diff --git a/docs/HANDOVER-CONTRACTS.md b/docs/HANDOVER-CONTRACTS.md
index f15642d..89d01c9 100644
--- a/docs/HANDOVER-CONTRACTS.md
+++ b/docs/HANDOVER-CONTRACTS.md
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ Each artifact carries an explicit version field. Schema bumps are coordinated:
 |---|---|---|
 | `brief.md` | `brief_version` (frontmatter) | `2.2` |
 | `research/*.md` | (implicit; tracked via `type: trekresearch-brief`) | unversioned |
-| `plan.md` | `plan_version` (frontmatter) | `1.7` |
+| `plan.md` | `plan_version` (plan header line) | `1.7` |
 | `progress.json` | `schema_version` (top-level) | `"1"` |
 | `review.md` | `review_version` (frontmatter) | `1.0` |
 | `.session-state.local.json` | `schema_version` (top-level) | `1` (number) |
@@ -203,9 +203,18 @@ The validator (`lib/validators/architecture-discovery.mjs`) is intentionally min
 
 **Frontmatter schema:**
 
-| Field | Type | Required | Allowed |
-|---|---|---|---|
-| `plan_version` | string | yes | `"1.7"` (current) |
+`plan.md` has **no required frontmatter**. The only frontmatter block,
+`source_findings` (optional), appears for `type: trekreview` plans — see
+Handover 6. Brief-generated plans carry no frontmatter at all.
+
+| Field | Type | Required | Location | Allowed |
+|---|---|---|---|---|
+| `plan_version` | string | yes | plan header line, not frontmatter | `"1.7"` (current) |
+
+`plan_version` is emitted in the plan's "Generated by" header metadata line
+(`> Generated by … — `plan_version: 1.7``), parsed by `extractPlanVersion`
+(`lib/parsers/plan-schema.mjs`) from either line-start or the backtick-wrapped
+prose form (relaxed in S26 so the template's prose emission parses).
 
 **Body invariants (strict, v1.7):**
 
@@ -261,7 +270,7 @@ The strongest validation in the entire pipeline. Phase 5.5 (planning-orchestrato
 | `schema_version` | string | yes | `"1"` (current) |
 | `plan` | string | yes | Path to the plan being executed |
 | `plan_type` | string | optional | `plan \| session-spec` |
-| `plan_version` | string | yes | Mirrors plan's frontmatter |
+| `plan_version` | string | yes | Mirrors the plan header's plan_version |
 | `started_at` | ISO string | yes | |
 | `updated_at` | ISO string | yes | Bumped on every write |
 | `completed_at` | ISO string | optional | Set when status flips to completed |
diff --git a/tests/lib/doc-consistency.test.mjs b/tests/lib/doc-consistency.test.mjs
index bbfd555..4e1fcff 100644
--- a/tests/lib/doc-consistency.test.mjs
+++ b/tests/lib/doc-consistency.test.mjs
@@ -143,6 +143,20 @@ test('templates/plan-template.md declares plan_version: 1.7', () => {
   assert.match(tpl, /plan_version:\s*['"]?1\.7['"]?/);
 });
 
+test('HANDOVER-CONTRACTS.md locates plan_version in the plan header line, not frontmatter (S28)', () => {
+  // The plan template emits plan_version only in the prose "Generated by"
+  // header line; brief-generated plans carry no frontmatter at all (the sole
+  // frontmatter block, `source_findings`, is trekreview-only and additive).
+  // The contract must therefore not label plan_version a frontmatter field.
+  const t = read('docs/HANDOVER-CONTRACTS.md');
+  assert.doesNotMatch(t, /`plan_version`\s*\(frontmatter\)/,
+    'HANDOVER-CONTRACTS.md must not call plan_version a (frontmatter) field — it lives in the plan header line');
+  assert.doesNotMatch(t, /Mirrors plan's frontmatter/,
+    "progress.json's plan_version mirrors the plan header line, not frontmatter");
+  assert.match(t, /`plan_version`\s*\(plan header line\)/,
+    'HANDOVER-CONTRACTS.md versioning table must locate plan_version in the plan header line');
+});
+
 // S19 prune (audit §Top changes #8): removed a tautological prose-pin —
 // "commands/trekexecute.md still parses v1.7 plan schema" was an OR-chain
 // (`includes('plan_version') || includes('Step N:') || includes('### Step ')`)