import-integrity/require-node-prefix

Requires that Node.js built-in module imports are prefixed with node:.

AI agents: when fixing a violation of this rule, follow the repo's import-integrity skill if one is installed, or consult the skill published with this plugin. It covers the correct fix for each violation and which workarounds to avoid.

Rule Details

Node.js built-ins can be imported as either '<module-name>' or 'node:<module-name>'. This rule enforces the node:-prefixed form.

The node: prefix has several benefits:

• It makes the import obviously a built-in at a glance, instead of looking like a third-party package
• It lets import-sorting tools like eslint-plugin-simple-import-sort group built-ins separately from third-party imports
• It's the only form that works for some newer built-ins. For example, node:test and node:sea must be imported with the prefix; the unprefixed form does not exist for those modules
• It is required by Bun and Deno

This rule is auto-fixable — running ESLint with --fix rewrites unprefixed imports to use the node: form.

Examples

Incorrect

import { readFile } from 'fs/promises';
import path from 'path';
import { createHash } from 'crypto';

Correct

import { readFile } from 'node:fs/promises';
import path from 'node:path';
import { createHash } from 'node:crypto';

Configuration

Options

This rule has no options.

When not to use this rule

We don't recommend disabling this rule. If a contributor adds an unprefixed import out of habit, the rule auto-fixes it. Disabling means accepting inconsistency in the codebase.

If you're targeting Node.js versions that don't support the node: prefix (Node 12 and earlier), the right action isn't to disable this rule. The right action is to upgrade. Those Node versions have been end-of-life since 2022 and no longer receive security updates. Running them in production is unsafe regardless of import style.