diff --git a/mex/common/cli.py b/mex/common/cli.py
index e2b6cb00..a74f34d4 100644
--- a/mex/common/cli.py
+++ b/mex/common/cli.py
@@ -2,11 +2,10 @@
 import pdb  # noqa: T100
 import sys
 from bdb import BdbQuit
-from collections.abc import Callable
 from functools import partial
 from textwrap import dedent
 from traceback import format_exc
-from typing import Any
+from typing import Any, Callable
 
 import click
 from click import Command, Option
@@ -47,7 +46,7 @@ def _field_to_parameters(name: str, field: FieldInfo) -> list[str]:
     names = [name] + ([field.alias] if field.alias else [])
     names = [n.replace("_", "-") for n in names]
     dashes = ["--" if len(n) > 1 else "-" for n in names]
-    return [f"{d}{n}" for d, n in zip(dashes, names, strict=False)]
+    return [f"{d}{n}" for d, n in zip(dashes, names)]
 
 
 def _field_to_option(name: str, settings_cls: type[SettingsType]) -> Option:
diff --git a/mex/common/connector/base.py b/mex/common/connector/base.py
index ad953c07..e667cd55 100644
--- a/mex/common/connector/base.py
+++ b/mex/common/connector/base.py
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 from abc import ABCMeta, abstractmethod
 from contextlib import ExitStack
 from types import TracebackType
-from typing import TypeVar, cast, final
+from typing import Optional, TypeVar, cast, final
 
 from mex.common.context import ContextStore
 
@@ -46,9 +46,9 @@ def __enter__(self: ConnectorType) -> ConnectorType:
     @final
     def __exit__(
         self,
-        exc_type: type[BaseException] | None,
-        exc_val: BaseException | None,
-        exc_tb: TracebackType | None,
+        exc_type: Optional[type[BaseException]],
+        exc_val: Optional[BaseException],
+        exc_tb: Optional[TracebackType],
     ) -> None:
         """Exit connector by calling `close` method and removing it from context."""
         self.close()
diff --git a/mex/common/extract.py b/mex/common/extract.py
index bbdbb081..a6015fd0 100644
--- a/mex/common/extract.py
+++ b/mex/common/extract.py
@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
 from collections import defaultdict
-from collections.abc import Generator
 from pathlib import Path
-from typing import TYPE_CHECKING, Any, TypeVar, Union
+from typing import TYPE_CHECKING, Any, Generator, TypeVar, Union
 
 import numpy as np
 import pandas as pd
@@ -26,7 +25,7 @@ def get_dtypes_for_model(model: type["BaseModel"]) -> dict[str, "Dtype"]:
     """Get the basic dtypes per field for a model from the `PANDAS_DTYPE_MAP`.
 
     Args:
-        model: Model class for which to get pandas data types per field alias
+        model: Model class for which to get pandas dtypes per field alias
 
     Returns:
         Mapping from field alias to dtype strings
diff --git a/mex/common/identity/registry.py b/mex/common/identity/registry.py
index b133ea6e..39c514dc 100644
--- a/mex/common/identity/registry.py
+++ b/mex/common/identity/registry.py
@@ -1,5 +1,4 @@
-from collections.abc import Hashable
-from typing import Final
+from typing import Final, Hashable
 
 from mex.common.identity.base import BaseProvider
 from mex.common.identity.memory import MemoryIdentityProvider
diff --git a/mex/common/ldap/connector.py b/mex/common/ldap/connector.py
index e1188b68..bb168180 100644
--- a/mex/common/ldap/connector.py
+++ b/mex/common/ldap/connector.py
@@ -1,6 +1,5 @@
-from collections.abc import Generator
 from functools import cache
-from typing import TypeVar
+from typing import Generator, TypeVar
 from urllib.parse import urlsplit
 
 from ldap3 import AUTO_BIND_NO_TLS, Connection, Server
diff --git a/mex/common/ldap/extract.py b/mex/common/ldap/extract.py
index 69eafab7..be6070f7 100644
--- a/mex/common/ldap/extract.py
+++ b/mex/common/ldap/extract.py
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 from collections import defaultdict
-from collections.abc import Iterable
+from typing import Iterable
 
