GitHub · Pull requests · Reviews · Checked October 30, 2026

GitHub: "At least 1 approving review is required by reviewers with write access"

A branch protection rule or a ruleset can require approving reviews. Then a pull request into that branch can only be merged once it is approved by the required number of reviewers with write permissions (GitHub: About protected branches, checked October 30, 2026). Until then the merge API answers 405 with the sentence above, as the tests of Renovate record (renovatebot/renovate), and in GraphQL the pull request's reviewDecision is REVIEW_REQUIRED, "A review is required before the pull request can be merged" (GitHub: GraphQL pull requests).

PUT  /repos/OWNER/REPO/pulls/NUMBER/merge         → 405 "At least 1 approving review is required by reviewers with write access."
POST /graphql   pullRequest(number: N) { reviewDecision }   → REVIEW_REQUIRED

Why the approvals are not enough

Too few approvals: in a branch protection rule, Required number of approvals before merging can be 0 to 6 (required_approving_review_count in the REST API); in a ruleset, the pull request rule takes 0 to 10 (GitHub: REST API endpoints for protected branches, REST API endpoints for rules). In a ruleset, a pull request that Copilot opens without a person it is attributed to needs one more approval than the number set when at least one is required, unless that setting is cleared (GitHub: Available rules for rulesets; see pull requests from Copilot).
Approvals that do not count: only approvals from people with write or admin permissions count. In the reviewers sidebar, the approvals that count are in the top section, and approvals that do not affect the merge are in a collapsible section; approvals by Copilot sit in the top section but do not count (GitHub: Approving a pull request with required reviews; see an approval that does not count and a Copilot review).
Your own pull request: authors cannot approve their own pull requests, so the approvals have to come from someone else.
Approvals dismissed as stale: with required reviews and stale review dismissal both on, a push that changes the code dismisses the approval, and the pull request must be approved again (see approval of the most recent push).
A request for changes: when a reviewer with admin, owner or write access requests changes, the pull request cannot be merged until the same reviewer approves it, or someone with write permissions dismisses that review (see changes requested).
Another pull request on the same commit: even with all the approvals, a pull request cannot be merged while other open pull requests have a head branch at the same commit with pending or rejected reviews; someone with write permissions must approve or dismiss those reviews first (GitHub: About protected branches).
The right reviewer: approvals can also be required from a code owner of the changed files or from a team (see a code owner's review and a team's approval).

Why IntelliJ IDEA can show it while the approvals are there

The GitHub pull requests built into IntelliJ IDEA show the line "At least {0} approving review is required by reviewers with write access" in a pull request's status. In the source (checked October 30, 2026), {0} is the Required number of approvals of the target branch's branch protection rule, read from GraphQL refUpdateRule.requiredApprovingReviewCount, and the line shows whenever GitHub calls the merge blocked, you can push to the target branch, and IntelliJ IDEA does not put the block down to required checks. With two or more required it reads, for example, "At least 2 approving review is required by reviewers with write access" (YouTrack IJPL-79800). It does not look at the approvals the pull request already has, so it stays when the approvals are there and another rule holds the merge, such as unresolved conversations (see a merge waiting for resolved conversations) (GHPRMergeabilityStateBuilder.kt, CodeReviewDetailsStatusComponentFactory.kt, CollaborationToolsBundle.properties). refUpdateRule is the branch protection rules that are viewable by non-admins; the rules of rulesets are a separate list, rules (GitHub: GraphQL Git).

Under it, IntelliJ IDEA lists the reviewers: "Waiting for review from {0}" for someone asked who has not reviewed yet, "Re-requested review from {0}" for someone asked again after a review, "{0} approved review", "{0} is waiting for updates" (changes requested) and "{0} left comments". The author's own reviews are left out. When no one has been asked and no one but the author has reviewed, the list is empty and the line reads "Missing reviewer"; the approvals the rules want have to come from someone, so ask a reviewer with write access (GHReviewersUtils.kt, GHPRReviewerStateUIUtil.kt).

Who can merge anyway

Owners and admins: repository owners and administrators can merge a pull request that has no approving review. With branch protection, Do not allow bypassing the above settings applies the rule to them too (GitHub: Approving a pull request with required reviews, About protected branches).
The bypass list of a ruleset: actors on it can merge without the approvals (see who can still push).

What to do

Find how many are needed: GET /repos/OWNER/REPO/rules/branches/BRANCH returns every active rule for the branch, with required_approving_review_count in the rule pull_request; for a branch protection rule it is under required_pull_request_reviews in GET /repos/OWNER/REPO/branches/BRANCH/protection.
Ask someone with write access: request a review from a person or team with write permissions; reviewers find the pull requests waiting for them with the search qualifier review-requested:USERNAME (GitHub: Approving a pull request with required reviews).
After a push, ask again: if stale approvals are dismissed, the approvals given before the push no longer count.
Look at the other rules: if the approvals are there and the merge is still blocked, another rule of the branch holds it: required checks, resolved conversations, signed commits or approval of the most recent push (see merge refused (405, 409)).

GitHub pull requests in IntelliJ IDEA

Pull Request Inbox for GitHub, a plugin by Lesstep for JetBrains IDEs 2024.1 or later, lists everyone asked to review and where each one's review stands (approved, changes requested, asked to review, on an earlier commit). Its merge checks count the approvals, name who requested changes, and while GitHub says a review is still required (reviewDecision is REVIEW_REQUIRED), say how many approving reviews the rules of the target branch ask for (its rulesets and its branch protection) and that they are not met yet: more approvals, one after the last push, or one from a code owner; read with GraphQL, so not without a token. When GitHub calls the merge blocked, they also show the other rules it may be waiting on, such as unresolved conversations, unsigned commits and approval of the most recent push. The review inbox, diffs and conversations are free; approving, commenting and merging are Pro (US$1.50 a month, with a 30-day trial).

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