diff --git a/backend/app/services/job_lifecycle.py b/backend/app/services/job_lifecycle.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e60898a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/app/services/job_lifecycle.py
@@ -0,0 +1,128 @@
+"""Job-lifecycle finite-state machine for the print queue.
+
+Brother PT/QL printers have no multi-job queue (TCP/9100 is a single stream).
+The hub serialises jobs per printer and tracks state explicitly. This module
+owns the state model only; the worker that drives transitions lives in
+`app.services.print_queue`.
+
+State diagram:
+
+    QUEUED ──> PRINTING ──> COMPLETED
+       │           └──────> FAILED
+       │
+       ├──> PAUSED ──> QUEUED
+       │       └─────> CANCELLED
+       │
+       ├──> CANCELLED
+       └──> FAILED
+
+Mid-print cancel and mid-print pause are NOT supported (Brother spec —
+the printer ignores commands once the raster stream starts).
+"""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import asyncio
+from dataclasses import dataclass, field
+from datetime import UTC, datetime
+from enum import StrEnum
+from typing import Any
+
+
+class JobState(StrEnum):
+    QUEUED = "queued"
+    PAUSED = "paused"
+    PRINTING = "printing"
+    COMPLETED = "completed"
+    FAILED = "failed"
+    CANCELLED = "cancelled"
+
+
+# Terminal states are absorbing — no transitions out.
+# PRINTING is one-way to COMPLETED or FAILED (Brother spec: no mid-print stop).
+_VALID_TRANSITIONS: dict[JobState, frozenset[JobState]] = {
+    JobState.QUEUED: frozenset(
+        {
+            JobState.PRINTING,
+            JobState.PAUSED,
+            JobState.CANCELLED,
+            JobState.FAILED,
+        }
+    ),
+    JobState.PAUSED: frozenset({JobState.QUEUED, JobState.CANCELLED}),
+    JobState.PRINTING: frozenset({JobState.COMPLETED, JobState.FAILED}),
+    JobState.COMPLETED: frozenset(),
+    JobState.FAILED: frozenset(),
+    JobState.CANCELLED: frozenset(),
+}
+
+_TERMINAL_STATES: frozenset[JobState] = frozenset(
+    {
+        JobState.COMPLETED,
+        JobState.FAILED,
+        JobState.CANCELLED,
+    }
+)
+
+
+class InvalidStateTransitionError(Exception):
+    """Raised when JobStateMachine.transition() is called with an illegal target."""
+
+
+@dataclass
+class Job:
+    """A single print job. In-memory MVP; persistence comes in Phase 5."""
+
+    id: str
+    printer_id: str
+    state: JobState = JobState.QUEUED
+    submitted_at: datetime = field(default_factory=lambda: datetime.now(UTC))
+    started_at: datetime | None = None
+    finished_at: datetime | None = None
+    image_payload: bytes | None = field(default=None, repr=False)
+    tape_mm: int | None = None
+    # `options` carries heterogeneous per-job kwargs (e.g. parent_job_id from
+    # retry, downstream printer flags). `Any` is contained to this field and
+    # does not leak into transition() logic; a structured type can replace it
+    # once the option set stabilises.
+    options: dict[str, Any] = field(default_factory=dict)
+    error_msg: str | None = None
+    error_flags: int | None = None
+    retry_count: int = 0
+    # asyncio.Event is mutable but safe to use as a dataclass field default_factory:
+    # it's constructed when a Job instance is created (not at import time), and
+    # since Python 3.10 the Event does not pin to a specific event loop at
+    # construction — it binds to the running loop on first wait/set.
+    _done_event: asyncio.Event = field(default_factory=asyncio.Event, init=False, repr=False)
+
+
+class JobStateMachine:
+    """Stateless gate-keeper for Job.state mutations.
+
+    All state changes MUST flow through `transition()`. Direct assignment to
+    `job.state` bypasses the validity check and the timestamp/event side
+    effects — don't do that in production code.
+    """
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def transition(job: Job, new_state: JobState) -> None:
+        """Move `job` to `new_state` if the transition is valid.
+
+        Raises:
+            InvalidStateTransitionError: if `new_state` is not reachable from
+                `job.state`. The exception message names both states so log
+                entries are self-contained.
