expect(retryBtn).toBeNull();
+    },
+  );
+
+  test(
+    'non-permission 403 (e.g. IP block): error paragraph IS shown',
+    async () => {
+      setupContainer();
+      const nonPermErr = makePermissionError(403, 'access blocked by IP policy');
+      (api.getRIExchangeConfig as jest.Mock).mockRejectedValueOnce(nonPermErr);
+      // isPermissionDeniedError returns false for non-permission 403s.
+      (settings.isPermissionDeniedError as jest.Mock).mockReturnValue(false);
+
+      await loadAutomationSettings();
+
+      const container = document.getElementById('ri-exchange-automation-settings');
+      const errorP = container?.querySelector('.error');
+      expect(errorP).not.toBeNull();
+      expect(errorP?.textContent).toContain('access blocked by IP policy');
+    },
+  );
+
+  test(
+    'network error: error paragraph IS shown with message',
+    async () => {
+      setupContainer();
+      (api.getRIExchangeConfig as jest.Mock).mockRejectedValueOnce(
+        new Error('Failed to fetch'),
+      );
+      (settings.isPermissionDeniedError as jest.Mock).mockReturnValue(false);
+
+      await loadAutomationSettings();
+
+      const container = document.getElementById('ri-exchange-automation-settings');
+      const errorP = container?.querySelector('.error');
+      expect(errorP).not.toBeNull();
+      expect(errorP?.textContent).toContain('Failed to fetch');
+    },
+  );
+
+  test(
+    'network error: retry button IS shown',
+    async () => {
+      setupContainer();
+      (api.getRIExchangeConfig as jest.Mock).mockRejectedValueOnce(
+        new Error('Failed to fetch'),
+      );
+      (settings.isPermissionDeniedError as jest.Mock).mockReturnValue(false);
+
+      await loadAutomationSettings();
+
+      const container = document.getElementById('ri-exchange-automation-settings');
+      const retryBtn = container?.querySelector('button');
+      expect(retryBtn).not.toBeNull();
+      expect(retryBtn?.textContent).toBe('Retry');
+    },
+  );
+});