When a type is imported from another file - even a simple object type - the generated schema includes an extra $ref and definition, unlike the same type defined inline.

Reproduction

Repo: https://github.com/alexchexes/ts-jsg-import-vs-inline-repro

Compare:

• main-inline.ts → schema-inline.json
• main-import.ts → schema-import.json

Expected

Same schema structure for both files - flattened shape directly under MyObject.

Actual result

Schema for the import version uses a $ref to a separate definition, making the output structurally different.

Impact

While this is a minimal reproduction, in real-world projects the impact is significant.
For example, using almost any non-trivial utility type from type-fest (or manually crafted helpers like DeepPartial, Merge, etc.) results in a bloated schema with long, chained $refs and generic type names like:

"OverrideProperties<interface-13180666-71-18834-...,structure-13180666-0-32472[false,{}]>"

See example (src)

Even when the structure is identical, the generator produces separate definitions for each imported utility in the chain - making the schema harder to read, debug, compare, and test.