diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index d3ea605..73137a6 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -17,3 +17,6 @@ dist
 
 sandbox.py
 sandbox.ipynb
+
+# scratch dir for tools/refresh-from-master.sh (cloned MEOS-API + provisioned MEOS)
+.meos-chain/
diff --git a/builder/build_pymeos.py b/builder/build_pymeos.py
index ba96f78..4341d84 100644
--- a/builder/build_pymeos.py
+++ b/builder/build_pymeos.py
@@ -19,14 +19,28 @@
 ffibuilder.cdef(content)
 
 
-def get_library_dirs():
-    paths = ["/usr/local/lib", "/opt/homebrew/lib"]
+# A MEOS install prefix may be supplied out of band so the extension can be built
+# against a MEOS that is not on the default system paths (e.g. a scratch prefix used
+# by tools/refresh-from-master.sh). MEOS_PREFIX adds <prefix>/lib and <prefix>/include;
+# MEOS_LIB_DIR / MEOS_INCLUDE_DIR override a single dir. Unset => unchanged behaviour.
+def _search_dirs(single_env, subdir, defaults):
+    paths = []
+    explicit = os.environ.get(single_env)
+    if explicit:
+        paths.append(explicit)
+    prefix = os.environ.get("MEOS_PREFIX")
+    if prefix:
+        paths.append(os.path.join(prefix, subdir))
+    paths.extend(defaults)
     return [path for path in paths if os.path.exists(path)]
 
 
+def get_library_dirs():
+    return _search_dirs("MEOS_LIB_DIR", "lib", ["/usr/local/lib", "/opt/homebrew/lib"])
+
+
 def get_include_dirs():
-    paths = ["/usr/local/include", "/opt/homebrew/include"]
-    return [path for path in paths if os.path.exists(path)]
+    return _search_dirs("MEOS_INCLUDE_DIR", "include", ["/usr/local/include", "/opt/homebrew/include"])
 
 
 ffibuilder.set_source(
diff --git a/tools/refresh-from-master.sh b/tools/refresh-from-master.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..fa68784
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tools/refresh-from-master.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+# refresh-from-master.sh — refresh this binding's generated surface against the latest MEOS API,
+# end to end, with one command:
+#
+#   tools/refresh-from-master.sh
+#
+# It runs the shared MobilityDB/MEOS-API refresh-binding.sh over this repo — deriving the catalog
+# and libmeos from the latest MobilityDB master and regenerating this binding's surface. The
+# per-binding last leg is in tools/refresh.conf.
+#
+# All of refresh-binding.sh's options pass through, e.g.:
+#   tools/refresh-from-master.sh --mdb ~/src/MobilityDB   # refresh against a local MobilityDB branch
+#   tools/refresh-from-master.sh --skip-tests             # regenerate + build, skip the tests
+#
+# MEOSAPI=<path> uses an existing MEOS-API checkout (any branch); otherwise MEOS-API master is
+# cloned into the work dir. WORK_DIR overrides the scratch location (default <repo>/.meos-chain).
+set -euo pipefail
+
+HERE="$(cd "$(dirname "$0")/.." && pwd)"
+WORK="${WORK_DIR:-$HERE/.meos-chain}"
+MEOSAPI="${MEOSAPI:-}"
+
+if [ -z "$MEOSAPI" ]; then
+  MEOSAPI="$WORK/MEOS-API"
+  mkdir -p "$WORK"
+  if [ -d "$MEOSAPI/.git" ]; then
+    git -C "$MEOSAPI" fetch --quiet https://github.com/MobilityDB/MEOS-API master
+    git -C "$MEOSAPI" checkout --quiet FETCH_HEAD
+  else
+    git clone --quiet https://github.com/MobilityDB/MEOS-API "$MEOSAPI"
+  fi
+fi
+
+exec "$MEOSAPI/tools/refresh-binding.sh" \
+  --binding "$HERE" --meos-api "$MEOSAPI" --work-dir "$WORK" "$@"
diff --git a/tools/refresh.conf b/tools/refresh.conf
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..79105a5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tools/refresh.conf
@@ -0,0 +1,25 @@
+# refresh.conf — PyMEOS-CFFI's last leg for tools/refresh-binding.sh (in MEOS-API).
+# PyMEOS-CFFI pins a RELEASED MEOS line: its package __version__ (X.Y) maps to the
+# MobilityDB stable-X.Y branch (see .github/workflows/pr_build.yml), NOT master —
+# deriving from master would bind unreleased surface. Keep MDB_REF in step with
+# pymeos_cffi/__init__.py __version__ (currently 1.3.0a1 => stable-1.3). The 1.3
+# line exposes npoint among the optional families (not cbuffer/pose), so FAMILIES
+# lists -DNPOINT=ON.
+#
+# The chain (MobilityDB -> catalog + libmeos) is shared. refresh-binding.sh stages
+# the catalog at CATALOG_DEST (builder/meos-idl.json, where build_pymeos_functions.py
+# reads it) and installs libmeos at $PREFIX. BUILD_CMD then regenerates the cdef
+# header (build_header.py, from $PREFIX/include) and the wrappers (build_pymeos_functions.py,
+# from the catalog), and compiles the CFFI extension against $PREFIX — build_pymeos.py
+# honours MEOS_PREFIX — mirroring pr_build.yml's build + smoke.
+ENGINE=cffi
+BUILD_DIR=.
+BUILD_LIBMEOS=true
+MDB_REF=stable-1.3
+FAMILIES=-DNPOINT=ON
+CATALOG_DEST=builder/meos-idl.json
+BUILD_CMD='python3 builder/build_header.py "$PREFIX/include" "$PREFIX/lib/libmeos.so"
+  python3 builder/build_pymeos_functions.py
+  export MEOS_PREFIX="$PREFIX" LD_LIBRARY_PATH="$PREFIX/lib"
+  python3 -m pip install . -q
+  [ -n "${SKIP_TESTS:-}" ] || python3 -c "import pymeos_cffi; assert callable(pymeos_cffi.tstzspan_make)"'