diff --git a/vcs/check_test.go b/vcs/check_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c64e954
--- /dev/null
+++ b/vcs/check_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+//go:build phase2
+
+package vcs_test
+
+import (
+	"gitea.weiker.me/rodin/review-bot/gitea"
+	"gitea.weiker.me/rodin/review-bot/vcs"
+)
+
+// Compile-time assertion: documents the gap between gitea.Client and vcs.Client.
+// Guarded by the "phase2" build tag — enable once the Gitea adapter bridges these gaps:
+//
+//  1. PostReview signature mismatch:
+//     gitea.Client:  PostReview(ctx, owner, repo, number, event, body string, comments []gitea.ReviewComment)
+//     vcs.Reviewer:  PostReview(ctx, owner, repo, number, req vcs.ReviewRequest)
+//
+//  2. GetFileContent signature mismatch:
+//     gitea.Client:  GetFileContent(ctx, owner, repo, filepath string)  [no ref; uses default branch]
+//     vcs.FileReader: GetFileContent(ctx, owner, repo, path, ref string)
+//     (gitea.Client has GetFileContentRef for the ref variant)
+//
+//  3. ReviewComment type mismatch:
+//     gitea.ReviewComment uses NewPosition int64 (Gitea line-number convention)
+//     vcs.ReviewComment uses Position int (GitHub diff-position convention)
+//
+// The Gitea adapter (Phase 2) will wrap gitea.Client to bridge these gaps.
+var _ vcs.Client = (*gitea.Client)(nil)
diff --git a/vcs/interfaces.go b/vcs/interfaces.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ecada13
--- /dev/null
+++ b/vcs/interfaces.go
@@ -0,0 +1,40 @@
+// Package vcs defines the shared VCS client interface and supporting types.
+// Platform adapters (gitea, github) implement these interfaces so the core
+// review logic can work with any VCS platform without platform-specific code.
+package vcs
+
+import "context"
+
+// PRReader can fetch pull request metadata, diffs, and changed files.
+type PRReader interface {
+	GetPullRequest(ctx context.Context, owner, repo string, number int) (*PullRequest, error)
+	GetPullRequestDiff(ctx context.Context, owner, repo string, number int) (string, error)
+	GetPullRequestFiles(ctx context.Context, owner, repo string, number int) ([]ChangedFile, error)
+}
+
+// FileReader can fetch file contents and list directory entries.
+type FileReader interface {
+	GetFileContent(ctx context.Context, owner, repo, path, ref string) (string, error)
+	ListContents(ctx context.Context, owner, repo, path string) ([]ContentEntry, error)
+}
+
+// Reviewer can post, list, and delete pull request reviews.
+type Reviewer interface {
+	PostReview(ctx context.Context, owner, repo string, number int, req ReviewRequest) (*Review, error)
+	ListReviews(ctx context.Context, owner, repo string, number int) ([]Review, error)
+	DeleteReview(ctx context.Context, owner, repo string, number int, reviewID int64) error
+}
+
+// Identity can report who the authenticated user is.
+type Identity interface {
+	GetAuthenticatedUser(ctx context.Context) (string, error)
+}
+
+// Client is the full VCS interface: PR reads, file reads, review management, and identity.
+// Platform adapters (gitea, github) implement this interface.
+type Client interface {
+	PRReader
+	FileReader
+	Reviewer
+	Identity
+}
diff --git a/vcs/types.go b/vcs/types.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6dfd932
--- /dev/null
+++ b/vcs/types.go
@@ -0,0 +1,82 @@
+package vcs
+
+// ReviewEvent is the event type for a pull request review action.
+// Adapters must translate these action constants to/from platform-native values.
+// For example, Gitea uses "APPROVED" as both action and state, while GitHub
+// uses "APPROVE" for the action and returns "approved" as the state.
+type ReviewEvent string
+
+const (
+	// ReviewEventApprove approves the pull request.
+	ReviewEventApprove ReviewEvent = "APPROVE"
+	// ReviewEventRequestChanges requests changes to the pull request.
+	ReviewEventRequestChanges ReviewEvent = "REQUEST_CHANGES"
+	// ReviewEventComment posts a review comment without approval or rejection.
+	ReviewEventComment ReviewEvent = "COMMENT"
+)
+
+// HeadRef identifies the source branch and latest commit of a pull request.
+type HeadRef struct {
+	SHA string `json:"sha"`
+	Ref string `json:"ref"`
+}
+
+// UserInfo identifies a user by login name.
+type UserInfo struct {
+	Login string `json:"login"`
+}
+
+// PullRequest holds relevant PR metadata.
+type PullRequest struct {
+	Title string  `json:"title"`
+	Body  string  `json:"body"`
+	Head  HeadRef `json:"head"`
+}
+
+// ChangedFile represents a file modified in a PR.
+type ChangedFile struct {
+	Filename string `json:"filename"`
+	Status   string `json:"status"`
+}
+
+// ContentEntry represents a file or directory entry from the contents API.
+type ContentEntry struct {
+	Name string `json:"name"`
+	Path string `json:"path"`
+	Type string `json:"type"` // "file" or "dir"
+}
+
+// Review represents a pull request review.
+type Review struct {
+	ID       int64    `json:"id"`
+	Body     string   `json:"body"`
+	User     UserInfo `json:"user"`
+	State    string   `json:"state"`
+	Stale    bool     `json:"stale"`
+	CommitID string   `json:"commit_id"`
+}
+
+// ReviewComment represents an inline comment in a review.
+// All adapters use GitHub diff-position convention:
+//   - Position is a 1-indexed offset from the @@ hunk line in the unified diff.
+//   - CommitID identifies the commit the comment is anchored to.
+//     It is optional; omit (empty string) for review-level comments that are
+//     not attached to a specific commit.
+//
+// Adapters are responsible for translating to/from platform-native formats
+// (e.g. Gitea uses line numbers; GitHub uses diff positions natively).
+type ReviewComment struct {
+	Path     string `json:"path"`
+	Position int    `json:"position"` // diff-position: 1-indexed offset from @@ hunk line
+	CommitID string `json:"commit_id"`
+	Body     string `json:"body"`
+}
+
+// ReviewRequest is the payload for posting a review.
+type ReviewRequest struct {
+	// Body is the top-level review comment.
+	Body string `json:"body"`
+	// Event is the review action (approve, request changes, or comment).
+	Event    ReviewEvent     `json:"event"`
+	Comments []ReviewComment `json:"comments,omitempty"`
+}