diff --git a/src/web/approval-inbox.ts b/src/web/approval-inbox.ts
index 4d6aacbc..40fb8932 100644
--- a/src/web/approval-inbox.ts
+++ b/src/web/approval-inbox.ts
@@ -373,6 +373,21 @@ export class ApprovalInbox {
     return true;
   }
 
+  /**
+   * The list route's sweep: `verifyStillAnswerable`, but never before the delay
+   * `notePrompt` waits out. A frame that shows no dialog proves nothing about a
+   * dialog Ink has not painted yet, and the working line still on screen then
+   * would resolve a live prompt, clearing its red alert on every device. The
+   * list used to run once per page load, which made that rare; a client that
+   * polls it (the macOS app's logo) would hit it on every new dialog. Each
+   * call on an older dialog costs one synchronous pane capture.
+   */
+  sweepForList(id: string): boolean {
+    const item = this.getById(id);
+    if (item && Date.now() - item.createdAt < STALE_CHECK_DELAY_MS) return true;
+    return this.verifyStillAnswerable(id);
+  }
+
   /**
    * "This session's pane started moving again": re-verify its pending DIALOG
    * item against the screen and resolve it if the dialog is gone.
diff --git a/src/web/routes/approval-routes.ts b/src/web/routes/approval-routes.ts
index 39e92839..99180c33 100644
--- a/src/web/routes/approval-routes.ts
+++ b/src/web/routes/approval-routes.ts
@@ -84,8 +84,9 @@ export function registerApprovalRoutes(app: FastifyInstance, ctx: SessionPort):
       // conservative rule the answer path uses (`verifyStillAnswerable`): only
       // an item whose original frame parsed options can be resolved this way, so
       // an unreadable capture keeps the alert rather than dropping it. Resolving
-      // here broadcasts `approval:resolved`, so the other devices clear too.
-      return approvalInbox.verifyStillAnswerable(item.id);
+      // here broadcasts `approval:resolved`, so the other devices clear too. A
+      // dialog too new to judge is left alone (`sweepForList`).
+      return approvalInbox.sweepForList(item.id);
     });
     return { success: true, data: { approvals } };
   });
diff --git a/test/routes/approval-routes.test.ts b/test/routes/approval-routes.test.ts
index f265b0a6..4bfc4417 100644
--- a/test/routes/approval-routes.test.ts
+++ b/test/routes/approval-routes.test.ts
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@
  * The routes read the process-wide `approvalInbox` singleton, so every test
  * drains it in afterEach; a leaked pending item would bleed into the next test.
  */
-import { describe, it, expect, beforeEach, afterEach } from 'vitest';
+import { describe, it, expect, beforeEach, afterEach, vi } from 'vitest';
 import Fastify, { type FastifyInstance } from 'fastify';
 import fastifyCookie from '@fastify/cookie';
 import { registerApprovalRoutes } from '../../src/web/routes/approval-routes.js';
@@ -285,6 +285,10 @@ describe('approval routes', () => {
   });
 
   describe('staleness sweep on GET /api/approvals', () => {
+    /** Past the delay `notePrompt` waits before it judges a new dialog. */
+    const pastTheDelay = () => vi.spyOn(Date, 'now').mockReturnValue(Date.now() + 3_100);
+    afterEach(() => vi.restoreAllMocks());
+
     it('resolves an item whose dialog left the pane, and tells the other clients', async () => {
       const resolved: Array<Record<string, unknown>> = [];
       await postHook(harness, 'permission_prompt', { tool_name: 'Bash' });
@@ -294,11 +298,24 @@ describe('approval routes', () => {
       // the pane knows. The dialog is gone from the frame the next capture sees.
       approvalInbox.onResolved = (info) => resolved.push({ ...info });
       session.terminalBuffer = 'claude> back at the composer';
+      pastTheDelay();
 
       expect(await listApprovals(harness)).toHaveLength(0);
       expect(resolved).toEqual([expect.objectContaining({ resolution: 'resolved_in_terminal' })]);
     });
 
+    it('leaves a dialog too new to judge, however often it is listed', async () => {
+      // The hook beat Ink's paint: the frame still shows the turn, which alone
+      // would count as proof that no dialog is up.
+      session.terminalBuffer = '✻ Actualizing… (13s · esc to interrupt)';
+      await postHook(harness, 'permission_prompt', { tool_name: 'Bash' });
+      expect(await listApprovals(harness)).toHaveLength(1);
+      expect(await listApprovals(harness)).toHaveLength(1);
+
+      pastTheDelay();
+      expect(await listApprovals(harness)).toHaveLength(0);
+    });
+
     it('keeps an item whose dialog is still on screen', async () => {
       await postHook(harness, 'permission_prompt', { tool_name: 'Bash' });
       // Pane unchanged (PERMISSION_DIALOG): the human has not answered yet.