diff --git a/tests/conftest.py b/tests/conftest.py
index eb5fedbe..453e1122 100644
--- a/tests/conftest.py
+++ b/tests/conftest.py
@@ -1987,7 +1987,7 @@ async def playwright_oauth_token(
         # Wait for callback server to receive the auth code
         # Browser will be redirected to localhost:8081 which will capture the code
         logger.info("Waiting for callback server to receive auth code...")
-        timeout_seconds = 30
+        timeout_seconds = 60  # was 30; too tight for consent+redirect on loaded CI
         start_time = time.time()
         while state not in auth_states:
             if time.time() - start_time > timeout_seconds:
@@ -2696,7 +2696,7 @@ async def _get_oauth_token_for_user(
         logger.info(
             "Waiting for callback server to receive auth code for %s...", username
         )
-        timeout_seconds = 30
+        timeout_seconds = 60  # was 30; too tight for consent+redirect on loaded CI
         start_time = time.time()
         while state not in auth_states:
             if time.time() - start_time > timeout_seconds:
diff --git a/tests/integration/_search_helpers.py b/tests/integration/_search_helpers.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..404d6835
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/integration/_search_helpers.py
@@ -0,0 +1,68 @@
+"""Shared helpers for asserting vector-sync visibility in integration tests.
+
+Kept dependency-light (no Playwright) so both the multi-user-basic UI tests and
+the single-user sampling tests can import it.
+"""
+
+import json
+import logging
+from typing import Any
+
+logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
+
+
+async def document_is_searchable(
+    mcp_client: Any, search_term: str, note_id: int | None = None
+) -> bool:
+    """Return True once a freshly-created document is retrievable.
+
+    Polls ``nc_semantic_search`` (hybrid: an exact unique term reliably matches
+    on the keyword side) and matches by ``note_id`` when provided, otherwise by
+    the term appearing in a result's title/excerpt. Transient errors return
+    False so callers can keep polling.
+    """
+    try:
+        search = await mcp_client.call_tool(
+            "nc_semantic_search",
+            # limit is generous: a fresh note can sit below seed data (e.g. deck
+            # cards) in a crowded corpus, and the query is cheap.
+            arguments={"query": search_term, "limit": 50, "score_threshold": 0.0},
+        )
+    except Exception as e:  # transient transport/availability blip — keep polling
+        logger.debug("Semantic search poll failed: %s", e)
+        return False
+    if search.isError:
+        logger.debug("Semantic search poll error: %s", search)
+        return False
+
+    try:
+        results = json.loads(search.content[0].text).get("results", [])
+    except (IndexError, ValueError) as e:  # empty content / malformed JSON
+        logger.debug("Semantic search parse failed: %s", e)
+        return False
+
+    # Token match (not contiguous substring) so multi-word terms work in the
+    # note_id-less fallback path.
+    tokens = search_term.lower().split()
+    for r in results:
+        if note_id is not None:
+            # str-coerce both sides: nc_semantic_search returns int ids today,
+            # but the Astrolabe API serialises some ids as strings — match the
+            # defensive comparison in _poll_astrolabe_search_for_note so a future
+            # schema change can't silently break the match.
+            if str(r.get("id")) == str(note_id):
+                if r.get("doc_type") == "note":
+                    return True
+                # id matched but not a note — surface possible schema drift at
+                # WARNING (CI runs --log-cli-level=WARN) instead of letting the
+                # caller time out with a generic message.
+                logger.warning(
+                    "search hit id=%s has doc_type=%s (expected note)",
+                    note_id,
+                    r.get("doc_type"),
+                )
+        else:
+            haystack = f"{r.get('title', '')} {r.get('excerpt', '')}".lower()
+            if tokens and all(t in haystack for t in tokens):
+                return True
+    return False
diff --git a/tests/integration/test_astrolabe_chunk_context.py b/tests/integration/test_astrolabe_chunk_context.py
index 0fcc259b..5d6fb5ef 100644
--- a/tests/integration/test_astrolabe_chunk_context.py
+++ b/tests/integration/test_astrolabe_chunk_context.py
@@ -56,11 +56,11 @@ async def _poll_astrolabe_search_for_note(
 ) -> dict:
     """Poll Astrolabe's search endpoint until `note_id` shows up in results.
 