 from mex.common.identity import get_provider
 from mex.common.ldap.models.person import LDAPPerson, LDAPPersonWithQuery
diff --git a/mex/common/ldap/transform.py b/mex/common/ldap/transform.py
index 01253f31..532fa452 100644
--- a/mex/common/ldap/transform.py
+++ b/mex/common/ldap/transform.py
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 import re
-from collections.abc import Generator, Iterable
 from dataclasses import dataclass
 from functools import cache
+from typing import Generator, Iterable
 
 from mex.common.exceptions import MExError
 from mex.common.ldap.models.actor import LDAPActor
diff --git a/mex/common/logging.py b/mex/common/logging.py
index 4f61a7fc..809b23d8 100644
--- a/mex/common/logging.py
+++ b/mex/common/logging.py
@@ -1,9 +1,8 @@
 import logging
 import logging.config
-from collections.abc import Callable, Generator
 from datetime import datetime
 from functools import wraps
-from typing import Any, TypeVar
+from typing import Any, Callable, Generator, Optional, TypeVar, Union
 
 import click
 
@@ -60,12 +59,12 @@ def wrapper(*args: Any, **kwargs: Any) -> Generator[YieldT, None, None]:
     return wrapper
 
 
-def get_ts(ts: datetime | None = None) -> str:
+def get_ts(ts: Optional[datetime] = None) -> str:
     """Get a styled timestamp tag for prefixing log messages."""
     return click.style(f"[{ts or datetime.now()}]", fg="bright_yellow")
 
 
-def echo(text: str | bytes, ts: datetime | None = None, **styles: Any) -> None:
+def echo(text: Union[str, bytes], ts: Optional[datetime] = None, **styles: Any) -> None:
     """Echo the given text with the given styles and the current timestamp prefix.
 
     Args:
diff --git a/mex/common/models/__init__.py b/mex/common/models/__init__.py
index be82521a..0edccea7 100644
--- a/mex/common/models/__init__.py
+++ b/mex/common/models/__init__.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-from typing import Final, get_args
+from typing import Final, Union, get_args
 
 from mex.common.models.access_platform import (
     BaseAccessPlatform,
@@ -99,38 +99,37 @@
     "MEX_PRIMARY_SOURCE_STABLE_TARGET_ID",
 )
 
-AnyBaseModel = (
-    BaseAccessPlatform
-    | BaseActivity
-    | BaseContactPoint
-    | BaseDistribution
-    | BaseOrganization
-    | BaseOrganizationalUnit
-    | BasePerson
-    | BasePrimarySource
-    | BaseResource
-    | BaseVariable
-    | BaseVariableGroup
-)
-
+AnyBaseModel = Union[
+    BaseAccessPlatform,
+    BaseActivity,
+    BaseContactPoint,
+    BaseDistribution,
+    BaseOrganization,
+    BaseOrganizationalUnit,
+    BasePerson,
+    BasePrimarySource,
+    BaseResource,
+    BaseVariable,
+    BaseVariableGroup,
+]
 BASE_MODEL_CLASSES: Final[list[type[AnyBaseModel]]] = list(get_args(AnyBaseModel))
 BASE_MODEL_CLASSES_BY_NAME: Final[dict[str, type[AnyBaseModel]]] = {
     cls.__name__: cls for cls in BASE_MODEL_CLASSES
 }
 
