diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk-testing/cli-integ/resources/cdk-apps/app/app.js b/packages/@aws-cdk-testing/cli-integ/resources/cdk-apps/app/app.js
index 8735e727c..8e4ef8fd6 100755
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk-testing/cli-integ/resources/cdk-apps/app/app.js
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk-testing/cli-integ/resources/cdk-apps/app/app.js
@@ -993,6 +993,10 @@ switch (stackSet) {
   case 'stage-with-no-stacks':
     break;
 
+  case 'stage-only':
+    new SomeStage(app, `${stackPrefix}-stage`);
+    break;
+
   default:
     throw new Error(`Unrecognized INTEG_STACK_SET: '${stackSet}'`);
 }
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk-testing/cli-integ/tests/cli-integ-tests/destroy/cdk-destroy-stage-only-with-all-option.integtest.ts b/packages/@aws-cdk-testing/cli-integ/tests/cli-integ-tests/destroy/cdk-destroy-stage-only-with-all-option.integtest.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..47568533a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk-testing/cli-integ/tests/cli-integ-tests/destroy/cdk-destroy-stage-only-with-all-option.integtest.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+import { DescribeStacksCommand } from '@aws-sdk/client-cloudformation';
+import { integTest, withDefaultFixture } from '../../../lib';
+
+integTest('cdk destroy can destroy stacks in stage-only configuration with --all option', withDefaultFixture(async (fixture) => {
+  const integStackSet = 'stage-only';
+
+  await fixture.cdkDeploy([], {
+    options: ['--all'],
+    modEnv: {
+      INTEG_STACK_SET: integStackSet,
+    },
+  });
+
+  const stackName = `${fixture.fullStackName('stage')}-StackInStage`;
+  const stack = await fixture.aws.cloudFormation.send(new DescribeStacksCommand({ StackName: stackName }));
+  expect(stack.Stacks?.length ?? 0).toEqual(1);
+
+  await fixture.cdkDestroy([], {
+    options: ['--all'],
+    modEnv: {
+      INTEG_STACK_SET: integStackSet,
+    },
+  });
+
+  await expect(fixture.aws.cloudFormation.send(new DescribeStacksCommand({ StackName: stackName })))
+    .rejects.toThrow(/does not exist/);
+}));
diff --git a/packages/aws-cdk/lib/cxapp/cloud-assembly.ts b/packages/aws-cdk/lib/cxapp/cloud-assembly.ts
index 824cd6aaf..2a3e0d983 100644
--- a/packages/aws-cdk/lib/cxapp/cloud-assembly.ts
+++ b/packages/aws-cdk/lib/cxapp/cloud-assembly.ts
@@ -103,7 +103,10 @@ export class CloudAssembly extends BaseStackAssembly {
       throw new ToolkitError('This app contains no stacks');
     }
 
-    if (allTopLevel) {
+    const someCondition = false // TODO: replace
+    if (allTopLevel && someCondition) {
+      return new StackCollection(this, stacks);
+    } else if (allTopLevel) {
       return this.selectTopLevelStacks(stacks, topLevelStacks, options.extend);
     } else if (patterns.length > 0) {
       return this.selectMatchingStacks(stacks, patterns, options.extend);
diff --git a/packages/aws-cdk/test/cli/cdk-toolkit.test.ts b/packages/aws-cdk/test/cli/cdk-toolkit.test.ts
index 45c611918..459e4ca63 100644
--- a/packages/aws-cdk/test/cli/cdk-toolkit.test.ts
+++ b/packages/aws-cdk/test/cli/cdk-toolkit.test.ts
@@ -150,6 +150,26 @@ function defaultToolkitSetup() {
   });
 }
 
+// only stacks within stages (no top-level stacks)
+async function stageOnlyToolkitSetup() {
+  const stageOnlyExecutable = await MockCloudExecutable.create({
+    stacks: [],
+    nestedAssemblies: [{
+      stacks: [MockStack.MOCK_STACK_C],
+    }],
+  });
+
+  return new CdkToolkit({
+    ioHost,
+    cloudExecutable: stageOnlyExecutable,
+    configuration: stageOnlyExecutable.configuration,
+    sdkProvider: stageOnlyExecutable.sdkProvider,
+    deployments: new FakeCloudFormation({
+      'Test-Stack-C': { Baz: 'Zinga!' },
+    }),
+  });
+}
+
 const mockSdk = new MockSdk();
 
 describe('bootstrap', () => {
@@ -284,6 +304,17 @@ describe('deploy', () => {
       });
     });
 
