GitHub Required Checks Are Static. Your Pull Requests Aren't

GitHub Required Checks Are Static. Your Pull Requests Aren't A docs-only pull request should not have to wait for backend builds, integration suites, and security scans that were never relevant to the change. But a lot of teams still live with exactly that. Why? Because GitHub required checks are usually static, while pull requests are not. That mismatch creates a common set of bad options: require everything and waste CI require less and weaken protection or fake conditional enforcement inside workflows The last pattern is especially common. Teams keep a workflow required for branch protection, then use path filters or changed-files logic so the jobs exit quickly when the change is irrelevant. That workaround is understandable. It is also a sign that workflow execution is carrying policy decisions it was never meant to own. The distinction that matters There are really two different questions: Should this workflow run? Should this check be required for merge? Path filtering helps with