-    `wait_for_vector_sync` only waits for the total indexed count to grow —
-    it does not guarantee that *this specific* document is visible yet
-    (observed on nc32 where deck-card seed data indexes first and the new
-    note arrives in Qdrant a few seconds later). Poll until the unique term
-    returns our note, or fail loudly with the last response we saw.
+    `wait_for_vector_sync` now gates on this specific document being
+    retrievable via the MCP semantic-search tool, but Astrolabe's own search
+    endpoint is a distinct read path (its own JWT + query handler), so we still
+    poll it here until the unique term returns our note — or fail loudly with
+    the last response we saw.
     """
     deadline = time.monotonic() + timeout_seconds
     last_results: list | None = None
@@ -170,9 +170,16 @@ async def test_chunk_context_endpoint_uses_app_password(
             assert note_id is not None
 
             sync_complete, status = await wait_for_vector_sync(
-                mcp_client, initial_count, timeout_seconds=90
+                mcp_client,
+                initial_count,
+                timeout_seconds=90,
+                search_term=unique_term,
+                note_id=note_id,
+            )
+            assert sync_complete, (
+                f"Note {note_id} ({unique_term}) never became searchable "
+                f"within timeout. Last sync status: {status}"
             )
-            assert sync_complete, f"Vector sync did not complete: {status}"
 
         # Use the browser's session to drive Astrolabe end-to-end, the way a
         # real user would: this exercises astrolabe's OAuth token retrieval
diff --git a/tests/integration/test_astrolabe_plotly_visualization.py b/tests/integration/test_astrolabe_plotly_visualization.py
index 33607174..d8f7775f 100644
--- a/tests/integration/test_astrolabe_plotly_visualization.py
+++ b/tests/integration/test_astrolabe_plotly_visualization.py
@@ -28,6 +28,7 @@ from playwright.async_api import Page
 
 # Import helper functions from existing test
 from tests.conftest import create_mcp_client_session
+from tests.integration._search_helpers import document_is_searchable
 from tests.integration.test_astrolabe_multi_user_background_sync import (
     complete_astrolabe_authorization,
     login_to_nextcloud,
@@ -39,14 +40,40 @@ pytestmark = [pytest.mark.integration, pytest.mark.multi_user_basic]
 
 
 async def wait_for_vector_sync(
-    mcp_client, initial_indexed_count: int, timeout_seconds: int = 60
+    mcp_client,
+    initial_indexed_count: int,
+    timeout_seconds: int = 60,
+    *,
+    search_term: str | None = None,
+    note_id: int | None = None,
 ) -> tuple[bool, dict | None]:
-    """Wait for vector sync to index new content.
+    """Wait for vector sync to index newly-created content.
+
+    Completion signal:
+
+    - When ``search_term`` is provided (preferred), poll ``nc_semantic_search``
+      until the new document is actually retrievable. This is robust against
+      full-corpus re-scan churn and doubles as a real end-to-end check — it is
+      exactly what callers assert downstream.
+    - Otherwise, fall back to the legacy gauge-delta predicate.
+
+    Why the gauge delta is unreliable: under ``VECTOR_SYNC_SCAN_INTERVAL`` the
+    background sync re-queues the whole corpus every scan, so the corpus-wide
+    ``indexed_count`` is *non-monotonic* — it can be re-counted downward
+    mid-scan. ``indexed_count > initial_indexed_count`` can therefore never hold
+    even though the new document is indexed and the status has settled to
+    ``idle`` / ``pending_count == 0``. That false failure was the dominant
+    multi-user-basic CI flake (``test_astrolabe_plotly_visualization`` /
+    ``test_astrolabe_chunk_context``).
 
