diff --git a/solitaire_engine/src/hud_plugin/mod.rs b/solitaire_engine/src/hud_plugin/mod.rs
index a2ef864..7f918fe 100644
--- a/solitaire_engine/src/hud_plugin/mod.rs
+++ b/solitaire_engine/src/hud_plugin/mod.rs
@@ -603,6 +603,7 @@ impl Plugin for HudPlugin {
                     // disjoint from the UiTextFx readout writers (tab labels
                     // vs HUD readouts), which Bevy can't prove, so declare it.
                     animate_tab_expansion.ambiguous_with(UiTextFx),
+                    duck_tab_bar_during_drag,
                 )
                     .chain()
                     .in_set(HudButtons)
diff --git a/solitaire_engine/src/hud_plugin/tab_bar.rs b/solitaire_engine/src/hud_plugin/tab_bar.rs
index 5d3ef8c..5318090 100644
--- a/solitaire_engine/src/hud_plugin/tab_bar.rs
+++ b/solitaire_engine/src/hud_plugin/tab_bar.rs
@@ -24,7 +24,10 @@ use crate::assets::hud_icon_svg::HudIcon;
 use crate::ui_glass::{GLASS_BORDER_PX, glass_surface};
 use crate::ui_theme::{ACCENT_PRIMARY_HOVER, SPACE_3};
 use bevy::text::{LineBreak, TextLayout};
-use bevy::ui::Overflow;
+use bevy::ui::{Overflow, UiTransform, Val2};
+
+use crate::resources::DragState;
+use crate::safe_area::SafeAreaInsets;
 
 /// Height of both the pill and the circular Menu button, in logical px.
 /// 64 keeps the inner 48-px buttons comfortably past the 44-px touch
@@ -99,6 +102,20 @@ pub struct TabLabelWrap {
 #[derive(Component, Debug)]
 pub struct TabLabel;
 
+/// Duck-away state on the bar container: while a card drag is committed
+/// the whole bar slides below the screen edge so it never occludes a
+/// drop target on the bottom tableau rows, then slides back on release.
+/// `progress` ∈ [0, 1]; 1 = fully off-screen.
+#[derive(Component, Debug)]
+pub struct TabBarDuck {
+    /// Current slide amount, animated by [`duck_tab_bar_during_drag`].
+    pub progress: f32,
+}
+
+/// Extra slide distance past the bar's own height so its drop shadow
+/// (16 px blur + 6 px offset) also clears the screen edge.
+const DUCK_SHADOW_ALLOWANCE_PX: f32 = 24.0;
+
 /// Rasterised icon textures for the five tab-bar actions.
 pub(super) struct TabIcons {
     undo: Handle<Image>,
@@ -179,6 +196,8 @@ pub(super) fn spawn_glass_tab_bar(
                 base_bottom: TAB_BAR_MARGIN,
             },
             HudActionBar,
+            TabBarDuck { progress: 0.0 },
+            UiTransform::IDENTITY,
         ))
         .with_children(|bar| {
             // The main pill: Undo · [Draw] · Hint · Pause.
@@ -453,6 +472,46 @@ pub(super) fn animate_tab_expansion(
     }
 }
 
