diff --git a/.husky/pre-commit b/.husky/pre-commit
index 13254ace8..c21df39f0 100755
--- a/.husky/pre-commit
+++ b/.husky/pre-commit
@@ -1,6 +1,8 @@
 SCRIPT_DIR="$(readlink -f "$(dirname "$0")")"
 MONOREPO_ROOT="$(readlink -f "$SCRIPT_DIR/../")"
 
+node "$MONOREPO_ROOT/scripts/check-po-files.cjs" || exit 1
+
 echo "Copying .well-known/ contents"
 node "$MONOREPO_ROOT/scripts/copy-wellknown.cjs"
 
diff --git a/scripts/check-po-files.cjs b/scripts/check-po-files.cjs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..bcf4df16c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/check-po-files.cjs
@@ -0,0 +1,92 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env node
+
+/* eslint-disable @typescript-eslint/no-var-requires */
+const { execFileSync } = require('child_process');
+
+/**
+ * Check if we're running in CI or if Husky is disabled
+ * This shouldn't happen since Husky already checks, but defensive
+ */
+const isCI = process.env.CI === 'true' || process.env.CI === '1';
+const isHuskyDisabled = process.env.HUSKY === '0';
+
+if (isCI || isHuskyDisabled) {
+  console.log('Skipping .po file check (CI environment detected)');
+  process.exit(0);
+}
+
+/**
+ * Get list of staged .po files in translations directory
+ */
+const getStagedPoFiles = () => {
+  try {
+    // Use -z flag for null-terminated output to handle special characters in filenames
+    const output = execFileSync(
+      'git',
+      ['diff', '--cached', '--name-only', '-z', '--diff-filter=ACMR'],
+      {
+        encoding: 'utf8',
+        stdio: ['pipe', 'pipe', 'pipe'],
+      },
+    );
+
+    // Split on null character instead of newline for proper special character handling
+    const stagedFiles = output.split('\0').filter(Boolean);
+
+    // Filter for .po files in the translations directory (using startsWith for precise matching)
+    return stagedFiles.filter((file) => {
+      return file.startsWith('packages/lib/translations/') && file.endsWith('.po');
+    });
+  } catch (error) {
+    // Fail open: if git command fails, don't block commits
+    // This prevents the hook from breaking the entire commit flow
+    console.error('Warning: Could not check staged files:', error.message);
+    return [];
+  }
+};
+
+/**
+ * Unstage the specified files
+ * Handles both normal commits and initial commits (where HEAD doesn't exist)
+ */
+const unstageFiles = (files) => {
+  if (files.length === 0) return;
+
+  try {
+    // Check if HEAD exists (not an initial commit)
+    try {
+      execFileSync('git', ['rev-parse', '--verify', 'HEAD'], {
+        encoding: 'utf8',
+        stdio: ['pipe', 'pipe', 'pipe'],
+      });
+      // HEAD exists, use normal reset
+      execFileSync('git', ['reset', 'HEAD', '--', ...files], {
+        encoding: 'utf8',
+        stdio: 'inherit',
+      });
+    } catch (headError) {
+      // Initial commit - HEAD doesn't exist, use git rm --cached instead
+      execFileSync('git', ['rm', '--cached', '--', ...files], {
+        encoding: 'utf8',
+        stdio: 'inherit',
+      });
+    }
+  } catch (error) {
+    console.error('Error unstaging files:', error.message);
+  }
+};
+
+// Main execution
+const main = () => {
+  const poFiles = getStagedPoFiles();
+
+  if (poFiles.length > 0) {
+    // Silently unstage .po files and let commit proceed with remaining files
+    unstageFiles(poFiles);
+  }
+
+  // Allow commit to proceed (with or without .po files unstaged)
+  process.exit(0);
+};
+
+main();