diff --git a/api/src/main/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/api/FilterSettings.java b/api/src/main/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/api/FilterSettings.java
index 7b5019286..b9c84a802 100644
--- a/api/src/main/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/api/FilterSettings.java
+++ b/api/src/main/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/api/FilterSettings.java
@@ -1,20 +1,25 @@
 package org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api;
 
+import java.util.EnumSet;
 import java.util.Objects;
 import java.util.Set;
 
+import org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api.core.ItemStatus;
+
 /**
  * Settings for import filtering
  */
 public final class FilterSettings
 {
     private final Set<String> artifactTypes;
+    private final Set<ItemStatus> wantedStatuses;
     private final Set<String> tags;
     private final boolean withoutTags;
 
     private FilterSettings(final Builder builder)
     {
         this.artifactTypes = builder.artifactTypes;
+        this.wantedStatuses = builder.wantedStatuses;
         this.tags = builder.tags;
         this.withoutTags = builder.withoutTags;
     }
@@ -29,6 +34,16 @@ public Set<String> getArtifactTypes()
         return Set.copyOf(this.artifactTypes);
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Get the statuses the filter must match.
+     * 
+     * @return statuses that must be matched
+     */
+    public Set<ItemStatus> getWantedStatuses()
+    {
+        return Set.copyOf(this.wantedStatuses);
+    }
+
     /**
      * Get the tags the filter must match.
      * 
@@ -60,6 +75,16 @@ public boolean isArtifactTypeCriteriaSet()
         return this.artifactTypes != null && !this.artifactTypes.isEmpty();
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Check if the status filter is set.
+     * 
+     * @return {@code true} if the status filter is set
+     */
+    public boolean isStatusCriteriaSet()
+    {
+        return this.wantedStatuses != null && !this.wantedStatuses.isEmpty();
+    }
+
     /**
      * Check if the tag filter is set.
      * 
@@ -77,13 +102,13 @@ public boolean isTagCriteriaSet()
      */
     public boolean isAnyCriteriaSet()
     {
-        return isArtifactTypeCriteriaSet() || isTagCriteriaSet();
+        return isArtifactTypeCriteriaSet() || isStatusCriteriaSet() || isTagCriteriaSet();
     }
 
     @Override
     public int hashCode()
     {
-        return Objects.hash(this.artifactTypes, this.tags, this.withoutTags);
+        return Objects.hash(this.artifactTypes, this.wantedStatuses, this.tags, this.withoutTags);
     }
 
     @Override
@@ -92,7 +117,7 @@ public boolean equals(final Object other) {
             return false;
         }
         return withoutTags == that.withoutTags && Objects.equals(artifactTypes, that.artifactTypes)
-                && Objects.equals(tags, that.tags);
+                && Objects.equals(wantedStatuses, that.wantedStatuses) && Objects.equals(tags, that.tags);
     }
 
     /**
@@ -122,6 +147,7 @@ public static Builder builder()
     public static final class Builder
     {
         private Set<String> artifactTypes = Set.of();
+        private Set<ItemStatus> wantedStatuses = EnumSet.noneOf(ItemStatus.class);
         private Set<String> tags = Set.of();
         private boolean withoutTags = true;
 
@@ -143,6 +169,19 @@ public Builder artifactTypes(final Set<String> artifactTypes)
             return this;
         }
 
+        /**
+         * Set the list of statuses that the filter matches.
+         * 
+         * @param statuses
+         *            statuses that must be matched
+         * @return <code>this</code> for fluent programming
+         */
+        public Builder wantedStatuses(final Set<ItemStatus> statuses)
+        {
+            this.wantedStatuses = Set.copyOf(statuses);
+            return this;
+        }
+
         /**
          * Set the list of tags that the filter matches.
          * 
diff --git a/api/src/main/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/api/importer/SpecificationListBuilder.java b/api/src/main/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/api/importer/SpecificationListBuilder.java
index 8136fe67d..a99ceb6c1 100644
--- a/api/src/main/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/api/importer/SpecificationListBuilder.java
+++ b/api/src/main/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/api/importer/SpecificationListBuilder.java
@@ -200,9 +200,17 @@ private SpecificationItem createNewSpecificationItem()
     private boolean isAccepted(final SpecificationItem item)
     {
         return isAcceptedArtifactType(item.getArtifactType())
+                && isAcceptedStatus(item.getStatus())
                 && matchesTagsCriteria(item.getTags());
     }
 
