diff --git a/.buildkite/pipeline.yml b/.buildkite/pipeline.yml
index 8bf48509c..41f10a52c 100644
--- a/.buildkite/pipeline.yml
+++ b/.buildkite/pipeline.yml
@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ steps:
       (build.pull_request.id != null && !build.pull_request.repository.fork) ||
       ((build.source == "schedule" || build.source == "ui") && build.env("K8S_NIGHTLY") == "1") ||
       ((build.branch == "main" || build.branch =~ /^release\//) && build.source == "webhook")
-    command: buildkite-agent pipeline upload .buildkite/testsuite.yml
+    command: .buildkite/scripts/conditional_testsuite.sh
 
     # NOTE: This build IS NOT dependent on tests passing due to their current flakey state.
     # It's recommended to check that tests have passed for the given commit before using it.
diff --git a/.buildkite/scripts/conditional_testsuite.sh b/.buildkite/scripts/conditional_testsuite.sh
new file mode 100755
index 000000000..766ea86d3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.buildkite/scripts/conditional_testsuite.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,62 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+set -eo pipefail
+
+testsuite=".buildkite/testsuite.yml"
+
+if [[ "$BUILDKITE_SOURCE" == "webhook" && -n "$BUILDKITE_PULL_REQUEST" && "$BUILDKITE_PULL_REQUEST" != "false" ]]; then
+  # It's a PR, let's check what changed
+  base_branch="$BUILDKITE_PULL_REQUEST_BASE_BRANCH"
+  if [[ -z "$base_branch" ]]; then
+    base_branch="main"
+  fi
+
+  # Fetch base branch to compare against
+  git fetch origin -- "$base_branch"
+
+  # Check if any non-skippable files changed. Skippable paths are docs,
+  # GitHub workflows, and root-level Markdown files (README, CONTRIBUTING,
+  # etc.) — none of these affect Buildkite CI.
+  requires_ci=false
+  while IFS= read -r -d '' file; do
+    if [[ "$file" =~ ^docs/ ]]; then continue; fi
+    if [[ "$file" =~ ^\.github/ ]]; then continue; fi
+    if [[ "$file" =~ ^[^/]+\.md$ ]]; then continue; fi
+    requires_ci=true
+    break
+  done < <(git diff -z --name-only "origin/$base_branch...HEAD")
+
+  if [[ "$requires_ci" == "false" ]]; then
+    echo "--- Skipping CI as only docs or GHA workflows changed"
+
+    # Extract commit-status contexts from the real testsuite so the dummy
+    # pipeline reports a passing status for each one (kept in sync with
+    # branch-protection rules automatically). Only match `context:` keys
+    # that are children of `github_commit_status:` — other plugins (e.g.
+    # junit-annotate) reuse the `context:` key for unrelated values.
+    contexts=$(awk '
+      /^[[:space:]]*-?[[:space:]]*github_commit_status:[[:space:]]*$/ { expect = 1; next }
+      expect && match($0, /^[[:space:]]*context:[[:space:]]*/) {
+        print substr($0, RLENGTH + 1)
+        expect = 0
+      }
+    ' "$testsuite" | sort -u)
+
+    {
+      echo "steps:"
+      echo "  - command: echo \"Skipped CI as no source files changed\""
+      echo "    label: \":fast_forward: Skipped\""
+      echo "    agents:"
+      echo "      queue: devprod-t4gmicro"
+      echo "    notify:"
+      while IFS= read -r ctx; do
+        [[ -z "$ctx" ]] && continue
+        echo "      - github_commit_status:"
+        echo "          context: \"$ctx\""
+      done <<< "$contexts"
+    } | buildkite-agent pipeline upload
+    exit 0
+  fi
+fi
+
+# Fallback to normal behavior
+buildkite-agent pipeline upload "$testsuite"