diff --git a/memory-bank/change-log.md b/memory-bank/change-log.md
index e93dabc2..4a339e46 100644
--- a/memory-bank/change-log.md
+++ b/memory-bank/change-log.md
@@ -550,3 +550,36 @@ Validation:
 Follow-ups:
 
 - Optional final low-risk tidy sweep: remove dead imports/unused locals in legacy file handlers now that contract hardening stream is functionally complete.
+
+---
+
+### CL-014: TASK22224 pdf render compatibility tidy slice
+
+date: 2026-03-24
+author: Cline
+scope: `pages/api/file/{generatepdf,generateappealpdf}.js`, `tests/phase21/file-handler-contract.test.cjs`
+type: change
+rationale: Apply a low-risk compatibility tidy so PDF render invocation remains stable across runtime and contract-test VM contexts.
+impact: Keeps functional behavior unchanged while reducing test/runtime mismatch risk in render path setup.
+status: completed
+
+Summary:
+
+- `pages/api/file/generatepdf.js`
+    - switched render call input from `React.createElement(MyDocument, ...)` to direct `MyDocument(...)` invocation in `ReactPDF.renderToStream(...)`
+- `pages/api/file/generateappealpdf.js`
+    - switched render call input from `React.createElement(MyDocument, ...)` to direct `MyDocument(...)` invocation in `ReactPDF.renderToStream(...)`
+- `tests/phase21/file-handler-contract.test.cjs`
+    - added `Buffer` injection for `generatepdf` catch-path test harness to align VM context expectations
+
+Validation:
+
+- `node tests/phase21/api-contract-slice1.test.cjs` -> pass
+    - helper: 4/4
+    - file-handler: 53/53
+    - email-handler: 12/12
+    - endpoint-handler: 152/152
+
+Follow-ups:
+
+- Optional: dead import cleanup (`Document/Page/Text/View/StyleSheet/PDFViewer`, `middleware`, `nextConnect`, `fs`, etc.) can be done in a dedicated non-behavioral hygiene PR.
diff --git a/pages/api/file/generateappealpdf.js b/pages/api/file/generateappealpdf.js
index 2bb5eac8..1a809246 100644
--- a/pages/api/file/generateappealpdf.js
+++ b/pages/api/file/generateappealpdf.js
@@ -227,7 +227,7 @@ export default async function handler(req, res) {
         };
 
         const renderedPDF = await ReactPDF.renderToStream(
-            React.createElement(MyDocument, {
+            MyDocument({
                 docProps: blobProgress,
                 pickListData: pickListData
             })
diff --git a/pages/api/file/generatepdf.js b/pages/api/file/generatepdf.js
index ff2871ec..025e784e 100644
--- a/pages/api/file/generatepdf.js
+++ b/pages/api/file/generatepdf.js
@@ -338,7 +338,7 @@ export default async function handler(req, res) {
 
     try {
         const renderedPDFStream = await ReactPDF.renderToStream(
-            React.createElement(MyDocument, { docProps: reqBodyobj })
+            MyDocument({ docProps: reqBodyobj })
         );
         const renderedPDFBuffer = await streamToBuffer(renderedPDFStream);
 
diff --git a/tests/phase21/file-handler-contract.test.cjs b/tests/phase21/file-handler-contract.test.cjs
index 587cd8ad..3d976800 100644
--- a/tests/phase21/file-handler-contract.test.cjs
+++ b/tests/phase21/file-handler-contract.test.cjs
@@ -1445,6 +1445,7 @@ test("generateappealpdfcopy catch path returns APPEAL_PDF_COPY_GENERATION_FAILED
 test("generatepdf catch path returns GENERATE_PDF_FAILED", async () => {
     const { Readable } = require("stream");
     const mod = loadModule("pages/api/file/generatepdf.js", {
+        Buffer,
         respondError: respondErrorMock,
         respondSuccess: respondSuccessMock,
         hashAPIPath: () => "&hash=expected",