SEO/GEO Release Gate Contract 2026

Gate checks

• compile - required

  TypeScript app/runtime compile

  Order 1

  npm run typecheck

  Proves

  • Application and route-handler TypeScript compile without shipping-time type regressions.
  • Generated Next types are compatible with the current source tree.

  Failure blocks

  • Any SEO/GEO release, public dataset update, MCP tool update or rendered-surface deployment.
  Source surfaces and boundaries

  Source surfaces

  • tsconfig.json
  • src/**
  • .next/types/**

  Private evidence boundary

  No private evidence is read; this is a local compile gate.

  Caveats

  • Script files are exercised by the audit commands they define rather than the app compile gate.

• source-audit - required

  Source/template SEO-GEO audits

  Order 2

  npm run audit:all

  Proves

  • Public data, AI retrieval, competitor, content, page-action, measurement, proof-gate and trust surfaces stay wired.
  • Outcome-claim boundaries remain blocked unless their matching proof gates have reviewed evidence.
  • The 500k/month traffic runway reconciles to battlecards, target pages, production tickets and search-demand actions.

  Failure blocks

  • Growth-facing deploys and any public SEO/GEO outcome claim.
  Source surfaces and boundaries

  Source surfaces

  • scripts/audit-*.ts
  • /api/public
  • /data
  • /ai-agents
  • /llms.txt
  • /llms-full.txt
  • /mcp

  Private evidence boundary

  Raw Search Console exports, analytics exports, server logs, source-refresh liveness output, AI answer transcripts, screenshots, reviewer notes and third-party publication evidence stay local unless separately reviewed, redacted and approved for publication.

  Caveats

  • Source audits prove wiring and fail-closed logic; they do not prove external adoption or live traffic outcomes.

• freshness - required

  Freshness SLA audit

  Order 3

  npm run audit:stale

  Proves

  • Dated public immigration facts remain inside their freshness SLA thresholds before release.

  Failure blocks

  • Any release that would publish stale government fees, thresholds, processing times or policy facts.
  Source surfaces and boundaries

  Source surfaces

  • /freshness
  • /api/public/freshness
  • src/data/**

  Private evidence boundary

  No private evidence is read; source review dates and public data records are checked locally.

  Caveats

  • The check proves local freshness metadata, not live government-source availability.

• network-liveness - optional-network

  Government source liveness audit

  Order 4

  npm run audit:seo-geo -- --include-liveness --liveness-timeout=8000 --liveness-concurrency=30 --liveness-progress=250 --liveness-out=.tmp/seo-geo-liveness-report.json

  Proves

  • Release sign-off can include live source reachability without committing raw liveness output.
  • Inconclusive live checks are separated from deterministic source/template gates.

  Failure blocks

  • Source-refresh sign-off when live government-source probing is required.
  Source surfaces and boundaries

  Source surfaces

  • scripts/audit-liveness.ts
  • .tmp/seo-geo-liveness-report.json

  Private evidence boundary

  Network probe output and source-refresh notes stay in .tmp or another local evidence path unless reviewed.

  Caveats

  • This step can be skipped for offline code-only changes; it requires network access and may be affected by government WAFs.

• build - required

  Production build

  Order 5

  NEXT_PUBLIC_SITE_URL=https://visaatlas.org NODE_OPTIONS=--max-old-space-size=8192 npm run build

  Proves

  • The production Next.js app renders with the canonical site URL used for JSON-LD, canonical links and OpenGraph URLs.
  • Static pages, public feeds and route handlers can be generated for deployment.

  Failure blocks

  • Any deploy to production.
  Source surfaces and boundaries

  Source surfaces

  • next.config.ts
  • .next/server/app
  • .next/build-manifest.json
  • .next/app-build-manifest.json

  Private evidence boundary

  Build artifacts are local generated output; no private analytics, GSC or source-refresh evidence is read.

  Caveats

  • Static-generation retries are warnings when the final build exits successfully; failed builds block release.

