diff --git a/docs/CHANGELOG.md b/docs/CHANGELOG.md
index 87fc21f..000841b 100644
--- a/docs/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/docs/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -4,6 +4,10 @@ All notable changes to Janee will be documented in this file.
 
 ## [Unreleased]
 
+### Added
+
+- **Per-capability `access` override** — Capabilities can now set `access: open` or `access: restricted` to override the global `defaultAccess` policy. Useful for mixed environments where some capabilities (e.g. SerpAPI) should be open to all agents while others (e.g. Stripe) are locked to specific agents. Configurable via `janee cap add --access open` / `janee cap edit --access restricted` / `janee cap edit --clear-access`. Surfaced in `explain_access` traces and `cap list` output.
+
 ### Changed
 
 - **Refactor: Extract shared CLI utilities** — Common helpers (`cliError`, `requireConfig`, `resolveEnvVar`, `parseEnvMap`, `handleCommandError`) moved to `src/cli/cli-utils.ts`. Removes ~200 lines of duplicated code across 14 CLI command files. Error output format is now consistent (`{ ok: false, error }`) across all commands.
diff --git a/src/cli/commands/capability.ts b/src/cli/commands/capability.ts
index 30beb72..04551d9 100644
--- a/src/cli/commands/capability.ts
+++ b/src/cli/commands/capability.ts
@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@ export async function capabilityListCommand(options: { json?: boolean } = {}): P
           allowRules: cap.rules?.allow || [],
           denyRules: cap.rules?.deny || [],
           mode: cap.mode,
+          access: cap.access,
           allowedAgents: cap.allowedAgents,
           allowCommands: cap.allowCommands,
           env: cap.env,
@@ -59,6 +60,7 @@ export async function capabilityListCommand(options: { json?: boolean } = {}): P
       if (cap.autoApprove !== undefined) console.log(`    Auto-approve: ${cap.autoApprove}`);
       if (cap.requiresReason !== undefined) console.log(`    Requires reason: ${cap.requiresReason}`);
       if (rules) console.log(`    Rules:${rules}`);
+      if (cap.access) console.log(`    Access: ${cap.access}`);
       if (cap.allowedAgents?.length) console.log(`    Allowed agents: ${cap.allowedAgents.join(', ')}`);
       if (cap.allowCommands?.length) console.log(`    Allow commands: ${cap.allowCommands.join(', ')}`);
       if (cap.env) console.log(`    Env: ${Object.entries(cap.env).map(([k,v]) => `${k}=${v}`).join(', ')}`);
@@ -81,6 +83,8 @@ interface CapAddEditOptions {
   clearRules?: boolean;
   allowedAgents?: string[];
   clearAgents?: boolean;
+  access?: string;
+  clearAccess?: boolean;
   mode?: string;
   allowCommands?: string[];
   envMap?: string[];
@@ -96,6 +100,15 @@ function applyCapabilityOptions(cap: CapabilityConfig, options: CapAddEditOption
   if (options.clearAgents) {
     delete cap.allowedAgents;
   }
+  if (options.access) {
+    if (options.access !== 'open' && options.access !== 'restricted') {
+      throw new Error(`Invalid access policy "${options.access}" — must be "open" or "restricted"`);
+    }
+    cap.access = options.access;
+  }
+  if (options.clearAccess) {
+    delete cap.access;
+  }
   if (options.mode) {
     if (options.mode !== 'proxy' && options.mode !== 'exec') {
       throw new Error(`Invalid mode "${options.mode}" — must be "proxy" or "exec"`);
@@ -169,6 +182,7 @@ export async function capabilityAddCommand(
       console.log(`   Service: ${capability.service}`);
       console.log(`   TTL: ${capability.ttl}`);
       if (capability.mode) console.log(`   Mode: ${capability.mode}`);
+      if (capability.access) console.log(`   Access: ${capability.access}`);
       if (capability.allowedAgents) console.log(`   Allowed agents: ${capability.allowedAgents.join(', ')}`);
     }
 
