diff --git a/doc/pending.txt b/doc/pending.txt
index 9ec9b34..58ad4e0 100644
--- a/doc/pending.txt
+++ b/doc/pending.txt
@@ -842,7 +842,6 @@ Fields: ~
                          {eol_format}  (string, default: '%c  %r  %d')
                                     Format string for end-of-line virtual text.
                                     Specifiers:
-                                      `%l`  forge link label (`PendingForge`)
                                       `%c`  category icon + name (`PendingHeader`)
                                       `%r`  recurrence icon + pattern (`PendingRecur`)
                                       `%d`  due icon + date (`PendingDue`/`PendingOverdue`)
@@ -1486,10 +1485,6 @@ inline with a formatted label using overlay extmarks (same technique as
 checkbox icons). Multiple forge references in one line are each overlaid
 independently.
 
-The `%l` specifier in `eol_format` is still supported for users who prefer
-the link label in EOL virtual text, but it is no longer in the default
-format (`'%c  %r  %d'`).
-
 Format string: ~
                                                     *pending-forge-format*
 Each forge has a configurable `issue_format` string with these placeholders:
@@ -1505,6 +1500,7 @@ Configuration: ~
 >lua
     vim.g.pending = {
       forge = {
+        auto_close = false,
         github = {
           token = nil,
           icon = '',
@@ -1527,6 +1523,11 @@ Configuration: ~
     }
 <
 
+Top-level fields: ~
+    {auto_close}    (boolean, default: false) When true, tasks linked to
+                    closed/merged remote issues are automatically marked
+                    done on buffer open.
+
 Fields (per forge): ~
     {token}         (string, optional) API token for authenticated requests.
                     Falls back to CLI: `gh auth token` (GitHub), `glab auth
@@ -1551,9 +1552,10 @@ than 5 minutes are re-fetched asynchronously. The buffer renders immediately
 with cached data and updates extmarks when the fetch completes.
 
 State pull: ~
-After fetching, if the remote issue/PR is closed or merged and the local
-task is pending/wip/blocked, the task is automatically marked as done. This
-is one-way: local status changes do not push back to the forge.
+Requires `forge.auto_close = true`. After fetching, if the remote issue/PR
+is closed or merged and the local task is pending/wip/blocked, the task is
+automatically marked as done. Disabled by default. One-way: local status
+changes do not push back to the forge.
 
 Highlight groups: ~
     |PendingForge|          Open issue/PR link label
diff --git a/lua/pending/buffer.lua b/lua/pending/buffer.lua
index e162f67..8c0433e 100644
--- a/lua/pending/buffer.lua
+++ b/lua/pending/buffer.lua
@@ -379,7 +379,7 @@ end
 ---@param winid integer
 local function set_win_options(winid)
   vim.wo[winid].conceallevel = 3
-  vim.wo[winid].concealcursor = 'nc'
+  vim.wo[winid].concealcursor = 'nic'
   vim.wo[winid].winfixheight = true
 end
 
@@ -446,7 +446,7 @@ end
 
 ---@class pending.EolSegment
 ---@field type 'specifier'|'literal'
----@field key? 'c'|'r'|'d'|'l'
+---@field key? 'c'|'r'|'d'
 ---@field text? string
 
 ---@param fmt string
@@ -458,7 +458,7 @@ local function parse_eol_format(fmt)
   while pos <= len do
     if fmt:sub(pos, pos) == '%' and pos + 1 <= len then
       local key = fmt:sub(pos + 1, pos + 1)
-      if key == 'c' or key == 'r' or key == 'd' or key == 'l' then
+      if key == 'c' or key == 'r' or key == 'd' then
         table.insert(segments, { type = 'specifier', key = key })
         pos = pos + 2
       else
@@ -485,10 +485,7 @@ local function build_eol_virt(segments, m, icons)
   for i, seg in ipairs(segments) do
     if seg.type == 'specifier' then
       local text, hl
-      if seg.key == 'l' and m.forge_ref then
-        local forge = require('pending.forge')
-        text, hl = forge.format_label(m.forge_ref, m.forge_cache)
-      elseif seg.key == 'c' and m.show_category and m.category then
+      if seg.key == 'c' and m.show_category and m.category then
         text = icons.category .. ' ' .. m.category
         hl = 'PendingHeader'
       elseif seg.key == 'r' and m.recur then
diff --git a/lua/pending/config.lua b/lua/pending/config.lua
index 842dfc0..4c35348 100644
--- a/lua/pending/config.lua
+++ b/lua/pending/config.lua
@@ -40,6 +40,7 @@
 ---@field instances? string[]
 
 ---@class pending.ForgeConfig
+---@field auto_close? boolean
 ---@field github? pending.ForgeInstanceConfig
 ---@field gitlab? pending.ForgeInstanceConfig
 ---@field codeberg? pending.ForgeInstanceConfig
@@ -154,18 +155,19 @@ local defaults = {
   },
   sync = {},
   forge = {
+    auto_close = false,
     github = {
-      icon = '',
+      icon = '',
       issue_format = '%i %o/%r#%n',
       instances = {},
     },
     gitlab = {
-      icon = '',
+      icon = '',
       issue_format = '%i %o/%r#%n',
       instances = {},
     },
     codeberg = {
-      icon = '',
+      icon = '',
       issue_format = '%i %o/%r#%n',
       instances = {},
     },
diff --git a/lua/pending/forge.lua b/lua/pending/forge.lua
index d2092e4..c7724f8 100644
--- a/lua/pending/forge.lua
+++ b/lua/pending/forge.lua
@@ -396,8 +396,10 @@ function M.refresh(s)
         if cache then
           task._extra._forge_cache = cache
           any_fetched = true
+          local forge_cfg = config.get().forge or {}
           if
-            (cache.state == 'closed' or cache.state == 'merged')
+            forge_cfg.auto_close
+            and (cache.state == 'closed' or cache.state == 'merged')
             and (task.status == 'pending' or task.status == 'wip' or task.status == 'blocked')
           then
             task.status = 'done'
diff --git a/lua/pending/views.lua b/lua/pending/views.lua
index fd76a49..b1e691e 100644
--- a/lua/pending/views.lua
+++ b/lua/pending/views.lua
@@ -19,8 +19,6 @@ local parse = require('pending.parse')
 ---@field show_category? boolean
 ---@field priority? integer
 ---@field recur? string
----@field forge_ref? pending.ForgeRef
----@field forge_cache? pending.ForgeCache
 ---@field forge_spans? pending.ForgeLineMeta[]
 
 ---@class pending.views
@@ -219,8 +217,6 @@ function M.category_view(tasks)
         priority = task.priority,
         overdue = task.status ~= 'done' and task.due ~= nil and parse.is_overdue(task.due) or nil,
         recur = task.recur,
-        forge_ref = task._extra and task._extra._forge_ref or nil,
-        forge_cache = task._extra and task._extra._forge_cache or nil,
         forge_spans = compute_forge_spans(task, prefix_len),
       })
     end