diff --git a/docs/reference/workflows.md b/docs/reference/workflows.md
index e7e921e1e9..175b577c81 100644
--- a/docs/reference/workflows.md
+++ b/docs/reference/workflows.md
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ Example:
 specify workflow run speckit -i spec="Build a kanban board with drag-and-drop task management" -i scope=full
 ```
 
-> **Note:** All workflow commands require a project already initialized with `specify init`.
+> **Note:** Most workflow commands require a project already initialized with `specify init`. The exception is `specify workflow run <local-file.{yml,yaml}>`, which can run outside a project; in that case, run state is stored under the current directory's `.specify/workflows/runs/<run_id>/`.
 
 ## Resume a Workflow
 
diff --git a/src/specify_cli/__init__.py b/src/specify_cli/__init__.py
index d1f71e7e07..c406b51e37 100644
--- a/src/specify_cli/__init__.py
+++ b/src/specify_cli/__init__.py
@@ -2727,12 +2727,28 @@ def workflow_run(
     """Run a workflow from an installed ID or local YAML path."""
     from .workflows.engine import WorkflowEngine
 
-    project_root = _require_specify_project()
+    source_path = Path(source).expanduser()
+    is_file_source = source_path.suffix.lower() in (".yml", ".yaml") and source_path.is_file()
+
+    if is_file_source:
+        # When running a YAML file directly, use cwd as project root
+        # without requiring a .specify/ project directory.
+        project_root = Path.cwd()
+        specify_dir = project_root / ".specify"
+        if specify_dir.is_symlink():
+            console.print("[red]Error:[/red] Refusing to use symlinked .specify path in current directory")
+            raise typer.Exit(1)
+        if specify_dir.exists() and not specify_dir.is_dir():
+            console.print("[red]Error:[/red] .specify path exists but is not a directory")
+            raise typer.Exit(1)
+    else:
+        project_root = _require_specify_project()
+
     engine = WorkflowEngine(project_root)
     engine.on_step_start = lambda sid, label: console.print(f"  \u25b8 [{sid}] {label} \u2026")
 
     try:
-        definition = engine.load_workflow(source)
+        definition = engine.load_workflow(source_path if is_file_source else source)
     except FileNotFoundError:
         console.print(f"[red]Error:[/red] Workflow not found: {source}")
         raise typer.Exit(1)
diff --git a/src/specify_cli/workflows/engine.py b/src/specify_cli/workflows/engine.py
index 1755b26183..1e6acb676c 100644
--- a/src/specify_cli/workflows/engine.py
+++ b/src/specify_cli/workflows/engine.py
@@ -403,10 +403,10 @@ def load_workflow(self, source: str | Path) -> WorkflowDefinition:
         ValueError:
             If the workflow YAML is invalid.
         """
-        path = Path(source)
+        path = Path(source).expanduser()
 
         # Try as a direct file path first
-        if path.suffix in (".yml", ".yaml") and path.exists():
+        if path.suffix.lower() in (".yml", ".yaml") and path.is_file():
             return WorkflowDefinition.from_yaml(path)
 
         # Try as an installed workflow ID
diff --git a/tests/test_workflow_run_without_project.py b/tests/test_workflow_run_without_project.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..05235493fa
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_workflow_run_without_project.py
@@ -0,0 +1,238 @@
+"""Tests for running workflow YAML files without a project."""
+
+import os
+
+import pytest
+import yaml
+
+
+class TestWorkflowRunWithoutProject:
+    """Tests that specify workflow run works with YAML files without .specify/ dir."""
+
+    def test_workflow_run_yaml_without_project(self, tmp_path):
+        """Running a .yml file should work without a .specify/ directory."""
+        from typer.testing import CliRunner
+        from specify_cli import app
+
+        runner = CliRunner()
+
+        # Create a minimal workflow YAML with a shell step
+        workflow_file = tmp_path / "test-workflow.yml"
+        workflow_content = {
+            "schema_version": "1.0",
+            "workflow": {
+                "id": "standalone-test",
+                "name": "Standalone Test",
+                "version": "1.0.0",
+                "description": "A workflow that runs without a project",
+            },
+            "steps": [
+                {
+                    "id": "create-marker",
+                    "type": "shell",
+                    "run": "echo done > marker.txt",
+                },
+            ],
+        }
+        workflow_file.write_text(yaml.dump(workflow_content), encoding="utf-8")
+
+        old_cwd = os.getcwd()
+        try:
+            os.chdir(tmp_path)
+            result = runner.invoke(app, [
+                "workflow", "run", str(workflow_file),
+            ], catch_exceptions=False)
+        finally:
+            os.chdir(old_cwd)
+        assert result.exit_code == 0, f"workflow run failed: {result.output}"
+        assert "completed" in result.output
+        assert (tmp_path / "marker.txt").exists()
+        assert (tmp_path / ".specify" / "workflows" / "runs").is_dir()
+
+    def test_workflow_run_yaml_with_tilde_and_uppercase_suffix(self, tmp_path, monkeypatch):
+        """Running ~/file.YML should work without a .specify/ directory."""
