diff --git a/skill/scripts/hook-before-edit.mjs b/skill/scripts/hook-before-edit.mjs
index 54e789e8b..1dcde6ef3 100644
--- a/skill/scripts/hook-before-edit.mjs
+++ b/skill/scripts/hook-before-edit.mjs
@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@ import {
   designSystemOptions,
   filterFindings,
   isNativePlatform,
+  isScanTargetInsideProject,
   loadDetector,
   matchConfiguredExtension,
   matchesAnyGlob,
@@ -161,7 +162,7 @@ function replaceOnce(original, oldString, newString) {
 }
 
 function readExistingProjectFile(filePath, cwd) {
-  if (!isInsideProject(filePath, cwd)) return null;
+  if (!isScanTargetInsideProject(filePath, cwd)) return null;
   if (SENSITIVE_PATH.test(filePath) || GENERATED_PATH.test(filePath)) return null;
   try {
     const stat = fs.statSync(filePath);
@@ -232,7 +233,7 @@ function shellCopiedFileContent(command, cwd) {
   const source = shellCopyPaths(command)?.source;
   if (!source) return '';
   const sourcePath = path.isAbsolute(source) ? source : path.resolve(cwd, source);
-  if (!isInsideProject(sourcePath, cwd)) return '';
+  if (!isScanTargetInsideProject(sourcePath, cwd)) return '';
   if (SENSITIVE_PATH.test(sourcePath) || GENERATED_PATH.test(sourcePath)) return '';
   try {
     const stat = fs.statSync(sourcePath);
@@ -328,15 +329,6 @@ function relativePath(filePath, cwd) {
   }
 }
 
-function isInsideProject(filePath, cwd) {
-  try {
-    const rel = path.relative(cwd, filePath);
-    return rel === '' || (!rel.startsWith('..') && !path.isAbsolute(rel));
-  } catch {
-    return false;
-  }
-}
-
 // The static HTML engine reads its input from disk, but preToolUse only has
 // the proposed content. Stage it in a temp file so html-engine targets get the
 // same DOM-structural rules pre-write that runHook applies post-edit.
@@ -414,7 +406,7 @@ async function main() {
   };
 
   if (!filePath) return allow({ ...audit, skipped: 'no-file-path', durationMs: Date.now() - started });
-  if (!isInsideProject(filePath, cwd)) return allow({ ...audit, skipped: 'outside-project', durationMs: Date.now() - started });
+  if (!isScanTargetInsideProject(filePath, cwd)) return allow({ ...audit, skipped: 'outside-project', durationMs: Date.now() - started });
   if (SENSITIVE_PATH.test(filePath)) return allow({ ...audit, skipped: 'sensitive', durationMs: Date.now() - started });
   if (GENERATED_PATH.test(filePath)) return allow({ ...audit, skipped: 'generated', durationMs: Date.now() - started });
 
diff --git a/skill/scripts/hook-lib.mjs b/skill/scripts/hook-lib.mjs
index c56018cc5..5967b4052 100644
--- a/skill/scripts/hook-lib.mjs
+++ b/skill/scripts/hook-lib.mjs
@@ -1332,19 +1332,33 @@ function isInsideProject(filePath, projectCwd) {
   }
 }
 
+// Resolve a path to its canonical (symlink-free) form. When the path does
+// not exist yet — the before-edit hook gates proposed Writes — canonicalize
+// the nearest existing ancestor and re-append the remainder, so a new file
+// under a symlinked root still compares equal to its canonical project.
 function canonicalPath(p) {
-  try { return fs.realpathSync(p); } catch { return path.resolve(p); }
+  const resolved = path.resolve(p);
+  let dir = resolved;
+  const tail = [];
+  while (true) {
+    try {
+      return tail.length ? path.join(fs.realpathSync(dir), ...tail) : fs.realpathSync(dir);
+    } catch { /* keep climbing */ }
+    const parent = path.dirname(dir);
+    if (parent === dir) return resolved;
+    tail.unshift(path.basename(dir));
+    dir = parent;
+  }
 }
 
-// Containment gate for both scan passes. A session routinely touches files
-// that belong to no project or to a different one — harness scratchpad dirs
-// under the system temp root, sibling checkouts, one-off throwaway HTML — and
-// findings against those are judged with THIS project's config and DESIGN.md
-// palette, which is never right. Skip them (audit reason: outside-project).
-// Paths are canonicalized first so a symlinked root (macOS /tmp ->
-// /private/tmp) doesn't split the comparison; the realpath fallback for
-// missing paths is only correct because both scan loops check existence
-// before calling this.
+// Containment gate shared by the before-edit hook and both scan passes. A
+// session routinely touches files that belong to no project or to a
+// different one — harness scratchpad dirs under the system temp root,
+// sibling checkouts, one-off throwaway HTML — and findings against those are
+// judged with THIS project's config and DESIGN.md palette, which is never
+// right. Skip them (audit reason: outside-project). Paths are canonicalized
+// first so a symlinked root (macOS /tmp -> /private/tmp) doesn't split the
+// comparison.
 export function isScanTargetInsideProject(filePath, projectCwd) {
   if (!filePath || !projectCwd) return false;
   return isInsideProject(canonicalPath(filePath), canonicalPath(projectCwd));
diff --git a/tests/hook.test.mjs b/tests/hook.test.mjs
index 9d4c330c3..b773db2b3 100644
--- a/tests/hook.test.mjs
+++ b/tests/hook.test.mjs
@@ -195,6 +195,19 @@ describe('isScanTargetInsideProject()', () => {
     assert.equal(isScanTargetInsideProject(file, link), true);
     assert.equal(isScanTargetInsideProject(path.join(link, 'src', 'Card.tsx'), real), true);
   });
+
+  it('classifies not-yet-written files by their nearest existing ancestor', () => {
+    // The before-edit hook gates proposed Writes, so the target often does
+    // not exist. Canonicalization must climb to an existing ancestor rather
+    // than bail, or a new file under a symlinked root would read as outside.
+    const real = path.join(root, 'real');
+    const link = path.join(root, 'link');
+    fs.mkdirSync(real, { recursive: true });
+    fs.symlinkSync(real, link);
+    assert.equal(isScanTargetInsideProject(path.join(link, 'src', 'New.tsx'), real), true);
+    assert.equal(isScanTargetInsideProject(path.join(real, 'deep', 'New.tsx'), link), true);
+    assert.equal(isScanTargetInsideProject(path.join(root, 'elsewhere', 'New.tsx'), real), false);
+  });
 });
 
 describe('readConfig()', () => {