diff --git a/.github/labels.json b/.github/labels.json
index 070dad173..9d563286b 100644
--- a/.github/labels.json
+++ b/.github/labels.json
@@ -9,11 +9,6 @@
     "color": "d876e3",
     "description": "Waiting for an answer to a specific linked question"
   },
-  {
-    "name": "blocked",
-    "color": "b60205",
-    "description": "Cannot proceed until a named linked prerequisite is resolved"
-  },
   {
     "name": "dependencies",
     "color": "ededed",
diff --git a/docs/docs/developer/contributing-process.md b/docs/docs/developer/contributing-process.md
index 4957b505a..726bb7015 100644
--- a/docs/docs/developer/contributing-process.md
+++ b/docs/docs/developer/contributing-process.md
@@ -36,7 +36,6 @@ No area assignment or label quota is required.
 | ------------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
 | `needs-triage`     | An open issue awaits initial maintainer review. Removing it means reviewed, not scheduled.      |
 | `needs-info`       | A specific unanswered question is linked in the issue. The maintainer removes it when answered. |
-| `blocked`          | A named, linked prerequisite prevents progress. The maintainer tracks its resolution.           |
 | `dependencies`     | Dependency updates or dependency maintenance.                                                   |
 | `documentation`    | Documentation content, tooling or workspace dependencies.                                       |
 | `integration`      | A new or changed provider, source or backend integration.                                       |
@@ -48,18 +47,23 @@ No area assignment or label quota is required.
 The definitions are versioned in
 [`.github/labels.json`](https://github.com/OpenMapX/openmapx/blob/main/.github/labels.json).
 Maintainers own classification and these action labels. An arbitrary comment does
-not resolve an information request or blocker. Add a new label only when there is
+not resolve an information request. Add a new label only when there is
 a clear queue/filter consumer; review the taxonomy periodically.
 
-New and reopened issues enter `needs-triage`. Closure removes `needs-triage`,
-`needs-info` and `blocked`, while retaining the questions, dependency links and
-closure reason in the record. The issue-lifecycle workflow re-reads current state
+Record a prerequisite as a GitHub issue dependency ("blocked by"), not a label.
+The issue then shows which issue blocks it, and `is:blocked` finds blocked issues.
+A prerequisite outside GitHub, such as an upstream release, gets its own tracking
+issue so it can be linked.
+
+New and reopened issues enter `needs-triage`. Closure removes `needs-triage` and
+`needs-info`, while retaining the questions, dependency links and closure reason
+in the record. The issue-lifecycle workflow re-reads current state
 and makes retries harmless; a later human triage decision takes precedence over
 an old reopen event. GitHub does not offer an atomic state-and-label update, so
 concurrent transitions are rechecked and repeated changes fail visibly for retry.
-If reopening overlaps removal of `needs-info` or `blocked`, the workflow fails with
-the affected issue and labels. Check the issue history before restoring them;
-automatically restoring them could undo a later human decision.
+If reopening overlaps removal of `needs-info`, the workflow fails with the
+affected issue and label. Check the issue history before restoring it;
+automatically restoring it could undo a later human decision.
 
 A monthly and manually triggered drift report lists closed workflow labels,
 missing/legacy label definitions and missing issue types. It does not repair
diff --git a/scripts/issue-lifecycle.mjs b/scripts/issue-lifecycle.mjs
index 50146e67f..9268cd332 100644
--- a/scripts/issue-lifecycle.mjs
+++ b/scripts/issue-lifecycle.mjs
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 import { readFileSync } from "node:fs";
 
