UK ESG ratings authorisation tracker
Which ESG ratings providers the FCA has authorised, and the dates every provider works to.
See the registerFrom 29 June 2028, providing an ESG rating in the UK needs FCA authorisation. The FCA set the rules in PS26/22 on 3 November 2026, and the application gateway opens on 24 June 2027. This page lists each provider as the FCA register shows it authorised, with the dates and the tests for whether a firm is in scope.
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Providers authorised for ESG ratings
The permission cannot be granted before the gateway opens.
24 June 2027
Application gateway opens
First window for firms projecting £500,000 or more of ESG ratings revenue.
29 June 2028
Authorisation required
Providing an in-scope rating without permission becomes a breach of the general prohibition.
Authorised ESG ratings providers
Each firm is added when the FCA register shows the ESG ratings permission, with a link to its register entry.
| Provider | FCA reference | Authorised | Window |
|---|---|---|---|
| No firm holds the ESG ratings permission yet. Applications open on 24 June 2027, and the first entries will appear once the FCA starts deciding them. | |||
The dates
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| 3 November 2026Passed | FCA publishes the final rules and perimeter guidance in PS26/22 |
| 7 December 2026 | FCA webinar on the policy statement and the new regime |
| 26 January 2027 | FCA webinar on the authorisation process and pre-application support |
| February 2027 | Pre-application meetings available through the FCA's Pre-Application Support Service |
| 24 June to 29 July 2027 | First application window: firms projecting £500,000 or more of ESG ratings revenue in the 12 months after applying |
| 30 July to 31 August 2027 | Second application window: all other firms |
| 29 June 2028 | The regime takes effect. Providing an ESG rating in scope without FCA permission becomes a breach of the general prohibition |
The revenue test looks forward: the FCA asks for projected ESG ratings revenue for the 12 months after the firm applies. Source: FCA PS26/22.
Is your firm in scope?
Five questions, taken from the Explanatory Memorandum to the ESG Ratings Order 2025 and the FCA's perimeter guidance in PS26/22. A firm that answers yes to all five, and has no exclusion, needs authorisation by 29 June 2028.
1. Is it an ESG rating?
An assessment of one or more environmental, social or governance factors, prepared using an established methodology and expressed in a defined system of rating categories, such as scores, letters or colours.
2. Do you provide it?
A firm provides a rating when it both produces it and makes it available. A firm that only distributes ratings produced by someone else is not intended to be caught.
3. Is it likely to influence an investment decision?
The test is whether the rating is likely to be used in a decision to make a specified investment, not whether the provider knows how each customer uses it. Ratings sold to asset managers, asset owners or benchmark administrators will almost always meet it.
4. Is it done by way of business?
Occasional or unpaid provision by charities, academics and journalists is excluded. A commercial ratings or data business is not.
5. Does it reach the UK?
UK providers are in scope whether ratings are paid for or free. Overseas providers are in scope where paid ratings reach UK customers directly or indirectly, for example through a data platform or distributor.
The exclusions, in summary
- Ratings provided as part of an activity the FCA already regulates, or under another approval or recognised scheme
- Ratings that are also benchmarks under the UK Benchmarks Regulation
- Ratings used to produce, or incorporated into, a credit rating
- Ratings provided within proxy advisory services
- Ratings passed between members of the same group and not made available outside it
- Accreditation and certification schemes whose purpose is not to influence investment decisions
- Ratings produced only to meet a legal or regulatory requirement the producer is subject to
Each exclusion has conditions. A firm relying on one should record its reasoning product by product.
Preparing an application
The full guide to scope, the FCA's expectations on transparency, governance, systems and controls, conflicts of interest and complaints, and the transitional rules for late applicants is in our article on FCA authorisation for ESG ratings providers. Firms already authorised for other activities should read it for the permission they will need to add, and the wider FCA agenda is in our wholesale banking compliance guide.
This tracker is general information as at 12 November 2026 and is not legal advice. Confirm any firm's status on the FCA register.