diff --git a/scripts/tag-release.ps1 b/scripts/tag-release.ps1
index c671793b..ff84db6f 100644
--- a/scripts/tag-release.ps1
+++ b/scripts/tag-release.ps1
@@ -13,6 +13,12 @@
     that sha is on main, matches the versionName being tagged, and that the AAB built from it exists
     locally before creating the release.
 
+    The tag is created and pushed with git, then the release is created against it. `gh release
+    create --target <sha>` is NOT used: it returns HTTP 403 for Actions tokens and fine-grained
+    PATs even with contents: write (cli/cli#9514), while plain `git push` of the tag is unaffected.
+    That bug is invisible when running as a human, which is why it only surfaced once the release
+    moved into a workflow.
+
 .PARAMETER Version    Tag name / versionName, e.g. "1.0.49" (no "v" prefix — matches 1.0.49, the
                        first tag cut for this repo).
 .PARAMETER Sha         The chore/release-<version> bump's merge commit on main. Get it right after
@@ -45,9 +51,21 @@ if ($LASTEXITCODE -ne 0) { Write-Error "‘$Sha’ is not a commit in this repo.
 git merge-base --is-ancestor $Sha origin/main
 if ($LASTEXITCODE -ne 0) { Write-Error "$Sha is not an ancestor of origin/main — refusing to tag it."; exit 1 }
 
-# 2. The tag must not already exist — no silent re-tagging.
-$existing = git tag -l $Version
-if ($existing) { Write-Error "Tag $Version already exists (points at $(git rev-parse $Version)). Bump the version or delete the stale tag first."; exit 1 }
+# 2. An existing tag is either a re-run to finish, or a mistake. The tag is pushed before the
+# release is created, so a failure between those two steps leaves the tag in place with nothing
+# attached; refusing outright would make that state permanent. Same sha and no release yet means
+# resume. A DIFFERENT sha is still a hard stop — that tag says something else shipped.
+$tagExists = [bool](git tag -l $Version)
+if ($tagExists) {
+    $taggedSha = (git rev-list -n 1 $Version)
+    if ($taggedSha -ne $Sha) {
+        Write-Error "Tag $Version already exists and points at $taggedSha, not $Sha. Bump the version or delete the stale tag first."
+        exit 1
+    }
+    gh release view $Version *> $null
+    if ($LASTEXITCODE -eq 0) { Write-Error "$Version is already tagged AND released. Nothing to do."; exit 1 }
+    Write-Host "Tag $Version already present at $Sha with no release — creating the release for it."
+}
 
 # 3. versionName at that sha must match the tag being cut — catches a wrong/stale sha.
 # git show returns a string[] (one element per line) in PowerShell; -match on an array filters
@@ -65,9 +83,18 @@ if (-not (Test-Path $aab)) {
     Write-Warning "$aab not found locally — this tag should be cut AFTER building and uploading that bundle (release-signing-and-aab.md #3-5). Continuing anyway; verify you meant to."
 }
 
-Write-Host "Tagging $Version at $Sha (versionCode $versionCode)..."
-$ghArgs = @("release", "create", $Version, "--target", $Sha, "--title", $Title)
+# 5. Push the tag ourselves, then create the release against it. See .DESCRIPTION for why this is
+# not `gh release create --target`.
+if (-not $tagExists) {
+    Write-Host "Tagging $Version at $Sha (versionCode $versionCode)..."
+    git tag $Version $Sha
+    if ($LASTEXITCODE -ne 0) { Write-Error "Could not create the tag $Version locally."; exit 1 }
+    git push origin "refs/tags/$Version"
+    if ($LASTEXITCODE -ne 0) { Write-Error "Could not push the tag $Version. The local tag remains; delete it with ``git tag -d $Version`` if you are not retrying."; exit 1 }
+}
+
+$ghArgs = @("release", "create", $Version, "--title", $Title)
 if ($NotesFile) { $ghArgs += @("-F", $NotesFile) } else { $ghArgs += "--generate-notes" }
 gh @ghArgs
-if ($LASTEXITCODE -ne 0) { Write-Error "gh release create failed."; exit 1 }
+if ($LASTEXITCODE -ne 0) { Write-Error "gh release create failed. The tag $Version is pushed; re-run this script to attach the release."; exit 1 }
 Write-Host "Done: https://github.com/$(gh repo view --json nameWithOwner -q .nameWithOwner)/releases/tag/$Version"