+    test('deploy all stacks in stage-only configuration with --all option', async () => {
+      // GIVEN
+      const toolkit = await stageOnlyToolkitSetup();
+
+      // WHEN & THEN
+      await expect(toolkit.deploy({
+        selector: { patterns: [], allTopLevel: true },
+        deploymentMethod: { method: 'change-set' },
+      })).resolves.not.toThrow();
+    });
+
     test('uses display names to reference assets', async () => {
       // GIVEN
       cloudExecutable = await MockCloudExecutable.create({
@@ -1080,14 +1111,23 @@ describe('destroy', () => {
   test('destroy correct stack', async () => {
     const toolkit = defaultToolkitSetup();
 
-    expect(() => {
-      return toolkit.destroy({
-        selector: { patterns: ['Test-Stack-A/Test-Stack-C'] },
-        exclusively: true,
-        force: true,
-        fromDeploy: true,
-      });
-    }).resolves;
+    await expect(toolkit.destroy({
+      selector: { patterns: ['Test-Stack-A/Test-Stack-C'] },
+      exclusively: true,
+      force: true,
+      fromDeploy: true,
+    })).resolves.not.toThrow();
+  });
+
+  test('destroy all stacks in stage-only configuration with --all option', async () => {
+    const toolkit = await stageOnlyToolkitSetup();
+
+    await expect(toolkit.destroy({
+      selector: { patterns: [], allTopLevel: true },
+      exclusively: true,
+      force: true,
+      fromDeploy: true,
+    })).resolves.not.toThrow();
   });
 });
 
diff --git a/packages/aws-cdk/test/cxapp/cloud-assembly.test.ts b/packages/aws-cdk/test/cxapp/cloud-assembly.test.ts
index 60cb8da5f..5c3537dd1 100644
--- a/packages/aws-cdk/test/cxapp/cloud-assembly.test.ts
+++ b/packages/aws-cdk/test/cxapp/cloud-assembly.test.ts
@@ -17,6 +17,19 @@ test('select all top level stacks in the presence of nested assemblies', async (
   expect(x.stackIds).toContain('withouterrors');
 });
 
+test('select all stacks when only nested assemblies exist (Stage-only apps)', async () => {
+  // GIVEN
+  const cxasm = await testStageOnlyCloudAssembly();
+
+  // WHEN
+  const x = await cxasm.selectStacks({ allTopLevel: true, patterns: [] }, { defaultBehavior: DefaultSelection.AllStacks });
+
+  // THEN
+  expect(x.stackCount).toBe(2);
+  expect(x.stackIds).toContain('stack1');
+  expect(x.stackIds).toContain('stack2');
+});
+
 test('select stacks by glob pattern', async () => {
   // GIVEN
   const cxasm = await testCloudAssembly();
@@ -337,3 +350,28 @@ async function testNestedCloudAssembly({ env }: { env?: string; versionReporting
   const asm = await cloudExec.synthesize();
   return cliAssemblyWithForcedVersion(asm, '30.0.0');
 }
+
+async function testStageOnlyCloudAssembly({ env }: { env?: string; versionReporting?: boolean } = {}) {
+  const cloudExec = await MockCloudExecutable.create({
+    stacks: [], // No top-level stacks
+    nestedAssemblies: [{
+      stacks: [{
+        stackName: 'stack1',
+        displayName: 'stage1/stack1',
+        env,
+        template: { resource: 'resource1' },
+      }],
+    },
+    {
+      stacks: [{
+        stackName: 'stack2',
+        displayName: 'stage2/stack2',
+        env,
+        template: { resource: 'resource2' },
+      }],
+    }],
+  });
+
+  const asm = await cloudExec.synthesize();
+  return cliAssemblyWithForcedVersion(asm, '30.0.0');
+}