diff --git a/src/core/public/saved_objects/saved_objects_client.ts b/src/core/public/saved_objects/saved_objects_client.ts
index 5393a22f2aee..2ddc776ffdf1 100644
--- a/src/core/public/saved_objects/saved_objects_client.ts
+++ b/src/core/public/saved_objects/saved_objects_client.ts
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ export interface SavedObjectsCreateOptions {
   /** {@inheritDoc SavedObjectsMigrationVersion} */
   migrationVersion?: SavedObjectsMigrationVersion;
   references?: SavedObjectReference[];
-  workspace?: string;
+  workspaces?: string[];
 }
 
 /**
@@ -268,7 +268,11 @@ export class SavedObjectsClient {
         attributes,
         migrationVersion: options.migrationVersion,
         references: options.references,
-        workspace: options.workspace || currentWorkspaceId || undefined,
+        ...(options.workspaces || currentWorkspaceId
+          ? {
+              workspaces: options.workspaces || [currentWorkspaceId],
+            }
+          : {}),
       }),
     });
 
diff --git a/src/core/server/saved_objects/import/create_saved_objects.ts b/src/core/server/saved_objects/import/create_saved_objects.ts
index 9076b7fd2a8d..b67cffce1e96 100644
--- a/src/core/server/saved_objects/import/create_saved_objects.ts
+++ b/src/core/server/saved_objects/import/create_saved_objects.ts
@@ -39,7 +39,7 @@ interface CreateSavedObjectsParams<T> {
   importIdMap: Map<string, { id?: string; omitOriginId?: boolean }>;
   namespace?: string;
   overwrite?: boolean;
-  workspace?: string;
+  workspaces?: string[];
 }
 interface CreateSavedObjectsResult<T> {
   createdObjects: Array<CreatedObject<T>>;
@@ -57,7 +57,7 @@ export const createSavedObjects = async <T>({
   importIdMap,
   namespace,
   overwrite,
-  workspace,
+  workspaces,
 }: CreateSavedObjectsParams<T>): Promise<CreateSavedObjectsResult<T>> => {
   // filter out any objects that resulted in errors
   const errorSet = accumulatedErrors.reduce(
@@ -105,7 +105,7 @@ export const createSavedObjects = async <T>({
     const bulkCreateResponse = await savedObjectsClient.bulkCreate(objectsToCreate, {
       namespace,
       overwrite,
-      workspace,
+      workspaces,
     });
     expectedResults = bulkCreateResponse.saved_objects;
   }
diff --git a/src/core/server/saved_objects/import/import_saved_objects.ts b/src/core/server/saved_objects/import/import_saved_objects.ts
index 67203549cdf8..68104db85e6f 100644
--- a/src/core/server/saved_objects/import/import_saved_objects.ts
+++ b/src/core/server/saved_objects/import/import_saved_objects.ts
@@ -54,7 +54,7 @@ export async function importSavedObjectsFromStream({
   savedObjectsClient,
   typeRegistry,
   namespace,
-  workspace,
+  workspaces,
 }: SavedObjectsImportOptions): Promise<SavedObjectsImportResponse> {
   let errorAccumulator: SavedObjectsImportError[] = [];
   const supportedTypes = typeRegistry.getImportableAndExportableTypes().map((type) => type.name);
@@ -119,7 +119,7 @@ export async function importSavedObjectsFromStream({
     importIdMap,
     overwrite,
     namespace,
-    workspace,
+    workspaces,
   };
   const createSavedObjectsResult = await createSavedObjects(createSavedObjectsParams);
   errorAccumulator = [...errorAccumulator, ...createSavedObjectsResult.errors];
diff --git a/src/core/server/saved_objects/import/types.ts b/src/core/server/saved_objects/import/types.ts
index 876d1451835a..ab13fbfe4658 100644
--- a/src/core/server/saved_objects/import/types.ts
+++ b/src/core/server/saved_objects/import/types.ts
@@ -187,8 +187,8 @@ export interface SavedObjectsImportOptions {
   namespace?: string;
   /** If true, will create new copies of import objects, each with a random `id` and undefined `originId`. */
   createNewCopies: boolean;
-  /** if specified, will import in given workspace, else will import as global object */
-  workspace?: string;
+  /** if specified, will import in given workspaces, else will import as global object */
+  workspaces?: string[];
 }
 
