diff --git a/p2-tenantrag/.env.example b/p2-tenantrag/.env.example
index f93c6c5..ebd3562 100644
--- a/p2-tenantrag/.env.example
+++ b/p2-tenantrag/.env.example
@@ -1,2 +1,4 @@
 P2_VOYAGE_API_KEY=
 P2_OPENROUTER_API_KEY=
+P2_OPENROUTER_MODEL=openrouter/free
+P2_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID=false
diff --git a/p2-tenantrag/README.md b/p2-tenantrag/README.md
index 9b89347..7233f0d 100644
--- a/p2-tenantrag/README.md
+++ b/p2-tenantrag/README.md
@@ -33,6 +33,11 @@ Ada / Leo / Mallory ── Device Flow ──→ Tutorial IdP
 
 Set `P2_VOYAGE_API_KEY` and `P2_OPENROUTER_API_KEY` in `.env` before preparing the corpus or starting Docker.
 Setup embeds synthetic PDF chunks with Voyage and checks OpenRouter generation; requests also consume provider quota. Do not submit private queries.
+`P2_OPENROUTER_MODEL` defaults to `openrouter/free`. To select another free
+model, set its OpenRouter model ID in `.env`. A model that may incur charges
+also requires `P2_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID=true`; otherwise requests retain a
+zero-price routing cap. The Voyage embedding model stays fixed, so changing
+the OpenRouter answer model does not require rebuilding the corpus.
 
 Start the application and its own IdP:
 
diff --git a/p2-tenantrag/scripts/setup.ts b/p2-tenantrag/scripts/setup.ts
index af28355..482cbf7 100644
--- a/p2-tenantrag/scripts/setup.ts
+++ b/p2-tenantrag/scripts/setup.ts
@@ -35,4 +35,4 @@ console.log(
   `Synchronized ${merged.synchronizedKeys.join(", ") || "no"} environment keys.`,
 );
 console.log(`Verified five PDFs and built ${recordCount} vector records.`);
-console.log(`OpenRouter free-model smoke selected ${selectedModel}.`);
+console.log(`OpenRouter smoke selected ${selectedModel}.`);
diff --git a/p2-tenantrag/src/config/project-config.ts b/p2-tenantrag/src/config/project-config.ts
index fcc1660..36a3d29 100644
--- a/p2-tenantrag/src/config/project-config.ts
+++ b/p2-tenantrag/src/config/project-config.ts
@@ -13,7 +13,8 @@ export type P2Config = Readonly<{
   voyageModel: "voyage-4-lite";
   voyageDimensions: 256;
   openRouterApiKey: string;
-  openRouterModel: "openrouter/free";
+  openRouterModel: string;
+  openRouterAllowPaid: boolean;
   providerTimeoutMs: number;
 }>;
 
@@ -23,6 +24,27 @@ function required(env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv, name: string): string {
   return value;
 }
 
