diff --git a/src/clients/config-export.ts b/src/clients/config-export.ts
index 90fe5030563..7c5bfaef8d4 100644
--- a/src/clients/config-export.ts
+++ b/src/clients/config-export.ts
@@ -898,6 +898,17 @@ export interface GajaeModelEntry {
   input: string[];
   contextWindow?: number;
   maxTokens?: number;
+  /** Advertised only when the catalog declares at least one wire-selectable effort. */
+  reasoning?: true;
+  /** GJC's per-model reasoning-effort capability declaration. */
+  thinking?: {
+    mode: "effort";
+    minLevel: string;
+    maxLevel: string;
+    levels: string[];
+  };
+  /** Tells GJC to pass the selected level as OpenAI-compatible reasoning_effort. */
+  compat?: { supportsReasoningEffort: true };
 }
 
 /** Gajae validates strictly: an unknown field fails the whole config. */
@@ -1086,6 +1097,28 @@ function buildGajaeClientConfig(ctx: ExportContext): GajaeGeneratedConfig {
       entry.contextWindow = context;
       entry.maxTokens = outputBudgetFor(context);
     }
+    // GJC accepts the OpenAI-compatible effort ladder in model metadata. `none` means
+    // no parameter and `ultra` is an OCX orchestration level that folds to `max` on the
+    // wire, so neither can be offered as a GJC model-level effort.
+    const declaredEfforts = model.reasoningEfforts
+      // Native Codex rows do not repeat their built-in ladder in the catalog. They still
+      // accept the standard effort field, so omitting this fallback hides GJC's thinking
+      // control for the models most likely to need it.
+      ?? (model.native && model.provider === "openai"
+        ? ["low", "medium", "high", "xhigh", "max"]
+        : []);
+    const efforts = canonicalizeReasoningEfforts(declaredEfforts)
+      .filter(effort => effort !== "none" && effort !== "ultra");
+    if (efforts.length > 0) {
+      entry.reasoning = true;
+      entry.thinking = {
+        mode: "effort",
+        minLevel: efforts[0]!,
+        maxLevel: efforts.at(-1)!,
+        levels: efforts,
+      };
+      entry.compat = { supportsReasoningEffort: true };
+    }
     models.push(entry);
   }
   return {
diff --git a/tests/config/client-config-export-new-clients.test.ts b/tests/config/client-config-export-new-clients.test.ts
index 03000ae38b3..2ede34d7cc6 100644
--- a/tests/config/client-config-export-new-clients.test.ts
+++ b/tests/config/client-config-export-new-clients.test.ts
@@ -297,7 +297,7 @@ describe("gajae", () => {
     expect(block.apiKey).toBe(LOOPBACK_API_KEY_PLACEHOLDER);
     expect(block).not.toHaveProperty("apiKeyEnv");
     expect(Object.keys(block).sort()).toEqual(["api", "apiKey", "baseUrl", "models"]);
-    const allowed = new Set(["id", "name", "input", "contextWindow", "maxTokens"]);
+    const allowed = new Set(["id", "name", "input", "contextWindow", "maxTokens", "reasoning", "thinking", "compat"]);
     for (const model of block.models) {
       for (const key of Object.keys(model)) expect(allowed.has(key)).toBe(true);
     }
@@ -306,6 +306,52 @@ describe("gajae", () => {
   test("the destination is the documented models file", () => {
     expect(gajaeConfigPath({}, "/home/u")).toBe(join("/home/u", ".gjc", "agent", "models.yml"));
   });
+
+  test("exports a declared effort ladder as GJC reasoning metadata", () => {
+    const doc = buildClientConfig("gajae", {
+      ...ctx(),
+      models: [{
+        namespaced: "deepseek/deepseek-v4.1-flash",
+        provider: "deepseek",
+        id: "deepseek-v4.1-flash",
+        inputModalities: ["text"],
+        reasoningEfforts: ["max", "low", "medium", "high", "xhigh", "none", "turbo"],
+      }],
+    }) as GajaeGeneratedConfig;
+
+    expect(doc.providers[OPENCODE_PROVIDER_ID]!.models).toEqual([{
+      id: "deepseek/deepseek-v4.1-flash",
+      name: "deepseek-v4.1-flash (deepseek)",
+      input: ["text"],
+      reasoning: true,
+      thinking: {
+        mode: "effort",
+        minLevel: "low",
+        maxLevel: "max",
+        levels: ["low", "medium", "high", "xhigh", "max"],
+      },
+      compat: { supportsReasoningEffort: true },
+    }]);
+  });
+
+  test("exports the native Codex effort ladder even when the catalog omits it", () => {
+    const doc = buildClientConfig("gajae", {
+      ...ctx(),
+      models: [{
+        namespaced: "gpt-5.6-sol",
+        provider: "openai",
+        id: "gpt-5.6-sol",
+        native: true,
+        inputModalities: ["text", "image"],
+      }],
+    }) as GajaeGeneratedConfig;
+
+    expect(doc.providers[OPENCODE_PROVIDER_ID]!.models[0]).toMatchObject({
+      reasoning: true,
+      thinking: { mode: "effort", levels: ["low", "medium", "high", "xhigh", "max"] },
+      compat: { supportsReasoningEffort: true },
+    });
+  });
 });
 
 describe("contributions name every fragment we own", () => {