# The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Regulated Activities) (ESG Ratings) Order 2025, Article 8: Interpretation


In this Part—
“ESG ratings permission” means, in relation to the activity specified by article 63U of the Regulated Activities Order (ESG ratings)—
(a) a Part 4A permission to carry on that activity, or
(b) the variation of an existing Part 4A permission so as to include the carrying on of that activity;
“pre-existing”, in relation to a contract or a public ESG rating, means a contract entered into or a public ESG rating made available before—
(a) the date specified by the FCA, in accordance with article 11(4)(a), where the FCA gives a direction under article 11(3), or
(b) where no direction mentioned in paragraph (a) is given, the later of—
(i) the date of—
(aa) the refusal by the FCA, or
(bb) the withdrawal by the person concerned,
of an application for an ESG ratings permission, or
(ii) the main commencement day;
“relevant application period” means the period specified by the FCA in accordance with article 9;
“relevant period applicant” means a person who makes an application for an ESG ratings permission during the relevant application period.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukdsi/2025/9780348275995/article/8 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/draft-financial-services-and-markets-act-2000-regulated-activities-esg-ratings-order-2025/article-8
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.