     Args:
         mcp_client: MCP client session
-        initial_indexed_count: Initial indexed document count before creating content
+        initial_indexed_count: Indexed document count before creating content
+            (only used by the legacy gauge-delta fallback)
         timeout_seconds: Maximum time to wait for sync
+        search_term: Unique term contained in the new document; enables the
+            robust searchability-based completion signal
+        note_id: ID of the new document, used to match search results exactly
 
     Returns:
         Tuple of (success, status_data)
@@ -73,7 +100,14 @@ async def wait_for_vector_sync(
             status_data.get("status"),
         )
 
-        if indexed_count > initial_indexed_count and pending_count == 0:
+        if search_term is not None:
+            if await document_is_searchable(mcp_client, search_term, note_id):
+                logger.info(
+                    "✓ Sync complete: document %s retrievable via semantic search",
+                    note_id,
+                )
+                return True, status_data
+        elif indexed_count > initial_indexed_count and pending_count == 0:
             logger.info(
                 "✓ Sync complete: %s documents indexed (was %s)",
                 indexed_count,
@@ -197,24 +231,41 @@ The visualization should show this document as a point in PCA-reduced space.
 
             # Phase 4: Wait for vector indexing
             sync_complete, status = await wait_for_vector_sync(
-                alice_mcp_client, initial_count, timeout_seconds=90
+                alice_mcp_client,
+                initial_count,
+                timeout_seconds=90,
+                search_term=unique_term,
+                note_id=note_id,
+            )
+            assert sync_complete, (
+                f"Note {note_id} ({unique_term}) never became searchable "
+                f"within timeout. Last sync status: {status}"
             )
-            assert sync_complete, f"Vector sync did not complete in time: {status}"
 
             # Phase 5: Navigate to Astrolabe and perform search
             await navigate_to_astrolabe_main(page)
 
-            # Fill search query - find the Astrolabe search input specifically
-            # The NcTextField component wraps the input in a div with class mcp-search-input
-            search_input = page.locator(".mcp-search-input input")
-            await search_input.wait_for(timeout=10000, state="visible")
+            # Find the Astrolabe search field. The published app differs across
+            # the NC matrix: NC31 pulls astrolabe <=0.24 (NcTextField -> <input>,
+            # submits on Enter); NC32 pulls astrolabe >=0.25 (NcTextArea ->
+            # <textarea>, submits on Ctrl/Cmd+Enter). Match either element so the
+            # test isn't pinned to one frontend revision.
+            # 30s (not 10s): the SPA can be slow to mount on a loaded CI runner.
+            search_input = page.locator(
+                ".mcp-search-input textarea, .mcp-search-input input"
+            ).first
+            await search_input.wait_for(timeout=30000, state="visible")
             await search_input.fill(unique_term)
             logger.info("Entered search query: %s", unique_term)
 
-            # Trigger search by pressing Enter on the input field
-            # This is wired to performSearch via @keyup.enter in the Vue component
-            await search_input.press("Enter")
-            logger.info("Pressed Enter to trigger search")
+            # Trigger search. NcTextField submits on Enter; NcTextArea inserts a
+            # newline on Enter and submits on Ctrl/Cmd+Enter — so key off the tag.
+            field_tag = await search_input.evaluate("el => el.tagName.toLowerCase()")
+            if field_tag == "textarea":
+                await search_input.press("Control+Enter")
+            else:
+                await search_input.press("Enter")
+            logger.info("Triggered search via %s submit", field_tag)
 
             # Wait for loading to complete - watch for loading indicator to disappear
             loading_indicator = page.locator(".mcp-loading")
diff --git a/tests/integration/test_astrolabe_session_jwt_search.py b/tests/integration/test_astrolabe_session_jwt_search.py
index f3a26915..f3b288b2 100644
--- a/tests/integration/test_astrolabe_session_jwt_search.py
+++ b/tests/integration/test_astrolabe_session_jwt_search.py
@@ -21,17 +21,46 @@ HTTP with BasicAuth (which establishes a Nextcloud session for the request) —
 no browser needed.
 """
 
+import logging
 import os
 
+import anyio
 import httpx
 import pytest
 
 pytestmark = [pytest.mark.integration, pytest.mark.login_flow]
 
+logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
+
 NEXTCLOUD_URL = "http://localhost:8080"
 ASTROLABE_API = f"{NEXTCLOUD_URL}/apps/astrolabe/api"
 _HEADERS = {"OCS-APIRequest": "true"}
 
+# The first /search after container start is slow: astrolabe mints a JWT and
+# the MCP server runs a semantic search that may cold-load the embedding model.
+# A single 30s read timeout was a CI flake (httpx.ReadTimeout); give the search
+# path a generous budget and one retry on transient transport errors.
+_SEARCH_TIMEOUT = httpx.Timeout(90.0)
+
+
+async def _get_with_retry(
+    client: httpx.AsyncClient, url: str, *, max_attempts: int = 2, **kwargs
+) -> httpx.Response:
+    """GET, retrying on transient transport errors (timeouts/conn resets)."""
+    last_exc: httpx.TransportError | None = None
+    for attempt in range(1, max_attempts + 1):
+        try:
+            return await client.get(url, **kwargs)
+        except httpx.TransportError as e:  # covers timeouts + connect/read errors
+            last_exc = e
+            logger.warning(
+                "GET %s failed (attempt %s/%s): %s", url, attempt, max_attempts, e
+            )
+            if attempt < max_attempts:
+                await anyio.sleep(2)  # no point sleeping before we give up
+    assert last_exc is not None  # loop ran at least once, so this is set
+    raise last_exc
+
 
 async def _astrolabe_configured(client: httpx.AsyncClient, auth) -> bool:
     """Readiness probe: astrolabe must be able to reach its MCP server."""
@@ -46,6 +75,7 @@ async def _astrolabe_configured(client: httpx.AsyncClient, auth) -> bool:
     return bool(resp.json().get("success"))
 
 
+@pytest.mark.timeout(300)  # cold model load + retry can exceed the 180s default
 async def test_session_user_searches_without_provisioning(test_users_setup):
     """A non-admin session user searches with no OAuth/provisioning step.
 
@@ -66,11 +96,13 @@ async def test_session_user_searches_without_provisioning(test_users_setup):
             "precondition: bob has not opted into background indexing"
         )
 
-        resp = await client.get(
+        resp = await _get_with_retry(
+            client,
             f"{ASTROLABE_API}/search",
             params={"query": "quarterly planning", "limit": 3},
             auth=auth,
             headers=_HEADERS,
+            timeout=_SEARCH_TIMEOUT,
         )
 
     assert resp.status_code == 200, resp.text
@@ -81,6 +113,7 @@ async def test_session_user_searches_without_provisioning(test_users_setup):
     assert "results" in body and "algorithm_used" in body
 
 
+@pytest.mark.timeout(300)  # cold model load + retry can exceed the 180s default
 async def test_admin_session_search_succeeds():
     """The same JWT-mint path works for the admin session user."""
     admin_pw = os.environ["NEXTCLOUD_PASSWORD"]
@@ -88,11 +121,13 @@ async def test_admin_session_search_succeeds():
     async with httpx.AsyncClient(timeout=30) as client:
         if not await _astrolabe_configured(client, auth):
             pytest.skip("Astrolabe not wired to an MCP server in this stack")
-        resp = await client.get(
+        resp = await _get_with_retry(
+            client,
             f"{ASTROLABE_API}/search",
             params={"query": "infrastructure", "limit": 3},
             auth=auth,
             headers=_HEADERS,
+            timeout=_SEARCH_TIMEOUT,
         )
     assert resp.status_code == 200, resp.text
     assert resp.json()["success"] is True
diff --git a/tests/integration/test_rag.py b/tests/integration/test_rag.py
index 61103c6a..d36a2d59 100644
--- a/tests/integration/test_rag.py
+++ b/tests/integration/test_rag.py
@@ -174,16 +174,22 @@ async def indexed_manual_pdf(nc_client, nc_mcp_client):
                 content = json.loads(result.content[0].text) if result.content else {}
                 indexed = content.get("indexed_count", 0)
                 pending = content.get("pending_count", 1)
+                status = content.get("status")
 
                 logger.info(
-                    "Attempt %s/%s: indexed=%s, pending=%s",
+                    "Attempt %s/%s: indexed=%s, pending=%s, status=%s",
                     attempt,
                     max_attempts,
                     indexed,
                     pending,
+                    status,
                 )
 