+function openRouterModel(env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv, allowPaid: boolean): string {
+  const model = (env.P2_OPENROUTER_MODEL ?? "openrouter/free").trim();
+  if (!model || /\s/.test(model)) {
+    throw new Error("P2_OPENROUTER_MODEL must be a model ID without spaces");
+  }
+  if (!allowPaid && model !== "openrouter/free" && !model.endsWith(":free")) {
+    throw new Error(
+      "P2_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID=true is required for a paid model",
+    );
+  }
+  return model;
+}
+
+function allowPaid(env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv): boolean {
+  const value = env.P2_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID?.trim() ?? "false";
+  if (value !== "true" && value !== "false") {
+    throw new Error("P2_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID must be true or false");
+  }
+  return value === "true";
+}
+
 function httpUrl(value: string, name: string): string {
   const url = new URL(value);
   if (url.protocol !== "http:" && url.protocol !== "https:") {
@@ -50,6 +72,7 @@ export function loadConfig(
   currentDirectory = process.cwd(),
 ): P2Config {
   const projectRoot = resolve(env.P2_PROJECT_ROOT?.trim() || currentDirectory);
+  const openRouterAllowPaid = allowPaid(env);
   const voyageDimensions = integer(
     env.P2_VOYAGE_DIMENSIONS,
     256,
@@ -77,7 +100,8 @@ export function loadConfig(
     voyageModel: "voyage-4-lite",
     voyageDimensions: voyageDimensions as 256,
     openRouterApiKey: required(env, "P2_OPENROUTER_API_KEY"),
-    openRouterModel: "openrouter/free",
+    openRouterModel: openRouterModel(env, openRouterAllowPaid),
+    openRouterAllowPaid,
     providerTimeoutMs: integer(
       env.P2_PROVIDER_TIMEOUT_MS,
       15_000,
diff --git a/p2-tenantrag/src/rag/providers/openrouter.ts b/p2-tenantrag/src/rag/providers/openrouter.ts
index c86c0b1..4c3e119 100644
--- a/p2-tenantrag/src/rag/providers/openrouter.ts
+++ b/p2-tenantrag/src/rag/providers/openrouter.ts
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@ export type OpenRouterClient = Readonly<{
 type OpenRouterClientOptions = Readonly<{
   apiKey: string;
   model: string;
+  allowPaid?: boolean;
   timeoutMs: number;
   fetch?: typeof fetch;
 }>;
@@ -81,8 +82,11 @@ export function createOpenRouterClient(
             },
             body: JSON.stringify({
               model: options.model,
+              ...(!options.allowPaid
+                ? { provider: { max_price: { prompt: 0, completion: 0 } } }
+                : {}),
               max_completion_tokens: 512,
-              // The free router may select a reasoning model; request only answer text.
+              // Request answer text even when the selected model supports reasoning.
               reasoning: { effort: "minimal", exclude: true },
               messages: [
                 {
diff --git a/p2-tenantrag/src/rag/setup.ts b/p2-tenantrag/src/rag/setup.ts
index 1e88f1e..b7e4abb 100644
--- a/p2-tenantrag/src/rag/setup.ts
+++ b/p2-tenantrag/src/rag/setup.ts
@@ -36,6 +36,7 @@ async function smokeOpenRouter(
   const openRouter = createOpenRouterClient({
     apiKey: config.openRouterApiKey,
     model: config.openRouterModel,
+    allowPaid: config.openRouterAllowPaid,
     timeoutMs: config.providerTimeoutMs,
   });
   const result = await openRouter.generate(
diff --git a/p2-tenantrag/src/runtime.ts b/p2-tenantrag/src/runtime.ts
index 1c27014..fac49f2 100644
--- a/p2-tenantrag/src/runtime.ts
+++ b/p2-tenantrag/src/runtime.ts
@@ -30,6 +30,7 @@ export async function createRuntime(config: P2Config) {
   const openRouter = createOpenRouterClient({
     apiKey: config.openRouterApiKey,
     model: config.openRouterModel,
+    allowPaid: config.openRouterAllowPaid,
     timeoutMs: config.providerTimeoutMs,
   });
   return {
diff --git a/p2-tenantrag/test/config.test.ts b/p2-tenantrag/test/config.test.ts
index 4f3d712..4fd46b5 100644
--- a/p2-tenantrag/test/config.test.ts
+++ b/p2-tenantrag/test/config.test.ts
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@ describe("P2 configuration", () => {
       voyageModel: "voyage-4-lite",
       voyageDimensions: 256,
       openRouterModel: "openrouter/free",
+      openRouterAllowPaid: false,
     });
     expect(config.fixturesDirectory).toBe(
       resolve("/tutorial/p2-tenantrag", "fixtures"),
@@ -39,6 +40,28 @@ describe("P2 configuration", () => {
     );
   });
 