• rendered-audit - required

  Post-build rendered SEO/GEO and performance artifact audits

  Order 6

  npm run audit:postbuild

  Proves

  • Rendered crawler-facing pages, JSON feeds, LLM indexes, data citation surfaces and MCP discovery text are present after build.
  • Representative JS, CSS, rendered HTML and public feed payload budgets remain inside explicit thresholds.

  Failure blocks

  • Any deploy that changes discovery, crawlability, public datasets, LLM indexes or data-heavy pages.
  Source surfaces and boundaries

  Source surfaces

  • .next/server/app
  • .next/static/chunks
  • .next/build-manifest.json
  • .next/app-build-manifest.json
  • scripts/audit-rendered-seo-surface.ts
  • scripts/audit-build-performance-budgets.ts

  Private evidence boundary

  Rendered output is public build output; private evidence must not appear in public artifacts.

  Caveats

  • Rendered audits prove current build artifacts, not production traffic or third-party indexing.

• claim-boundary - required

  Public outcome-claim boundary audit

  Order 7

  npm run audit:traffic-outcome-proof && npm run audit:public-outcome-claims && npm run audit:release-gate

  Proves

  • Traffic, ranking, backlink, AI-visibility, reviewer-trust and market-share claims stay blocked without reviewed proof files.
  • The release gate remains documented and wired into visibility metrics and OpenAPI discovery.

  Failure blocks

  • Any public claim of 500k/month traffic, dominance, market share, rankings, AI visibility, backlinks or reviewer trust.
  Source surfaces and boundaries

  Source surfaces

  • scripts/traffic-outcome-proof.ts
  • scripts/audit-public-outcome-claims.ts
  • scripts/audit-seo-geo-release-gate.ts
  • /api/public/seo-geo-measurement-run-queue

  Private evidence boundary

  Raw Search Console exports, analytics exports, server logs, source-refresh liveness output, AI answer transcripts, screenshots, reviewer notes and third-party publication evidence stay local unless separately reviewed, redacted and approved for publication.

  Caveats

  • This step protects public claims; it does not itself create or approve the private evidence.

• evidence-proof - required

  Execution proof gate audit

  Order 8

  npm run audit:seo-geo-page-action-map && npm run audit:seo-geo-traffic-runway && npm run audit:execution-proof

  Proves

  • Execution tickets, page-action rows, target pages, evidence gates and the 500k/month forecast runway remain joined.
  • Completion claims require reviewed local ticket evidence rather than intent or unreviewed work logs.

  Failure blocks

  • Any claim that the SEO/GEO execution plan is complete or release-ready.
  Source surfaces and boundaries

  Source surfaces

  • /api/public/seo-geo-page-action-map
  • /api/public/seo-geo-production-queue
  • /api/public/traffic-forecast
  • scripts/execution-proof.ts

  Private evidence boundary

  Raw Search Console exports, analytics exports, server logs, source-refresh liveness output, AI answer transcripts, screenshots, reviewer notes and third-party publication evidence stay local unless separately reviewed, redacted and approved for publication.

  Caveats

  • Execution proof supports completion of audited work items; it does not prove downstream rankings or traffic outcomes.

Methodology and limits

This contract is generated from the local SEO/GEO release runner, release-gate documentation, technical SEO controls, audit evidence pack and measurement/proof gate surfaces. It is a public checklist for deploy governance, not a publication of private evidence.

Raw Search Console exports, analytics exports, server logs, source-refresh liveness output, AI answer transcripts, screenshots, reviewer notes and third-party publication evidence stay local unless separately reviewed, redacted and approved for publication.

• This contract proves the release checks that must pass before growth-facing SEO/GEO changes ship; it does not prove rankings, traffic, backlinks, AI citations, market share or the 500k/month planning target.
• The default release gate is offline and deterministic; run the sign-off command with --include-liveness when source-refresh or release approval requires live government-source probes.
• Passing the gate blocks overclaiming by keeping public outcome claims tied to reviewed proof gates rather than raw private evidence.