diff --git a/app/src/main/AndroidManifest.xml b/app/src/main/AndroidManifest.xml
index 298a37d..984d403 100644
--- a/app/src/main/AndroidManifest.xml
+++ b/app/src/main/AndroidManifest.xml
@@ -13,6 +13,15 @@
       the app.
     -->
     <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE" />
+    <!-- Receiving while the app is not on screen, with nobody in the middle.
+         ⚠️ remoteMessaging is the correct Android 14 type for this: it is
+         "continue a user-initiated conversation", which is exactly what a
+         held poll is. dataSync would be throttled and is not what this does. -->
+    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.FOREGROUND_SERVICE" />
+    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.FOREGROUND_SERVICE_REMOTE_MESSAGING" />
+    <!-- ⚠️ Runtime permission on API 33+, which is this app's minSdk. Without
+         it the service still runs and every alert is silently dropped. -->
+    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.POST_NOTIFICATIONS" />
 
     <!--
       Voice notes. Requested at runtime as well: on this minSdk a dangerous
@@ -51,5 +60,10 @@
                 <category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
             </intent-filter>
         </activity>
+    
+        <service
+            android:name=".MessengerService"
+            android:exported="false"
+            android:foregroundServiceType="remoteMessaging" />
     </application>
 </manifest>
diff --git a/app/src/main/kotlin/io/flamenet/messenger/app/KeystoreVault.kt b/app/src/main/kotlin/io/flamenet/messenger/app/KeystoreVault.kt
index 5900328..60c4b5f 100644
--- a/app/src/main/kotlin/io/flamenet/messenger/app/KeystoreVault.kt
+++ b/app/src/main/kotlin/io/flamenet/messenger/app/KeystoreVault.kt
@@ -33,6 +33,19 @@ object KeystoreVault {
     private const val ALIAS = "flamenet.messenger.vault.v1"
     private const val DIRECTORY = "vault"
 
+    /**
+     * Is there a session worth receiving for?
+     *
+     * ⚠️ Both halves, matching `restore()`: a device with no credential cannot
+     * reach the relay, and a credential with no identity cannot be addressed.
+     * Either alone is a half-finished sign-in, not something to run a
+     * foreground service for.
+     */
+    fun hasSession(context: Context): Boolean = runCatching {
+        val v = open(context)
+        v.loadIdentity() != null && v.loadCredential() != null
+    }.getOrDefault(false)
+
     fun open(context: Context): Vault = Vault(FileStorage(File(context.filesDir, DIRECTORY)), key())
 
     /**
diff --git a/app/src/main/kotlin/io/flamenet/messenger/app/MainActivity.kt b/app/src/main/kotlin/io/flamenet/messenger/app/MainActivity.kt
index e6625ee..96288e1 100644
--- a/app/src/main/kotlin/io/flamenet/messenger/app/MainActivity.kt
+++ b/app/src/main/kotlin/io/flamenet/messenger/app/MainActivity.kt
@@ -43,12 +43,39 @@ import androidx.compose.foundation.layout.heightIn
 class MainActivity : ComponentActivity() {
     override fun onCreate(savedInstanceState: Bundle?) {
         super.onCreate(savedInstanceState)
+
+        // ⚠️ Runtime permission on API 33+, which is this app's minSdk. Without
+        // it the service runs and every alert is dropped silently — no error,
+        // no banner, and nothing on screen to say why. Ask once here rather
+        // than discovering it as "notifications do not work".
+        if (checkSelfPermission(android.Manifest.permission.POST_NOTIFICATIONS)
+            != android.content.pm.PackageManager.PERMISSION_GRANTED) {
+            requestPermissions(arrayOf(android.Manifest.permission.POST_NOTIFICATIONS), 1001)
+        }
+
         setContent {
             MessengerTheme {
                 Surface(modifier = Modifier.fillMaxSize()) { Root() }
             }
         }
     }
+
+    // 🔴 **The handover: exactly one poller at a time.** The ViewModel polls
+    // while the app is on screen; the service polls while it is not. Two
+    // pollers would race for the same envelopes and double-notify, so this
+    // pair has to stay symmetrical — if one side moves, move the other.
+    override fun onStart() {
+        super.onStart()
+        MessengerService.stop(this)
+    }
+
+    override fun onStop() {
+        super.onStop()
+        // ⚠️ Only when there is a session to receive for. Starting it signed
+        // out puts a permanent notice in the shade for an app doing nothing,
+        // and the service stops itself — but not before the user has seen it.