+  it("accepts a selected model only with explicit paid-routing consent", () => {
+    const config = loadConfig({
+      ...validEnvironment,
+      P2_OPENROUTER_MODEL: "vendor/selected-model",
+      P2_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID: "true",
+    });
+    expect(config.openRouterModel).toBe("vendor/selected-model");
+    expect(config.openRouterAllowPaid).toBe(true);
+    expect(() =>
+      loadConfig({ ...validEnvironment, P2_OPENROUTER_MODEL: " " }),
+    ).toThrow("P2_OPENROUTER_MODEL");
+    expect(() =>
+      loadConfig({
+        ...validEnvironment,
+        P2_OPENROUTER_MODEL: "vendor/selected-model",
+      }),
+    ).toThrow("P2_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID=true");
+    expect(() =>
+      loadConfig({ ...validEnvironment, P2_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID: "yes" }),
+    ).toThrow("P2_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID");
+  });
+
   it("rejects unsafe or invalid configuration", () => {
     expect(() => loadConfig({ ...validEnvironment, P2_PORT: "0" })).toThrow(
       "P2_PORT",
diff --git a/p2-tenantrag/test/providers.test.ts b/p2-tenantrag/test/providers.test.ts
index 1302a12..771adc0 100644
--- a/p2-tenantrag/test/providers.test.ts
+++ b/p2-tenantrag/test/providers.test.ts
@@ -214,15 +214,40 @@ describe("OpenRouter adapter", () => {
       model: string;
       max_completion_tokens: number;
       reasoning: { effort: string; exclude: boolean };
+      provider: { max_price: { prompt: number; completion: number } };
       messages: Array<{ content: string }>;
     };
     expect(body.model).toBe("openrouter/free");
     expect(body.max_completion_tokens).toBe(512);
     expect(body.reasoning).toEqual({ effort: "minimal", exclude: true });
+    expect(body.provider.max_price).toEqual({ prompt: 0, completion: 0 });
     expect(body.messages[1]?.content).toContain("a-public-1");
     expect(body.messages[1]?.content).toContain("Synthetic evidence only.");
   });
 
+  it("removes the zero-price cap only when paid routing is enabled", async () => {
+    const request = vi.fn<typeof fetch>().mockResolvedValue(
+      Response.json({
+        model: "vendor/selected-model",
+        choices: [{ message: { content: "Grounded answer." } }],
+      }),
+    );
+    const client = createOpenRouterClient({
+      apiKey: "test-key",
+      model: "vendor/selected-model",
+      allowPaid: true,
+      timeoutMs: 1_000,
+      fetch: request,
+    });
+    await client.generate("Question?", [chunk]);
+    expect(JSON.parse(String(request.mock.calls[0]?.[1]?.body))).toMatchObject({
+      model: "vendor/selected-model",
+    });
+    expect(
+      JSON.parse(String(request.mock.calls[0]?.[1]?.body)),
+    ).not.toHaveProperty("provider.max_price");
+  });
+
   it("bounds evidence and rejects malformed responses", async () => {
     const transport = vi
       .fn<typeof fetch>()
diff --git a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/.env.example b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/.env.example
index ba77fb1..598276a 100644
--- a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/.env.example
+++ b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/.env.example
@@ -4,4 +4,6 @@ P3_MCP_RESOURCE=http://localhost:17003/mcp
 P3_HOST=127.0.0.1
 P3_PORT=17003
 P3_OPENROUTER_API_KEY=
+P3_OPENROUTER_MODEL=liquid/lfm-2.5-2.6b:free
+P3_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID=false
 P3_PROVIDER_TIMEOUT_MS=15000
diff --git a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/README.md b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/README.md
index a600bd5..8f65ef3 100644
--- a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/README.md
+++ b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/README.md
@@ -50,7 +50,11 @@ pnpm dev
 `pnpm dev` starts this project’s IdP and application together.
 
 For interactive chat, install the project dependencies on the host, set `P3_OPENROUTER_API_KEY` in its `.env`, and run `pnpm chat dana` in another terminal. This client works with either the native or Docker service.
-The chat client requests the configured free tool-calling model without a paid fallback; provider availability can vary. The scripted tests reproduce the baseline gap without a provider account.
+`P3_OPENROUTER_MODEL` defaults to `liquid/lfm-2.5-2.6b:free`. Select another
+OpenRouter model that supports tool calling if needed. Paid routing requires
+`P3_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID=true`; without it, the client keeps its zero-price
+cap and has no paid fallback. Provider availability can vary. The scripted
+tests reproduce the baseline gap without a provider account.
 
 For `pnpm build` followed by `pnpm start`, first run `node --env-file=.local/idp/.env ../shared/identity-provider/dist/main.js` in another terminal in this project directory.
 
diff --git a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/package.json b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/package.json
index 15e459d..3b3e189 100644
--- a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/package.json
+++ b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/package.json
@@ -27,6 +27,7 @@
     "@modelcontextprotocol/node": "2.0.0",
     "@modelcontextprotocol/server": "2.0.0",
     "express": "5.2.1",
+    "hono": "4.13.7",
     "jose": "6.2.10",
     "zod": "4.6.5"
   },
diff --git a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/pnpm-lock.yaml b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/pnpm-lock.yaml
index 63f4c8c..e1219d4 100644
--- a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/pnpm-lock.yaml
+++ b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/pnpm-lock.yaml
@@ -16,13 +16,16 @@ importers:
         version: 2.0.0(@modelcontextprotocol/server@2.0.0)(express@5.2.1)
       '@modelcontextprotocol/node':
         specifier: 2.0.0
-        version: 2.0.0(@modelcontextprotocol/server@2.0.0)(hono@4.13.5)
+        version: 2.0.0(@modelcontextprotocol/server@2.0.0)(hono@4.13.7)
       '@modelcontextprotocol/server':
         specifier: 2.0.0
         version: 2.0.0
       express:
         specifier: 5.2.1
         version: 5.2.1
+      hono:
+        specifier: 4.13.7
+        version: 4.13.7
       jose:
         specifier: 6.2.10
         version: 6.2.10
@@ -845,8 +848,8 @@ packages:
     resolution: {integrity: sha512-T2UbfbBEF32wiepXIsMlTW9+dDYC6wMh/t/vYA4tuOMKqWz/n3vr1NFSxQiyP+zk2mXsoMA/i/7qV6LKut1t1A==}
     engines: {node: '>= 0.4'}
 
-  hono@4.13.5:
-    resolution: {integrity: sha512-O6+/eCYRkzzzy0rPWwKLiGBR1nFuUPZynnwjxN1MBA62NNqbT0wQEzQyK2gSO5yDIDB336sXQleAhOHrzlYyKw==}
+  hono@4.13.7:
+    resolution: {integrity: sha512-c8/gF9ac8Y78/agExVocyLevgR+JlpNB444Py0FSX8pJoPdYUfUzRcXtYEYGwt6l19qIlVZPN5Mfsw9jFShmQQ==}
     engines: {node: '>=16.9.0'}
 
   hookified@1.15.1:
@@ -1497,9 +1500,9 @@ snapshots:
       '@eslint/core': 1.2.1
       levn: 0.4.1
 
-  '@hono/node-server@1.19.17(hono@4.13.5)':
+  '@hono/node-server@1.19.17(hono@4.13.7)':
     dependencies:
-      hono: 4.13.5
+      hono: 4.13.7
 
   '@humanfs/core@0.19.2':
     dependencies:
@@ -1547,12 +1550,12 @@ snapshots:
       cors: 2.8.6
       express: 5.2.1
 
-  '@modelcontextprotocol/node@2.0.0(@modelcontextprotocol/server@2.0.0)(hono@4.13.5)':
+  '@modelcontextprotocol/node@2.0.0(@modelcontextprotocol/server@2.0.0)(hono@4.13.7)':
     dependencies:
-      '@hono/node-server': 1.19.17(hono@4.13.5)
+      '@hono/node-server': 1.19.17(hono@4.13.7)
       '@modelcontextprotocol/server': 2.0.0
     optionalDependencies:
-      hono: 4.13.5
+      hono: 4.13.7
 
   '@modelcontextprotocol/server@2.0.0':
     dependencies:
@@ -2136,7 +2139,7 @@ snapshots:
     dependencies:
       function-bind: 1.1.2
 
-  hono@4.13.5: {}
+  hono@4.13.7: {}
 
   hookified@1.15.1: {}
 
diff --git a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/scripts/chat.ts b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/scripts/chat.ts
index 80bfa25..c9291c4 100644
--- a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/scripts/chat.ts
+++ b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/scripts/chat.ts
@@ -31,6 +31,7 @@ async function main() {
     model: new OpenRouterChatModel({
       apiKey: config.openRouterApiKey,
       model: config.openRouterModel,
+      allowPaid: config.openRouterAllowPaid,
       timeoutMs: config.providerTimeoutMs,
     }),
     mcp,
diff --git a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/src/chat/errors.ts b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/src/chat/errors.ts
index 4809317..6966a44 100644
--- a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/src/chat/errors.ts
+++ b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/src/chat/errors.ts
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ const messages = {
   provider_quota:
     "OpenRouter quota or rate limit reached. Check your account and retry later.",
   provider_unavailable:
-    "The configured free model is unavailable. Retry later.",
+    "The configured model is unavailable. Retry later or choose another model.",
   provider_timeout:
     "OpenRouter timed out. No MCP operation was requested; retry later.",
   provider_network:
diff --git a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/src/chat/openrouter.ts b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/src/chat/openrouter.ts
index a3a4ff2..a05a76e 100644
--- a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/src/chat/openrouter.ts
+++ b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/src/chat/openrouter.ts
@@ -40,7 +40,8 @@ const responseSchema = z.object({
 
 type OpenRouterOptions = Readonly<{
   apiKey: string;
-  model: "liquid/lfm-2.5-2.6b:free";
+  model: string;
+  allowPaid?: boolean;
   timeoutMs: number;
   fetch?: typeof fetch;
 }>;
@@ -98,7 +99,9 @@ export class OpenRouterChatModel implements ChatModel {
             tool_choice: "auto",
             provider: {
               require_parameters: true,
-              max_price: { prompt: 0, completion: 0 },
+              ...(!this.#options.allowPaid
+                ? { max_price: { prompt: 0, completion: 0 } }
+                : {}),
             },
           }),
           signal: AbortSignal.timeout(this.#options.timeoutMs),
diff --git a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/src/config/project-config.ts b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/src/config/project-config.ts
index 367be45..4ca8842 100644
--- a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/src/config/project-config.ts
+++ b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/src/config/project-config.ts
@@ -7,7 +7,8 @@ export type P3Config = Readonly<{
   clientId: string;
   mcpResource: string;
   openRouterApiKey?: string;
-  openRouterModel: "liquid/lfm-2.5-2.6b:free";
+  openRouterModel: string;
+  openRouterAllowPaid: boolean;
   providerTimeoutMs: number;
 }>;
 
@@ -47,7 +48,29 @@ function integer(
   return parsed;
 }
 
+function openRouterModel(env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv, allowPaid: boolean): string {
+  const model = (env.P3_OPENROUTER_MODEL ?? "liquid/lfm-2.5-2.6b:free").trim();
+  if (!model || /\s/.test(model)) {
+    throw new Error("P3_OPENROUTER_MODEL must be a model ID without spaces");
+  }
+  if (!allowPaid && model !== "openrouter/free" && !model.endsWith(":free")) {
+    throw new Error(
+      "P3_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID=true is required for a paid model",
+    );
+  }
+  return model;
+}
+
+function allowPaid(env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv): boolean {
+  const value = env.P3_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID?.trim() ?? "false";
+  if (value !== "true" && value !== "false") {
+    throw new Error("P3_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID must be true or false");
+  }
+  return value === "true";
+}
+
 export function loadConfig(env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv = process.env): P3Config {
+  const openRouterAllowPaid = allowPaid(env);
   return {
     host: env.P3_HOST?.trim() || "127.0.0.1",
     port: integer(env.P3_PORT, 17003, "P3_PORT", 1, 65_535),
@@ -60,7 +83,8 @@ export function loadConfig(env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv = process.env): P3Config {
     ...(env.P3_OPENROUTER_API_KEY?.trim()
       ? { openRouterApiKey: env.P3_OPENROUTER_API_KEY.trim() }
       : {}),
-    openRouterModel: "liquid/lfm-2.5-2.6b:free",
+    openRouterModel: openRouterModel(env, openRouterAllowPaid),
+    openRouterAllowPaid,
     providerTimeoutMs: integer(
       env.P3_PROVIDER_TIMEOUT_MS,
       15_000,
diff --git a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/test/config.test.ts b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/test/config.test.ts
index c1c2dd3..f8bff7f 100644
--- a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/test/config.test.ts
+++ b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/test/config.test.ts
@@ -14,6 +14,26 @@ describe("P3 configuration", () => {
     expect(config.issuer).toBe("http://localhost:18003");
     expect(config.mcpResource).toBe("http://localhost:17003/mcp");
     expect(config.openRouterApiKey).toBeUndefined();
+    expect(config.openRouterModel).toBe("liquid/lfm-2.5-2.6b:free");
+    expect(config.openRouterAllowPaid).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it("allows an alternate model with an explicit paid-routing switch", () => {
+    const config = loadConfig({
+      P3_OPENROUTER_MODEL: "vendor/selected-model",
+      P3_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID: "true",
+    });
+    expect(config.openRouterModel).toBe("vendor/selected-model");
+    expect(config.openRouterAllowPaid).toBe(true);
+    expect(() => loadConfig({ P3_OPENROUTER_MODEL: " " })).toThrow(
+      "P3_OPENROUTER_MODEL",
+    );
+    expect(() =>
+      loadConfig({ P3_OPENROUTER_MODEL: "vendor/selected-model" }),
+    ).toThrow("P3_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID=true");
+    expect(() => loadConfig({ P3_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID: "yes" })).toThrow(
+      "P3_OPENROUTER_ALLOW_PAID",
+    );
   });
 
   it("rejects invalid ports and resource URI fragments", () => {
diff --git a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/test/openrouter.test.ts b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/test/openrouter.test.ts
index 978430b..3aa2b1d 100644
--- a/p3-mcp-capability-governance/test/openrouter.test.ts
+++ b/p3-mcp-capability-governance/test/openrouter.test.ts
@@ -201,6 +201,29 @@ describe("OpenRouter adapter", () => {
     });
   });
 
+  it("uses the selected paid model only when explicitly enabled", async () => {
+    let requestBody: unknown;
+    const model = new OpenRouterChatModel({
+      apiKey: "test-key",
+      model: "vendor/selected-model",
+      allowPaid: true,
+      timeoutMs: 1_000,
+      fetch: async (_input, init) => {
+        if (typeof init?.body !== "string") throw new Error("Missing body");
+        requestBody = JSON.parse(init.body);
+        return Response.json({
+          choices: [{ message: { content: "No action." } }],
+        });
+      },
+    });
+    await model.next(messages, tools);
+    expect(requestBody).toMatchObject({
+      model: "vendor/selected-model",
+      provider: { require_parameters: true },
+    });
+    expect(requestBody).not.toHaveProperty("provider.max_price");
+  });
+
   it.each([[undefined], [null], [[]]])(
     "accepts a text-only response with tool_calls=%j as no operation",
     async (toolCalls) => {