diff --git a/src/cli/commands/serve-mcp.ts b/src/cli/commands/serve-mcp.ts
index e5aa633..3475974 100644
--- a/src/cli/commands/serve-mcp.ts
+++ b/src/cli/commands/serve-mcp.ts
@@ -54,6 +54,7 @@ function loadConfigForMCP(): ReloadResult {
       requiresReason: cap.requiresReason,
       rules: cap.rules,
       allowedAgents: cap.allowedAgents,
+      access: cap.access,
       // Exec mode fields (RFC 0001)
       mode: cap.mode || 'proxy',
       allowCommands: cap.allowCommands,
diff --git a/src/cli/config-yaml.ts b/src/cli/config-yaml.ts
index 61b1d07..6fdc06d 100644
--- a/src/cli/config-yaml.ts
+++ b/src/cli/config-yaml.ts
@@ -66,6 +66,7 @@ export interface CapabilityConfig {
     deny?: string[];
   };
   allowedAgents?: string[];
+  access?: 'open' | 'restricted';
   mode?: 'proxy' | 'exec';
   allowCommands?: string[];
   env?: Record<string, string>;
diff --git a/src/cli/index.ts b/src/cli/index.ts
index 2d8ce66..60aec17 100644
--- a/src/cli/index.ts
+++ b/src/cli/index.ts
@@ -264,6 +264,7 @@ cap
   .option('--allow <pattern...>', 'Allow rules (e.g., "GET /v1/*")')
   .option('--deny <pattern...>', 'Deny rules (e.g., "DELETE *")')
   .option('--allowed-agents <agents...>', 'Restrict to specific agent IDs')
+  .option('--access <policy>', 'Per-capability access policy: open or restricted')
   .option('--mode <mode>', 'Execution mode: proxy or exec')
   .option('--allow-commands <cmds...>', 'Allowed executables for exec mode')
   .option('--env-map <mappings...>', 'Env var mappings (KEY=value or KEY={{credential}})')
@@ -285,6 +286,8 @@ cap
   .option('--clear-rules', 'Clear all rules')
   .option('--allowed-agents <agents...>', 'Restrict to specific agent IDs')
   .option('--clear-agents', 'Remove all agent restrictions')
+  .option('--access <policy>', 'Per-capability access policy: open, restricted, or inherit')
+  .option('--clear-access', 'Remove per-capability access override (inherit from global)')
   .option('--mode <mode>', 'Execution mode: proxy or exec')
   .option('--allow-commands <cmds...>', 'Allowed executables for exec mode')
   .option('--env-map <mappings...>', 'Env var mappings (KEY=value or KEY={{credential}})')
diff --git a/src/core/mcp-server-handlers.test.ts b/src/core/mcp-server-handlers.test.ts
index 1c600d0..dbb9b84 100644
--- a/src/core/mcp-server-handlers.test.ts
+++ b/src/core/mcp-server-handlers.test.ts
@@ -734,6 +734,136 @@ describe('MCP Handler Integration — Agent-Scoped Credentials', () => {
     });
   });
 
