Gmail Ends POP Fetch, Gmailify and Send As: Moving Your Mailbox

What Gmail is removing and when

Google's help page Learn about changes to third-party email account support in Gmail sets out three removals and a timeline. As of 21 October 2026 it reads:

Google's timeline says Q3 2026 was the announcement and notice period, with an in-product notification to affected users. During Q3 to Q4 2026 the features keep working, but Gmail may restrict new configurations, and Google encourages you to migrate during this time.

Who is affected

The change hits a common low-cost set-up for small businesses: a free personal Gmail account that collects mail from a business address and sends replies as that address. You are affected if any of these apply:

You are not affected by the Send as removal if your business already uses Google Workspace: Google says Workspace "Send as" and aliases, and Gmail-to-Gmail aliases, keep working.

What keeps working

Google lists what is not changing:

• Gmail mobile app: you can still add a non-Google account (using IMAP) to the Gmail app on Android, iPhone and iPad and read and send from it there.
• Other apps reading Gmail: Outlook, Thunderbird or Apple Mail can still connect to a Gmail account with IMAP or POP.
• Forwarding into Gmail: your other provider can still auto-forward new mail to your Gmail address.
• Already imported mail: messages already fetched into Gmail stay in your mailbox.
• Workspace aliases: Send as for Google-hosted identities is unaffected.

The gap is sending. Forwarding gets mail in, but once Send as for third-party addresses ends, a reply from Gmail goes out from your @gmail.com address. For a business, that looks less trustworthy and splits the conversation history.

Your options, compared

There are three realistic paths. Google itself suggests a desktop mail client, your provider's own webmail, or Google Workspace for a custom domain.

For a full comparison of free and paid routes, see our guide on free business email options in Singapore.

How to move to business email without losing mail

If your mail sits on cPanel or similar hosting, the move follows a standard pattern. Our cPanel email to Google Workspace migration guide covers the details; the outline is:

1. 1

   Choose Google Workspace or Microsoft 365

   Both host email on your own domain. Our guide to setting up business email in Singapore compares them.

2. 2

   Create the mailboxes and verify your domain

   Add each user and any aliases (info@, sales@) before touching DNS, so mail has somewhere to land.

3. 3

   Copy old mail across

   Google Workspace's data migration service can import from IMAP servers. Mail already imported into personal Gmail can be exported with Google Takeout if you need it in the new mailbox.

4. 4

   Switch MX records and add SPF, DKIM and DMARC

   Change the domain's MX records to the new provider at a quiet time, then set authentication records so your mail is not marked as spam.

5. 5

   Remove the old Gmail fetch and Send as entries

   Once new mail arrives in the new mailbox, delete the POP fetch and Send as entries in personal Gmail so nobody keeps using them.

Our guide on setting up business email in Singapore explains the DNS records step by step.

Do it yourself or get help?

For one mailbox, a careful owner can do the move in an afternoon. With several staff, shared addresses and years of mail, the risk is losing messages during the MX switch or locking someone out.

IT Sorted is a Singapore-based team of developers with over 10 years of experience. Our Business Email Setup (S$249) creates a Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace tenant in your name with up to 5 mailboxes, aliases and a shared inbox, plus MX, SPF, DKIM and DMARC records. Our Email Migration (S$390) moves up to 5 mailboxes with folders, plans the cut-over so no email is lost, and keeps the old mailbox as a backup until you confirm. The licence fees are paid to Google or Microsoft separately.