-                if indexed > 0 and pending == 0:
+                # Require indexed > 0 (the manual must actually be indexed —
+                # idle/pending==0 is also the *initial* empty state) AND a
+                # settled idle scan so we don't break during a transient
+                # pending==0 window mid re-scan churn.
+                if indexed > 0 and pending == 0 and status == "idle":
                     logger.info(
                         "Vector indexing complete: %s documents indexed", indexed
                     )
@@ -399,27 +405,53 @@ async def test_retrieval_quality_all_queries(
     )
 
 
-async def test_no_results_for_unrelated_query(nc_mcp_client, indexed_manual_pdf):
-    """Test that completely unrelated queries return low/no scores.
-
-    The Nextcloud manual shouldn't have relevant content for
-    quantum physics queries.
-    """
+async def _top_score(nc_mcp_client: Any, query: str) -> float | None:
+    """Return the best fusion score for ``query``, or None if no results."""
     result = await nc_mcp_client.call_tool(
         "nc_semantic_search",
-        arguments={
-            "query": "quantum entanglement hadron collider particle physics",
-            "limit": 5,
-            "score_threshold": 0.5,  # Higher threshold to filter irrelevant
-        },
+        arguments={"query": query, "limit": 5, "score_threshold": 0.0},
+    )
+    assert result.isError is False, result.content
+    data = json.loads(result.content[0].text)
+    results = data.get("results", [])
+    if not results:  # guard the list directly, not via total_found
+        return None
+    return max(r["score"] for r in results)
+
+
+async def test_no_results_for_unrelated_query(nc_mcp_client, indexed_manual_pdf):
+    """An unrelated query must not out-rank a genuinely relevant one.
+
+    The Nextcloud manual has no quantum-physics content, so a physics query
+    must not look *more* relevant than a real manual query.
+
+    We deliberately do NOT assert on an absolute score magnitude. Fusion scores
+    (RRF/DBSF) are rank-based, not calibrated relevance: the top hit saturates
+    near the high end of the range regardless of true relevance, so a hardcoded
+    ``max_score < 0.8`` check was a CI flake (it tripped whenever the unrelated
+    query happened to retrieve any chunk at all). Comparing against a relevant
+    query on the same corpus is self-calibrating and stable.
+    """
+    # No results for the nonsense query is the ideal outcome — treat as score
+    # 0.0 and fall through, so the comparison (and the manual-is-indexed check
+    # below) still runs instead of the test silently skipping every time the
+    # physics query finds nothing.
+    unrelated = (
+        await _top_score(
+            nc_mcp_client, "quantum entanglement hadron collider particle physics"
+        )
+        or 0.0
     )
 
-    assert result.isError is False
-    data = json.loads(result.content[0].text)
+    relevant = await _top_score(
+        nc_mcp_client, "how do I enable two-factor authentication"
+    )
+    assert relevant is not None, (
+        "Relevant control query returned nothing — manual not indexed?"
+    )
 
-    # Should have few or no high-scoring results
-    # Low score threshold means we might get some results, but they should be low quality
-    if data["total_found"] > 0:
-        # If results exist, they should have low scores
-        max_score = max(r["score"] for r in data["results"])
-        assert max_score < 0.8, f"Unexpected high score {max_score} for unrelated query"
+    # The unrelated query must not appear more relevant than the real one.
+    assert unrelated <= relevant, (
+        f"Unrelated query scored {unrelated}, higher than the relevant "
+        f"control query's {relevant} — retrieval is not discriminating."
+    )
diff --git a/tests/integration/test_sampling.py b/tests/integration/test_sampling.py
index 07850d1e..4a103d9e 100644
--- a/tests/integration/test_sampling.py
+++ b/tests/integration/test_sampling.py
@@ -20,6 +20,8 @@ import anyio
 import pytest
 from mcp.types import CreateMessageResult, TextContent
 
+from tests.integration._search_helpers import document_is_searchable
+
 pytestmark = pytest.mark.integration
 
