diff --git a/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/app/(dashboard)/hooks/useCan.ts b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/app/(dashboard)/hooks/useCan.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..f538e1dff15
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/app/(dashboard)/hooks/useCan.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+"use client";
+
+import { hasCapability, type Capability } from "@/utils/capabilities";
+
+import useAuthorized from "./useAuthorized";
+
+const useCan = (capability: Capability): boolean => {
+  const { userRole } = useAuthorized();
+  return hasCapability(userRole, capability);
+};
+
+export default useCan;
diff --git a/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPolicies/ToolPoliciesPanel.test.tsx b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPolicies/ToolPoliciesPanel.test.tsx
index 0a0b1c09fbb..3c8a0da3347 100644
--- a/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPolicies/ToolPoliciesPanel.test.tsx
+++ b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPolicies/ToolPoliciesPanel.test.tsx
@@ -21,6 +21,11 @@ vi.mock("@/components/molecules/notifications_manager", () => ({
   default: { fromBackend: (...args: unknown[]) => fromBackend(...args) },
 }));
 
+const can = vi.fn();
+vi.mock("@/app/(dashboard)/hooks/useCan", () => ({
+  default: (...args: unknown[]) => can(...args),
+}));
+
 const NOW = new Date("2026-07-21T12:00:00Z");
 
 const TOOLS: ToolRow[] = [
@@ -104,6 +109,7 @@ beforeEach(() => {
   fetchToolsList.mockReset().mockResolvedValue(TOOLS);
   updateToolPolicy.mockReset().mockResolvedValue({});
   fromBackend.mockReset();
+  can.mockReset().mockReturnValue(true);
   Element.prototype.scrollIntoView = vi.fn();
 });
 
@@ -112,6 +118,18 @@ afterEach(() => {
 });
 
 describe("ToolPoliciesPanel data loading", () => {
+  it("should not fetch tools when the caller lacks the viewToolPolicies capability", async () => {
+    can.mockReturnValue(false);
+    renderPanel();
+
+    await act(async () => {
+      vi.advanceTimersByTime(1_000);
+    });
+
+    expect(can).toHaveBeenCalledWith("viewToolPolicies");
+    expect(fetchToolsList).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
+
   it("should load tools once and never auto-refresh on a timer", async () => {
     renderPanel();
     await waitForRows();
diff --git a/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPolicies/ToolPoliciesPanel.tsx b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPolicies/ToolPoliciesPanel.tsx
index 1b559352469..df5d8553948 100644
--- a/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPolicies/ToolPoliciesPanel.tsx
+++ b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPolicies/ToolPoliciesPanel.tsx
@@ -1,12 +1,14 @@
 "use client";
 
-import { useQuery, useQueryClient, type UseQueryOptions } from "@tanstack/react-query";
+import { useQuery, useQueryClient } from "@tanstack/react-query";
 import React, { useCallback, useMemo, useState } from "react";
 
+import useCan from "@/app/(dashboard)/hooks/useCan";
 import { MetricCard } from "@/components/GuardrailsMonitor/MetricCard";
 import NotificationsManager from "@/components/molecules/notifications_manager";
-import { fetchToolsList, ToolRow, updateToolPolicy } from "@/components/networking";
+import { ToolRow, updateToolPolicy } from "@/components/networking";
 
+import { toolPoliciesListOptions } from "./toolPoliciesQueries";
 import { ToolPoliciesTable } from "./ToolPoliciesTable";
 
 function getUTCDateKey(date: Date): string {
@@ -41,8 +43,6 @@ const withTool = (names: ReadonlySet<string>, toolName: string): ReadonlySet<str
 const withoutTool = (names: ReadonlySet<string>, toolName: string): ReadonlySet<string> =>
   new Set([...names].filter((name) => name !== toolName));
 
-const TOOLS_QUERY_KEY = "tool-policies";
-
 interface ToolPoliciesPanelProps {
   accessToken: string | null;
   onSelectTool: (toolName: string) => void;
@@ -50,19 +50,12 @@ interface ToolPoliciesPanelProps {
 
 export const ToolPoliciesPanel: React.FC<ToolPoliciesPanelProps> = ({ accessToken, onSelectTool }) => {
   const queryClient = useQueryClient();
+  const canViewToolPolicies = useCan("viewToolPolicies");
   const [savingInput, setSavingInput] = useState<ReadonlySet<string>>(() => new Set());
   const [savingOutput, setSavingOutput] = useState<ReadonlySet<string>>(() => new Set());
 
-  const queryKey = useMemo(() => [TOOLS_QUERY_KEY, accessToken], [accessToken]);
-
-  const queryOptions: UseQueryOptions<ToolRow[]> = {
-    queryKey,
-    queryFn: async () => (accessToken === null ? [] : fetchToolsList(accessToken)),
-    enabled: accessToken !== null,
-    refetchOnWindowFocus: false,
-    refetchOnReconnect: false,
-  };
-  const query = useQuery(queryOptions);
+  const listOptions = useMemo(() => toolPoliciesListOptions(accessToken), [accessToken]);
+  const query = useQuery({ ...listOptions, enabled: canViewToolPolicies && accessToken !== null });
 
   const tools = useMemo(() => query.data ?? [], [query.data]);
 
