diff --git a/x-pack/plugins/fleet/server/services/agents/upgrade.ts b/x-pack/plugins/fleet/server/services/agents/upgrade.ts
index 12623be0ed04..6c3b404a5b6f 100644
--- a/x-pack/plugins/fleet/server/services/agents/upgrade.ts
+++ b/x-pack/plugins/fleet/server/services/agents/upgrade.ts
@@ -83,32 +83,33 @@ export async function sendUpgradeAgentsActions(
     force?: boolean;
   }
 ) {
-  const kibanaVersion = appContextService.getKibanaVersion();
-  // Filter out agents currently unenrolling, agents unenrolled, and agents not upgradeable
-  const agents = await getAgents(esClient, options);
+  // Full set of agents
+  const agentsGiven = await getAgents(esClient, options);
 
-  // upgradeable if they pass the version check
+  // Filter out agents currently unenrolling, unenrolled, or not upgradeable b/c of version check
+  const kibanaVersion = appContextService.getKibanaVersion();
   const upgradeableAgents = options.force
-    ? agents
-    : agents.filter((agent) => isAgentUpgradeable(agent, kibanaVersion));
+    ? agentsGiven
+    : agentsGiven.filter((agent) => isAgentUpgradeable(agent, kibanaVersion));
 
-  // get any policy ids from upgradable agents
-  const policyIdsToGet = new Set(
-    upgradeableAgents.filter((agent) => agent.policy_id).map((agent) => agent.policy_id!)
-  );
+  if (!options.force) {
+    // get any policy ids from upgradable agents
+    const policyIdsToGet = new Set(
+      upgradeableAgents.filter((agent) => agent.policy_id).map((agent) => agent.policy_id!)
+    );
 
-  // get the agent policies for those ids
-  const agentPolicies = await agentPolicyService.getByIDs(soClient, Array.from(policyIdsToGet), {
-    fields: ['is_managed'],
-  });
+    // get the agent policies for those ids
+    const agentPolicies = await agentPolicyService.getByIDs(soClient, Array.from(policyIdsToGet), {
+      fields: ['is_managed'],
+    });
 
-  // throw if any of those agent policies are managed
-  for (const policy of agentPolicies) {
-    if (policy.is_managed) {
-      throw new IngestManagerError(`Cannot upgrade agent in managed policy ${policy.id}`);
+    // throw if any of those agent policies are managed
+    for (const policy of agentPolicies) {
+      if (policy.is_managed) {
+        throw new IngestManagerError(`Cannot upgrade agent in managed policy ${policy.id}`);
+      }
     }
   }
-
   // Create upgrade action for each agent
   const now = new Date().toISOString();
   const data = {
diff --git a/x-pack/test/fleet_api_integration/apis/agents/upgrade.ts b/x-pack/test/fleet_api_integration/apis/agents/upgrade.ts
index 592e8dce1503..9a747fb11a6a 100644
--- a/x-pack/test/fleet_api_integration/apis/agents/upgrade.ts
+++ b/x-pack/test/fleet_api_integration/apis/agents/upgrade.ts
@@ -540,7 +540,7 @@ export default function (providerContext: FtrProviderContext) {
           .expect(400);
       });
 
-      it('enrolled in a managed policy should respond 400 to bulk upgrade and not update the agent SOs', async () => {
+      it('enrolled in a managed policy bulk upgrade should respond with 400 and not update the agent SOs', async () => {
         // update enrolled policy to managed
         await supertest.put(`/api/fleet/agent_policies/policy1`).set('kbn-xsrf', 'xxxx').send({
           name: 'Test policy',
@@ -592,6 +592,58 @@ export default function (providerContext: FtrProviderContext) {
         expect(typeof agent1data.body.item.upgrade_started_at).to.be('undefined');
         expect(typeof agent2data.body.item.upgrade_started_at).to.be('undefined');
       });
+
+      it('enrolled in a managed policy bulk upgrade with force flag should respond with 200 and update the agent SOs', async () => {
+        // update enrolled policy to managed
+        await supertest.put(`/api/fleet/agent_policies/policy1`).set('kbn-xsrf', 'xxxx').send({
+          name: 'Test policy',
+          namespace: 'default',
+          is_managed: true,
+        });
+
+        const kibanaVersion = await kibanaServer.version.get();
+        await es.update({
+          id: 'agent1',
+          refresh: 'wait_for',
+          index: AGENTS_INDEX,
+          body: {
+            doc: {
+              local_metadata: { elastic: { agent: { upgradeable: true, version: '0.0.0' } } },
+            },
+          },
+        });
+        await es.update({
+          id: 'agent2',
+          refresh: 'wait_for',
+          index: AGENTS_INDEX,
+          body: {
+            doc: {
+              local_metadata: {
+                elastic: {
+                  agent: { upgradeable: true, version: semver.inc(kibanaVersion, 'patch') },
+                },
+              },
+            },
+          },
+        });
+        // attempt to upgrade agent in managed policy
+        const { body } = await supertest
+          .post(`/api/fleet/agents/bulk_upgrade`)
+          .set('kbn-xsrf', 'xxx')
+          .send({
+            version: kibanaVersion,
+            agents: ['agent1', 'agent2'],
+            force: true,
+          });
+        expect(body).to.eql({});
+
+        const [agent1data, agent2data] = await Promise.all([
+          supertest.get(`/api/fleet/agents/agent1`),
+          supertest.get(`/api/fleet/agents/agent2`),
+        ]);
+        expect(typeof agent1data.body.item.upgrade_started_at).to.be('string');
+        expect(typeof agent2data.body.item.upgrade_started_at).to.be('string');
+      });
     });
   });
 }