-AnyExtractedModel = (
-    ExtractedAccessPlatform
-    | ExtractedActivity
-    | ExtractedContactPoint
-    | ExtractedDistribution
-    | ExtractedOrganization
-    | ExtractedOrganizationalUnit
-    | ExtractedPerson
-    | ExtractedPrimarySource
-    | ExtractedResource
-    | ExtractedVariable
-    | ExtractedVariableGroup
-)
+AnyExtractedModel = Union[
+    ExtractedAccessPlatform,
+    ExtractedActivity,
+    ExtractedContactPoint,
+    ExtractedDistribution,
+    ExtractedOrganization,
+    ExtractedOrganizationalUnit,
+    ExtractedPerson,
+    ExtractedPrimarySource,
+    ExtractedResource,
+    ExtractedVariable,
+    ExtractedVariableGroup,
+]
 EXTRACTED_MODEL_CLASSES: Final[list[type[AnyExtractedModel]]] = list(
     get_args(AnyExtractedModel)
 )
@@ -138,19 +137,19 @@
     cls.__name__: cls for cls in EXTRACTED_MODEL_CLASSES
 }
 
-AnyMergedModel = (
-    MergedAccessPlatform
-    | MergedActivity
-    | MergedContactPoint
-    | MergedDistribution
-    | MergedOrganization
-    | MergedOrganizationalUnit
-    | MergedPerson
-    | MergedPrimarySource
-    | MergedResource
-    | MergedVariable
-    | MergedVariableGroup
-)
+AnyMergedModel = Union[
+    MergedAccessPlatform,
+    MergedActivity,
+    MergedContactPoint,
+    MergedDistribution,
+    MergedOrganization,
+    MergedOrganizationalUnit,
+    MergedPerson,
+    MergedPrimarySource,
+    MergedResource,
+    MergedVariable,
+    MergedVariableGroup,
+]
 MERGED_MODEL_CLASSES: Final[list[type[AnyMergedModel]]] = list(get_args(AnyMergedModel))
 MERGED_MODEL_CLASSES_BY_NAME: Final[dict[str, type[AnyMergedModel]]] = {
     cls.__name__: cls for cls in MERGED_MODEL_CLASSES
diff --git a/mex/common/models/base.py b/mex/common/models/base.py
index eba44854..56785992 100644
--- a/mex/common/models/base.py
+++ b/mex/common/models/base.py
@@ -2,11 +2,12 @@
 import pickle  # nosec
 from collections.abc import MutableMapping
 from functools import cache
-from types import UnionType
 from typing import (
     Any,
     TypeVar,
     Union,
+    get_args,
+    get_origin,
 )
 
 from pydantic import BaseModel as PydanticBaseModel
@@ -16,11 +17,11 @@
     ValidationError,
     model_validator,
 )
+from pydantic.fields import FieldInfo
 from pydantic.json_schema import DEFAULT_REF_TEMPLATE, JsonSchemaMode
 from pydantic.json_schema import GenerateJsonSchema as PydanticJsonSchemaGenerator
 
 from mex.common.models.schema import JsonSchemaGenerator
-from mex.common.utils import get_inner_types
 
 RawModelDataT = TypeVar("RawModelDataT")
 
@@ -69,46 +70,52 @@ def model_json_schema(
     @cache
     def _get_alias_lookup(cls) -> dict[str, str]:
         """Build a cached mapping from field alias to field names."""
-        return {
-            field_info.alias or field_name: field_name
-            for field_name, field_info in cls.model_fields.items()
-        }
+        return {field.alias or name: name for name, field in cls.model_fields.items()}
 
     @classmethod
     @cache
     def _get_list_field_names(cls) -> list[str]:
         """Build a cached list of fields that look like lists."""
-        field_names = []
-        for field_name, field_info in cls.model_fields.items():
-            field_types = get_inner_types(
-                field_info.annotation, unpack=(Union, UnionType)
-            )
-            if any(
-                isinstance(field_type, type) and issubclass(field_type, list)
-                for field_type in field_types
-            ):
-                field_names.append(field_name)
-        return field_names
+
+        def is_object_subclass_of_list(obj: Any) -> bool:
+            try:
+                return issubclass(obj, list)
+            except TypeError:
+                return False
+
+        list_fields = []
+        for name, field in cls.model_fields.items():
+            origin = get_origin(field.annotation)
+            if is_object_subclass_of_list(origin):
+                list_fields.append(name)
+            elif origin is Union:
+                for arg in get_args(field.annotation):
+                    if is_object_subclass_of_list(get_origin(arg)):
+                        list_fields.append(name)
+                        break
+        return list_fields
 
