diff --git a/src/extractors.ts b/src/extractors.ts
index 8c506d4..b4b827d 100644
--- a/src/extractors.ts
+++ b/src/extractors.ts
@@ -218,6 +218,19 @@ function shouldAcceptWorkspaceMemoryCandidate(entry: {
   const pathCount = (text.match(/\/[\w.-]+(\/[\w.-]+)+/g) || []).length;
   if (pathCount > 2) return false;
 
+  // Session-specific progress snapshots for project type
+  // Only reject when Phase/completed appears at/near START (not mid-description)
+  if (entry.type === "project") {
+    if (/\b\d+\s+tests?\s+pass(?:ed)?\b/i.test(text)) return false;
+    if (/\b\d+\s+suites?\b/i.test(text)) return false;
+    if (/\b\d+\s+(?:files?|文件)\b/i.test(text)) return false;
+    // Reject "Phase N completed" only when it appears early in the string (snapshot)
+    if (text.toLowerCase().indexOf("phase") < 25) {
+      if (/\bphase\s*\d+(?:\s*[-–]\s*\d+)?\s*(?:completed|done|finished)\b/i.test(text)) return false;
+      if (/已完成\s*Phase\s*\d+/i.test(text)) return false;
+    }
+  }
+
   return true;
 }
 
@@ -253,10 +266,13 @@ export function parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates(summary: string): LongTermMemoryE
   const entries: LongTermMemoryEntry[] = [];
 
   for (const line of block.split("\n")) {
-    const item = line.trim().match(/^-\s*\[(feedback|project|decision|reference)\]\s*(.+)$/i);
+    // Accept both "- [type] text" (bracketed) and "- type text" (bracketless)
+    const item = line.trim().match(
+      /^-\s*(?:\[(feedback|project|decision|reference)\]|(feedback|project|decision|reference)\b)\s+(.+)$/i,
+    );
     if (!item) continue;
-    const type = item[1].toLowerCase() as LongTermType;
-    const body = item[2].trim();
+    const type = (item[1] ?? item[2]).toLowerCase() as LongTermType;
+    const body = item[3].trim();
     if (body.length < 12) continue;
 
     // Apply quality gate
diff --git a/src/plugin.ts b/src/plugin.ts
index 522ddcb..4c8e80d 100644
--- a/src/plugin.ts
+++ b/src/plugin.ts
@@ -89,8 +89,13 @@ function buildCompactionPrompt(privateContext: string): string {
     "",
     "## Relevant Files",
     "",
-    "At the end of the summary, extract durable memory entries for future",
-    "sessions using these labels:",
+    "At the end of the summary, extract durable memory entries for future sessions.",
+    "Only extract facts that are likely to stay true across sessions.",
+    "Do not extract session-specific progress like exact test counts, file counts, or phase numbers.",
+    "For progress, extract the stable goal or durable milestone, not the current number.",
+    "For references, extract configuration values that do not usually change between sessions.",
+    "For feedback, extract unresolved issues or user preferences that future sessions need to know.",
+    "Use exactly this candidate format, including square brackets around the type:",
     "",
     "Memory candidates:",
     "- [feedback] content",
@@ -98,6 +103,8 @@ function buildCompactionPrompt(privateContext: string): string {
     "- [decision] content",
     "- [reference] content",
     "",
+    "Do not write '- project content'; write '- [project] content'.",
+    "",
     "Background context, use this to inform the summary above.",
     "Do not output this context verbatim:",
     "",
diff --git a/tests/extractors.test.ts b/tests/extractors.test.ts
index 28cd039..150b3f2 100644
--- a/tests/extractors.test.ts
+++ b/tests/extractors.test.ts
@@ -216,4 +216,116 @@ Memory candidates:
   assert.equal(items.length, 2);
   assert.equal(items[0].type, "decision");
   assert.equal(items[1].type, "project");
+});
+
+test("parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates accepts bracketless candidate format", () => {
+  const summary = `
+Memory candidates:
+- project pathology-playground 後端健康改進計劃已完成 Phase 1-4
+- reference Scrypt 參數必須是 N=16384, r=8, p=1
+- feedback 端口 9473 可能被舊進程佔用，需殺掉後重啟
+- decision Use output.prompt to replace the default compaction template
+`;
+
+  const items = parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates(summary);
+
+  assert.equal(items.length, 4, "Should parse all 4 bracketless candidates");
+  assert.deepEqual(items.map(i => i.type), [
+    "project",
+    "reference",
+    "feedback",
+    "decision",
+  ]);
+});
+
+test("parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates rejects unknown bracketless candidate type", () => {
+  const summary = `
+Memory candidates:
+- note this should not be parsed as memory
+`;
+
+  const items = parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates(summary);
+
+  assert.equal(items.length, 0);
+});
+
+test("parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates rejects bracketless very short body", () => {
+  const summary = `
+Memory candidates:
+- project short
+`;
+
+  const items = parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates(summary);
+  assert.equal(items.length, 0);
+});
+
+test("parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates does not match bracketless type as substring", () => {
+  // "projectile" should NOT match "project"
+  const summary = `
+Memory candidates:
+- projectile launcher should not be parsed as a project memory
+`;
+
+  const items = parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates(summary);
+  assert.equal(items.length, 0);
+});
+
+test("parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates rejects exact test count snapshots", () => {
+  const summary = `
+Memory candidates:
+- project 1237 tests pass, 226 suites
+- project 500 tests pass today
+`;
+
+  const items = parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates(summary);
+  assert.equal(items.length, 0, "Exact test counts are session snapshots, not durable memory");
+});
+
+test("parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates rejects exact file count snapshots", () => {
+  const summary = `
+Memory candidates:
+- project USB 同步 37 個文件
+- project 42 files synced
+`;
+
+  const items = parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates(summary);
+  assert.equal(items.length, 0, "Exact file counts are session snapshots");
+});
+
+test("parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates rejects phase progress snapshots", () => {
+  const summary = `
+Memory candidates:
+- project Phase 1-4 已完成
+- project Phase 3 completed
+- project Completed phase 1
+`;
+
+  const items = parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates(summary);
+  assert.equal(items.length, 0, "Phase progress is session snapshot, not durable milestone");
+});
+
+test("parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates accepts durable project facts", () => {
+  const summary = `
+Memory candidates:
+- project Backend health improvements organized into phased milestones
+- project USB sync covers bundles, server, frontend, tests, and docs
+- project Test suite expected to pass before handoff
+`;
+
+  const items = parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates(summary);
+  assert.equal(items.length, 3, "Durable project facts should pass");
+});
+
+test("parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates accepts durable reference values with numbers", () => {
+  // Scrypt has sufficient length (>20 chars) and no paths - should pass quality gate
+  // Admin PIN too short (<20 chars) - intentionally omitted to isolate the test
+  const summary = `
+Memory candidates:
+- reference Scrypt 參數必須是 N=16384, r=8, p=1，必須嚴格遵守
+- reference Admin PIN 456123 是系統管理員的預設登入密碼
+`;
+
+  const items = parseWorkspaceMemoryCandidates(summary);
+  assert.equal(items.length, 2, "Both durable reference values with numbers should pass quality gate");
+  assert.deepEqual(items.map(i => i.type), ["reference", "reference"]);
 });
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