diff --git a/.github/workflows/interlock-drift.yml b/.github/workflows/interlock-drift.yml
index 701b370f0..29486063c 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/interlock-drift.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/interlock-drift.yml
@@ -87,7 +87,7 @@ jobs:
       - uses: astral-sh/setup-uv@v7
       - name: Assert public == project(main) and control planes in sync
         env:
-          GH_TOKEN: ${{ github.token }} # gh api reads public interlock content for --remote
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ github.token }} # --remote reads public workflow content, not admin settings
         run: |
           git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/operatorstack/interlock "$RUNNER_TEMP/pub"
           uv run --project labkit python -m labkit doctor \
diff --git a/labkit/README.md b/labkit/README.md
index 279e7a906..698c8c2e5 100644
--- a/labkit/README.md
+++ b/labkit/README.md
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ python -m labkit <cmd>
 | `project --config <cfg> --repo <dir> --source-commit <sha> --write` | Project a lab into a public-repo checkout (add `--adopt` on first import). |
 | `project --config <cfg> --check` | Verify the committed in-lab surface manifest (surface style). |
 | `gen [--repo-root <root>] [--check]` | (Re)generate the dispatcher + staged `sync-upstream.yml` for every lab; `--check` fails on drift. |
-| `doctor [--repo-root <root>] [--remote]` | Validate every config, fail on generated drift, assert each verify gate exists; `--remote` diffs live public control planes via `gh`. |
+| `doctor [--repo-root <root>] [--remote] [--remote-governance]` | Validate every config, fail on generated drift, assert each verify gate exists; `--remote` diffs live public workflow control planes, while `--remote-governance` verifies auto-merge and required checks with an Administration-read token. |
 | `publish init <lab>` | Scaffold `publish.config.json` + workflows + a first release note for a new lab. |
 | `release-notes <check-policy\|validate\|preflight>` | The shared append-only release-note policy. |
 
diff --git a/labkit/src/labkit/doctor.py b/labkit/src/labkit/doctor.py
index 8a2f008ea..adfa17b23 100644
--- a/labkit/src/labkit/doctor.py
+++ b/labkit/src/labkit/doctor.py
@@ -10,10 +10,16 @@
 3. **Verify gate exists** — the bespoke ``<proj>-lab.yml`` is present (it is
    hand-maintained, not generated, so we only assert its existence).
 
-With ``--remote`` it also fetches each public repo's live
-``.github/workflows/sync-upstream.yml`` via ``gh`` and diffs it against the
-generated canonical copy — catching the current blind spot where a public repo's
-control plane silently drifts from the monorepo.
+With ``--remote`` it also fetches each public repo's live workflow control
+plane via ``gh`` and diffs it against the generated canonical copy — catching
+the current blind spot where a public repo's control plane silently drifts from
+the monorepo.
+
+``--remote-governance`` is the privileged companion check for native
+auto-merge and required status checks. GitHub does not expose those settings to
+the source repository's ``github.token``, even for a public target repository,
+so governance is a separate capability boundary. An unreadable setting fails
+as unreadable rather than being misreported as disabled.
 
 With ``--repo <checkout> --project <name>`` it additionally asserts the public
 repo carries *exactly* ``project(main)`` — every projected byte, including the
@@ -96,15 +102,29 @@ def check_remote(config: PublishConfig) -> list[str]:
             problems.append(f"{config.target_slug}: could not read live verify.yml (not installed?)")
         elif live_verify != render_verify_automerge(config):
             problems.append(f"{config.target_slug}: live verify.yml differs from the generated copy")
+    return problems
+
+
+def check_remote_governance(config: PublishConfig) -> list[str]:
+    """Verify target settings that require Administration-read capability."""
+    problems: list[str] = []
     settings = _fetch_remote_json(f"repos/{config.target_slug}")
-    if not isinstance(settings, dict) or settings.get("allow_auto_merge") is not True:
+    if not isinstance(settings, dict) or "allow_auto_merge" not in settings:
+        problems.append(
+            f"{config.target_slug}: could not verify native auto-merge "
+            "(token needs Administration: read)"
+        )
+    elif settings["allow_auto_merge"] is not True:
         problems.append(f"{config.target_slug}: native auto-merge is not enabled")
     protection = _fetch_remote_json(
         f"repos/{config.target_slug}/branches/main/protection/required_status_checks"
     )
-    contexts = protection.get("contexts") if isinstance(protection, dict) else None
-    checks = protection.get("checks") if isinstance(protection, dict) else None
-    if not contexts and not checks:
+    if not isinstance(protection, dict):
+        problems.append(
+            f"{config.target_slug}: could not verify main required status checks "
+            "(token needs Administration: read)"
+        )
+    elif not protection.get("contexts") and not protection.get("checks"):
         problems.append(f"{config.target_slug}: main has no required status checks")
     return problems
 