     @classmethod
     @cache
     def _get_field_names_allowing_none(cls) -> list[str]:
         """Build a cached list of fields can be set to None."""
-        field_names: list[str] = []
-        for field_name, field_info in cls.model_fields.items():
+        fields: list[str] = []
+        for name, field_info in cls.model_fields.items():
             validator = TypeAdapter(field_info.annotation)
             try:
                 validator.validate_python(None)
             except ValidationError:
                 continue
-            field_names.append(field_name)
-        return field_names
+            fields.append(name)
+        return fields
 
     @classmethod
-    def _convert_non_list_to_list(cls, field_name: str, value: Any) -> list[Any] | None:
+    def _convert_non_list_to_list(
+        cls, name: str, field: FieldInfo, value: Any
+    ) -> list[Any] | None:
         """Convert a non-list value to a list value by wrapping it in a list."""
         if value is None:
-            if field_name in cls._get_field_names_allowing_none():
+            if name in cls._get_field_names_allowing_none():
                 return None
             # if a list is required, we interpret None as an empty list
             return []
@@ -116,7 +123,7 @@ def _convert_non_list_to_list(cls, field_name: str, value: Any) -> list[Any] | N
         return [value]
 
     @classmethod
-    def _convert_list_to_non_list(cls, field_name: str, value: list[Any]) -> Any:
+    def _convert_list_to_non_list(cls, name: str, value: list[Any]) -> Any:
         """Convert a list value to a non-list value by unpacking it if possible."""
         length = len(value)
         if length == 0:
@@ -126,17 +133,19 @@ def _convert_list_to_non_list(cls, field_name: str, value: list[Any]) -> Any:
             # if we have just one entry, we can safely unpack it
             return value[0]
         # we cannot unambiguously unpack more than one value
-        raise ValueError(f"got multiple values for {field_name}")
+        raise ValueError(f"got multiple values for {name}")
 
     @classmethod
-    def _fix_value_listyness_for_field(cls, field_name: str, value: Any) -> Any:
+    def _fix_value_listyness_for_field(
+        cls, name: str, field: FieldInfo, value: Any
+    ) -> Any:
         """Check actual and desired shape of a value and fix it if necessary."""
-        should_be_list = field_name in cls._get_list_field_names()
+        should_be_list = name in cls._get_list_field_names()
         is_list = isinstance(value, list)
         if not is_list and should_be_list:
-            return cls._convert_non_list_to_list(field_name, value)
+            return cls._convert_non_list_to_list(name, field, value)
         if is_list and not should_be_list:
-            return cls._convert_list_to_non_list(field_name, value)
+            return cls._convert_list_to_non_list(name, value)
         # already desired shape
         return value
 
@@ -164,8 +173,10 @@ def fix_listyness(cls, data: RawModelDataT) -> RawModelDataT:
         if isinstance(data, MutableMapping):
             for name, value in data.items():
                 field_name = cls._get_alias_lookup().get(name, name)
-                if field_name in cls.model_fields:
-                    data[name] = cls._fix_value_listyness_for_field(field_name, value)
+                if field := cls.model_fields.get(field_name):
+                    data[name] = cls._fix_value_listyness_for_field(
+                        field_name, field, value
+                    )
         return data
 
     def checksum(self) -> str:
diff --git a/mex/common/models/filter.py b/mex/common/models/filter.py
index e10f3489..3343b64f 100644
--- a/mex/common/models/filter.py
+++ b/mex/common/models/filter.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-from typing import Annotated, Any
+from typing import Annotated, Any, Optional
 
 from pydantic import BaseModel, Field, create_model
 
@@ -8,18 +8,18 @@
 class EntityFilterRule(BaseModel, extra="forbid"):
     """Entity filter rule model."""
 