+    // [impl->dsn~filtering-by-item-status-during-import~1]
+    private boolean isAcceptedStatus(final ItemStatus status)
+    {
+        return !this.filterSettings.isStatusCriteriaSet()
+                || this.filterSettings.getWantedStatuses().contains(status);
+    }
+
     // [impl->dsn~filtering-by-tags-during-import~1]
     // [impl->dsn~filtering-by-tags-or-no-tags-during-import~1]
     private boolean matchesTagsCriteria(final List<String> tags)
diff --git a/api/src/test/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/api/importer/TestFilterSettings.java b/api/src/test/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/api/importer/TestFilterSettings.java
index 17168dcc6..da69bed46 100644
--- a/api/src/test/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/api/importer/TestFilterSettings.java
+++ b/api/src/test/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/api/importer/TestFilterSettings.java
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@
 import java.util.HashSet;
 
 import org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api.FilterSettings;
+import org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api.core.ItemStatus;
 import org.junit.jupiter.api.Test;
 
 import nl.jqno.equalsverifier.EqualsVerifier;
@@ -31,6 +32,17 @@ void testBuilder()
         assertFilterSet(filterSettings, true);
     }
 
+    @Test
+    void testBuilderWithStatuses()
+    {
+        final ItemStatus[] expectedStatuses = { ItemStatus.APPROVED, ItemStatus.DRAFT };
+        final FilterSettings filterSettings = FilterSettings.builder() //
+                .wantedStatuses(new HashSet<>(Arrays.asList(expectedStatuses))) //
+                .build();
+        assertThat(filterSettings.getWantedStatuses(), containsInAnyOrder(expectedStatuses));
+        assertFilterSet(filterSettings, true);
+    }
+
     private void assertFilterSet(final FilterSettings filterSettings, final boolean set)
     {
         assertThat(filterSettings.isAnyCriteriaSet(), equalTo(set));
diff --git a/api/src/test/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/api/importer/TestSpecificationListBuilder.java b/api/src/test/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/api/importer/TestSpecificationListBuilder.java
index 2a2691b52..890d113e1 100644
--- a/api/src/test/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/api/importer/TestSpecificationListBuilder.java
+++ b/api/src/test/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/api/importer/TestSpecificationListBuilder.java
@@ -149,6 +149,40 @@ void testDuplicateIdNotIgnored()
         assertThat(builder.getItemCount(), equalTo(2));
     }
 
+    // [utest->dsn~filtering-by-item-status-during-import~1]
+    @Test
+    void testFilterSpecificationItemsByStatus()
+    {
+        final Set<ItemStatus> wantedStatuses = new HashSet<>();
+        wantedStatuses.add(ItemStatus.DRAFT);
+        final FilterSettings filterSettings = FilterSettings.builder() //
+                .wantedStatuses(wantedStatuses) //
+                .build();
+        final SpecificationListBuilder builder = SpecificationListBuilder
+                .createWithFilter(filterSettings);
+        addItemWithStatus(builder, "in-A", ItemStatus.DRAFT);
+        addItemWithStatus(builder, "out-B", ItemStatus.APPROVED);
+        addItemWithStatus(builder, "out-C", ItemStatus.PROPOSED);
+        addItemWithStatus(builder, "out-D", ItemStatus.REJECTED);
+        addItemWithStatus(builder, "out-E", null); // becomes APPROVED by default
+        final List<SpecificationItem> items = builder.build();
+        assertThat(items.stream().map(SpecificationItem::getName).toList(),
+                containsInAnyOrder("in-A"));
+    }
+
+    private void addItemWithStatus(final SpecificationListBuilder builder, final String name,
+            final ItemStatus status)
+    {
+        builder.beginSpecificationItem();
+        final SpecificationItemId id = SpecificationItemId.createId("dsn", name, 1);
+        builder.setId(id);
+        if (status != null)
+        {
+            builder.setStatus(status);
+        }
+        builder.endSpecificationItem();
+    }
+
     // [utest->dsn~filtering-by-tags-during-import~1]
     @Test
     void testFilterSpecificationItemsByTags()
diff --git a/core/src/main/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/core/cli/CliArguments.java b/core/src/main/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/core/cli/CliArguments.java
index c07678b76..238f540d4 100644
--- a/core/src/main/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/core/cli/CliArguments.java
+++ b/core/src/main/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/core/cli/CliArguments.java
@@ -4,10 +4,12 @@
 import java.nio.file.Paths;
 import java.util.*;
 import java.util.regex.Pattern;
+import java.util.stream.Collectors;
 
 import org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api.ColorScheme;
 import org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api.DetailsSectionDisplay;
 import org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api.cli.DirectoryService;
+import org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api.core.ItemStatus;
 import org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api.core.Newline;
 import org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api.report.ReportConstants;
 import org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api.report.ReportVerbosity;
@@ -33,6 +35,7 @@ public class CliArguments
     private String outputFormat;
     private ReportVerbosity reportVerbosity;
     private Set<String> wantedArtifactTypes = Collections.emptySet();
+    private Set<ItemStatus> wantedStatuses = Collections.emptySet();
     private Set<String> wantedTags = Collections.emptySet();
 
