diff --git a/cmd/archive/extract/extract.go b/cmd/archive/extract/extract.go
index 852a2fca6..3ca1f64e2 100644
--- a/cmd/archive/extract/extract.go
+++ b/cmd/archive/extract/extract.go
@@ -147,6 +147,16 @@ func ArchiveExtract(ctx context.Context, dst fs.Fs, dstDir string, src fs.Fs, sr
 	// extract files
 	err = ex.Extract(ctx, in, func(ctx context.Context, f archives.FileInfo) error {
 		remote := f.NameInArchive
+		// Strip leading "./" from archive paths. Tar files created with
+		// relative paths (e.g. "tar -czf archive.tar.gz .") use "./" prefixed
+		// entries. Without stripping, rclone encodes the "." as a full-width
+		// dot character creating a spurious directory. We only strip "./"
+		// specifically to avoid enabling path traversal attacks via "../".
+		remote = strings.TrimPrefix(remote, "./")
+		// If the entry was exactly "./" (the root dir), skip it
+		if remote == "" && f.IsDir() {
+			return nil
+		}
 		if dstDir != "" {
 			remote = path.Join(dstDir, remote)
 		}
diff --git a/cmd/archive/extract/extract_test.go b/cmd/archive/extract/extract_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..867e3c358
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cmd/archive/extract/extract_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,62 @@
+//go:build !plan9
+
+package extract
+
+import (
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+
+	"github.com/stretchr/testify/assert"
+)
+
+func TestStripDotSlashPrefix(t *testing.T) {
+	tests := []struct {
+		name     string
+		input    string
+		expected string
+	}{
+		{
+			name:     "strip leading dot-slash from file",
+			input:    "./file.txt",
+			expected: "file.txt",
+		},
+		{
+			name:     "strip leading dot-slash from nested path",
+			input:    "./subdir/file.txt",
+			expected: "subdir/file.txt",
+		},
+		{
+			name:     "no prefix unchanged",
+			input:    "file.txt",
+			expected: "file.txt",
+		},
+		{
+			name:     "nested path unchanged",
+			input:    "dir/file.txt",
+			expected: "dir/file.txt",
+		},
+		{
+			name:     "dot-dot-slash NOT stripped (path traversal safety)",
+			input:    "../etc/passwd",
+			expected: "../etc/passwd",
+		},
+		{
+			name:     "dot-slash directory entry becomes empty",
+			input:    "./",
+			expected: "",
+		},
+		{
+			name:     "only single leading dot-slash stripped",
+			input:    "././file.txt",
+			expected: "./file.txt",
+		},
+	}
+
+	for _, tc := range tests {
+		t.Run(tc.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			// This mirrors the stripping logic in ArchiveExtract
+			got := strings.TrimPrefix(tc.input, "./")
+			assert.Equal(t, tc.expected, got)
+		})
+	}
+}