@@ -153,6 +173,14 @@ def main(argv: Optional[list[str]] = None) -> int:
     parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(description="Validate labkit configs and check drift")
     parser.add_argument("--repo-root", type=Path, default=None)
     parser.add_argument("--remote", action="store_true", help="also diff live public control planes via gh")
+    parser.add_argument(
+        "--remote-governance",
+        action="store_true",
+        help=(
+            "also verify target auto-merge and required checks via gh "
+            "(requires Administration: read)"
+        ),
+    )
     parser.add_argument(
         "--repo",
         type=Path,
@@ -206,6 +234,8 @@ def main(argv: Optional[list[str]] = None) -> int:
         problems = check_config(config, root)
         if args.remote:
             problems += check_remote(config)
+        if args.remote_governance:
+            problems += check_remote_governance(config)
         if args.repo is not None:
             repo = args.repo.resolve()
             if not repo.is_dir():
diff --git a/labkit/tests/test_labkit_doctor.py b/labkit/tests/test_labkit_doctor.py
index 84717d4af..38b498c4f 100644
--- a/labkit/tests/test_labkit_doctor.py
+++ b/labkit/tests/test_labkit_doctor.py
@@ -6,8 +6,14 @@
 
 from labkit import load_config
 from labkit.config import PublishConfig
-from labkit.doctor import check_config, check_projection, check_remote, main
-from labkit.gen_workflows import generated_artifacts
+from labkit.doctor import (
+    check_config,
+    check_projection,
+    check_remote,
+    check_remote_governance,
+    main,
+)
+from labkit.gen_workflows import generated_artifacts, render_verify_automerge
 from labkit.project import build_projection, write_repo
 
 REPO_ROOT = Path(__file__).resolve().parents[2]
@@ -123,12 +129,26 @@ def test_doctor_repo_requires_project(tmp_path):
     assert main(["--repo-root", str(tmp_path), "--repo", str(tmp_path)]) == 1
 
 
-def test_remote_requires_native_auto_merge_and_protected_checks(monkeypatch):
+def test_remote_does_not_cross_the_governance_capability_boundary(monkeypatch):
     config = load_config(REPO_ROOT / "labs/14-product-value-projection/publish.config.json")
     canonical = generated_artifacts(config, REPO_ROOT)
     sync = next(content for path, content in canonical.items() if path.name == "sync-upstream.yml")
+    verify = render_verify_automerge(config)
 
-    monkeypatch.setattr("labkit.doctor._fetch_remote_workflow", lambda *_args: sync)
+    monkeypatch.setattr(
+        "labkit.doctor._fetch_remote_workflow",
+        lambda _target, name: sync if name == "sync-upstream.yml" else verify,
+    )
+    monkeypatch.setattr(
+        "labkit.doctor._fetch_remote_json",
+        lambda *_args: (_ for _ in ()).throw(AssertionError("governance read crossed --remote")),
+    )
+
+    assert check_remote(config) == []
+
+
+def test_remote_governance_requires_native_auto_merge_and_protected_checks(monkeypatch):
+    config = load_config(REPO_ROOT / "labs/14-product-value-projection/publish.config.json")
     monkeypatch.setattr(
         "labkit.doctor._fetch_remote_json",
         lambda endpoint: (
@@ -138,6 +158,18 @@ def test_remote_requires_native_auto_merge_and_protected_checks(monkeypatch):
         ),
     )
 
-    problems = check_remote(config)
+    problems = check_remote_governance(config)
     assert f"{config.target_slug}: native auto-merge is not enabled" in problems
     assert f"{config.target_slug}: main has no required status checks" in problems
+
+
+def test_remote_governance_does_not_report_unreadable_settings_as_disabled(monkeypatch):
+    config = load_config(REPO_ROOT / "labs/14-product-value-projection/publish.config.json")
+    monkeypatch.setattr("labkit.doctor._fetch_remote_json", lambda *_args: None)
+
+    problems = check_remote_governance(config)
+
+    assert any("could not verify native auto-merge" in problem for problem in problems)
+    assert any("could not verify main required status checks" in problem for problem in problems)
+    assert not any("native auto-merge is not enabled" in problem for problem in problems)
+    assert not any("main has no required status checks" in problem for problem in problems)