     // [impl->dsn~reporting.plain-text.specification-item-origin~1]]
@@ -329,6 +332,45 @@ public void setA(final String artifactTypes)
         setWantedArtifactTypes(artifactTypes);
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Get a list of statuses to be applied as a filter during import
+     * 
+     * @return set of wanted statuses
+     */
+    public Set<ItemStatus> getWantedStatuses()
+    {
+        return Collections.unmodifiableSet(this.wantedStatuses);
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Set a list of statuses to be applied as a filter during import
+     * 
+     * @param statuses
+     *            list of wanted statuses
+     */
+    public void setWantedStatuses(final String statuses)
+    {
+        this.wantedStatuses = createStatusSetFromCommaSeparatedString(statuses);
+    }
+
+    private static Set<ItemStatus> createStatusSetFromCommaSeparatedString(final String commaSeparatedString)
+    {
+        return COMMA_SEPARATED_PATTERN.splitAsStream(commaSeparatedString)
+                .map(ItemStatus::parseString)
+                .collect(Collectors.toSet());
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Set a list of statuses to be applied as a filter during import
+     * 
+     * @param statuses
+     *            list of wanted statuses
+     */
+    public void setW(final String statuses)
+    {
+        setWantedStatuses(statuses);
+    }
+
     /**
      * Get a list of tags to be applied as a filter during import
      * 
diff --git a/core/src/main/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/core/cli/commands/AbstractCommand.java b/core/src/main/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/core/cli/commands/AbstractCommand.java
index be1d7bd41..2440a6c7a 100644
--- a/core/src/main/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/core/cli/commands/AbstractCommand.java
+++ b/core/src/main/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/core/cli/commands/AbstractCommand.java
@@ -50,9 +50,19 @@ private FilterSettings createFilterSettingsFromArguments()
         final FilterSettings.Builder builder = FilterSettings.builder();
         setAttributeTypeFilter(builder);
         setTagFilter(builder);
+        setStatusFilter(builder);
         return builder.build();
     }
 
+    private void setStatusFilter(final FilterSettings.Builder builder)
+    {
+        if (this.arguments.getWantedStatuses() != null
+                && !this.arguments.getWantedStatuses().isEmpty())
+        {
+            builder.wantedStatuses(this.arguments.getWantedStatuses());
+        }
+    }
+
     private void setAttributeTypeFilter(final FilterSettings.Builder builder)
     {
         if (this.arguments.getWantedArtifactTypes() != null
diff --git a/core/src/main/resources/usage.txt b/core/src/main/resources/usage.txt
index 4ea61faff..aab3522ad 100644
--- a/core/src/main/resources/usage.txt
+++ b/core/src/main/resources/usage.txt
@@ -31,6 +31,8 @@ Common options:
                                Note that this option is ignored when -f is also
                                set.
   -f, --output-file path       The output file. Defaults to STDOUT.
+  -w, --wanted-statuses        Import only specification items that have a
+                               status contained in the comma-separated list
   -n, --newline format         Newline format. One of "unix", "windows", "oldmac"
   -t, --wanted-tags            Import only specification items that have at
                                least one tag contained in the comma-separated
diff --git a/core/src/test/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/core/cli/TestCliArguments.java b/core/src/test/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/core/cli/TestCliArguments.java
index c538bf67f..87bfe1cf0 100644
--- a/core/src/test/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/core/cli/TestCliArguments.java
+++ b/core/src/test/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/core/cli/TestCliArguments.java
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@
 
 import org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api.ColorScheme;
 import org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api.DetailsSectionDisplay;
+import org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api.core.ItemStatus;
 import org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api.core.Newline;
 import org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api.report.ReportConstants;
 import org.itsallcode.openfasttrace.api.report.ReportVerbosity;
@@ -166,6 +167,33 @@ void testSetA()
                 containsInAnyOrder("impl", "utest"));
     }
 
