diff --git a/cli/CHANGELOG.md b/cli/CHANGELOG.md
index 44e13ccd60c..a65637d79ad 100644
--- a/cli/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/cli/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@ _Released 12/16/2025 (PENDING)_
- Fixed an issue where the browser would freeze when Cypress intercepts a synchronous XHR request and a `routeHandler` is used. Fixes [#32874](https://github.com/cypress-io/cypress/issues/32874). Addressed in [#32925](https://github.com/cypress-io/cypress/pull/32925).
- Fixed an issue where `Next.js` Component Testing would not load correctly without a TypeScript-based Next config in versions 16.0.3 and up. Fixes [#32968](https://github.com/cypress-io/cypress/issues/32968).
- Fixed an issue where the error message for `not.have.length` was not correctly displaying the expected length in the Command Log. Addressed in [#18927](https://github.com/cypress-io/cypress/issues/18927).
+- Fixed an issue where `removeAttribute()` would not work for attributes other than `target` on anchor or form elements after clicking links with `target="_top"` or `target="_parent"`. Fixes [#26206](https://github.com/cypress-io/cypress/issues/26206). Addressed in [#33051](https://github.com/cypress-io/cypress/pull/33051).
## 15.7.1
diff --git a/packages/driver/cypress/e2e/issues/26206.cy.js b/packages/driver/cypress/e2e/issues/26206.cy.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..fee95d6eea2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/driver/cypress/e2e/issues/26206.cy.js
@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+// https://github.com/cypress-io/cypress/issues/26206
+describe('issue 26206', () => {
+ beforeEach(() => {
+ cy.visit('fixtures/issue-26206.html')
+ })
+
+ it('removeAttribute works for non-target attributes after handleInvalidTarget', () => {
+ // After clicking an anchor with target="_top", the handleInvalidTarget function
+ // patches the element's removeAttribute. The bug was that removeAttribute
+ // would not work for attributes other than 'target'.
+ cy.get('#link').click()
+ cy.get('#result').should('have.text', 'removed')
+ })
+})
diff --git a/packages/driver/cypress/fixtures/issue-26206.html b/packages/driver/cypress/fixtures/issue-26206.html
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..d6de5a80ed7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/driver/cypress/fixtures/issue-26206.html
@@ -0,0 +1,18 @@
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
diff --git a/packages/driver/src/cy/top_attr_guards.ts b/packages/driver/src/cy/top_attr_guards.ts
index cb98268d6c3..b321876e603 100644
--- a/packages/driver/src/cy/top_attr_guards.ts
+++ b/packages/driver/src/cy/top_attr_guards.ts
@@ -72,10 +72,10 @@ export function handleInvalidTarget (el: HTMLFormElement | HTMLAnchorElement) {
if (k === 'target') {
targetSet = false
targetValue = ''
-
- // We're not using `$elements.callNativeMethod` here because it disallows `removeAttribute`.
- return removeAttribute.call(this, k)
}
+
+ // We're not using `$elements.callNativeMethod` here because it disallows `removeAttribute`.
+ return removeAttribute.call(this, k)
}
if (!targetDescriptor) {