<![CDATA[Madrasah governance operates within a complex regulatory environment in which national education standards intersect with ministerial regulations governing religious education. Although madrasahs have some institutional discretion, their autonomy remains constrained by administrative requirements, limited supervisory support, and overlapping accountability structures. This study aims to examine how regulatory arrangements, institutional constraints, and local governance practices shape madrasah autonomy and to develop a conceptual understanding of how institutional actors respond to competing policy demands. This study employed a systematic literature review guided by the PRISMA 2020 framework. The review examined 24 journal articles published between 2022 and 2026, comprising 18 Scopus-indexed articles and six articles published in SINTA 2 journals. Five interconnected themes emerged: dual regulatory architecture, bounded institutional autonomy, limited developmental supervision, dual accountability in foundation-managed madrasahs, and local adaptive strategies. The findings inform the concept of negotiated autonomy, whereby institutional actors respond through formal compliance, selective adaptation, and protective decoupling. Improving madrasah governance requires streamlined administrative reporting, stronger developmental supervision, targeted financial and managerial support, and clearer arrangements for regional government assistance. These measures may help transform procedural compliance into substantive institutional autonomy.]]>