 /**
diff --git a/src/core/server/saved_objects/routes/bulk_create.ts b/src/core/server/saved_objects/routes/bulk_create.ts
index d117bb1d6572..a43a69464308 100644
--- a/src/core/server/saved_objects/routes/bulk_create.ts
+++ b/src/core/server/saved_objects/routes/bulk_create.ts
@@ -30,6 +30,7 @@
 
 import { schema } from '@osd/config-schema';
 import { IRouter } from '../../http';
+import { formatWorkspaces, workspacesValidator } from '../../workspaces';
 
 export const registerBulkCreateRoute = (router: IRouter) => {
   router.post(
@@ -38,7 +39,7 @@ export const registerBulkCreateRoute = (router: IRouter) => {
       validate: {
         query: schema.object({
           overwrite: schema.boolean({ defaultValue: false }),
-          workspace: schema.maybe(schema.string()),
+          workspaces: workspacesValidator,
         }),
         body: schema.arrayOf(
           schema.object({
@@ -62,10 +63,11 @@ export const registerBulkCreateRoute = (router: IRouter) => {
       },
     },
     router.handleLegacyErrors(async (context, req, res) => {
-      const { overwrite, workspace } = req.query;
+      const { overwrite } = req.query;
+      const workspaces = formatWorkspaces(req.query.workspaces);
       const result = await context.core.savedObjects.client.bulkCreate(req.body, {
         overwrite,
-        workspace,
+        workspaces,
       });
       return res.ok({ body: result });
     })
diff --git a/src/core/server/saved_objects/routes/copy.ts b/src/core/server/saved_objects/routes/copy.ts
index b85c4540b40d..7bace54db583 100644
--- a/src/core/server/saved_objects/routes/copy.ts
+++ b/src/core/server/saved_objects/routes/copy.ts
@@ -73,7 +73,7 @@ export const registerCopyRoute = (router: IRouter, config: SavedObjectConfig) =>
         objectLimit: maxImportExportSize,
         overwrite: false,
         createNewCopies: true,
-        workspace: targetWorkspace,
+        workspaces: [targetWorkspace],
       });
 
       return res.ok({ body: result });
diff --git a/src/core/server/saved_objects/routes/create.ts b/src/core/server/saved_objects/routes/create.ts
index 177196a046d7..4d22bd244a03 100644
--- a/src/core/server/saved_objects/routes/create.ts
+++ b/src/core/server/saved_objects/routes/create.ts
@@ -56,14 +56,14 @@ export const registerCreateRoute = (router: IRouter) => {
             )
           ),
           initialNamespaces: schema.maybe(schema.arrayOf(schema.string(), { minSize: 1 })),
-          workspace: schema.maybe(schema.string()),
+          workspaces: schema.maybe(schema.arrayOf(schema.string(), { minSize: 1 })),
         }),
       },
     },
     router.handleLegacyErrors(async (context, req, res) => {
       const { type, id } = req.params;
       const { overwrite } = req.query;
-      const { attributes, migrationVersion, references, initialNamespaces, workspace } = req.body;
+      const { attributes, migrationVersion, references, initialNamespaces, workspaces } = req.body;
 
