The FCA said on Tuesday that UK ESG rating providers will need authorisation from 29 June 2028 under final rules that bring the market into regulation for the first time.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published the rules as policy statement PS26/22. They cover providers of environmental, social and governance (ESG) ratings, which assess how companies, assets or financial products perform against those criteria and are used by asset managers, lenders and benchmark administrators.
Laura Dawes, director of authorisations and sustainable finance at the FCA, said the rules would help raise standards in the market. “Firms should check now whether they are in scope and start preparing for authorisation,” she said.
The timetable is staggered. The authorisation gateway opens on 24 June 2027, and the FCA said it is staggering application periods and encourages firms to apply as early as possible within their window.
The regime then takes effect on 29 June 2028, about a year after the gateway opens.
The framework sets requirements on transparency, governance, systems and controls, the management of conflicts of interest, and engagement with users of ratings and with rated entities. Providers must meet baseline FCA rules alongside these tailored requirements.
The FCA said the approach is proportionate to firms’ size and activities.
The regime regulates how ratings are produced, governed and communicated. It does not prescribe a particular sustainability view or methodology.
Treasury order of 2025 sets the scope
The perimeter was set by HM Treasury in a 2025 order, SI 2025 No. 1349.
It covers ESG ratings likely to influence a decision to make a specified investment, and the Treasury said it is the first time the provision of such ratings has been within the regulatory perimeter in UK law.
A firm provides a rating for these purposes only if it both produces the rating and makes it available. Firms that only distribute ratings produced by others are not intended to be captured.
The order also carves out several categories, including ratings that are also benchmarks under the UK Benchmarks Regulation, ratings used in credit ratings, ratings provided as part of proxy advisory services, and intra-group ratings not expected to be made available outside the group.
The Treasury said a UK-based provider supplying ratings, whether paid or free, to any customer in the UK or overseas falls within scope. An overseas provider supplying a UK customer for free is treated differently.
Webinars on 7 December 2026 and 26 January 2027
The final rules follow the FCA’s consultation CP25/34, which ran from 1 December 2025 to 31 March 2026. The government legislation was made in 2025, and the FCA said 95% of respondents to the government’s consultation supported bringing ratings into its remit.
The Treasury’s earlier consultation, from 30 March to 30 June 2023, drew 94 responses.
In the policy statement, the FCA cited increasing concerns about the quality, transparency, independence and consistency of ratings.
It said its approach draws on recommendations from the International Organization of Securities Commissions and on the International Capital Market Association’s code of conduct for ESG ratings and data providers.
The FCA said the rules are relevant to users of ratings, including asset managers, asset owners and benchmark administrators, as well as to rated companies and trade associations.
It listed five steps for firms: understand whether the framework could apply, review the rules and guidance, consider whether authorisation is needed, start preparing, and engage early with its support services.
Its Pre-Application Support Service (PASS) will be available from February 2027. The FCA has also scheduled a policy statement webinar for 7 December 2026 and an authorisations webinar for 26 January 2027, for which registration opens soon.
In its announcement the FCA pointed to its Financial Lives Survey 2024, which found 72% of adults with investments or a defined contribution pension wanted their investments to do some good as well as provide a financial return.
