diff --git a/REFACTOR-LOG.md b/REFACTOR-LOG.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8586e65
--- /dev/null
+++ b/REFACTOR-LOG.md
@@ -0,0 +1,15 @@
+# Refactor Log
+
+## Iteration 1 — 2026-03-28
+
+**Issue:** IDLE mode re-fetches all emails on every notification due to stale `ctx.last_seen_uid`
+**Severity:** fragility
+**Location:** `backend/app/modules/_shared/email/imap_watch_loop.py`, `fetch_new_emails()` (lines 145, 170)
+
+**Problem:** The `fetch_new_emails` function persists the last processed UID to the database via `callbacks.save_uid(uid, db)` but never updates the in-memory `ctx.last_seen_uid`. In IDLE mode, the same `FetchContext` object is reused across notification cycles (passed from `watch_loop` → `idle_loop` → `fetch_new_emails`). This means the IMAP UID search (`UID {last_seen_uid + 1}:*`) always starts from the original position, causing every previously-processed email to be re-fetched from the IMAP server and re-checked against the dedup table on each IDLE notification. The overhead grows linearly with the number of emails received during an IDLE session. Polling mode is unaffected because it creates a fresh `FetchContext` from the database each cycle.
+
+**Fix:** Added `ctx.last_seen_uid = uid` after each `callbacks.save_uid(uid, db)` call (both the route-skipped path on line 145 and the normal processing path on line 170). This keeps the in-memory context in sync with what was persisted, so subsequent IDLE cycles only fetch genuinely new emails.
+
+**Verification:** All 222 existing tests pass. Added 3 new tests in `tests/test_fetch_new_emails.py` covering: (1) ctx updates after processing emails, (2) ctx updates when emails are skipped by routing, (3) ctx unchanged when no new emails. Full suite: 225 passed.
+
+**Risk:** None identified. The `FetchContext` is a non-frozen dataclass, mutation is safe. The `ctx` is only used within the `fetch_new_emails` → `idle_loop` call chain. Polling mode already creates fresh contexts and is unaffected.
diff --git a/backend/app/modules/_shared/email/imap_watch_loop.py b/backend/app/modules/_shared/email/imap_watch_loop.py
index ae0ee65..8fd49a0 100644
--- a/backend/app/modules/_shared/email/imap_watch_loop.py
+++ b/backend/app/modules/_shared/email/imap_watch_loop.py
@@ -143,6 +143,7 @@ async def fetch_new_emails(
         route = await callbacks.route_email(sender, db)
         if route is None:
             await callbacks.save_uid(uid, db)
+            ctx.last_seen_uid = uid
             continue
         user_id, source = route
 
@@ -168,6 +169,7 @@ async def fetch_new_emails(
         )
 
         await callbacks.save_uid(uid, db)
+        ctx.last_seen_uid = uid
 
     if state:
         state.last_scan_at = datetime.now(timezone.utc)
diff --git a/backend/tests/test_fetch_new_emails.py b/backend/tests/test_fetch_new_emails.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..16e8ad9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/tests/test_fetch_new_emails.py
@@ -0,0 +1,99 @@
+"""Tests for fetch_new_emails keeping ctx.last_seen_uid in sync."""
+
+import pytest
+from unittest.mock import AsyncMock, MagicMock, patch
+
+from app.modules._shared.email.imap_watch_loop import (
+    FetchContext,
+    ImapWatcherCallbacks,
+    fetch_new_emails,
+)
+from app.modules._shared.email.imap_watcher import WorkerState
+
+
+def _make_callbacks(route_result=None) -> ImapWatcherCallbacks:
+    """Build mock callbacks for testing."""
+    return ImapWatcherCallbacks(
+        connect=AsyncMock(),
+        load_fetch_context=AsyncMock(),
+        route_email=AsyncMock(return_value=route_result),
+        save_uid=AsyncMock(),
+        log_label="test",
+    )
+
+
+def _make_imap(uids: list[int], email_bytes: bytes = b"From: a@b.c\nSubject: test\n\nBody"):
+    """Build a mock IMAP client that returns the given UIDs and a fixed email."""
+    imap = AsyncMock()
+    uid_str = " ".join(str(u) for u in uids).encode()
+    imap.uid_search = AsyncMock(return_value=("OK", [uid_str] if uids else [b""]))
+    imap.uid = AsyncMock(return_value=("OK", [bytearray(email_bytes)]))
+    return imap
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_ctx_last_seen_uid_updated_after_processing():
+    """ctx.last_seen_uid must advance as emails are processed."""
+    ctx = FetchContext(
+        last_seen_uid=10,
+        folder_path="INBOX",
+        uidvalidity=123,
+        max_email_age_days=7,
+        source_info="test",
+        source_label="test",
+        account_id=1,
+    )
+    callbacks = _make_callbacks(route_result=(1, "test"))
+    imap = _make_imap([11, 12, 13])
+    db = AsyncMock()
+
+    with patch(
+        "app.modules._shared.email.imap_watch_loop.check_dedup_and_enqueue",
+        new_callable=AsyncMock,
+        return_value=True,
+    ):
+        await fetch_new_emails(imap, ctx, callbacks, db, state=None)
+
+    assert ctx.last_seen_uid == 13
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_ctx_last_seen_uid_updated_on_skipped_route():
+    """ctx.last_seen_uid must advance even when route_email returns None (email skipped)."""
+    ctx = FetchContext(
+        last_seen_uid=5,
+        folder_path="INBOX",
+        uidvalidity=123,
+        max_email_age_days=7,
+        source_info="test",
+        source_label="test",
+        account_id=1,
+    )
+    callbacks = _make_callbacks(route_result=None)  # all emails skipped
+    imap = _make_imap([6, 7])
+    db = AsyncMock()
+
+    await fetch_new_emails(imap, ctx, callbacks, db, state=None)
+
+    assert ctx.last_seen_uid == 7
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_ctx_last_seen_uid_unchanged_when_no_new_emails():
+    """ctx.last_seen_uid stays the same when there are no new UIDs."""
+    ctx = FetchContext(
+        last_seen_uid=10,
+        folder_path="INBOX",
+        uidvalidity=123,
+        max_email_age_days=7,
+        source_info="test",
+        source_label="test",
+        account_id=1,
+    )
+    callbacks = _make_callbacks()
+    imap = _make_imap([])
+    db = AsyncMock()
+
+    await fetch_new_emails(imap, ctx, callbacks, db, state=None)
+
+    assert ctx.last_seen_uid == 10