diff --git a/.github/pull_request_template.md b/.github/pull_request_template.md
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+<!-- Please give a brief explanation of the purpose of this pull request. -->
+
+<!-- Does this PR resolve any issue?  If so, please reference it using automatic-closing keywords like "Fixes #123." -->
+
+<!-- As changes to the file `config.yaml` are particularly sensitive because they change GH permissions throughout the project, the following 
+rules apply to PRs affecting this file without exception:
+- [ ] PRs must be approved by 2 members of the OQS TSC
+- [ ] Permissions must not violate permissions documented in GOVERNANCE.md files for sub projects where such files exist
+
+The following goals apply to changes to the file `config.yaml` with exceptions possible, as long as the rationale for the excption is documented by comments in the file:
+- [ ] all sub projects should be treated identically wrt roles & responsibilities as per the detailed list below
+- [ ] teams/team designations are to be used wherever possible; using personal GH handles should only be used in team definitions
+- [ ] Admin changes to the file must be documented by comments as to the rationale of the change
+
+All the following conditions hold
+-    sub project maintainers have admin rights on the sub projects
+-    OQS and sub project release managers have maintainer rights on the sub projects but can themselves set/reset branch protection rules limiting write access to sensitive branches
+-    sub project committers have write rights on all branches of the sub projects but can request branch protection rules limiting this
+-    sub project contributors have write rights on all branches except main on those sub projects
+-    OQS and sub project triage actors have triage rights on all branches of the sub projects
+-    OQS maintainers and LF admins have admin rights on the organization (e.g., org-wide secret management) as well as maintenance rights on the team configurations
+
+-->