diff --git a/.github/workflows/deposit-ready.yml b/.github/workflows/deposit-ready.yml
index d192f39..4ecd551 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/deposit-ready.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/deposit-ready.yml
@@ -31,13 +31,32 @@ jobs:
 
       - name: Which notes have no record at all
         id: pending
+        env:
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
         run: |
+          # A request that is already OPEN counts as asked. `unreserved()`
+          # reads main, and a reserved record only reaches main when a request
+          # is MERGED -- so without this, every run reserves a second DOI for a
+          # note whose request is still waiting, and abandons the draft behind
+          # it. That is the duplicate-mint hazard the whole flow exists to
+          # prevent, so the guard has to be here and not in the report.
+          gh pr list --state open --limit 100 --json title \
+            --jq '.[] | select(.title | startswith("Deposit: ")) |
+                  .title | sub("^Deposit: "; "")' \
+            | tr -d ' ' | sed '/^$/d' > .already-asked || true
+          echo "already asked: $(tr '\n' ' ' < .already-asked)"
           SLUGS=$(pixi run -q python3 -c "
           import sys; sys.path.insert(0, 'scripts'); import deposit
-          print(','.join(deposit.unreserved()))
+          asked = set()
+          try:
+              asked = {l.strip() for l in open('.already-asked') if l.strip()}
+          except FileNotFoundError:
+              pass
+          print(','.join(s for s in deposit.unreserved() if s not in asked))
           ")
+          rm -f .already-asked
           echo "slugs=${SLUGS}" >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
-          echo "no record yet: ${SLUGS:-none}"
+          echo "to ask about: ${SLUGS:-none}"
 
       # ONE pull request per note, each touching only that note's own
       # metadata.yml. The queue file this replaced was appended to by every
diff --git a/tests/test_migration.py b/tests/test_migration.py
index f60d95c..84108e7 100644
--- a/tests/test_migration.py
+++ b/tests/test_migration.py
@@ -2349,3 +2349,26 @@ def candidates(slug, built):
         ["years-of-citcom-ellipsis-and-underworld"]
     long_slug = "a" * 60
     assert candidates(long_slug, {"a" * cap}) == ["a" * cap]
+
+
+def test_an_open_request_is_not_asked_for_twice():
+    """`unreserved()` reads main, and a reserved record only reaches main when
+    a request is MERGED.
+
+    So without a guard on what is already open, every run of the reminder
+    reserves a SECOND DOI for a note whose request is still waiting, and
+    abandons the draft behind it -- the exact duplicate-mint hazard the flow
+    exists to prevent. It bites hardest on a schedule, where the reminder runs
+    whether or not anything changed.
+    """
+    ready = (ROOT / ".github" / "workflows" / "deposit-ready.yml").read_text(
+        encoding="utf-8")
+    config = "\n".join(l for l in ready.splitlines()
+                       if not l.lstrip().startswith("#"))
+    ask_step = config.split("id: pending")[1].split("- name:")[0]
+    assert "gh pr list --state open" in ask_step, \
+        "the reminder must look at what is already open before reserving"
+    assert 'startswith("Deposit: ")' in ask_step, \
+        "it must match the requests it opens itself"
+    assert "if s not in asked" in ask_step, \
+        "and it must subtract them from what it asks about"