diff --git a/lang/el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.c b/lang/el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.c
index d00b7d7..12a2075 100644
--- a/lang/el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.c
+++ b/lang/el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.c
@@ -5880,6 +5880,10 @@ el_val_t getpid_now(void) {
  * Returns 0 always (the only non-return path is the exit() branch).
  */
 el_val_t el_mem_check(void) {
+#ifdef _WIN32
+    /* getrusage is POSIX-only — memory guard disabled on Windows. */
+    return 0;
+#else
     /* Read limit from env; default 512 MB. */
     long limit_mb = 512;
     const char *env_val = getenv("ELC_MAX_MEM_MB");
@@ -5905,6 +5909,7 @@ el_val_t el_mem_check(void) {
         exit(1);
     }
     return 0;
+#endif
 }
 
 /* ── args() — command-line argument access ──────────────────────────────────