+        if (KeystoreVault.hasSession(applicationContext)) MessengerService.start(this)
+    }
 }
 
 @Composable
diff --git a/app/src/main/kotlin/io/flamenet/messenger/app/MessengerService.kt b/app/src/main/kotlin/io/flamenet/messenger/app/MessengerService.kt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1550455
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/src/main/kotlin/io/flamenet/messenger/app/MessengerService.kt
@@ -0,0 +1,249 @@
+package io.flamenet.messenger.app
+
+import android.app.Notification
+import android.app.NotificationChannel
+import android.app.NotificationManager
+import android.app.PendingIntent
+import android.app.Service
+import android.content.Context
+import android.content.Intent
+import android.content.pm.ServiceInfo
+import android.os.Build
+import android.os.IBinder
+import androidx.core.app.NotificationCompat
+import io.flamenet.client.MessengerApi
+import io.flamenet.client.RelayClient
+import io.flamenet.e2e.Vault
+import kotlinx.coroutines.CoroutineScope
+import kotlinx.coroutines.Dispatchers
+import kotlinx.coroutines.Job
+import kotlinx.coroutines.SupervisorJob
+import kotlinx.coroutines.cancel
+import kotlinx.coroutines.delay
+import kotlinx.coroutines.launch
+
+/**
+ * Keeps receiving while the app is not on screen.
+ *
+ * 🔴 **This is the only way to be alerted without a third party.** iOS has one
+ * mechanism for waking a suspended app and it is Apple's; Android does not have
+ * that limit — a foreground service may hold a connection with nobody in the
+ * middle. That asymmetry is the whole reason this class exists, and it is worth
+ * being honest about on the privacy page rather than letting people assume the
+ * two platforms behave alike.
+ *
+ * ⚠️ **The persistent notification is not optional and not a bug.** Android
+ * requires a visible notice for a foreground service. Users will ask to remove
+ * it; removing it means the OS kills the connection. It is the price of not
+ * routing wake-ups through Google.
+ *
+ * ⚠️ **Exactly one poller at a time.** The ViewModel polls while the app is on
+ * screen and this service polls while it is not — started from `onStop`,
+ * stopped from `onStart`. Two pollers would race for the same envelopes and
+ * double-notify. If that handover ever changes, check both ends.
+ *
+ * ⚠️ Some OEMs (Xiaomi, Huawei, Samsung on aggressive battery settings) kill
+ * foreground services anyway. Nothing here can prevent that; the poll resumes
+ * when the app is next opened, and no message is lost because the relay holds
+ * it until the cursor advances.
+ */
+class MessengerService : Service() {
+
+    companion object {
+        private const val ONGOING_ID = 1
+        private const val CHANNEL_ONGOING = "flamenet.ongoing"
+        private const val CHANNEL_MESSAGES = "flamenet.messages"
+        private const val CHANNEL_CALLS = "flamenet.calls"
+
+        /** ⚠️ Matches the relay's own hold, so a poll returns as it expires. */
+        private const val WAIT_SECONDS = 20
+
+        fun start(context: Context) {
+            val intent = Intent(context, MessengerService::class.java)
+            runCatching { context.startForegroundService(intent) }
+        }
+
+        fun stop(context: Context) {
+            runCatching { context.stopService(Intent(context, MessengerService::class.java)) }
+        }
+    }
+
+    private var scope: CoroutineScope? = null
+    private var loop: Job? = null
+    private var session: Session? = null
+
+    override fun onBind(intent: Intent?): IBinder? = null
+
+    override fun onCreate() {
+        super.onCreate()
+        createChannels()
+    }
+
+    override fun onStartCommand(intent: Intent?, flags: Int, startId: Int): Int {
+        // ⚠️ startForeground within a few seconds of onStartCommand or Android
+        // kills the process with a ForegroundServiceDidNotStartInTimeException.
+        // Do it before any I/O, not after the session is built.
+        startInForeground()
+
+        if (loop?.isActive == true) return START_STICKY
+        val s = CoroutineScope(SupervisorJob() + Dispatchers.IO)
+        scope = s
+        loop = s.launch { run() }
+        return START_STICKY
+    }
+
+    override fun onDestroy() {
+        loop?.cancel()
+        scope?.cancel()
+        session?.onCallSignal = null
+        session = null
+        super.onDestroy()
+    }
+
+    private fun startInForeground() {
+        val open = PendingIntent.getActivity(
+            this, 0, Intent(this, MainActivity::class.java),
+            PendingIntent.FLAG_IMMUTABLE or PendingIntent.FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT)
+        val notice = NotificationCompat.Builder(this, CHANNEL_ONGOING)
+            .setContentTitle("Flamenet is receiving")
+            .setContentText("Messages arrive without Google or Apple in the middle.")
+            .setSmallIcon(android.R.drawable.stat_notify_chat)
+            .setOngoing(true)
+            .setPriority(NotificationCompat.PRIORITY_MIN)
+            .setContentIntent(open)
+            .build()
+
+        if (Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.UPSIDE_DOWN_CAKE) {
+            startForeground(ONGOING_ID, notice,
+                ServiceInfo.FOREGROUND_SERVICE_TYPE_REMOTE_MESSAGING)
+        } else {
+            startForeground(ONGOING_ID, notice)
+        }
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Rebuild the session from the vault rather than sharing the ViewModel's.
+     *
+     * ⚠️ The Activity may already be gone by the time this runs — that is the
+     * situation the service exists for — so there is nothing to share. The
+     * vault is the durable half and both sides read it the same way.