       const options = {
         id,
@@ -71,7 +71,7 @@ export const registerCreateRoute = (router: IRouter) => {
         migrationVersion,
         references,
         initialNamespaces,
-        workspace,
+        workspaces,
       };
       const result = await context.core.savedObjects.client.create(type, attributes, options);
       return res.ok({ body: result });
diff --git a/src/core/server/saved_objects/routes/import.ts b/src/core/server/saved_objects/routes/import.ts
index 991c3c8219bb..9675d608541c 100644
--- a/src/core/server/saved_objects/routes/import.ts
+++ b/src/core/server/saved_objects/routes/import.ts
@@ -35,6 +35,7 @@ import { IRouter } from '../../http';
 import { importSavedObjectsFromStream } from '../import';
 import { SavedObjectConfig } from '../saved_objects_config';
 import { createSavedObjectsStreamFromNdJson } from './utils';
+import { formatWorkspaces, workspacesValidator } from '../../workspaces';
 
 interface FileStream extends Readable {
   hapi: {
@@ -60,7 +61,7 @@ export const registerImportRoute = (router: IRouter, config: SavedObjectConfig)
           {
             overwrite: schema.boolean({ defaultValue: false }),
             createNewCopies: schema.boolean({ defaultValue: false }),
-            workspace: schema.maybe(schema.string()),
+            workspaces: workspacesValidator,
           },
           {
             validate: (object) => {
@@ -76,7 +77,7 @@ export const registerImportRoute = (router: IRouter, config: SavedObjectConfig)
       },
     },
     router.handleLegacyErrors(async (context, req, res) => {
-      const { overwrite, createNewCopies, workspace } = req.query;
+      const { overwrite, createNewCopies } = req.query;
       const file = req.body.file as FileStream;
       const fileExtension = extname(file.hapi.filename).toLowerCase();
       if (fileExtension !== '.ndjson') {
@@ -92,6 +93,8 @@ export const registerImportRoute = (router: IRouter, config: SavedObjectConfig)
         });
       }
 
+      const workspaces = formatWorkspaces(req.query.workspaces);
+
       const result = await importSavedObjectsFromStream({
         savedObjectsClient: context.core.savedObjects.client,
         typeRegistry: context.core.savedObjects.typeRegistry,
@@ -99,7 +102,7 @@ export const registerImportRoute = (router: IRouter, config: SavedObjectConfig)
         objectLimit: maxImportExportSize,
         overwrite,
         createNewCopies,
-        workspace,
+        workspaces,
       });
 
       return res.ok({ body: result });
diff --git a/src/core/server/saved_objects/service/lib/repository.ts b/src/core/server/saved_objects/service/lib/repository.ts
index 291a42ee8636..482fca1b3546 100644
--- a/src/core/server/saved_objects/service/lib/repository.ts
+++ b/src/core/server/saved_objects/service/lib/repository.ts
@@ -256,7 +256,7 @@ export class SavedObjectsRepository {
       originId,
       initialNamespaces,
       version,
-      workspace,
+      workspaces,
     } = options;
     const namespace = normalizeNamespace(options.namespace);
 
@@ -293,7 +293,7 @@ export class SavedObjectsRepository {
       }
     }
 
-    let savedObjectWorkspaces = workspace ? [workspace] : undefined;
+    let savedObjectWorkspaces = workspaces;
 
     if (id && overwrite) {
       try {
diff --git a/src/core/server/saved_objects/types.ts b/src/core/server/saved_objects/types.ts
index 92d348f10f46..33862cb149fb 100644
--- a/src/core/server/saved_objects/types.ts
+++ b/src/core/server/saved_objects/types.ts
@@ -120,7 +120,7 @@ export interface SavedObjectsFindOptions {
 export interface SavedObjectsBaseOptions {
   /** Specify the namespace for this operation */
   namespace?: string;
-  workspace?: string;
+  workspaces?: string[];
 }
 