+  describe('per-capability access override', () => {
+    it('should allow access to cap with access:"open" even when global defaultAccess is restricted', async () => {
+      const services = new Map<string, ServiceConfig>([
+        ['svc', { baseUrl: 'https://api.test.com', auth: { type: 'bearer', key: 'k' } }],
+      ]);
+      const capabilities: Capability[] = [
+        { name: 'open-cap', service: 'svc', ttl: '1h', autoApprove: true, access: 'open' },
+        { name: 'default-cap', service: 'svc', ttl: '1h', autoApprove: true },
+      ];
+
+      const { client } = await createTestPair({
+        clientName: 'any-agent', services, capabilities, defaultAccess: 'restricted',
+      });
+
+      const openResult = await client.callTool({
+        name: 'execute', arguments: { capability: 'open-cap', method: 'GET', path: '/data' }
+      });
+      expect(openResult.isError).toBeFalsy();
+
+      const defaultResult = await client.callTool({
+        name: 'execute', arguments: { capability: 'default-cap', method: 'GET', path: '/data' }
+      });
+      expect(defaultResult.isError).toBe(true);
+    });
+
+    it('should deny access to cap with access:"restricted" even when global defaultAccess is open', async () => {
+      const services = new Map<string, ServiceConfig>([
+        ['svc', { baseUrl: 'https://api.test.com', auth: { type: 'bearer', key: 'k' } }],
+      ]);
+      const capabilities: Capability[] = [
+        { name: 'locked-cap', service: 'svc', ttl: '1h', autoApprove: true, access: 'restricted' },
+        { name: 'normal-cap', service: 'svc', ttl: '1h', autoApprove: true },
+      ];
+
+      const { client } = await createTestPair({
+        clientName: 'any-agent', services, capabilities, defaultAccess: 'open',
+      });
+
+      const lockedResult = await client.callTool({
+        name: 'execute', arguments: { capability: 'locked-cap', method: 'GET', path: '/data' }
+      });
+      expect(lockedResult.isError).toBe(true);
+      const parsed = extractJSON(lockedResult);
+      expect(parsed.denial.reasonCode).toBe('DEFAULT_ACCESS_RESTRICTED');
+
+      const normalResult = await client.callTool({
+        name: 'execute', arguments: { capability: 'normal-cap', method: 'GET', path: '/data' }
+      });
+      expect(normalResult.isError).toBeFalsy();
+    });
+
+    it('should still respect allowedAgents on a restricted capability', async () => {
+      const services = new Map<string, ServiceConfig>([
+        ['svc', { baseUrl: 'https://api.test.com', auth: { type: 'bearer', key: 'k' } }],
+      ]);
+      const capabilities: Capability[] = [{
+        name: 'stripe-cap', service: 'svc', ttl: '1h', autoApprove: true,
+        access: 'restricted', allowedAgents: ['billing-bot'],
+      }];
+
+      const { client: allowed } = await createTestPair({
+        clientName: 'billing-bot', services, capabilities,
+      });
+      const allowedResult = await allowed.callTool({
+        name: 'execute', arguments: { capability: 'stripe-cap', method: 'GET', path: '/balance' }
+      });
+      expect(allowedResult.isError).toBeFalsy();
+
+      const { client: denied } = await createTestPair({
+        clientName: 'other-agent', services, capabilities,
+      });
+      const deniedResult = await denied.callTool({
+        name: 'execute', arguments: { capability: 'stripe-cap', method: 'GET', path: '/balance' }
+      });
+      expect(deniedResult.isError).toBe(true);
+    });
+
+    it('should show cap-level access in list_services', async () => {
+      const services = new Map<string, ServiceConfig>([
+        ['svc', { baseUrl: 'https://api.test.com', auth: { type: 'bearer', key: 'k' } }],
+      ]);
+      const capabilities: Capability[] = [
+        { name: 'serp', service: 'svc', ttl: '1h', autoApprove: true, access: 'open' },
+        { name: 'stripe', service: 'svc', ttl: '1h', autoApprove: true, access: 'restricted' },
+      ];
+
+      const { client } = await createTestPair({
+        clientName: 'any-agent', services, capabilities, defaultAccess: 'restricted',
+      });
+
+      const result = await client.callTool({ name: 'list_services', arguments: {} });
+      const parsed = extractJSON(result);
+      const accessible = (name: string) => parsed.find((c: any) => c.name === name)?.accessible;
+      expect(accessible('serp')).toBe(true);
+      expect(accessible('stripe')).toBe(false);
+    });
+
+    it('should trace cap-level access override in explain_access', async () => {
+      const services = new Map<string, ServiceConfig>([
+        ['svc', { baseUrl: 'https://api.test.com', auth: { type: 'bearer', key: 'k' } }],
+      ]);
+      const capabilities: Capability[] = [
+        { name: 'open-cap', service: 'svc', ttl: '1h', autoApprove: true, access: 'open' },
+        { name: 'locked-cap', service: 'svc', ttl: '1h', autoApprove: true, access: 'restricted' },
+      ];
+
+      const { client } = await createTestPair({
+        clientName: 'agent-x', services, capabilities, defaultAccess: 'restricted',
+      });
+
+      const openTrace = await client.callTool({
+        name: 'explain_access', arguments: { capability: 'open-cap' }
+      });
+      const openParsed = extractJSON(openTrace);
+      expect(openParsed.allowed).toBe(true);
+      const openStep = openParsed.trace.find((t: any) => t.check === 'default_access');
+      expect(openStep.result).toBe('pass');
+      expect(openStep.detail).toContain('capability access');
+
+      const lockedTrace = await client.callTool({
+        name: 'explain_access', arguments: { capability: 'locked-cap' }
+      });
+      const lockedParsed = extractJSON(lockedTrace);
+      expect(lockedParsed.allowed).toBe(false);
+      const lockedStep = lockedParsed.trace.find((t: any) => t.check === 'default_access');
+      expect(lockedStep.result).toBe('fail');
+      expect(lockedStep.detail).toContain('capability access');
+    });
+  });
+
   describe('whoami', () => {
     it('should return the resolved agent identity and accessible capabilities', async () => {
       const services = new Map<string, ServiceConfig>([
diff --git a/src/core/mcp-server.ts b/src/core/mcp-server.ts
index 0a8a219..1b38eef 100644
--- a/src/core/mcp-server.ts
+++ b/src/core/mcp-server.ts
@@ -78,7 +78,8 @@ function canAccessCapability(
     return cap.allowedAgents.includes(agentId);
   }
 