+/// Slides the bar off the bottom edge while a card drag is committed and
+/// back once it ends. Effectively touch-only: the desktop docked bar
+/// never carries [`TabBarDuck`], so the query is empty there.
+///
+/// The slide animates `UiTransform::translation` (a render-time offset,
+/// +y = down) rather than `Node::bottom`, for two reasons: layout is
+/// never dirtied mid-drag (the whole point is not to cost frames while
+/// the player is dragging), and `Node::bottom` is owned by the safe-area
+/// anchor system — two writers on one field would fight.
+pub(super) fn duck_tab_bar_during_drag(
+    time: Res<Time>,
+    settings: Option<Res<SettingsResource>>,
+    drag: Option<Res<DragState>>,
+    insets: Option<Res<SafeAreaInsets>>,
+    windows: Query<&Window>,
+    mut bars: Query<(&mut TabBarDuck, &mut UiTransform), With<HudActionBar>>,
+) {
+    let target = if drag.as_deref().is_some_and(|d| d.committed) {
+        1.0
+    } else {
+        0.0
+    };
+    let reduce_motion = settings.as_deref().is_some_and(|s| s.0.reduce_motion_mode);
+    let dt = time.delta_secs();
+    // Physical-px inset → logical, same conversion the safe-area anchors
+    // apply (CLAUDE.md §10): the bar sits `inset` above its base position,
+    // so the slide must cover that extra travel to fully clear the edge.
+    let scale = windows.iter().next().map_or(1.0, |w| w.scale_factor());
+    let inset_logical = insets.as_deref().map_or(0.0, |i| i.bottom / scale);
+    let slide_px = TAB_BAR_CLEARANCE_PX + inset_logical + DUCK_SHADOW_ALLOWANCE_PX;
+    for (mut duck, mut transform) in &mut bars {
+        let next = step_expansion(duck.progress, target, dt, reduce_motion);
+        if next == duck.progress && duck.progress == target {
+            continue;
+        }
+        duck.progress = next;
+        transform.translation = Val2::px(0.0, next * slide_px);
+    }
+}
+
 /// Idle / hover / pressed feedback for glass tab buttons — the glass
 /// counterpart of `paint_action_buttons`, using each button's own colour
 /// triple so the accent-filled active pill and the transparent icon
diff --git a/solitaire_engine/src/hud_plugin/tests.rs b/solitaire_engine/src/hud_plugin/tests.rs
index cfc5e92..74d2428 100644
--- a/solitaire_engine/src/hud_plugin/tests.rs
+++ b/solitaire_engine/src/hud_plugin/tests.rs
@@ -1014,6 +1014,54 @@ fn expansion_width_is_linear_in_progress() {
     assert_eq!(expansion_width(4, 16.0, 1.5), full);
 }
 
+/// While a committed drag is active the bar must slide down (positive
+/// `UiTransform` y — off-screen) and return to identity once the drag
+/// ends. Manual time steps make the tween deterministic.
+#[test]
+fn tab_bar_ducks_during_committed_drag_and_returns() {
+    use crate::resources::DragState;
+    use bevy::ui::UiTransform;
+
+    let mut app = bar_only_app(true);
+    set_manual_time_step(&mut app, 0.05);
+    app.add_systems(Update, duck_tab_bar_during_drag);
+    app.insert_resource(DragState {
+        committed: true,
+        ..default()
+    });
+
+    let translation_y_px = |app: &mut App| -> f32 {
+        let world = app.world_mut();
+        let mut q = world.query_filtered::<&UiTransform, With<HudActionBar>>();
+        let t = q.single(world).expect("bar carries UiTransform");
+        match t.translation.y {
+            Val::Px(px) => px,
+            other => panic!("duck must write Val::Px, got {other:?}"),
+        }
+    };
+
+    // 0.18s slide at 0.05s/frame: fully ducked within 5 frames.
+    app.update();
+    app.update();
+    let mid = translation_y_px(&mut app);
+    assert!(mid > 0.0, "bar must start sliding down: {mid}");
+    for _ in 0..5 {
+        app.update();
+    }
+    let ducked = translation_y_px(&mut app);
+    assert!(
+        ducked > TAB_BAR_CLEARANCE_PX,
+        "fully ducked bar must clear its own floating footprint: {ducked}"
+    );
+
+    // Drag ends → bar slides back to identity.
+    app.world_mut().resource_mut::<DragState>().committed = false;
+    for _ in 0..8 {
+        app.update();
+    }
+    assert_eq!(translation_y_px(&mut app), 0.0);
+}
+
 /// The tween must move at the `MOTION_SLIDE_SECS` rate, never overshoot,
 /// and snap instantly under reduce-motion.
 #[test]