diff --git a/src/github/operations/branch.ts b/src/github/operations/branch.ts
index 920eec56..253f7630 100644
--- a/src/github/operations/branch.ts
+++ b/src/github/operations/branch.ts
@@ -27,14 +27,15 @@ function extractFirstLabel(githubData: FetchDataResult): string | undefined {
  * This prevents command injection by ensuring only safe characters are used.
  *
  * Valid branch names:
- * - Start with alphanumeric character (not dash, to prevent option injection)
- * - Contain only alphanumeric, forward slash, hyphen, underscore, period, or hash (#)
+ * - Start with alphanumeric character or @ (not dash, to prevent option injection)
+ * - Contain only alphanumeric, forward slash, hyphen, underscore, period, hash (#), plus (+), comma (,), or at sign (@)
  * - Do not start or end with a period
  * - Do not end with a slash
  * - Do not contain '..' (path traversal)
  * - Do not contain '//' (consecutive slashes)
  * - Do not end with '.lock'
  * - Do not contain '@{'
+ * - Are not the single character '@' (HEAD shorthand in git revision syntax)
  * - Do not contain control characters or special git characters (~^:?*[\])
  */
 export function validateBranchName(branchName: string): void {
@@ -58,18 +59,21 @@ export function validateBranchName(branchName: string): void {
     );
   }
 
-  // Strict whitelist pattern: alphanumeric start, then alphanumeric/slash/hyphen/underscore/period/hash/plus/comma.
+  // Strict whitelist pattern: alphanumeric or @ start, then alphanumeric/slash/hyphen/underscore/period/hash/plus/comma/at-sign.
   // # is valid per git-check-ref-format and commonly used in branch names like "fix/#123-description".
   // + is valid per git-check-ref-format and generated by Claude Code's EnterWorktree tool when
   //   converting worktree names containing "/" (e.g. "feat/foo" becomes "worktree-feat+foo").
   // , is valid per git-check-ref-format and commonly appears in branch names derived from titles
   //   or external identifiers (e.g. place names like "feature/paris,france").
+  // @ is valid per git-check-ref-format anywhere in a ref name, including the first character
+  //   (e.g. ticket conventions like "TICKET-123@add-feature" or prefixes like "@hotfix/...");
+  //   the bare name "@" (HEAD shorthand) and the "@{" sequence (reflog syntax) are rejected below.
   // All git calls use execFileSync (not shell interpolation), so none of these characters carry injection risk.
-  const validPattern = /^[a-zA-Z0-9][a-zA-Z0-9/_.#+,-]*$/;
+  const validPattern = /^[a-zA-Z0-9@][a-zA-Z0-9/_.#+,@-]*$/;
 
   if (!validPattern.test(branchName)) {
     throw new Error(
-      `Invalid branch name: "${branchName}". Branch names must start with an alphanumeric character and contain only alphanumeric characters, forward slashes, hyphens, underscores, periods, hashes (#), plus signs (+), or commas (,).`,
+      `Invalid branch name: "${branchName}". Branch names must start with an alphanumeric character or '@' and contain only alphanumeric characters, forward slashes, hyphens, underscores, periods, hashes (#), plus signs (+), commas (,), or at signs (@).`,
     );
   }
 
@@ -112,6 +116,15 @@ export function validateBranchName(branchName: string): void {
       `Invalid branch name: "${branchName}". Branch names cannot contain '@{'`,
     );
   }
+
+  // Per git-check-ref-format, a refname cannot be the single character "@"; "@" also
+  // resolves to HEAD in git revision syntax, so a bare "@" must never reach git as a
+  // branch argument where it could be interpreted as a revision instead.
+  if (branchName === "@") {
+    throw new Error(
+      `Invalid branch name: "@". Branch names cannot be the single character '@'.`,
+    );
+  }
 }
 
 /**
diff --git a/test/validate-branch-name.test.ts b/test/validate-branch-name.test.ts
index 5a9bf680..fe03ce4e 100644
--- a/test/validate-branch-name.test.ts
+++ b/test/validate-branch-name.test.ts
@@ -64,6 +64,16 @@ describe("validateBranchName", () => {
       expect(() => validateBranchName("feature/paris,france")).not.toThrow();
       expect(() => validateBranchName("fix/issue-1,2,3")).not.toThrow();
     });
+
+    it("should accept branch names containing @ (git-valid, used in team and tooling conventions)", () => {
+      // Reported in #998: branches like "TICKET-123@add-feature" were rejected, even
+      // though git check-ref-format and GitHub both accept @ anywhere in a ref name.
+      // Also common as a leading prefix (e.g. "@hotfix/...") and in agent-generated
+      // names ("task@sessionid"). Bare "@" and "@{" are still rejected.
+      expect(() => validateBranchName("TICKET-123@add-feature")).not.toThrow();
+      expect(() => validateBranchName("@hotfix/login-timeout")).not.toThrow();
+      expect(() => validateBranchName("agent/task@abc123")).not.toThrow();
+    });
   });
 
   describe("command injection attempts", () => {
@@ -137,6 +147,12 @@ describe("validateBranchName", () => {
       expect(() => validateBranchName("HEAD@{yesterday}")).toThrow(/@{/);
     });
 
+    it("should reject the single character @", () => {
+      // Per git-check-ref-format, a refname cannot be the single character "@";
+      // "@" also resolves to HEAD in git revision syntax.
+      expect(() => validateBranchName("@")).toThrow(/single character '@'/);
+    });
+
     it("should reject .lock suffix", () => {
       expect(() => validateBranchName("branch.lock")).toThrow(/\.lock/);
       expect(() => validateBranchName("feature.lock")).toThrow(/\.lock/);