-  if (defaultAccessPolicy === "restricted") {
+  const effectiveAccess = cap.access ?? defaultAccessPolicy;
+  if (effectiveAccess === "restricted") {
     return false;
   }
 
@@ -108,10 +109,13 @@ export function explainAccessDenial(
     return null;
   }
 
-  if (defaultAccessPolicy === 'restricted') {
+  const effectiveAccess = cap.access ?? defaultAccessPolicy;
+  if (effectiveAccess === 'restricted') {
     return {
       reason: 'DEFAULT_ACCESS_RESTRICTED',
-      detail: `defaultAccess is "restricted" and capability has no allowedAgents list`
+      detail: cap.access
+        ? `Capability access is "restricted" and has no allowedAgents list`
+        : `defaultAccess is "restricted" and capability has no allowedAgents list`
     };
   }
 
@@ -133,6 +137,7 @@ export interface Capability {
   requiresReason?: boolean;
   rules?: Rules; // Optional allow/deny patterns
   allowedAgents?: string[]; // Restrict this capability to specific agent IDs
+  access?: 'open' | 'restricted'; // Per-capability override of global defaultAccess
   // Exec mode fields (RFC 0001)
   mode?: "proxy" | "exec";
   allowCommands?: string[];
diff --git a/src/core/tool-handlers.ts b/src/core/tool-handlers.ts
index 3224e9e..20bbeb3 100644
--- a/src/core/tool-handlers.ts
+++ b/src/core/tool-handlers.ts
@@ -354,10 +354,12 @@ export function handleExplainAccess(
   }
 
   if (targetAgentId && (!explainCap.allowedAgents || explainCap.allowedAgents.length === 0)) {
-    if (ctx.defaultAccess === 'restricted') {
-      trace.push({ check: 'default_access', result: 'fail', detail: `defaultAccess is "restricted" and no allowedAgents list — agent blocked` });
+    const effectiveAccess = explainCap.access ?? ctx.defaultAccess;
+    const source = explainCap.access ? `capability access` : `global defaultAccess`;
+    if (effectiveAccess === 'restricted') {
+      trace.push({ check: 'default_access', result: 'fail', detail: `${source} is "restricted" and no allowedAgents list — agent blocked` });
     } else {
-      trace.push({ check: 'default_access', result: 'pass', detail: `defaultAccess is "${ctx.defaultAccess ?? 'open'}" — agent allowed` });
+      trace.push({ check: 'default_access', result: 'pass', detail: `${source} is "${effectiveAccess ?? 'open'}" — agent allowed` });
     }
   } else {
     trace.push({ check: 'default_access', result: 'skip', detail: targetAgentId ? `allowedAgents list takes precedence` : `No agent ID (admin/CLI)` });