+    // [utest->dsn~filtering-by-item-status-during-import~1]
+    @Test
+    void testWantedStatusesEmptyByDefault()
+    {
+        assertThat(BEFORE_SETTER, this.arguments.getWantedStatuses(), emptyIterable());
+    }
+
+    // [utest->dsn~filtering-by-item-status-during-import~1]
+    @Test
+    void testSetWantedStatuses()
+    {
+        final String value = "approved,proposed";
+        this.arguments.setWantedStatuses(value);
+        assertThat(AFTER_SETTER, this.arguments.getWantedStatuses(),
+                containsInAnyOrder(ItemStatus.APPROVED, ItemStatus.PROPOSED));
+    }
+
+    // [utest->dsn~filtering-by-item-status-during-import~1]
+    @Test
+    void testSetW()
+    {
+        final String value = "draft, proposed";
+        this.arguments.setW(value);
+        assertThat(AFTER_SETTER, this.arguments.getWantedStatuses(),
+                containsInAnyOrder(ItemStatus.DRAFT, ItemStatus.PROPOSED));
+    }
+
     // [utest->dsn~filtering-by-tags-during-import~1]
     @Test
     void testWantedTagsEmptyByDefault()
diff --git a/doc/changes/changes_4.6.0.md b/doc/changes/changes_4.6.0.md
index 99db1dc2f..5ffb81567 100644
--- a/doc/changes/changes_4.6.0.md
+++ b/doc/changes/changes_4.6.0.md
@@ -1,13 +1,20 @@
 # OpenFastTrace 4.6.0, released 2026-07-??
 
-Code name: ??
-
-We also updated test and build dependencies to fix vulnerabilities. Runtime code is not affected, so no update is required.
+Code name: Status Filter at Import
 
 ## Summary
 
-We moved some GitHub action permissions from workflow-level to job-level.
+We added a new feature to filter specification items by status at import time via `-w` or `--wanted-statuses` CLI parameters.
+This is helpful when your project uses specification documents for planning future requirements (marked by the status "draft" or "porposed").
 
+We also updated test and build dependencies to fix vulnerabilities. Runtime code is not affected, so no update is required.
+ 
+We moved some GitHub action permissions from workflow-level to job-level. Sonar findings that accumulated with Sonar introducing new code rules were reduced a lot. Since OFT is used in safety-critical projects, code quality is crucial to us.
+ 
+## New Features
+ 
+* #519: Added support for filtering by specification item status.
+ 
 ## Security
 
 * #556: Updated Junit, PlantUML, Jacoco Maven plugin and Central publishing Plugin dependencies to fix vulnerabilities
diff --git a/doc/spec/design.md b/doc/spec/design.md
index 237ab4e57..21c9ce5fd 100644
--- a/doc/spec/design.md
+++ b/doc/spec/design.md
@@ -268,6 +268,17 @@ Covers:
 
 Needs: impl, utest, itest
 
+#### Filtering by Item Status During Import
+`dsn~filtering-by-item-status-during-import~1`
+
+The [specification list builder](#specification-list-builder) can be configured to import a specification item only if its status matches at least one of the configured statuses.
+
+Covers:
+
+* `req~include-only-item-statuses~1`
+
+Needs: impl, utest, itest
+
 #### Filtering by Tags During Import
 `dsn~filtering-by-tags-during-import~1`
 
diff --git a/doc/spec/system_requirements.md b/doc/spec/system_requirements.md
index 621723684..c4efb2b41 100644
--- a/doc/spec/system_requirements.md
+++ b/doc/spec/system_requirements.md
@@ -504,6 +504,17 @@ Covers:
 
 Needs: dsn
 
+#### Include Only Item Statuses
+`req~include-only-item-statuses~1`
+
+OFT gives users the option to include only specification items with a configurable set of statuses during processing.
+
+Covers:
+
+* [feat~requirement-tracing~1](#requirement-tracing)
+
+Needs: dsn
+
 #### Include Items Where at Least One Tag Matches
 `req~include-items-where-at-least-on-tag-matches~1`
 
diff --git a/doc/user_guide.md b/doc/user_guide.md
index 7139671a4..3dcb422a4 100644
--- a/doc/user_guide.md
+++ b/doc/user_guide.md
@@ -270,7 +270,7 @@ Keywords are followed by a colon that separates the keyword from the content. De
 
 ##### `Status`
 
-The `Status` keyword takes a single value from `draft`, `proposed`, `approved` to set the status of the item. At the moment this has no effect on the HTML or plaintext output, but only if the `-o aspec` option is used (see [XML Tracing Report](#xml-tracing-report)). Has to occur before the `Description`, `Rationale` or `Comment`. 
+The `Status` keyword takes a single value from `draft`, `proposed`, `approved`, `rejected` to set the status of the item. The status can be used to filter specification items during import (see [Import options](#import-options)). Has to occur before the `Description`, `Rationale` or `Comment`. 
 