+     */
+    private fun openSession(): Session? = runCatching {
+        val vault: Vault = KeystoreVault.open(applicationContext)
+        val identity = vault.loadIdentity() ?: return null
+        val credential = vault.loadCredential() ?: return null
+        val relay = RelayClient(
+            credential.relayBaseUrl, credential.username, credential.appPassword)
+        relay.useRelayAuth(identity)
+        Session(
+            handle = credential.username,
+            userId = credential.userId,
+            identity = identity,
+            vault = vault,
+            relay = relay,
+            api = MessengerApi(
+                credential.relayBaseUrl, credential.username, credential.appPassword),
+        )
+    }.getOrNull()
+
+    private suspend fun run() {
+        val s = openSession() ?: run {
+            // Nothing to receive for — signed out, or the vault is unreadable.
+            // Stop rather than sit in the notification shade doing nothing.
+            stopSelf()
+            return
+        }
+        session = s
+        // ⚠️ The constant, not the literal: the wire value is "call-offer",
+        // and a bare "offer" matches nothing and rings for no call ever.
+        s.onCallSignal = { fromUser, signal ->
+            if (signal.action == io.flamenet.e2e.Content.CallSignal.OFFER) {
+                notifyCall(nameFor(fromUser, s))
+            }
+        }
+
+        while (true) {
+            val touched = runCatching { s.receive() }.getOrDefault(emptySet())
+            if (touched.isNotEmpty()) notifyMessages(touched.size)
+            // ⚠️ A short gap, not a poll interval: `receive()` is held open by
+            // the relay for WAIT_SECONDS, so this only paces a relay that
+            // answers immediately.
+            delay(500)
+        }
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * A caller's name, from the buddy list.
+     *
+     * ⚠️ Cached for the life of the service and refreshed only on a miss. This
+     * runs on a ringing phone — the user has seconds — so a name lookup must
+     * not wait on the network when it already knows the answer.
+     */
+    private var names: Map<Long, String> = emptyMap()
+
+    private fun nameFor(userId: Long, s: Session): String {
+        names[userId]?.let { return it }
+        names = runCatching {
+            s.api.buddies().associate { it.userId to it.displayName.ifBlank { it.handle } }
+        }.getOrDefault(names)
+        // Falls back to something answerable rather than a bare number.
+        return names[userId] ?: "Someone"
+    }
+
+    private fun notifyMessages(threads: Int) {
+        val open = PendingIntent.getActivity(
+            this, 1, Intent(this, MainActivity::class.java),
+            PendingIntent.FLAG_IMMUTABLE or PendingIntent.FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT)
+        // 🔴 **No sender and no preview.** The notification is drawn on this
+        // device from locally decrypted plaintext, so it *could* carry both —
+        // but a lock screen is a shoulder-surfing surface, and the product's
+        // whole claim is that messages are for the two people in them. Count
+        // only, until there is a setting for it.
+        val text = if (threads == 1) "New message" else "New messages in $threads chats"
+        notify(CHANNEL_MESSAGES, 2, text, NotificationCompat.PRIORITY_HIGH, open)
+    }
+
+    private fun notifyCall(from: String) {
+        val open = PendingIntent.getActivity(
+            this, 2, Intent(this, MainActivity::class.java),
+            PendingIntent.FLAG_IMMUTABLE or PendingIntent.FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT)
+        // A caller IS named: an unnamed ringing phone is not answerable, and a
+        // call is a live event the user has seconds to act on.
+        notify(CHANNEL_CALLS, 3, "$from is calling", NotificationCompat.PRIORITY_MAX, open,
+            category = NotificationCompat.CATEGORY_CALL)
+    }
+
+    private fun notify(channel: String, id: Int, text: String, priority: Int,
+                       open: PendingIntent, category: String? = null) {
+        val n = NotificationCompat.Builder(this, channel)
+            .setContentTitle("Flamenet")
+            .setContentText(text)
+            .setSmallIcon(android.R.drawable.stat_notify_chat)
+            .setPriority(priority)
+            .setAutoCancel(true)
+            .setContentIntent(open)
+            .also { b -> category?.let { b.setCategory(it) } }
+            .build()
+        runCatching {
+            (getSystemService(Context.NOTIFICATION_SERVICE) as NotificationManager)
+                .notify(id, n)
+        }
+    }
+
+    private fun createChannels() {
+        val manager = getSystemService(Context.NOTIFICATION_SERVICE) as NotificationManager
+        manager.createNotificationChannel(
+            NotificationChannel(CHANNEL_ONGOING, "Receiving",
+                NotificationManager.IMPORTANCE_MIN).apply {
+                description = "The notice Android requires while Flamenet is receiving."
+            })
+        manager.createNotificationChannel(
+            NotificationChannel(CHANNEL_MESSAGES, "Messages",
+                NotificationManager.IMPORTANCE_HIGH))
+        manager.createNotificationChannel(
+            NotificationChannel(CHANNEL_CALLS, "Calls",
+                NotificationManager.IMPORTANCE_HIGH).apply {
+                setBypassDnd(false)
+            })
+    }
+}