@@ -70,12 +63,12 @@ export const ToolPoliciesPanel: React.FC<ToolPoliciesPanelProps> = ({ accessToke
   // and overwrite the row we just wrote with its pre-save snapshot.
   const patchTool = useCallback(
     async (toolName: string, patch: Partial<ToolRow>) => {
-      await queryClient.cancelQueries({ queryKey });
-      queryClient.setQueryData<ToolRow[]>(queryKey, (previous) =>
+      await queryClient.cancelQueries({ queryKey: listOptions.queryKey });
+      queryClient.setQueryData(listOptions.queryKey, (previous) =>
         (previous ?? []).map((tool) => (tool.tool_name === toolName ? { ...tool, ...patch } : tool)),
       );
     },
-    [queryClient, queryKey],
+    [queryClient, listOptions],
   );
 
   const handleInputPolicyChange = useCallback(
diff --git a/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPolicies/toolPoliciesQueries.ts b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPolicies/toolPoliciesQueries.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..558f8c95c2c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPolicies/toolPoliciesQueries.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+import { queryOptions } from "@tanstack/react-query";
+
+import { fetchToolsList, type ToolRow } from "@/components/networking";
+
+export const toolPoliciesKeys = {
+  all: ["tool-policies"] as const,
+  list: (accessToken: string | null) => [...toolPoliciesKeys.all, accessToken] as const,
+};
+
+export const toolPoliciesListOptions = (accessToken: string | null) =>
+  queryOptions({
+    queryKey: toolPoliciesKeys.list(accessToken),
+    queryFn: async (): Promise<ToolRow[]> => (accessToken === null ? [] : fetchToolsList(accessToken)),
+    refetchOnWindowFocus: false,
+    refetchOnReconnect: false,
+  });
diff --git a/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPoliciesView.test.tsx b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPoliciesView.test.tsx
index 34c697a98d1..74e3a316850 100644
--- a/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPoliciesView.test.tsx
+++ b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPoliciesView.test.tsx
@@ -1,10 +1,15 @@
 import React from "react";
-import { describe, it, expect, vi } from "vitest";
+import { beforeEach, describe, it, expect, vi } from "vitest";
 import { screen } from "@testing-library/react";
 import userEvent from "@testing-library/user-event";
 import { renderWithProviders } from "../../tests/test-utils";
 import ToolPoliciesView from "./ToolPoliciesView";
 
+const can = vi.fn();
+vi.mock("@/app/(dashboard)/hooks/useCan", () => ({
+  default: (...args: unknown[]) => can(...args),
+}));
+
 vi.mock("@/components/ToolDetail", () => ({
   ToolDetail: ({ toolName, onBack }: { toolName: string; onBack: () => void }) => (
     <div>
@@ -26,6 +31,18 @@ vi.mock("@/components/ToolPolicies/ToolPoliciesPanel", () => ({
 }));
 
 describe("ToolPoliciesView", () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    can.mockReset().mockReturnValue(true);
+  });
+
+  it("should show an admin-only notice instead of the overview when the caller lacks access", () => {
+    can.mockReturnValue(false);
+    renderWithProviders(<ToolPoliciesView accessToken="token" />);
+
+    expect(screen.getByText(/only available to admin users/i)).toBeInTheDocument();
+    expect(screen.queryByText("Tool Policies Overview")).not.toBeInTheDocument();
+  });
+
   it("should render the overview by default", () => {
     renderWithProviders(<ToolPoliciesView accessToken="token" />);
 
diff --git a/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPoliciesView.tsx b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPoliciesView.tsx
index bdff40153b9..b2d53985b29 100644
--- a/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPoliciesView.tsx
+++ b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/ToolPoliciesView.tsx
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 "use client";
 
 import React, { useState } from "react";
+import useCan from "@/app/(dashboard)/hooks/useCan";
 import { ToolDetail } from "@/components/ToolDetail";
 import { ToolPoliciesPanel } from "@/components/ToolPolicies/ToolPoliciesPanel";
 
@@ -11,6 +12,7 @@ interface ToolPoliciesViewProps {
 }
 
 export default function ToolPoliciesView({ accessToken }: ToolPoliciesViewProps) {
+  const canViewToolPolicies = useCan("viewToolPolicies");
   const [view, setView] = useState<View>({ type: "overview" });
 
   const handleSelectTool = (toolName: string) => {
@@ -21,6 +23,15 @@ export default function ToolPoliciesView({ accessToken }: ToolPoliciesViewProps)
     setView({ type: "overview" });
   };
 