-    forValues: list[str] | None = None
-    rule: str | None = None
+    forValues: Optional[list[str]] = None
+    rule: Optional[str] = None
 
 
 class EntityFilter(BaseModel, extra="forbid"):
     """Entity filter model."""
 
     fieldInPrimarySource: str
-    locationInPrimarySource: str | None = None
-    examplesInPrimarySource: list[str] | None = None
+    locationInPrimarySource: Optional[str] = None
+    examplesInPrimarySource: Optional[list[str]] = None
     mappingRules: Annotated[list[EntityFilterRule], Field(min_length=1)]
-    comment: str | None = None
+    comment: Optional[str] = None
 
 
 def generate_entity_filter_schema(
diff --git a/mex/common/models/mapping.py b/mex/common/models/mapping.py
index b4d9f2d5..00b81223 100644
--- a/mex/common/models/mapping.py
+++ b/mex/common/models/mapping.py
@@ -8,19 +8,19 @@
 class GenericRule(BaseModel, extra="forbid"):
     """Generic mapping rule model."""
 
-    forValues: list[str] | None = None
-    setValues: list[Any] | None = None
-    rule: str | None = None
+    forValues: Optional[list[str]] = None
+    setValues: Optional[list[Any]] = None
+    rule: Optional[str] = None
 
 
 class GenericField(BaseModel, extra="forbid"):
     """Generic Field model."""
 
     fieldInPrimarySource: str
-    locationInPrimarySource: str | None = None
-    examplesInPrimarySource: list[str] | None = None
+    locationInPrimarySource: Optional[str] = None
+    examplesInPrimarySource: Optional[list[str]] = None
     mappingRules: Annotated[list[GenericRule], Field(min_length=1)]
-    comment: str | None = None
+    comment: Optional[str] = None
 
 
 def generate_mapping_schema_for_mex_class(
@@ -44,15 +44,15 @@ def generate_mapping_schema_for_mex_class(
             continue
         # first create dynamic rule model
         if get_origin(field_info.annotation) is list:
-            rule_type: Any = field_info.annotation
+            rule_type: object = Optional[field_info.annotation]
         else:
-            rule_type = list[field_info.annotation]  # type: ignore[name-defined]
+            rule_type = Optional[list[field_info.annotation]]  # type: ignore[name-defined]
 
         rule_model: type[GenericRule] = create_model(
             f"{field_name.capitalize()}MappingRule",
             __base__=(GenericRule,),
             setValues=(
-                Optional[rule_type],  # noqa: UP007
+                rule_type,
                 None,
             ),
         )
diff --git a/mex/common/organigram/extract.py b/mex/common/organigram/extract.py
index 173d8728..17ec89fa 100644
--- a/mex/common/organigram/extract.py
+++ b/mex/common/organigram/extract.py
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import json
-from collections.abc import Generator, Iterable
+from typing import Generator, Iterable
 
 from mex.common.logging import watch
 from mex.common.models import ExtractedOrganizationalUnit
diff --git a/mex/common/organigram/transform.py b/mex/common/organigram/transform.py
index eb675a79..1c9e14d4 100644
--- a/mex/common/organigram/transform.py
+++ b/mex/common/organigram/transform.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-from collections.abc import Generator, Iterable
+from typing import Generator, Iterable
 
 from mex.common.logging import watch
 from mex.common.models import ExtractedOrganizationalUnit, ExtractedPrimarySource
diff --git a/mex/common/primary_source/extract.py b/mex/common/primary_source/extract.py
index 8ca95473..d38f2a18 100644
--- a/mex/common/primary_source/extract.py
+++ b/mex/common/primary_source/extract.py
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import json
-from collections.abc import Generator
+from typing import Generator
 
 from mex.common.logging import watch
 from mex.common.primary_source.models import SeedPrimarySource
diff --git a/mex/common/primary_source/transform.py b/mex/common/primary_source/transform.py
index 085a1f66..01c5ccba 100644
--- a/mex/common/primary_source/transform.py
+++ b/mex/common/primary_source/transform.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-from collections.abc import Generator, Iterable
+from typing import Generator, Iterable
 
