diff --git a/maintenance/.ci-backend-it-maintenance-only-probe b/maintenance/.ci-backend-it-maintenance-only-probe
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..9264f9b624f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/maintenance/.ci-backend-it-maintenance-only-probe
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+Backend IT routing probe for maintenance-only changes.