 
@@ -27,6 +29,8 @@ async def wait_for_vector_sync(
     nc_mcp_client,
     *,
     initial_indexed_count: int | None = None,
+    search_term: str | None = None,
+    note_id: int | None = None,
     max_wait: int = 90,
     wait_interval: int = 1,
 ) -> dict:
@@ -34,9 +38,15 @@ async def wait_for_vector_sync(
 
     Args:
         nc_mcp_client: MCP client to poll status with.
-        initial_indexed_count: If set, wait until indexed_count exceeds this
-            value and pending_count reaches 0. Otherwise wait for idle with
-            no pending work.
+        search_term: If set (preferred), wait until a document matching this
+            term is retrievable via ``nc_semantic_search``. Robust against
+            full-corpus re-scan churn, where the corpus-wide ``indexed_count``
+            gauge is non-monotonic and ``indexed_count > initial`` can never
+            hold even though the document is indexed.
+        note_id: Optional exact-match document id paired with ``search_term``.
+        initial_indexed_count: Legacy gauge-delta fallback when no search_term
+            is given: wait until indexed_count exceeds this value and
+            pending_count reaches 0.
         max_wait: Maximum seconds to wait before failing.
         wait_interval: Seconds between status polls.
 
@@ -49,18 +59,32 @@ async def wait_for_vector_sync(
         sync_status = await nc_mcp_client.call_tool(
             "nc_get_vector_sync_status", arguments={}
         )
-        status_data = json.loads(sync_status.content[0].text)
+        try:
+            status_data = json.loads(sync_status.content[0].text)
+        except (AttributeError, IndexError, ValueError):
+            # transient empty/error response — keep polling. .get() defaults
+            # below also keep an empty dict from triggering a false break.
+            status_data = {}
 
-        if initial_indexed_count is not None:
-            # Wait for new document(s) to be indexed
+        if search_term is not None:
+            # Robust signal: wait for the specific document to be retrievable
+            if await document_is_searchable(nc_mcp_client, search_term, note_id):
+                break
+        elif initial_indexed_count is not None:
+            # Legacy: wait for new document(s) to be indexed (gauge delta)
             if (
-                status_data["indexed_count"] > initial_indexed_count
-                and status_data["pending_count"] == 0
+                status_data.get("indexed_count", 0) > initial_indexed_count
+                and status_data.get("pending_count", 1) == 0
             ):
                 break
         else:
-            # Wait for all pending work to complete
-            if status_data["status"] == "idle" and status_data["pending_count"] == 0:
+            # NOTE: idle + pending==0 is also the *initial empty* state, so this
+            # can break before a caller's work is even enqueued — prefer passing
+            # search_term. Kept only for callers that just need a settled corpus.
+            if (
+                status_data.get("status") == "idle"
+                and status_data.get("pending_count", 1) == 0
+            ):
                 break
 
         await anyio.sleep(wait_interval)
@@ -117,14 +141,6 @@ async def test_semantic_search_answer_successful_sampling(
     """
     await require_vector_sync_tools(nc_mcp_client)
 
-    # Get initial indexed count before creating note
-
-    initial_sync = await nc_mcp_client.call_tool(
-        "nc_get_vector_sync_status", arguments={}
-    )
-    initial_indexed_count = json.loads(initial_sync.content[0].text)["indexed_count"]
-    print(f"Initial indexed count: {initial_indexed_count}")
-
     # Create a note with content about Python async
     _note = await temporary_note_factory(
         title="Python Async Guide",
@@ -142,12 +158,13 @@ Avoid blocking operations in async code.""",
     )
     print(f"Created note ID: {_note['id']}")
 
-    # Wait for vector indexing to complete
-    status_data = await wait_for_vector_sync(
-        nc_mcp_client, initial_indexed_count=initial_indexed_count
-    )
-    assert status_data["indexed_count"] > initial_indexed_count, (
-        f"New note was not indexed (count stayed at {initial_indexed_count})"
+    # Wait for vector indexing to complete. Gate on the new note actually
+    # being retrievable rather than on the corpus-wide indexed_count gauge,
+    # which is non-monotonic under re-scan churn (see wait_for_vector_sync).
+    await wait_for_vector_sync(
+        nc_mcp_client,
+        search_term="Python Async Programming coroutines",
+        note_id=_note["id"],
     )
 
