diff --git a/lib/mv/application.ex b/lib/mv/application.ex
index 09eefce..ea0c78e 100644
--- a/lib/mv/application.ex
+++ b/lib/mv/application.ex
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@ defmodule Mv.Application do
       {DNSCluster, query: Application.get_env(:mv, :dns_cluster_query) || :ignore},
       {Phoenix.PubSub, name: Mv.PubSub},
       {AshAuthentication.Supervisor, otp_app: :my},
+      Mv.Helpers.SystemActor,
       # Start a worker by calling: Mv.Worker.start_link(arg)
       # {Mv.Worker, arg},
       # Start to serve requests, typically the last entry
diff --git a/lib/mv/helpers/system_actor.ex b/lib/mv/helpers/system_actor.ex
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..64f95f1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/mv/helpers/system_actor.ex
@@ -0,0 +1,282 @@
+defmodule Mv.Helpers.SystemActor do
+  @moduledoc """
+  Provides access to the system actor for systemic operations.
+
+  The system actor is a user with admin permissions that is used
+  for operations that must always run regardless of user permissions:
+  - Email synchronization
+  - Email uniqueness validation
+  - Cycle generation (if mandatory)
+  - Background jobs
+  - Seeds
+
+  ## Usage
+
+      # Get system actor for systemic operations
+      system_actor = Mv.Helpers.SystemActor.get_system_actor()
+      Ash.read(query, actor: system_actor)
+
+  ## Implementation
+
+  The system actor is cached in an Agent for performance. On first access,
+  it attempts to load a user with email "system@mila.local" and admin role.
+  If that user doesn't exist, it falls back to the admin user from seeds
+  (identified by ADMIN_EMAIL environment variable or "admin@localhost").
+
+  ## Caching
+
+  The system actor is cached in an Agent to avoid repeated database queries.
+  The cache is invalidated on application restart. For long-running applications,
+  consider implementing cache invalidation on role changes.
+
+  ## Security
+
+  The system actor should NEVER be used for user-initiated actions. It is
+  only for systemic operations that must bypass user permissions.
+  """
+
+  use Agent
+
+  require Ash.Query
+
+  @system_user_email "system@mila.local"
+
+  @doc """
+  Starts the SystemActor Agent.
+
+  This is called automatically by the application supervisor.
+  The agent starts with nil state and loads the system actor lazily on first access.
+  """
+  def start_link(_opts) do
+    # Start with nil - lazy initialization on first get_system_actor call
+    # This prevents database access during application startup (important for tests)
+    Agent.start_link(fn -> nil end, name: __MODULE__)
+  end
+
+  @doc """
+  Returns the system actor (user with admin role).
+
+  The system actor is cached in an Agent for performance. On first access,
+  it loads the system user from the database or falls back to the admin user.
+
+  ## Returns
+
+  - `%Mv.Accounts.User{}` - User with admin role loaded
+  - Raises if system actor cannot be found or loaded
+
+  ## Examples
+
+      iex> system_actor = Mv.Helpers.SystemActor.get_system_actor()
+      iex> system_actor.role.permission_set_name
+      "admin"
+
+  """
+  @spec get_system_actor() :: Mv.Accounts.User.t()
+  def get_system_actor do
+    # In test environment, always load directly to avoid Agent/Sandbox issues
+    if Mix.env() == :test do
+      load_system_actor()
+    else
+      try do
+        Agent.get_and_update(__MODULE__, fn
+          nil ->
+            # Cache miss - load system actor
+            actor = load_system_actor()
+            {actor, actor}
+
+          cached_actor ->
+            # Cache hit - return cached actor
+            {cached_actor, cached_actor}
+        end)
+      catch
+        :exit, {:noproc, _} ->
+          # Agent not started - load directly without caching
+          load_system_actor()
+      end
+    end
+  end
+
+  @doc """
+  Invalidates the system actor cache.
+
+  This forces a reload of the system actor on the next call to `get_system_actor/0`.
+  Useful when the system user's role might have changed.