 from mex.common.logging import watch
 from mex.common.models import (
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ def transform_seed_primary_sources_to_extracted_primary_sources(
             identifierInPrimarySource=primary_source.identifier,
             title=primary_source.title,
             hadPrimarySource=MEX_PRIMARY_SOURCE_STABLE_TARGET_ID,
-            **set_stable_target_id,
+            **set_stable_target_id
         )
 
 
diff --git a/mex/common/settings.py b/mex/common/settings.py
index c6f68f5f..7ff1b356 100644
--- a/mex/common/settings.py
+++ b/mex/common/settings.py
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 from pathlib import Path
-from typing import Any, Optional, TypeVar
+from typing import Any, Optional, TypeVar, Union
 
 from pydantic import AnyUrl, Field, SecretStr, model_validator
 from pydantic_core import Url
@@ -142,7 +142,7 @@ def get(cls: type[SettingsType]) -> SettingsType:
         description="Backend API key with write access to call POST/PUT endpoints",
         validation_alias="MEX_BACKEND_API_KEY",
     )
-    verify_session: bool | AssetsPath = Field(
+    verify_session: Union[bool, AssetsPath] = Field(
         True,
         description=(
             "Either a boolean that controls whether we verify the server's TLS "
diff --git a/mex/common/sinks/backend_api.py b/mex/common/sinks/backend_api.py
index e4a0906f..76dbe49d 100644
--- a/mex/common/sinks/backend_api.py
+++ b/mex/common/sinks/backend_api.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-from collections.abc import Generator, Iterable
+from typing import Generator, Iterable
 
 from mex.common.backend_api.connector import BackendApiConnector
 from mex.common.logging import watch
diff --git a/mex/common/sinks/ndjson.py b/mex/common/sinks/ndjson.py
index c3d05866..27676892 100644
--- a/mex/common/sinks/ndjson.py
+++ b/mex/common/sinks/ndjson.py
@@ -1,8 +1,7 @@
 import json
-from collections.abc import Generator, Iterable
 from contextlib import ExitStack
 from pathlib import Path
-from typing import IO, Any
+from typing import IO, Any, Generator, Iterable
 
 from mex.common.logging import echo, watch
 from mex.common.models import AnyExtractedModel
diff --git a/mex/common/testing/plugin.py b/mex/common/testing/plugin.py
index f32aadab..e0958d30 100644
--- a/mex/common/testing/plugin.py
+++ b/mex/common/testing/plugin.py
@@ -5,10 +5,9 @@
 """
 
 import os
-from collections.abc import Generator
 from enum import Enum
 from pathlib import Path
-from typing import Any
+from typing import Any, Generator
 from unittest.mock import MagicMock
 
 from langdetect import DetectorFactory
diff --git a/mex/common/transform.py b/mex/common/transform.py
index 8f686beb..f0ef7cca 100644
--- a/mex/common/transform.py
+++ b/mex/common/transform.py
@@ -1,10 +1,9 @@
 import json
 import re
-from collections.abc import Iterable
 from enum import Enum
 from functools import cache
 from pathlib import PurePath
-from typing import Any, cast
+from typing import Any, Iterable, cast
 from uuid import UUID
 
 from pydantic import AnyUrl, SecretStr
diff --git a/mex/common/types/__init__.py b/mex/common/types/__init__.py
index 5885a9d9..1f758389 100644
--- a/mex/common/types/__init__.py
+++ b/mex/common/types/__init__.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-from typing import Final, get_args
+from typing import Final, Union, get_args
 
 from mex.common.types.email import Email
 from mex.common.types.identifier import (
@@ -119,25 +119,28 @@
     "WorkPath",
 )
 
-AnyNestedModel = Link | Text
+AnyNestedModel = Union[
+    Link,
+    Text,
+]
 NESTED_MODEL_CLASSES: Final[list[type[AnyNestedModel]]] = list(get_args(AnyNestedModel))
 NESTED_MODEL_CLASSES_BY_NAME: Final[dict[str, type[AnyNestedModel]]] = {
     cls.__name__: cls for cls in NESTED_MODEL_CLASSES
 }
 
