CLAUDE_CODE_AUTO_MODE_EXTERNAL_PERMISSIONS

Updated October 13, 2026 by Alex Sorokoletov

CLAUDE_CODE_AUTO_MODE_EXTERNAL_PERMISSIONS is a Claude Code environment variable: Hands permission decisions to an external policy engine instead of the built-in prompt. This is the hook an enterprise needs to enforce its own approval rules on autonomous edits. Added between v2.1.143 and v2.1.212 and still present in v2.1.294. It is not in the official reference.

How to set it

For one session, export it in the shell that starts Claude Code:

export CLAUDE_CODE_AUTO_MODE_EXTERNAL_PERMISSIONS=<value>
claude

To apply it to every session, add it to the env object of a settings file:

// ~/.claude/settings.json
{
  "env": {
    "CLAUDE_CODE_AUTO_MODE_EXTERNAL_PERMISSIONS": "<value>"
  }
}

Release notes that mention it

• Claude Code v2.1.209 — Auto Mode Grows Up

Related variables

• CLAUDE_CODE_AUTO_MODE_CLASSIFY_EDITS: Turns the classification pass on: every edit runs through the classifier before it touches disk.
• CLAUDE_CODE_AUTO_MODE_EDIT_REMOVAL: Governs whether Auto mode may delete content as part of an edit.
• CLAUDE_CODE_AUTO_MODE_EDIT_REMOVAL_CAP: Caps how much a single autonomous edit can remove before it's held for a human.
• CLAUDE_CODE_AUTO_MODE_GIT_STATUS: Feeds the working tree's git status into the classifier's context.
• CLAUDE_CODE_AUTO_MODE_GIT_STATUS_LIMIT: Bounds how much of that status is included, so the classifier prompt doesn't balloon in large or messy repos.
• CLAUDE_CODE_AUTO_MODE_GIT_STATUS_UPLOADS: Controls whether git-status context is uploaded to the classification service.
• CLAUDE_CODE_AUTO_MODE_OUTCOME_CODES: Structured outcome codes for the classifier's verdicts instead of free text.
• CLAUDE_CODE_AUTO_MODE_REPO_VISIBILITY: Lets behavior depend on whether the repo is public or private.

Frequently asked questions

All variables, searchable: Claude Code environment variables.