 const labels = JSON.parse(readFileSync(new URL("../.github/labels.json", import.meta.url), "utf8"));
-const workflowLabels = ["needs-triage", "needs-info", "blocked"];
+const workflowLabels = ["needs-triage", "needs-info"];
 const fieldPolicy = [
   { name: "Priority", visibility: "public", options: ["High", "Low", "Medium", "Urgent"] },
   { name: "Effort", visibility: "public", options: ["High", "Low", "Medium"] },
diff --git a/scripts/issue-lifecycle.test.ts b/scripts/issue-lifecycle.test.ts
index 0f410c2dc..f1440b5b7 100644
--- a/scripts/issue-lifecycle.test.ts
+++ b/scripts/issue-lifecycle.test.ts
@@ -22,10 +22,7 @@ type Issue = {
   type?: { name: string } | null;
 };
 type Event = { id: number; event: string; label?: { name: string }; actor?: { type: string } };
-function fixture(
-  state = "closed",
-  names = ["needs-triage", "needs-info", "blocked", "integration"],
-) {
+function fixture(state = "closed", names = ["needs-triage", "needs-info", "integration"]) {
   const issue: Issue = {
     number: 42,
     state,
@@ -103,7 +100,7 @@ describe("issue lifecycle housekeeping", () => {
   it("does not strip labels when an old close event arrives after reopening", async () => {
     const f = fixture("open");
     await f.run("closed");
-    expect(names(f.issue)).toEqual(["blocked", "integration", "needs-info", "needs-triage"]);
+    expect(names(f.issue)).toEqual(["integration", "needs-info", "needs-triage"]);
   });
   it("cleans current closed state when an old reopen event arrives", async () => {
     const f = fixture();
@@ -134,13 +131,11 @@ describe("issue lifecycle housekeeping", () => {
       f.issue.state = "open";
     });
     await f.run();
-    expect(names(f.issue)).toEqual(["blocked", "integration", "needs-info", "needs-triage"]);
+    expect(names(f.issue)).toEqual(["integration", "needs-info", "needs-triage"]);
   });
   it.each([
-    ["needs-info", ["needs-info", "blocked"]],
-    ["blocked", ["blocked", "integration"]],
-    ["needs-info", ["needs-triage", "needs-info", "blocked"]],
-    ["blocked", ["needs-triage", "needs-info", "blocked"]],
+    ["needs-info", ["needs-info", "integration"]],
+    ["needs-info", ["needs-triage", "needs-info"]],
   ])(
     "reports an ambiguous reopen during removal of %s instead of claiming success",
     async (target, labels) => {
@@ -156,14 +151,14 @@ describe("issue lifecycle housekeeping", () => {
     },
   );
   it("does not overwrite later human label decisions when reporting a reopen race", async () => {
-    const f = fixture("closed", ["needs-info", "blocked"]);
+    const f = fixture("closed", ["needs-info", "integration"]);
     f.onRemove(() => {
       f.issue.state = "open";
       f.issue.labels = [{ name: "needs-info" }, { name: "help wanted" }];
       f.events.push({
         id: 3,
         event: "unlabeled",
-        label: { name: "blocked" },
+        label: { name: "integration" },
         actor: { type: "User" },
       });
     });
@@ -195,7 +190,7 @@ describe("issue lifecycle housekeeping", () => {
   it.each(["commented", "labeled"])("ignores unrelated %s actions", async (action) => {
     const f = fixture();
     await f.run(action);
-    expect(names(f.issue)).toHaveLength(4);
+    expect(names(f.issue)).toHaveLength(3);
   });
   it("ignores PR payloads and non-issue events before any API access", async () => {
     const f = fixture();
@@ -209,7 +204,7 @@ describe("issue lifecycle housekeeping", () => {
     const f = fixture();
     f.issue.pull_request = {};
     await f.run();
-    expect(names(f.issue)).toHaveLength(4);
+    expect(names(f.issue)).toHaveLength(3);
   });
   it("tolerates a raced missing label only after confirming its absence", async () => {
     const f = fixture();
@@ -228,7 +223,7 @@ describe("issue lifecycle housekeeping", () => {
         throw Object.assign(new Error("API failure"), { status });
       };
       await expect(f.run()).rejects.toThrow("API failure");
-      expect(names(f.issue)).toHaveLength(4);
+      expect(names(f.issue)).toHaveLength(3);
     },
   );
   it("fails visibly on repeated concurrent changes rather than retrying forever", async () => {
@@ -401,7 +396,7 @@ describe("contribution policy consumers", () => {
         "--input-type=module",
         "-e",
         `
-      const issue = { state: 'closed', labels: ['needs-triage', 'needs-info', 'blocked', 'integration'].map(name => ({name})) };
+      const issue = { state: 'closed', labels: ['needs-triage', 'needs-info', 'integration'].map(name => ({name})) };
       const github = { rest: { issues: {
         get: async () => ({data: structuredClone(issue)}),
         removeLabel: async ({name}) => { issue.labels = issue.labels.filter(label => label.name !== name); }