+  if (!canViewToolPolicies) {
+    return (
+      <div className="p-6 w-full min-w-0 flex-1">
+        <h1 className="text-2xl font-semibold text-gray-900 mb-2">Tool Policies</h1>
+        <p className="text-sm text-gray-500">Tool Policies is only available to admin users.</p>
+      </div>
+    );
+  }
+
   return (
     <div className="p-6 w-full min-w-0 flex-1">
       {view.type === "detail" ? (
diff --git a/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/leftnav.test.tsx b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/leftnav.test.tsx
index dc893643559..e07d0bb26eb 100644
--- a/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/leftnav.test.tsx
+++ b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/leftnav.test.tsx
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import { act, fireEvent, screen, waitFor } from "@testing-library/react";
-import { describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
+import { afterEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
 import { renderWithProviders } from "../../tests/test-utils";
 import Sidebar, { menuGroups, getBreadcrumb } from "./leftnav";
 
@@ -201,6 +201,47 @@ describe("Sidebar (leftnav)", () => {
     });
   });
 
+  describe("capability-gated Tools children", () => {
+    const internalAuth = {
+      userId: "internal-user-id",
+      accessToken: "test-access-token",
+      userRole: "internal",
+      token: "test-token",
+      userEmail: "internal@example.com",
+      premiumUser: false,
+      disabledPersonalKeyCreation: false,
+      showSSOBanner: false,
+    };
+
+    afterEach(() => {
+      mockUseAuthorized.mockReset();
+    });
+
+    it("should hide Tool Policies from internal users while keeping other Tools children", async () => {
+      mockUseAuthorized.mockReturnValue(internalAuth);
+      renderWithProviders(<Sidebar {...defaultProps} />);
+
+      act(() => {
+        fireEvent.click(screen.getByText("Tools"));
+      });
+      await waitFor(() => {
+        expect(screen.getByText("Search Tools")).toBeInTheDocument();
+      });
+      expect(screen.queryByText("Tool Policies")).not.toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+
+    it("should show Tool Policies to admins", async () => {
+      renderWithProviders(<Sidebar {...defaultProps} />);
+
+      act(() => {
+        fireEvent.click(screen.getByText("Tools"));
+      });
+      await waitFor(() => {
+        expect(screen.getByText("Tool Policies")).toBeInTheDocument();
+      });
+    });
+  });
+
   it("should show Organizations tab for organization admins", () => {
     mockUseAuthorized.mockReturnValueOnce({
       userId: "org-admin-user-id",
diff --git a/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/leftnav.tsx b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/leftnav.tsx
index af76fccf9eb..cd92fc5bedb 100644
--- a/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/leftnav.tsx
+++ b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/components/leftnav.tsx
@@ -64,6 +64,7 @@ import {
 import Link from "next/link";
 import { useMemo, useState } from "react";
 import { cn } from "@/lib/cva.config";
+import { rolesWithCapability } from "../utils/capabilities";
 import {
   all_admin_roles,
   internalUserRoles,
@@ -167,7 +168,13 @@ const menuGroups: MenuGroup[] = [
         children: [
           { key: "search-tools", page: "search-tools", label: "Search Tools", icon: <Search {...ICON} /> },
           { key: "vector-stores", page: "vector-stores", label: "Vector Stores", icon: <Database {...ICON} /> },
-          { key: "tool-policies", page: "tool-policies", label: "Tool Policies", icon: <ShieldCheck {...ICON} /> },
+          {
+            key: "tool-policies",
+            page: "tool-policies",
+            label: "Tool Policies",
+            icon: <ShieldCheck {...ICON} />,
+            roles: rolesWithCapability("viewToolPolicies"),
+          },
         ],
       },
     ],
diff --git a/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/utils/capabilities.test.ts b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/utils/capabilities.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..84ceae16fc1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/utils/capabilities.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+
+import { hasCapability, rolesWithCapability } from "./capabilities";
+
+describe("hasCapability", () => {
+  it.each(["Admin", "Admin Viewer", "proxy_admin", "proxy_admin_viewer"])(
+    "should grant viewToolPolicies to %s",
+    (role) => {
+      expect(hasCapability(role, "viewToolPolicies")).toBe(true);
+    },
+  );
+
+  it.each(["Internal User", "Internal Viewer", "App User", "Unknown Role", "", null, undefined])(
+    "should deny viewToolPolicies to %s",
+    (role) => {
+      expect(hasCapability(role, "viewToolPolicies")).toBe(false);
+    },
+  );
+});
+
+describe("rolesWithCapability", () => {
+  it("should return a copy so callers cannot mutate the capability map", () => {
+    const roles = rolesWithCapability("viewToolPolicies");
+    const removed = roles.pop();
+    expect(hasCapability(removed, "viewToolPolicies")).toBe(true);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/utils/capabilities.ts b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/utils/capabilities.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..77ead2568fb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ui/litellm-dashboard/src/utils/capabilities.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+import { all_admin_roles } from "./roles";
+
+const CAPABILITY_ROLES = {
+  viewToolPolicies: all_admin_roles,
+} as const satisfies Record<string, readonly string[]>;
+
+export type Capability = keyof typeof CAPABILITY_ROLES;
+
+export const hasCapability = (userRole: string | null | undefined, capability: Capability): boolean =>
+  userRole != null && CAPABILITY_ROLES[capability].includes(userRole);
+
+export const rolesWithCapability = (capability: Capability): string[] => [...CAPABILITY_ROLES[capability]];