diff --git a/cmd/kubeadm/app/componentconfigs/configset.go b/cmd/kubeadm/app/componentconfigs/configset.go
index c91024fe3d6..a25d96ad4b3 100644
--- a/cmd/kubeadm/app/componentconfigs/configset.go
+++ b/cmd/kubeadm/app/componentconfigs/configset.go
@@ -244,49 +244,6 @@ func FetchFromDocumentMap(clusterCfg *kubeadmapi.ClusterConfiguration, docmap ku
 	return nil
 }
 
-// FetchFromClusterWithLocalOverwrites fetches component configs from a cluster and overwrites them locally with
-// the ones present in the supplied document map. If any UnsupportedConfigVersionError are not handled by the configs
-// in the document map, the function returns them all as a single UnsupportedConfigVersionsErrorMap.
-// This function is normally called only in some specific cases during upgrade.
-func FetchFromClusterWithLocalOverwrites(clusterCfg *kubeadmapi.ClusterConfiguration, client clientset.Interface, docmap kubeadmapi.DocumentMap) error {
-	ensureInitializedComponentConfigs(clusterCfg)
-
-	oldVersionErrs := UnsupportedConfigVersionsErrorMap{}
-
-	for _, handler := range known {
-		componentCfg, err := handler.FromCluster(client, clusterCfg)
-		if err != nil {
-			if vererr, ok := err.(*UnsupportedConfigVersionError); ok {
-				oldVersionErrs[handler.GroupVersion.Group] = vererr
-			} else {
-				return err
-			}
-		} else if componentCfg != nil {
-			clusterCfg.ComponentConfigs[handler.GroupVersion.Group] = componentCfg
-		}
-	}
-
-	for _, handler := range known {
-		componentCfg, err := handler.FromDocumentMap(docmap)
-		if err != nil {
-			if vererr, ok := err.(*UnsupportedConfigVersionError); ok {
-				oldVersionErrs[handler.GroupVersion.Group] = vererr
-			} else {
-				return err
-			}
-		} else if componentCfg != nil {
-			clusterCfg.ComponentConfigs[handler.GroupVersion.Group] = componentCfg
-			delete(oldVersionErrs, handler.GroupVersion.Group)
-		}
-	}
-
-	if len(oldVersionErrs) != 0 {
-		return oldVersionErrs
-	}
-
-	return nil
-}
-
 // GetVersionStates returns a slice of ComponentConfigVersionState structs
 // describing all supported component config groups that were identified on the cluster
 func GetVersionStates(clusterCfg *kubeadmapi.ClusterConfiguration, client clientset.Interface) ([]outputapiv1alpha3.ComponentConfigVersionState, error) {
diff --git a/cmd/kubeadm/app/componentconfigs/fakeconfig_test.go b/cmd/kubeadm/app/componentconfigs/fakeconfig_test.go
index b41a279a069..19583f526c4 100644
--- a/cmd/kubeadm/app/componentconfigs/fakeconfig_test.go
+++ b/cmd/kubeadm/app/componentconfigs/fakeconfig_test.go
@@ -186,22 +186,6 @@ var (
 		clusterName: foo
 	`, kubeadmapiv1.GroupName, oldClusterConfigVersion)
 
-	// currentBarClusterConfig is a minimal currently supported ClusterConfiguration
-	// with a well known value of clusterName (in this case `bar`)
-	currentBarClusterConfig = fmt.Sprintf(`
-		apiVersion: %s
-		kind: ClusterConfiguration
-		clusterName: bar
-	`, kubeadmapiv1.SchemeGroupVersion)
-
-	// oldBarClusterConfig is a minimal unsupported ClusterConfiguration
-	// with a well known value of clusterName (in this case `bar`)
-	oldBarClusterConfig = fmt.Sprintf(`
-		apiVersion: %s/%s
-		kind: ClusterConfiguration
-		clusterName: bar
-	`, kubeadmapiv1.GroupName, oldClusterConfigVersion)
-
 	// This is the "minimal" valid config that can be unmarshalled to and from YAML.
 	// Due to same static defaulting it's not exactly small in size.
 	validUnmarshallableClusterConfig = struct {
@@ -490,126 +474,6 @@ func TestLoadingFromCluster(t *testing.T) {
 	})
 }
 