-AnyMergedIdentifier = (
-    MergedAccessPlatformIdentifier
-    | MergedActivityIdentifier
-    | MergedContactPointIdentifier
-    | MergedDistributionIdentifier
-    | MergedOrganizationalUnitIdentifier
-    | MergedOrganizationIdentifier
-    | MergedPersonIdentifier
-    | MergedPrimarySourceIdentifier
-    | MergedResourceIdentifier
-    | MergedVariableGroupIdentifier
-    | MergedVariableIdentifier
-)
+AnyMergedIdentifier = Union[
+    MergedAccessPlatformIdentifier,
+    MergedActivityIdentifier,
+    MergedContactPointIdentifier,
+    MergedDistributionIdentifier,
+    MergedOrganizationalUnitIdentifier,
+    MergedOrganizationIdentifier,
+    MergedPersonIdentifier,
+    MergedPrimarySourceIdentifier,
+    MergedResourceIdentifier,
+    MergedVariableGroupIdentifier,
+    MergedVariableIdentifier,
+]
 MERGED_IDENTIFIER_CLASSES: Final[list[type[AnyMergedIdentifier]]] = list(
     get_args(AnyMergedIdentifier)
 )
@@ -145,19 +148,19 @@
     cls.__name__: cls for cls in MERGED_IDENTIFIER_CLASSES
 }
 
-AnyExtractedIdentifier = (
-    ExtractedAccessPlatformIdentifier
-    | ExtractedActivityIdentifier
-    | ExtractedContactPointIdentifier
-    | ExtractedDistributionIdentifier
-    | ExtractedOrganizationalUnitIdentifier
-    | ExtractedOrganizationIdentifier
-    | ExtractedPersonIdentifier
-    | ExtractedPrimarySourceIdentifier
-    | ExtractedResourceIdentifier
-    | ExtractedVariableGroupIdentifier
-    | ExtractedVariableIdentifier
-)
+AnyExtractedIdentifier = Union[
+    ExtractedAccessPlatformIdentifier,
+    ExtractedActivityIdentifier,
+    ExtractedContactPointIdentifier,
+    ExtractedDistributionIdentifier,
+    ExtractedOrganizationalUnitIdentifier,
+    ExtractedOrganizationIdentifier,
+    ExtractedPersonIdentifier,
+    ExtractedPrimarySourceIdentifier,
+    ExtractedResourceIdentifier,
+    ExtractedVariableGroupIdentifier,
+    ExtractedVariableIdentifier,
+]
 EXTRACTED_IDENTIFIER_CLASSES: Final[list[type[AnyExtractedIdentifier]]] = list(
     get_args(AnyExtractedIdentifier)
 )
diff --git a/mex/common/types/email.py b/mex/common/types/email.py
index 51fac461..fd4416bd 100644
--- a/mex/common/types/email.py
+++ b/mex/common/types/email.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-from typing import Any
+from typing import Any, Type
 
 from pydantic import GetJsonSchemaHandler
 from pydantic.json_schema import JsonSchemaValue
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@ class Email(str):
     """Email address of a person, organization or other entity."""
 
     @classmethod
-    def __get_pydantic_core_schema__(cls, _source: type[Any]) -> core_schema.CoreSchema:
+    def __get_pydantic_core_schema__(cls, _source: Type[Any]) -> core_schema.CoreSchema:
         """Get pydantic core schema."""
         return core_schema.str_schema(pattern=EMAIL_PATTERN)
 
diff --git a/mex/common/types/identifier.py b/mex/common/types/identifier.py
index c6732324..d5c42b6a 100644
--- a/mex/common/types/identifier.py
+++ b/mex/common/types/identifier.py
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import re
 import string
-from typing import Any, TypeVar
+from typing import Any, Type, TypeVar
 from uuid import UUID, uuid4
 
 from pydantic import GetCoreSchemaHandler, GetJsonSchemaHandler
@@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ def generate(cls: type[IdentifierT], seed: int | None = None) -> IdentifierT:
     @classmethod
     def validate(cls: type[IdentifierT], value: Any) -> IdentifierT:
         """Validate a string, UUID or Identifier."""
-        if isinstance(value, str | UUID | Identifier):
+        if isinstance(value, (str, UUID, Identifier)):
             value = str(value)
             if re.match(MEX_ID_PATTERN, value):
                 return cls(value)
@@ -46,7 +46,7 @@ def validate(cls: type[IdentifierT], value: Any) -> IdentifierT:
 
