diff --git a/plugins/__tests__/babel-plugin-lexicon-leaf-imports.test.js b/plugins/__tests__/babel-plugin-lexicon-leaf-imports.test.js
index 01ba27d442..fbb8fb2d2f 100644
--- a/plugins/__tests__/babel-plugin-lexicon-leaf-imports.test.js
+++ b/plugins/__tests__/babel-plugin-lexicon-leaf-imports.test.js
@@ -93,6 +93,78 @@ describe('transform', () => {
   })
 })
 
+/*
+ * The plugin memoizes filesystem stats, barrel export maps, and verified
+ * chains in module-level caches that outlive individual transforms. A lexicon
+ * regen inside a long-lived worker (Metro dev server, jest --watch) must
+ * invalidate them - the plugin uses the root index mtime as the epoch.
+ */
+describe('cache invalidation across a lexicon regen', () => {
+  let tmp
+  let lexRoot
+
+  function write(rel, content) {
+    const file = path.join(tmp, rel)
+    fs.mkdirSync(path.dirname(file), {recursive: true})
+    fs.writeFileSync(file, content)
+  }
+
+  beforeAll(() => {
+    tmp = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), 'lexicon-regen-'))
+    lexRoot = path.join(tmp, 'lexicons')
+    write('lexicons/index.ts', `export * as app from './app'\n`)
+    write('lexicons/app.ts', `export * as bsky from './app/bsky'\n`)
+    write('lexicons/app/bsky.ts', `export * as feed from './bsky/feed'\n`)
+    write('lexicons/app/bsky/feed.ts', `export * as like from './feed/like'\n`)
+    write('lexicons/app/bsky/feed/like.ts', `export const $type = 'test'\n`)
+  })
+
+  afterAll(() => {
+    fs.rmSync(tmp, {recursive: true, force: true})
+  })
+
+  function transform() {
+    return transformSync(
+      `import {app} from './lexicons'\nvoid app.bsky.feed.like\n`,
+      {
+        filename: path.join(tmp, 'consumer.ts'),
+        configFile: false,
+        babelrc: false,
+        parserOpts: {plugins: ['typescript']},
+        plugins: [[plugin, {roots: [lexRoot]}]],
+      },
+    ).code
+  }
+
+  test('a layout change is picked up without a process restart', () => {
+    expect(transform()).toContain(
+      `import * as _lex_app_bsky_feed_like from "./lexicons/app/bsky/feed/like"`,
+    )
+
+    /*
+     * Simulate `lex build --clear` deepening the leaf into a barrel. Codegen
+     * rewrites the whole tree, so the root index mtime always moves; force it
+     * forward explicitly since same-millisecond writes would hide the change.
+     */
+    write(
+      'lexicons/app/bsky/feed/like.ts',
+      `export * as main from './like/main'\n`,
+    )
+    write('lexicons/app/bsky/feed/like/main.ts', `export const $type = 'test'\n`)
+    const bumped = new Date(Date.now() + 10_000)
+    fs.utimesSync(path.join(lexRoot, 'index.ts'), bumped, bumped)
+
+    /*
+     * The chain now stops at a barrel, so the correct result is a bail that
+     * keeps the barrel import. Stale caches would instead replay the rewrite
+     * against the old layout.
+     */
+    const out = transform()
+    expect(out).toContain(`from './lexicons'`)
+    expect(out).not.toContain('import *')
+  })
+})
+
 /**
  * Enumerate every leaf chain by following `export * as <name> from '...'`
  * through the barrel graph, mirroring the plugin's own leaf/barrel rule: a
diff --git a/plugins/babel-plugin-lexicon-leaf-imports.js b/plugins/babel-plugin-lexicon-leaf-imports.js
index 2e1194a2a0..8569ebb03d 100644
--- a/plugins/babel-plugin-lexicon-leaf-imports.js
+++ b/plugins/babel-plugin-lexicon-leaf-imports.js
@@ -142,7 +142,7 @@ function resolveBarrelTarget(fromFile, spec) {
   return null
 }
 
-/** `rootDir\0segments` -> boolean */
+/** `rootDir\0segments\0leafFile` -> boolean */
 const chainCache = new Map()
 
 /**
@@ -152,7 +152,11 @@ const chainCache = new Map()
  * divergence; the caller turns that into a hard build error.
  */
 function verifyChain(rootDir, segments, leafFile) {
-  const key = rootDir + '\0' + segments.join('.')
+  /*
+   * leafFile is part of the key: the cached boolean encodes `walk === leafFile`,
+   * so a hit for the same chain but a different planned leaf must not be reused.
+   */
+  const key = rootDir + '\0' + segments.join('.') + '\0' + leafFile
   let ok = chainCache.get(key)
   if (ok !== undefined) return ok
   let cur = leafFileFor(rootDir, 'index')
@@ -172,6 +176,34 @@ function verifyChain(rootDir, segments, leafFile) {
   return ok
 }
 
+/** Barrel root dir -> mtimeMs of its index file when the caches were filled. */
+const rootEpochs = new Map()
+
+/*
+ * The caches above are module-level and would otherwise outlive a lexicon
+ * regen inside a long-lived Metro or Jest watch worker, serving stale stats,
+ * export maps, and verified chains until the process restarts. Codegen
+ * (`lex build --clear`) rewrites the whole tree including the root index, so
+ * the index mtime works as an epoch: when it moves, drop all three caches.
+ * Costs one statSync per file that actually imports a barrel.
+ */
+function invalidateStaleCaches(rootDir) {
+  let mtime = -1
+  for (const ext of EXTS) {
+    try {
+      mtime = fs.statSync(path.join(rootDir, 'index' + ext)).mtimeMs
+      break
+    } catch {}
+  }
+  const prev = rootEpochs.get(rootDir)
+  if (prev !== undefined && prev !== mtime) {
+    statCache.clear()
+    barrelExportCache.clear()
+    chainCache.clear()
+  }
+  rootEpochs.set(rootDir, mtime)
+}
+
 const SDK_SEGMENT = `${path.sep}@bsky${path.sep}sdk${path.sep}`
 const SDK_BARREL_RE = /(^|\/)lexicons\/index\.js$/
 
@@ -271,6 +303,9 @@ module.exports = function lexiconLeafImports(babel, options = {}) {
             if (dir) targets.push({imp: stmt, dir})
           }
           if (targets.length === 0) return
+          for (const {dir} of targets) {
+            invalidateStaleCaches(dir)
+          }
 
           /*
            * Type-only references were stripped by the TypeScript transform