+        """
+        if new_state not in _VALID_TRANSITIONS[job.state]:
+            raise InvalidStateTransitionError(
+                f"Illegal transition {job.state.value} -> {new_state.value}"
+            )
+
+        job.state = new_state
+
+        if new_state == JobState.PRINTING and job.started_at is None:
+            job.started_at = datetime.now(UTC)
+
+        if new_state in _TERMINAL_STATES:
+            job.finished_at = datetime.now(UTC)
+            job._done_event.set()
diff --git a/backend/tests/unit/services/test_job_lifecycle.py b/backend/tests/unit/services/test_job_lifecycle.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..aa43e06
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/tests/unit/services/test_job_lifecycle.py
@@ -0,0 +1,118 @@
+from datetime import UTC, datetime
+
+import pytest
+from app.services.job_lifecycle import (
+    InvalidStateTransitionError,
+    Job,
+    JobState,
+    JobStateMachine,
+)
+
+
+def test_job_queued_to_printing() -> None:
+    job = Job(id="abc", printer_id="pt750w", state=JobState.QUEUED)
+    JobStateMachine.transition(job, JobState.PRINTING)
+    assert job.state == JobState.PRINTING
+    assert job.started_at is not None
+
+
+def test_job_printing_to_completed() -> None:
+    job = Job(
+        id="abc",
+        printer_id="pt750w",
+        state=JobState.PRINTING,
+        started_at=datetime.now(),
+    )
+    JobStateMachine.transition(job, JobState.COMPLETED)
+    assert job.state == JobState.COMPLETED
+    assert job.finished_at is not None
+
+
+def test_invalid_transition_completed_to_printing() -> None:
+    job = Job(id="abc", printer_id="pt750w", state=JobState.COMPLETED)
+    with pytest.raises(InvalidStateTransitionError, match="completed"):
+        JobStateMachine.transition(job, JobState.PRINTING)
+
+
+def test_cancel_only_from_queued_or_paused() -> None:
+    """Brother Raster Spec: no mid-print cancel."""
+    job = Job(id="abc", printer_id="pt750w", state=JobState.PRINTING)
+    with pytest.raises(InvalidStateTransitionError, match="printing"):
+        JobStateMachine.transition(job, JobState.CANCELLED)
+
+
+def test_pause_from_queued_to_paused() -> None:
+    job = Job(id="abc", printer_id="pt750w", state=JobState.QUEUED)
+    JobStateMachine.transition(job, JobState.PAUSED)
+    assert job.state == JobState.PAUSED
+
+
+def test_resume_from_paused_to_queued() -> None:
+    job = Job(id="abc", printer_id="pt750w", state=JobState.PAUSED)
+    JobStateMachine.transition(job, JobState.QUEUED)
+    assert job.state == JobState.QUEUED
+
+
+def test_cancel_from_paused() -> None:
+    job = Job(id="abc", printer_id="pt750w", state=JobState.PAUSED)
+    JobStateMachine.transition(job, JobState.CANCELLED)
+    assert job.state == JobState.CANCELLED
+
+
+def test_pause_printing_not_allowed() -> None:
+    """Brother Raster Spec: no mid-print pause."""
+    job = Job(id="abc", printer_id="pt750w", state=JobState.PRINTING)
+    with pytest.raises(InvalidStateTransitionError, match="printing"):
+        JobStateMachine.transition(job, JobState.PAUSED)
+
+
+def test_done_event_set_on_terminal_state() -> None:
+    """Terminal transitions must signal the _done_event for wait_for_job()."""
+    job = Job(id="abc", printer_id="pt750w", state=JobState.PRINTING)
+    assert not job._done_event.is_set()
+    JobStateMachine.transition(job, JobState.COMPLETED)
+    assert job._done_event.is_set()
+
+
+def test_done_event_not_set_on_pause() -> None:
+    """Non-terminal transitions must NOT signal the _done_event."""
+    job = Job(id="abc", printer_id="pt750w", state=JobState.QUEUED)
+    JobStateMachine.transition(job, JobState.PAUSED)
+    assert not job._done_event.is_set()
+
+
+def test_done_event_set_on_failed() -> None:
+    """Transition to FAILED must also set _done_event (parity with COMPLETED)."""
+    job = Job(id="abc", printer_id="pt750w", state=JobState.PRINTING)
+    JobStateMachine.transition(job, JobState.FAILED)
+    assert job._done_event.is_set()
+    assert job.finished_at is not None
+
+
+def test_done_event_set_on_cancelled() -> None:
+    """Transition to CANCELLED must also set _done_event (parity with COMPLETED)."""
+    job = Job(id="abc", printer_id="pt750w", state=JobState.QUEUED)
+    JobStateMachine.transition(job, JobState.CANCELLED)
+    assert job._done_event.is_set()
+    assert job.finished_at is not None
+
+
+def test_timestamps_are_utc_aware() -> None:
+    """submitted_at, started_at and finished_at must carry UTC tzinfo."""
+    job = Job(id="abc", printer_id="pt750w", state=JobState.QUEUED)
+    JobStateMachine.transition(job, JobState.PRINTING)
+    JobStateMachine.transition(job, JobState.COMPLETED)
+    assert job.submitted_at.tzinfo is UTC
+    assert job.started_at is not None and job.started_at.tzinfo is UTC
+    assert job.finished_at is not None and job.finished_at.tzinfo is UTC
+
+
+def test_terminal_states_absorb_no_outgoing_transitions() -> None:
+    """FAILED and CANCELLED behave like COMPLETED — no further transitions allowed."""
+    for terminal in (JobState.FAILED, JobState.CANCELLED):
+        job = Job(id="abc", printer_id="pt750w", state=terminal)
+        for target in JobState:
+            if target == terminal:
+                continue
+            with pytest.raises(InvalidStateTransitionError):
+                JobStateMachine.transition(job, target)