diff --git a/cli/src/commands/sync/sync.ts b/cli/src/commands/sync/sync.ts
index 3519cfe4bc..358d08f9c7 100644
--- a/cli/src/commands/sync/sync.ts
+++ b/cli/src/commands/sync/sync.ts
@@ -104,6 +104,13 @@ import {
   getNonDottedPaths,
 } from "../../utils/resource_folders.ts";
 
+// Parse cliBehavior version string (e.g. "v1", "v2") into a number. Returns 0 if absent/invalid.
+export function parseCliBehavior(value?: string): number {
+  if (!value) return 0;
+  const match = value.match(/^v(\d+)$/);
+  return match ? parseInt(match[1], 10) : 0;
+}
+
 // Merge CLI options with effective settings, preserving CLI flags as overrides
 function mergeCliWithEffectiveOptions<
   T extends GlobalOptions & SyncOptions & { repository?: string },
@@ -1855,7 +1862,7 @@ export async function pull(
     resourceTypeToFormatExtension,
     resourceTypeToIsFileset,
     true,
-    parseFloat(opts.version ?? "0") >= 0.1,
+    parseCliBehavior(opts.cliBehavior) >= 1,
   );
 
   const local = !opts.stateful
@@ -2385,7 +2392,7 @@ export async function push(
     resourceTypeToFormatExtension,
     resourceTypeToIsFileset,
     false,
-    parseFloat(opts.version ?? "0") >= 0.1,
+    parseCliBehavior(opts.cliBehavior) >= 1,
   );
 
   const local = await FSFSElement(path.join(process.cwd(), ""), codebases, false);
@@ -2586,7 +2593,7 @@ export async function push(
 
     // Build permissioned_as context (only when respectVirtualUserPermissions is enabled)
     let permissionedAsContext: PermissionedAsContext | undefined = undefined;
-    if (opts.version && parseFloat(opts.version) >= 0.1) {
+    if (parseCliBehavior(opts.cliBehavior) >= 1) {
       const user = await wmill.whoami({ workspace: workspace.workspaceId });
       const userIsAdminOrDeployer =
         user.is_admin || (user.groups ?? []).includes("wm_deployers");
diff --git a/cli/src/core/conf.ts b/cli/src/core/conf.ts
index f49d501276..9177209b0d 100644
--- a/cli/src/core/conf.ts
+++ b/cli/src/core/conf.ts
@@ -104,7 +104,7 @@ export interface SyncOptions {
   lint?: boolean;
   locksRequired?: boolean;
   defaultPermissionedAs?: PermissionedAsRule[];
-  version?: string;
+  cliBehavior?: string;
 }
 
 export interface Codebase {
@@ -353,7 +353,7 @@ export const DEFAULT_SYNC_OPTIONS: Readonly<
       | "includeSettings"
       | "includeKey"
       | "nonDottedPaths"
-      | "version"
+      | "cliBehavior"
     >
   >
 > = {
@@ -377,7 +377,7 @@ export const DEFAULT_SYNC_OPTIONS: Readonly<
   includeKey: false,
   skipWorkspaceDependencies: false,
   nonDottedPaths: false,
-  version: "0.1",
+  cliBehavior: "v1",
 } as const;
 
 export async function mergeConfigWithConfigFile<T>(
diff --git a/cli/test/cli_behavior.test.ts b/cli/test/cli_behavior.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..8ddf254f78
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cli/test/cli_behavior.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+import { expect, test, describe } from "bun:test";
+import { parseCliBehavior } from "../src/commands/sync/sync.ts";
+
+describe("parseCliBehavior", () => {
+  test("parses v1 to 1", () => {
+    expect(parseCliBehavior("v1")).toBe(1);
+  });
+
+  test("parses v2 to 2", () => {
+    expect(parseCliBehavior("v2")).toBe(2);
+  });
+
+  test("parses v10 to 10", () => {
+    expect(parseCliBehavior("v10")).toBe(10);
+  });
+
+  test("returns 0 for undefined", () => {
+    expect(parseCliBehavior(undefined)).toBe(0);
+  });
+
+  test("returns 0 for empty string", () => {
+    expect(parseCliBehavior("")).toBe(0);
+  });
+
+  test("returns 0 for invalid format", () => {
+    expect(parseCliBehavior("0.1")).toBe(0);
+    expect(parseCliBehavior("1")).toBe(0);
+    expect(parseCliBehavior("version1")).toBe(0);
+    expect(parseCliBehavior("V1")).toBe(0);
+  });
+
+  test("version comparisons work correctly", () => {
+    expect(parseCliBehavior("v1") >= 1).toBe(true);
+    expect(parseCliBehavior("v2") >= 1).toBe(true);
+    expect(parseCliBehavior(undefined) >= 1).toBe(false);
+    expect(parseCliBehavior("v1") >= 2).toBe(false);
+    expect(parseCliBehavior("v2") >= 2).toBe(true);
+  });
+});