diff --git a/litellm/proxy/hooks/global_tag_rate_limits_hook.py b/litellm/proxy/hooks/global_tag_rate_limits_hook.py
index 09c2230338c..f5d6857a18f 100644
--- a/litellm/proxy/hooks/global_tag_rate_limits_hook.py
+++ b/litellm/proxy/hooks/global_tag_rate_limits_hook.py
@@ -47,7 +47,6 @@ from litellm._logging import verbose_proxy_logger
 from litellm.caching.dual_cache import DualCache
 from litellm.caching.in_memory_cache import InMemoryCache
 from litellm.integrations.custom_logger import CustomLogger
-from litellm.litellm_core_utils.core_helpers import get_metadata_variable_name_from_kwargs
 from litellm.proxy._types import UserAPIKeyAuth
 from litellm.proxy.common_utils.proxy_rate_limit_error import ProxyRateLimitError
 from litellm.proxy.hooks.parallel_request_limiter_v3 import (
@@ -112,7 +111,7 @@ from litellm.proxy.hooks.tag_rate_limits_shared import (
     policy_fingerprint as _policy_fingerprint,
 )
 from litellm.proxy.hooks.tag_rate_limits_shared import (
-    resolve_success_event_metadata_variable_name as _resolve_success_event_metadata_variable_name,
+    resolve_authoritative_metadata_variable_name as _resolve_authoritative_metadata_variable_name,
 )
 from litellm.proxy.utils import InternalUsageCache
 from litellm.router_strategy.tag_based_routing import (
@@ -544,7 +543,12 @@ class _PROXY_GlobalTagRateLimitsHook(  # pyright: ignore[reportUnusedClass]  # o
         # re-charging.
         stash: Final = _claim_stash_for_data(data)
 
-        metadata_variable_name: Final = get_metadata_variable_name_from_kwargs(data)
+        # Not get_metadata_variable_name_from_kwargs (naive key-presence
+        # check): a caller can forge an empty (or None) litellm_metadata on
+        # an ordinary request to make that check pick it over the real,
+        # populated metadata the proxy wrote identity/tags into, seeing no
+        # tags at all and admitting past every configured limit.
+        metadata_variable_name: Final = _resolve_authoritative_metadata_variable_name(data)
         tags: Final = _order_tags_for_identity_resolution(
             _get_tags_from_request_kwargs(data, metadata_variable_name=metadata_variable_name),
             data,
@@ -716,7 +720,7 @@ class _PROXY_GlobalTagRateLimitsHook(  # pyright: ignore[reportUnusedClass]  # o
         litellm_params_for_metadata: Final[Mapping[str, object]] = (
             litellm_params_raw if isinstance(litellm_params_raw, Mapping) else kwargs
         )
-        metadata_variable_name: Final = _resolve_success_event_metadata_variable_name(litellm_params_for_metadata)
+        metadata_variable_name: Final = _resolve_authoritative_metadata_variable_name(litellm_params_for_metadata)
         key_hash: Final = _extract_key_hash(litellm_params_for_metadata, metadata_variable_name)
         key_alias: Final = _extract_key_alias(litellm_params_for_metadata, metadata_variable_name)
 
diff --git a/tests/test_litellm/proxy/hooks/test_global_tag_rate_limits_hook.py b/tests/test_litellm/proxy/hooks/test_global_tag_rate_limits_hook.py
index 6f0d7d1aaf2..1a43bebb3b8 100644
--- a/tests/test_litellm/proxy/hooks/test_global_tag_rate_limits_hook.py
+++ b/tests/test_litellm/proxy/hooks/test_global_tag_rate_limits_hook.py
@@ -1509,3 +1509,42 @@ async def test_concurrency_limit_admission_refreshes_ttl_end_to_end(time_control
     inflight_keys = [key for key in in_memory_cache.ttl_dict if key.endswith(":inflight")]
     assert len(inflight_keys) == 1
     assert in_memory_cache.ttl_dict[inflight_keys[0]] > time.time()
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Admission must resolve the authoritative metadata bucket, not the naive
+# key-presence check -- veria-ai finding on the sibling model-based hook,
+# same vulnerability class in this hook's own admission call site
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_admission_ignores_a_forged_empty_litellm_metadata_key(time_controller, monkeypatch):
+    """
+    get_metadata_variable_name_from_kwargs picks "litellm_metadata" whenever
+    that key is merely present, regardless of its value. A caller adding an
+    empty "litellm_metadata" alongside the real, populated "metadata" made
+    admission read no tags at all, sailing past every configured limit.
+    """
+    monkeypatch.setattr(
+        litellm,
+        "global_tag_rate_limits",
+        {
+            "request_limits": {
+                "limits": [{"name": "daily", "tag_id": "end_user_id", "limit": 1, "period_seconds": 86400}]
+            }
+        },
+    )
+    hook = _make_hook(time_controller)
+    poisoned = {"metadata": {"tags": ["end_user_id:u1"]}, "litellm_metadata": {}}
+
+    await hook.async_pre_call_hook(
+        user_api_key_dict=_key(), cache=DualCache(), data={**poisoned, "litellm_call_id": "call-1"}, call_type="completion"
+    )
+    with pytest.raises(ProxyRateLimitError):
+        await hook.async_pre_call_hook(
+            user_api_key_dict=_key(),
+            cache=DualCache(),
+            data={**poisoned, "litellm_call_id": "call-2"},
+            call_type="completion",
+        )