+
+  ## Examples
+
+      iex> Mv.Helpers.SystemActor.invalidate_cache()
+      :ok
+
+  """
+  @spec invalidate_cache() :: :ok
+  def invalidate_cache do
+    Agent.update(__MODULE__, fn _state -> nil end)
+  end
+
+  # Loads the system actor from the database
+  # First tries to find system@mila.local, then falls back to admin user
+  defp load_system_actor do
+    # Try to find system user first
+    case find_user_by_email(@system_user_email) do
+      {:ok, user} when not is_nil(user) ->
+        load_user_with_role(user)
+
+      {:ok, nil} ->
+        # System user doesn't exist - fall back to admin user
+        case load_admin_user_fallback() do
+          {:ok, admin_user} -> admin_user
+          {:error, _} ->
+            # In test environment, create a temporary admin user if none exists
+            if Mix.env() == :test do
+              create_test_system_actor()
+            else
+              raise "Failed to load system actor: no system user or admin user found"
+            end
+        end
+
+      {:error, _reason} = error ->
+        # Database error - try fallback
+        case load_admin_user_fallback() do
+          {:ok, admin_user} -> admin_user
+          {:error, _} ->
+            # In test environment, create a temporary admin user if none exists
+            if Mix.env() == :test do
+              create_test_system_actor()
+            else
+              raise "Failed to load system actor: #{inspect(error)}"
+            end
+        end
+    end
+  end
+
+  # Creates a temporary admin user for tests when no system/admin user exists
+  defp create_test_system_actor do
+    alias Mv.Authorization
+    alias Mv.Accounts
+
+    # Ensure admin role exists - find or create
+    admin_role =
+      case Authorization.list_roles() do
+        {:ok, roles} ->
+          case Enum.find(roles, &(&1.permission_set_name == "admin")) do
+            nil ->
+              # Try to create, but handle case where it already exists (race condition)
+              case Authorization.create_role(%{
+                     name: "Admin",
+                     description: "Administrator with full access",
+                     permission_set_name: "admin"
+                   }) do
+                {:ok, role} -> role
+                {:error, %Ash.Error.Invalid{errors: [%{field: :name, message: "has already been taken"}]}} ->
+                  # Role was created by another process - find it
+                  case Authorization.list_roles() do
+                    {:ok, updated_roles} ->
+                      Enum.find(updated_roles, &(&1.permission_set_name == "admin")) ||
+                        raise "Admin role should exist but was not found"
+                    _ ->
+                      raise "Failed to find admin role after creation attempt"
+                  end
+                {:error, error} ->
+                  raise "Failed to create admin role: #{inspect(error)}"
+              end
+
+            role ->
+              role
+          end
+
+        _ ->
+          # If list_roles fails, try to create anyway
+          case Authorization.create_role(%{
+                 name: "Admin",
+                 description: "Administrator with full access",
+                 permission_set_name: "admin"
+               }) do
+            {:ok, role} -> role
+            {:error, %Ash.Error.Invalid{errors: [%{field: :name, message: "has already been taken"}]}} ->
+              # Role exists - try to find it
+              case Authorization.list_roles() do
+                {:ok, roles} ->
+                  Enum.find(roles, &(&1.permission_set_name == "admin")) ||
+                    raise "Admin role should exist but was not found"
+                _ ->
+                  raise "Failed to find admin role"
+              end
+            {:error, error} ->
+              raise "Failed to create admin role: #{inspect(error)}"
+          end
+      end
+
+    # Create system user for tests
+    system_user =
+      Accounts.create_user!(%{email: @system_user_email},
+        upsert?: true,
+        upsert_identity: :unique_email
+      )
+      |> Ash.Changeset.for_update(:update, %{})
+      |> Ash.Changeset.manage_relationship(:role, admin_role, type: :append_and_remove)
+      |> Ash.update!()
+      |> Ash.load!(:role, domain: Mv.Accounts)
+
+    system_user
+  end
+
+  # Finds a user by email address
+  defp find_user_by_email(email) do
+    Mv.Accounts.User
+    |> Ash.Query.filter(email == ^email)
+    |> Ash.read_one(domain: Mv.Accounts)
+  end
+
+  # Loads a user with their role preloaded (required for authorization)
+  defp load_user_with_role(user) do
+    case Ash.load(user, :role, domain: Mv.Accounts) do
+      {:ok, user_with_role} ->
+        validate_admin_role(user_with_role)
+
+      {:error, reason} ->
+        raise "Failed to load role for system actor: #{inspect(reason)}"
+    end
+  end
+
+  # Validates that the user has an admin role
+  defp validate_admin_role(%{role: %{permission_set_name: "admin"}} = user) do
+    user
+  end
+
+  defp validate_admin_role(%{role: %{permission_set_name: permission_set}}) do
+    raise """
+    System actor must have admin role, but has permission_set_name: #{permission_set}
+    Please assign the "Admin" role to the system user.
+    """
+  end
+
+  defp validate_admin_role(%{role: nil}) do
+    raise """
+    System actor must have a role assigned, but role is nil.
+    Please assign the "Admin" role to the system user.
+    """
+  end
+
+  defp validate_admin_role(_user) do
+    raise """
+    System actor must have a role with admin permissions.
+    Please assign the "Admin" role to the system user.
+    """
+  end
+
+  # Fallback: Loads admin user from seeds (ADMIN_EMAIL env var or default)
+  defp load_admin_user_fallback do
+    admin_email = System.get_env("ADMIN_EMAIL") || "admin@localhost"
+
+    case find_user_by_email(admin_email) do
+      {:ok, user} when not is_nil(user) ->
+        {:ok, load_user_with_role(user)}
+
+      {:ok, nil} ->
+        {:error, :admin_user_not_found}
+
+      {:error, _reason} = error ->
+        error
+    end
+  end
+end