diff --git a/packages/sim-cli/src/embed.test.ts b/packages/sim-cli/src/embed.test.ts
index a81c9549909..3234b73c57d 100644
--- a/packages/sim-cli/src/embed.test.ts
+++ b/packages/sim-cli/src/embed.test.ts
@@ -97,6 +97,35 @@ describe('runEmbeddedCli', () => {
     expect(JSON.parse(a.stdout).data[0].id).toBe(wsA)
     expect(JSON.parse(b.stdout).data[0].id).toBe(wsB)
   })
+
+  it('reports a thrown error with its own exit code, as the installed CLI does', async () => {
+    const receipt = {
+      operationId: 'op-1',
+      requestId: 'req-1',
+      workspaceId: IDENTITY.workspaceId,
+      kind: 'workflow_import',
+      applied: true,
+      status: 'processing',
+      issues: [],
+    }
+    // The clock moves only when a status is served, so the wait can time out
+    // only after it has a receipt to print, however slow the runner is.
+    let now = Date.now()
+    vi.spyOn(Date, 'now').mockImplementation(() => now)
+    const result = await runEmbeddedCli(
+      ['--output', 'json', 'workspaces', 'operations', 'wait', 'op-1', '--wait-timeout', '60'],
+      {
+        ...IDENTITY,
+        transport: async () => {
+          now += 61_000
+          return jsonResponse({ data: receipt })
+        },
+      }
+    )
+    expect(result.exitCode).toBe(4)
+    expect(JSON.parse(result.stdout)).toMatchObject({ operationId: 'op-1', status: 'processing' })
+    expect(result.stderr).toContain('OPERATION_WAIT_TIMEOUT')
+  })
 })
 
 describe('embedded artifact destinations', () => {
diff --git a/packages/sim-cli/src/embed.ts b/packages/sim-cli/src/embed.ts
index b517aa06f8b..7c8d8335abb 100644
--- a/packages/sim-cli/src/embed.ts
+++ b/packages/sim-cli/src/embed.ts
@@ -70,8 +70,8 @@ export function createEmbeddedClient(identity: EmbeddedCliIdentity): SimClient {
 /**
  * Runs one CLI invocation in-process. `argv` is the token list exactly as the
  * terminal would receive it (no leading node/binary tokens). Errors the
- * installed CLI would print-and-exit-1 on come back the same way: rendered to
- * stderr, exitCode 1 — never thrown.
+ * installed CLI would print-and-exit on come back the same way: rendered to
+ * stderr with the same exit code — never thrown.
  */
 export async function runEmbeddedCli(
   argv: string[],
@@ -191,7 +191,7 @@ function renderEmbeddedError(ctx: EmbedContext, error: unknown): number {
     if (error.details !== undefined) {
       for (const line of formatApiErrorDetails(error.details)) ctx.stderr.diagnostic(sanitize(line))
     }
-    return 1
+    return error.exitCode
   }
   ctx.stderr.diagnostic(
     // utils-lint-allow: this published standalone CLI cannot import the private @sim/utils package.