-func TestFetchFromClusterWithLocalOverwrites(t *testing.T) {
-	fakeKnownContext(func() {
-		cases := []struct {
-			desc          string
-			obj           runtime.Object
-			config        string
-			expectedValue string
-			isNotLoaded   bool
-			expectedErr   bool
-		}{
-			{
-				desc:          "appropriate cluster object without overwrite is used",
-				obj:           testClusterConfigMap(currentFooClusterConfig, false),
-				expectedValue: "foo",
-			},
-			{
-				desc:          "appropriate cluster object with appropriate overwrite is overwritten",
-				obj:           testClusterConfigMap(currentFooClusterConfig, false),
-				config:        dedent.Dedent(currentBarClusterConfig),
-				expectedValue: "bar",
-			},
-			{
-				desc:        "appropriate cluster object with old overwrite returns an error",
-				obj:         testClusterConfigMap(currentFooClusterConfig, false),
-				config:      dedent.Dedent(oldBarClusterConfig),
-				expectedErr: true,
-			},
-			{
-				desc:        "old config without overwrite returns an error",
-				obj:         testClusterConfigMap(oldFooClusterConfig, false),
-				expectedErr: true,
-			},
-			{
-				desc:          "old config with appropriate overwrite returns the substitute",
-				obj:           testClusterConfigMap(oldFooClusterConfig, false),
-				config:        dedent.Dedent(currentBarClusterConfig),
-				expectedValue: "bar",
-			},
-			{
-				desc:        "old config with old overwrite returns an error",
-				obj:         testClusterConfigMap(oldFooClusterConfig, false),
-				config:      dedent.Dedent(oldBarClusterConfig),
-				expectedErr: true,
-			},
-			{
-				desc:          "appropriate signed cluster object without overwrite is used",
-				obj:           testClusterConfigMap(currentFooClusterConfig, true),
-				expectedValue: "foo",
-			},
-			{
-				desc:          "appropriate signed cluster object with appropriate overwrite is overwritten",
-				obj:           testClusterConfigMap(currentFooClusterConfig, true),
-				config:        dedent.Dedent(currentBarClusterConfig),
-				expectedValue: "bar",
-			},
-			{
-				desc:        "appropriate signed cluster object with old overwrite returns an error",
-				obj:         testClusterConfigMap(currentFooClusterConfig, true),
-				config:      dedent.Dedent(oldBarClusterConfig),
-				expectedErr: true,
-			},
-			{
-				desc:        "old signed config without an overwrite is not loaded",
-				obj:         testClusterConfigMap(oldFooClusterConfig, true),
-				isNotLoaded: true,
-			},
-			{
-				desc:          "old signed config with appropriate overwrite returns the substitute",
-				obj:           testClusterConfigMap(oldFooClusterConfig, true),
-				config:        dedent.Dedent(currentBarClusterConfig),
-				expectedValue: "bar",
-			},
-			{
-				desc:        "old signed config with old overwrite returns an error",
-				obj:         testClusterConfigMap(oldFooClusterConfig, true),
-				config:      dedent.Dedent(oldBarClusterConfig),
-				expectedErr: true,
-			},
-		}
-
-		for _, test := range cases {
-			t.Run(test.desc, func(t *testing.T) {
-				client := clientsetfake.NewSimpleClientset(test.obj)
-
-				docmap, err := kubeadmutil.SplitYAMLDocuments([]byte(test.config))
-				if err != nil {
-					t.Fatalf("unexpected failure of SplitYAMLDocuments: %v", err)
-				}
-
-				clusterCfg := testClusterCfg()
-
-				err = FetchFromClusterWithLocalOverwrites(clusterCfg, client, docmap)
-				if err != nil {
-					if !test.expectedErr {
-						t.Errorf("unexpected failure: %v", err)
-					}
-				} else {
-					if test.expectedErr {
-						t.Error("unexpected success")
-					} else {
-						clusterCfg, ok := clusterCfg.ComponentConfigs[kubeadmapiv1.GroupName]
-						if !ok {
-							if !test.isNotLoaded {
-								t.Error("no config was loaded when it should have been")
-							}
-						} else {
-							actualConfig, ok := clusterCfg.(*clusterConfig)
-							if !ok {
-								t.Error("the config is not of the expected type")
-							} else if actualConfig.config.ClusterName != test.expectedValue {
-								t.Errorf("unexpected value:\n\tgot: %q\n\texpected: %q", actualConfig.config.ClusterName, test.expectedValue)
-							}
-						}
-					}
-				}
-			})
-		}
-	})
-}
-
 func TestGetVersionStates(t *testing.T) {
 	fakeKnownContext(func() {
 		versionStateCurrent := outputapiv1alpha3.ComponentConfigVersionState{