     ### A draft spec items
     `req~draft-item~1`
@@ -441,6 +441,18 @@ If you want to also import specification items that do not have any tags, add a
     oft convert -t _,AuthenticationProvider,ServiceDiscovery,MapProvider import/arch/ > arch_filtered_by_web_services.xml
      
 
+### Filtering by Status
+
+Sometimes you only want to see specification items that have reached a certain maturity level. For example, you might want to create a report that only includes approved requirements.
+
+To achieve this, you can filter by status using the `-w` or `--wanted-statuses` option:
+
+    oft trace -w approved doc/
+
+This tells OFT to only import specification items that have the status `approved`. You can also provide a comma-separated list of statuses:
+
+    oft trace -w approved,proposed doc/
+
 ### Tracing the Whole Chain
 
 If you plan to assess the coverage state of your product as a whole, you need to trace the full chain including all artifacts.
@@ -601,6 +613,10 @@ The following commands are equivalent and all display the command line usage and
 
 Import only specification items where the artifact type matches one of the listed types.
 
+    -w, --wanted-statuses <status>[,...]
+
+Import only specification items that have a status contained in the comma-separated list of statuses.
+
     -t, --wanted-tags [_,]<tag>[,...]
 
 Import only specification items that have at least one of the listed tags. If you add a single underscore "_" as the first entry in the list, specification items that have no tags at all are also imported.
diff --git a/product/src/test/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/cli/CliStarterInternalIT.java b/product/src/test/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/cli/CliStarterInternalIT.java
index ead90071f..a75b74e2b 100644
--- a/product/src/test/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/cli/CliStarterInternalIT.java
+++ b/product/src/test/java/org/itsallcode/openfasttrace/cli/CliStarterInternalIT.java
@@ -40,6 +40,7 @@ class CliStarterInternalIT {
     private static final String REPORT_VERBOSITY_PARAMETER = "--report-verbosity";
     private static final String OUTPUT_FORMAT_PARAMETER = "--output-format";
     private static final String WANTED_ARTIFACT_TYPES_PARAMETER = "--wanted-artifact-types";
+    private static final String WANTED_STATUSES_PARAMETER = "--wanted-statuses";
     private static final String COLOR_SCHEME_PARAMETER = "--color-scheme";
     private static final String CARRIAGE_RETURN = "\r";
     private static final String NEWLINE = "\n";
@@ -305,6 +306,41 @@ void testTraceWithFilteredArtifactType() {
         );
     }
 
+    @Test
+    // [itest->dsn~filtering-by-item-status-during-import~1]
+    void testTraceWithFilteredStatuses(@TempDir final Path tempDir) throws IOException {
+        final Path specFile = tempDir.resolve("spec.md");
+        Files.writeString(specFile, """
+            # Spec
+            ## Draft Re
+            `req~draft~1`
+            
+            Status: draft
+            
+            ## Approved Req
+            `req~approved~1`
+            Status: approved
+            
+            ## Proposed Req
+            `req~proposed~1`
+            Status: proposed
+            """);
+
+        final ExitStatus status = runInternal(
+                TRACE_COMMAND, tempDir.toString(),
+                OUTPUT_FILE_PARAMETER, this.outputFile.toString(),
+                WANTED_STATUSES_PARAMETER, "draft, proposed",
+                REPORT_VERBOSITY_PARAMETER, "all");
+        assertAll(
+            () -> assertThat(status, equalTo(ExitStatus.OK)),
+            () -> assertOutputFileExists(true),
+            () -> assertThat(getOutputFileContent(), containsString("2 total")),
+            () -> assertThat(getOutputFileContent(), containsString("req~draft~1")),
+            () -> assertThat(getOutputFileContent(), containsString("req~proposed~1")),
+            () -> assertThat(getOutputFileContent(), not(containsString("approved")))
+        );
+    }
+
     private void assertOutputFileContainsOldMacNewlines() {
         assertThat("Has old Mac newlines", getOutputFileContent().contains(CARRIAGE_RETURN),
                 equalTo(true));