+        from typer.testing import CliRunner
+        from specify_cli import app
+
+        runner = CliRunner()
+
+        home_dir = tmp_path / "home"
+        home_dir.mkdir()
+        monkeypatch.setenv("HOME", str(home_dir))
+        monkeypatch.setenv("USERPROFILE", str(home_dir))
+
+        workflow_file = home_dir / "test-workflow.YML"
+        workflow_content = {
+            "schema_version": "1.0",
+            "workflow": {
+                "id": "standalone-test-uppercase",
+                "name": "Standalone Test Uppercase",
+                "version": "1.0.0",
+                "description": "A workflow that runs from ~/ with an uppercase suffix",
+            },
+            "steps": [
+                {
+                    "id": "create-marker",
+                    "type": "shell",
+                    "run": "echo done > marker.txt",
+                },
+            ],
+        }
+        workflow_file.write_text(yaml.dump(workflow_content), encoding="utf-8")
+
+        old_cwd = os.getcwd()
+        try:
+            os.chdir(tmp_path)
+            result = runner.invoke(app, [
+                "workflow", "run", "~/test-workflow.YML",
+            ], catch_exceptions=False)
+        finally:
+            os.chdir(old_cwd)
+        assert result.exit_code == 0, f"workflow run failed: {result.output}"
+        assert "Status: completed" in result.output
+        assert (tmp_path / "marker.txt").exists()
+
+    def test_workflow_run_id_still_requires_project(self, tmp_path):
+        """Running a workflow by ID should still require a .specify/ directory."""
+        from typer.testing import CliRunner
+        from specify_cli import app
+
+        runner = CliRunner()
+
+        old_cwd = os.getcwd()
+        try:
+            os.chdir(tmp_path)
+            result = runner.invoke(app, [
+                "workflow", "run", "some-workflow-id",
+            ], catch_exceptions=False)
+        finally:
+            os.chdir(old_cwd)
+        assert result.exit_code != 0
+        assert "Not a spec-kit project" in result.output
+
+    def test_workflow_run_missing_yaml_file(self, tmp_path):
+        """Running a non-existent .yml file should still require a project."""
+        from typer.testing import CliRunner
+        from specify_cli import app
+
+        runner = CliRunner()
+
+        old_cwd = os.getcwd()
+        try:
+            os.chdir(tmp_path)
+            result = runner.invoke(app, [
+                "workflow", "run", "nonexistent.yml",
+            ], catch_exceptions=False)
+        finally:
+            os.chdir(old_cwd)
+        # non-existent .yml files fall through to project check or file-not-found
+        assert result.exit_code != 0
+
+    def test_workflow_run_failing_yaml_without_project(self, tmp_path):
+        """A failing workflow YAML should report failure status."""
+        from typer.testing import CliRunner
+        from specify_cli import app
+
+        runner = CliRunner()
+
+        workflow_file = tmp_path / "fail-workflow.yml"
+        workflow_content = {
+            "schema_version": "1.0",
+            "workflow": {
+                "id": "fail-test",
+                "name": "Fail Test",
+                "version": "1.0.0",
+                "description": "A workflow that fails",
+            },
+            "steps": [
+                {
+                    "id": "fail-step",
+                    "type": "shell",
+                    "run": "exit 1",
+                },
+            ],
+        }
+        workflow_file.write_text(yaml.dump(workflow_content), encoding="utf-8")
+
+        old_cwd = os.getcwd()
+        try:
+            os.chdir(tmp_path)
+            result = runner.invoke(app, [
+                "workflow", "run", str(workflow_file),
+            ], catch_exceptions=False)
+        finally:
+            os.chdir(old_cwd)
+        assert result.exit_code == 0, f"workflow run failed unexpectedly: {result.output}"
+        assert "Status: failed" in result.output
+
+    def test_workflow_run_yaml_rejects_symlinked_specify_dir(self, tmp_path):
+        """Running local YAML should fail when .specify is a symlink."""
+        from typer.testing import CliRunner
+        from specify_cli import app
+
+        runner = CliRunner()
+
+        workflow_file = tmp_path / "test-workflow.yml"
+        workflow_content = {
+            "schema_version": "1.0",
+            "workflow": {
+                "id": "symlink-test",
+                "name": "Symlink Test",
+                "version": "1.0.0",
+                "description": "A workflow for symlink guard testing",
+            },
+            "steps": [{"id": "noop", "type": "shell", "run": "echo done"}],
+        }
+        workflow_file.write_text(yaml.dump(workflow_content), encoding="utf-8")
+
+        target_dir = tmp_path / "real-specify-dir"
+        target_dir.mkdir()
+        try:
+            (tmp_path / ".specify").symlink_to(target_dir, target_is_directory=True)
+        except (OSError, NotImplementedError):
+            pytest.skip("Symlinks are not available in this environment")
+
+        old_cwd = os.getcwd()
+        try:
+            os.chdir(tmp_path)
+            result = runner.invoke(app, [
+                "workflow", "run", str(workflow_file),
+            ], catch_exceptions=False)
+        finally:
+            os.chdir(old_cwd)
+
+        assert result.exit_code != 0
+        assert "Refusing to use symlinked .specify path in current directory" in result.output
+
+    def test_workflow_run_yaml_rejects_non_directory_specify_path(self, tmp_path):
+        """Running local YAML should fail when .specify is not a directory."""
+        from typer.testing import CliRunner
+        from specify_cli import app
+
+        runner = CliRunner()
+
+        workflow_file = tmp_path / "test-workflow.yml"
+        workflow_content = {
+            "schema_version": "1.0",
+            "workflow": {
+                "id": "nondir-test",
+                "name": "Non-directory Test",
+                "version": "1.0.0",
+                "description": "A workflow for non-directory guard testing",
+            },
+            "steps": [{"id": "noop", "type": "shell", "run": "echo done"}],
+        }
+        workflow_file.write_text(yaml.dump(workflow_content), encoding="utf-8")
+        (tmp_path / ".specify").write_text("not a directory", encoding="utf-8")
+
+        old_cwd = os.getcwd()
+        try:
+            os.chdir(tmp_path)
+            result = runner.invoke(app, [
+                "workflow", "run", str(workflow_file),
+            ], catch_exceptions=False)
+        finally:
+            os.chdir(old_cwd)
+
+        assert result.exit_code != 0
+        assert ".specify path exists but is not a directory" in result.output