diff --git a/.gitea/workflows/release.yml b/.gitea/workflows/release.yml
index 998bddf..9197b24 100644
--- a/.gitea/workflows/release.yml
+++ b/.gitea/workflows/release.yml
@@ -19,9 +19,18 @@ jobs:
       - name: Setup PHP
         uses: shivammathur/setup-php@v2
         with:
-          php-version: '8.0'
+          php-version: '8.1'
           tools: composer
 
+      - name: Generate composer.lock if missing
+        run: |
+          if [ ! -f composer.lock ]; then
+            echo "No composer.lock present — resolving dependencies."
+            composer update --no-dev --no-install --no-interaction --prefer-dist
+          else
+            echo "Using committed composer.lock."
+          fi
+
       - name: Install Composer dependencies
         run: composer install --no-dev --prefer-dist --optimize-autoloader --no-interaction
 
diff --git a/CLAUDE.md b/CLAUDE.md
index e60ac1a..b2819c7 100644
--- a/CLAUDE.md
+++ b/CLAUDE.md
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@
 - **URL**: `https://phone.cloud-hosting.io/`
 - **Deployment**: rsync to Docker (remote server only, not local)
 - **SDK**: Twilio PHP SDK v8.7.0
-- **PHP**: 8.0+ required
+- **PHP**: 8.1+ required (AWS SDK v3.371+ requires PHP 8.1; production runs 8.5)
 - **Optional**: AWS SDK (`aws/aws-sdk-php`) for SNS SMS provider
 - **External SDK**: `wp-content/twilio-sdk/` (survives plugin updates)
 
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 375dae6..8078de3 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -41,7 +41,7 @@ This plugin **requires** the Twilio PHP SDK v8.7.0 to function. The plugin will
 
 ## Requirements
 
-- **PHP 8.0+** (required for Twilio SDK v8.7.0)
+- **PHP 8.1+** (required by AWS SDK for SNS provider; Twilio SDK works on 8.0+)
 - **WordPress 5.0+**
 - **Twilio Account** with active phone number
 - **curl** and **tar** (for SDK installation)
diff --git a/composer.json b/composer.json
index 5b006ba..2d7cdf8 100644
--- a/composer.json
+++ b/composer.json
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
     "description": "WordPress plugin for Twilio voice and SMS integration - REQUIRES Twilio SDK",
     "type": "wordpress-plugin",
     "require": {
-        "php": ">=8.0",
+        "php": ">=8.1",
         "twilio/sdk": "^8.7",
         "aws/aws-sdk-php": "^3.0"
     },
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@
     "config": {
         "optimize-autoloader": true,
         "platform": {
-            "php": "8.0"
+            "php": "8.1"
         }
     },
     "scripts": {
diff --git a/twilio-wp-plugin.php b/twilio-wp-plugin.php
index a410ebb..cb6e7fb 100644
--- a/twilio-wp-plugin.php
+++ b/twilio-wp-plugin.php
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@
  * Plugin URI: https://repo.anhonesthost.net/wp-plugins/twilio-wp-plugin
  * Description: WordPress plugin for Twilio integration with phone scheduling, call forwarding, queue management, and Eleven Labs TTS
  * Version: {auto_update_value_on_deploy}
+ * Requires PHP: 8.1
  * Author: Josh Knapp
  * License: GPL v2 or later
  * Text Domain: twilio-wp-plugin