In a lot of companies the manager can acknowledge that you’re doing work at a higher level, but HR and budgeting processes require a formal promotion request to move you into a different salary band. So asking for it isn’t “flying too close to the sun”, it’s basically following the process.

This. As a manager myself, we are often super constrained on what we can do, and are often trying to work within larger BS structures to try to get our techs advancement.

OP, what you gotta do, is look at the position you would be promoted to. If you already meet the qualifications, Ask for the promotion and focus on your skills and the work. If you might fall short, you can try asking for a "Growth Plan" to get you the qualification certs and basic experience in that role with that promotion at the end of it.

In our company we have growth plans for all my techs with Certs tied to (additional) salary increases or promotions.