     # Mock the sampling call
@@ -267,8 +284,12 @@ async def test_semantic_search_answer_with_limit(nc_mcp_client, temporary_note_f
         category="Development",
     )
 
-    # Wait for vector indexing to complete
-    await wait_for_vector_sync(nc_mcp_client)
+    # Wait until the batch is indexed — gate on the last note being searchable
+    # rather than a bare idle signal, which can fire before the new notes are
+    # even enqueued.
+    await wait_for_vector_sync(
+        nc_mcp_client, search_term="async context managers", note_id=_note3["id"]
+    )
 
     call_result = await nc_mcp_client.call_tool(
         "nc_semantic_search_answer",
@@ -308,8 +329,10 @@ async def test_semantic_search_answer_score_threshold(
         category="Test",
     )
 
-    # Wait for vector indexing to complete
-    await wait_for_vector_sync(nc_mcp_client)
+    # Gate on the new note being searchable (not a bare idle signal).
+    await wait_for_vector_sync(
+        nc_mcp_client, search_term="widget manufacturing", note_id=_note["id"]
+    )
 
     # Query with exact match
     call_result = await nc_mcp_client.call_tool(
@@ -355,8 +378,10 @@ async def test_semantic_search_answer_max_tokens(nc_mcp_client, temporary_note_f
         category="Test",
     )
 
-    # Wait for vector indexing to complete
-    await wait_for_vector_sync(nc_mcp_client)
+    # Gate on the new note being searchable (not a bare idle signal).
+    await wait_for_vector_sync(
+        nc_mcp_client, search_term="Long Document content", note_id=_note["id"]
+    )
 
     call_result = await nc_mcp_client.call_tool(
         "nc_semantic_search_answer",
diff --git a/tests/server/login_flow/test_dcr_lifecycle.py b/tests/server/login_flow/test_dcr_lifecycle.py
index 301816d8..825cd3a9 100644
--- a/tests/server/login_flow/test_dcr_lifecycle.py
+++ b/tests/server/login_flow/test_dcr_lifecycle.py
@@ -105,7 +105,7 @@ async def get_oauth_token_with_client(
 
         # Wait for callback
         logger.info("Waiting for OAuth callback...")
-        timeout_seconds = 30
+        timeout_seconds = 60  # was 30; too tight for consent+redirect on loaded CI
         start_time = time.time()
         while state not in auth_states:
             if time.time() - start_time > timeout_seconds:
diff --git a/tests/server/login_flow/test_dcr_token_type.py b/tests/server/login_flow/test_dcr_token_type.py
index e9faefce..9b4a48f7 100644
--- a/tests/server/login_flow/test_dcr_token_type.py
+++ b/tests/server/login_flow/test_dcr_token_type.py
@@ -161,7 +161,7 @@ async def get_oauth_token_with_client(
 
         # Wait for callback
         logger.info("Waiting for OAuth callback...")
-        timeout_seconds = 30
+        timeout_seconds = 60  # was 30; too tight for consent+redirect on loaded CI
         start_time = time.time()
         while state not in auth_states:
             if time.time() - start_time > timeout_seconds:
diff --git a/tests/server/login_flow/test_introspection_authorization.py b/tests/server/login_flow/test_introspection_authorization.py
index 1f197e2f..e88fae03 100644
--- a/tests/server/login_flow/test_introspection_authorization.py
+++ b/tests/server/login_flow/test_introspection_authorization.py
@@ -241,7 +241,7 @@ async def _obtain_token_for_client(
 
         # Wait for callback server to receive auth code
         logger.info("Waiting for callback server to receive auth code...")
-        timeout_seconds = 30
+        timeout_seconds = 60  # was 30; too tight for consent+redirect on loaded CI
         start_time = time.time()
         while state not in auth_states:
             if time.time() - start_time > timeout_seconds: