diff --git a/docs/cli.md b/docs/cli.md
index ebb640a600..864ddecfbb 100644
--- a/docs/cli.md
+++ b/docs/cli.md
@@ -837,7 +837,10 @@ error and exit `1`, as does a listener that fails after binding.
 `0`, or prints a structured `invalid_request` error and exits `1` for the same
 pair refusals, a non-empty or file-occupied directory, a missing package
 tarball or a name that is not a kebab-case label or is a Windows device name,
-writing nothing in each case.
+writing nothing in each case. A file occupying the destination is reported as
+requiring a directory; identity-change diagnostics are reserved for admitted
+paths that fail later identity checks. Host permission failures identify whether
+input reading or bundle writing was denied and retain the reported path.
 A write that fails after the first file (a permission, disk-space or
 pathname-length failure on a later path) propagates as the host's failure,
 naming its cause and, when it failed on one bundle file or the package
diff --git a/src/application/environment/environmentExport.test.ts b/src/application/environment/environmentExport.test.ts
index e55a847c02..37695970f6 100644
--- a/src/application/environment/environmentExport.test.ts
+++ b/src/application/environment/environmentExport.test.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,11 @@
-import { mkdir, readdir, readFile, stat, writeFile } from "node:fs/promises";
+import {
+  chmod,
+  mkdir,
+  readdir,
+  readFile,
+  stat,
+  writeFile,
+} from "node:fs/promises";
 import { join, sep } from "node:path";
 
 import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
@@ -209,6 +216,15 @@ describe("exportEnvironmentBundle", () => {
     expect(projectAnalysisError(asFile.error).details?.issues).toEqual([
       expect.objectContaining({ path: ["directory"] }),
     ]);
+    const fileRefusal = projectAnalysisError(asFile.error);
+    expect(fileRefusal.message).toContain("must be a directory");
+    expect(fileRefusal.message).not.toContain("identity changed");
+    expect(fileRefusal.details?.issues).toEqual([
+      expect.objectContaining({ message: fileRefusal.message }),
+    ]);
+    expect(await readFile(join(directory, "keep.txt"), "utf8")).toBe(
+      "existing",
+    );
     const missingTarball = await exportEnvironmentBundle({
       ...input,
       directory: join(root, "fresh"),
@@ -221,6 +237,49 @@ describe("exportEnvironmentBundle", () => {
     expect(await listFiles(root)).not.toContain("fresh/README.md");
   });
 
+  it.skipIf(process.platform === "win32" || process.getuid?.() === 0)(
+    "distinguishes denied output writing from denied input reading and recovers with the same inputs",
+    async () => {
+      const { input, directory, files } = await prepare(
+        "rea-environment-export-denied-",
+      );
+      await mkdir(directory, { mode: 0o500 });
+      try {
+        const denied = await exportEnvironmentBundle({ ...input, directory });
+        if (denied.ok) throw new Error("Expected write denial");
+        expect(projectAnalysisError(denied.error)).toMatchObject({
+          message: expect.stringContaining("denied writing"),
+          remediation: {
+            action: expect.stringContaining("writable destination"),
+          },
+          details: {
+            diagnostics: {
+              boundary: "filesystem-write",
+              system_code: "EACCES",
+            },
+          },
+        });
+        expect(await readdir(directory)).toEqual([]);
+        await chmod(files.manifestPath, 0);
+        const readDenied = await readEnvironmentExportInputs(
+          files.manifestPath,
+          files.capturePath,
+        );
+        if (readDenied.ok) throw new Error("Expected read denial");
+        expect(projectAnalysisError(readDenied.error)).toMatchObject({
+          code: "access_denied",
+          details: { boundary: "filesystem-read" },
+        });
+      } finally {
+        await chmod(directory, 0o700);
+        await chmod(files.manifestPath, 0o600);
+      }
+      expect((await exportEnvironmentBundle({ ...input, directory })).ok).toBe(
+        true,
+      );
+    },
+  );
+
   it("accepts an existing empty directory", async () => {
     const { input, directory } = await prepare("rea-environment-export-empty-");
     await mkdir(directory);
diff --git a/src/application/environment/environmentExport.ts b/src/application/environment/environmentExport.ts
index 336011db9d..859188afc9 100644
--- a/src/application/environment/environmentExport.ts
+++ b/src/application/environment/environmentExport.ts
@@ -128,26 +128,48 @@ const accessDeniedError = (
   cause: unknown,
   path: string,
   diagnostics?: Readonly<Record<string, JsonValue>>,
-): AnalysisAccessDeniedError | undefined => {
+  access: "read" | "write" = "read",
+): AnalysisAccessDeniedError | AnalysisOutputError | undefined => {
   const seen = new Set<Error>();
   let current = cause;
   while (current instanceof Error && !seen.has(current)) {
     seen.add(current);
+    if (current instanceof BundleFileHostFailure)
+      access = current.operation === "reading" ? "read" : "write";
     const code = systemCode(current);
     if (code === "EACCES" || code === "EPERM") {
-      const error = new AnalysisAccessDeniedError(
-        ENVIRONMENT_EXPORT_OPERATION,
-        path,
-        code,
-        {
-          cause,
-          ...(diagnostics === undefined ? {} : { diagnostics }),
-          ...(cause instanceof ArtifactReaderFailure &&
-          cause.cleanup !== undefined
-            ? { cleanup: cause.cleanup }
-            : {}),
-        },
-      );
+      const options = {
+        cause,
+        ...(diagnostics === undefined ? {} : { diagnostics }),
+        ...(cause instanceof ArtifactReaderFailure &&
+        cause.cleanup !== undefined
+          ? { cleanup: cause.cleanup }
+          : {}),
+      };
+      const error =
+        access === "read"
+          ? new AnalysisAccessDeniedError(
+              ENVIRONMENT_EXPORT_OPERATION,
+              path,
+              code,
+              options,
+            )
+          : new AnalysisOutputError(
+              ENVIRONMENT_EXPORT_OPERATION,
+              `Host filesystem permissions denied write access: ${path}`,
+              {
+                ...options,
+                userMessage: `Host filesystem permissions denied writing the environment bundle at ${path}.`,
+                remediationAction:
+                  "Check write access or select a writable destination. Inspect the output directory for partial output before retrying; export refuses a non-empty directory.",
+                diagnostics: {
+                  ...diagnostics,
+                  path,
+                  system_code: code,
+                  boundary: "filesystem-write",
+                },
+              },
+            );
       bindArtifactFileCleanup(cause, error);
       return error;
     }
@@ -354,6 +376,9 @@ export const exportEnvironmentBundle = async (
       cause,
       hostFailurePath(cause) ?? input.directory,
       { output_directory: input.directory },
+      cause instanceof BundleFileHostFailure && cause.operation === "reading"
+        ? "read"
+        : "write",
     );
     if (denied !== undefined) return err(denied);
     if (cause instanceof RegularFileChangedError)
diff --git a/src/artifacts/SafeOutputTreeIdentity.ts b/src/artifacts/SafeOutputTreeIdentity.ts
index 5c29c2cea4..d8fc01d05e 100644
--- a/src/artifacts/SafeOutputTreeIdentity.ts
+++ b/src/artifacts/SafeOutputTreeIdentity.ts
@@ -52,7 +52,11 @@ export const readDirectoryIdentity = async (
   path: string,
 ): Promise<DirectoryIdentity> => {
   const metadata = await lstat(path, { bigint: true });
-  if (!metadata.isDirectory()) throw replacedDirectory(path);
+  if (!metadata.isDirectory())
+    throw new ArtifactReaderFailure(
+      "path",
+      `Output destination must be a directory: ${path}`,
+    );
   return { dev: metadata.dev, ino: metadata.ino };
 };