 /**
diff --git a/src/plugins/saved_objects_management/public/lib/import_file.ts b/src/plugins/saved_objects_management/public/lib/import_file.ts
index 87fea8960725..e63241b0c3bf 100644
--- a/src/plugins/saved_objects_management/public/lib/import_file.ts
+++ b/src/plugins/saved_objects_management/public/lib/import_file.ts
@@ -40,11 +40,11 @@ interface ImportResponse {
 export async function importFile(
   http: HttpStart,
   file: File,
-  { createNewCopies, overwrite, workspace }: ImportMode
+  { createNewCopies, overwrite, workspaces }: ImportMode
 ) {
   const formData = new FormData();
   formData.append('file', file);
-  const query = createNewCopies ? { createNewCopies, workspace } : { overwrite, workspace };
+  const query = createNewCopies ? { createNewCopies, workspaces } : { overwrite, workspaces };
   return await http.post<ImportResponse>('/api/saved_objects/_import', {
     body: formData,
     headers: {
diff --git a/src/plugins/saved_objects_management/public/management_section/objects_table/components/flyout.tsx b/src/plugins/saved_objects_management/public/management_section/objects_table/components/flyout.tsx
index 179a1b4a3e73..2479772550d5 100644
--- a/src/plugins/saved_objects_management/public/management_section/objects_table/components/flyout.tsx
+++ b/src/plugins/saved_objects_management/public/management_section/objects_table/components/flyout.tsx
@@ -92,7 +92,7 @@ export interface FlyoutProps {
   overlays: OverlayStart;
   http: HttpStart;
   search: DataPublicPluginStart['search'];
-  workspace?: string;
+  workspaces?: string[];
 }
 
 export interface FlyoutState {
@@ -184,7 +184,7 @@ export class Flyout extends Component<FlyoutProps, FlyoutState> {
    * Does the initial import of a file, resolveImportErrors then handles errors and retries
    */
   import = async () => {
-    const { http, workspace } = this.props;
+    const { http, workspaces } = this.props;
     const { file, importMode } = this.state;
     this.setState({ status: 'loading', error: undefined });
 
@@ -192,7 +192,7 @@ export class Flyout extends Component<FlyoutProps, FlyoutState> {
     try {
       const response = await importFile(http, file!, {
         ...importMode,
-        workspace,
+        workspaces,
       });
       this.setState(processImportResponse(response), () => {
         // Resolve import errors right away if there's no index patterns to match
diff --git a/src/plugins/saved_objects_management/public/management_section/objects_table/components/import_mode_control.tsx b/src/plugins/saved_objects_management/public/management_section/objects_table/components/import_mode_control.tsx
index 65ba93ee66f8..9953b5353b85 100644
--- a/src/plugins/saved_objects_management/public/management_section/objects_table/components/import_mode_control.tsx
+++ b/src/plugins/saved_objects_management/public/management_section/objects_table/components/import_mode_control.tsx
@@ -51,7 +51,7 @@ export interface ImportModeControlProps {
 export interface ImportMode {
   createNewCopies: boolean;
   overwrite: boolean;
-  workspace?: string;
+  workspaces?: string[];
 }
 
 const createNewCopiesDisabled = {
diff --git a/src/plugins/saved_objects_management/public/management_section/objects_table/saved_objects_table.tsx b/src/plugins/saved_objects_management/public/management_section/objects_table/saved_objects_table.tsx
index 08226ff63a3c..ca0aad55a0cb 100644
--- a/src/plugins/saved_objects_management/public/management_section/objects_table/saved_objects_table.tsx
+++ b/src/plugins/saved_objects_management/public/management_section/objects_table/saved_objects_table.tsx
@@ -615,7 +615,7 @@ export class SavedObjectsTable extends Component<SavedObjectsTableProps, SavedOb
         close={this.hideImportFlyout}
         done={this.finishImport}
         http={this.props.http}
-        workspace={this.state.workspaceId || undefined}
+        workspaces={this.state.workspaceId ? [this.state.workspaceId] : undefined}
         serviceRegistry={this.props.serviceRegistry}
         indexPatterns={this.props.indexPatterns}
         newIndexPatternUrl={newIndexPatternUrl}