     @classmethod
     def __get_pydantic_core_schema__(
-        cls, source: type[Any], handler: GetCoreSchemaHandler
+        cls, source: Type[Any], handler: GetCoreSchemaHandler
     ) -> core_schema.CoreSchema:
         """Modify the schema to add the ID regex."""
         identifier_schema = {
diff --git a/mex/common/types/path.py b/mex/common/types/path.py
index a543e6a2..b85e6d56 100644
--- a/mex/common/types/path.py
+++ b/mex/common/types/path.py
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 from os import PathLike
 from pathlib import Path
-from typing import Any, TypeVar, Union
+from typing import Any, Type, TypeVar, Union
 
 from pydantic_core import core_schema
 
@@ -51,7 +51,7 @@ def is_relative(self) -> bool:
         return not self._path.is_absolute()
 
     @classmethod
-    def __get_pydantic_core_schema__(cls, _source: type[Any]) -> core_schema.CoreSchema:
+    def __get_pydantic_core_schema__(cls, _source: Type[Any]) -> core_schema.CoreSchema:
         """Set schema to str schema."""
         from_str_schema = core_schema.chain_schema(
             [
@@ -75,7 +75,7 @@ def __get_pydantic_core_schema__(cls, _source: type[Any]) -> core_schema.CoreSch
     @classmethod
     def validate(cls: type[PathWrapperT], value: Any) -> PathWrapperT:
         """Convert a string value to a Text instance."""
-        if isinstance(value, str | Path | PathWrapper):
+        if isinstance(value, (str, Path, PathWrapper)):
             return cls(value)
         raise ValueError(f"Cannot parse {type(value)} as {cls.__name__}")
 
diff --git a/mex/common/types/timestamp.py b/mex/common/types/timestamp.py
index 13005260..300f87e4 100644
--- a/mex/common/types/timestamp.py
+++ b/mex/common/types/timestamp.py
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
 from enum import Enum
 from functools import total_ordering
 from itertools import zip_longest
-from typing import Any, Literal, Union, cast, overload
+from typing import Any, Literal, Optional, Type, Union, cast, overload
 
 from pandas._libs.tslibs import parsing
 from pydantic import GetCoreSchemaHandler, GetJsonSchemaHandler
@@ -77,13 +77,13 @@ def __init__(
     def __init__(
         self,
         *args: int,
-        tzinfo: tzinfo | None = None,
+        tzinfo: Optional[tzinfo] = None,
     ) -> None: ...  # pragma: no cover
 
     def __init__(
         self,
         *args: Union[int, str, date, datetime, "Timestamp"],
-        tzinfo: tzinfo | None = None,
+        tzinfo: Optional[tzinfo] = None,
     ) -> None:
         """Create a new timestamp instance.
 
@@ -107,7 +107,7 @@ def __init__(
         if len(args) > 7:
             raise TypeError(f"Timestamp takes at most 7 arguments ({len(args)} given)")
 
-        if len(args) == 1 and isinstance(args[0], str | date | datetime | Timestamp):
+        if len(args) == 1 and isinstance(args[0], (str, date, datetime, Timestamp)):
             if tzinfo:
                 raise TypeError("Timestamp does not accept tzinfo in parsing mode")
             if isinstance(args[0], Timestamp):
@@ -135,7 +135,7 @@ def __init__(
 
     @classmethod
     def __get_pydantic_core_schema__(
-        cls, _source: type[Any], _handler: GetCoreSchemaHandler
+        cls, _source: Type[Any], _handler: GetCoreSchemaHandler
     ) -> core_schema.CoreSchema:
         """Mutate the field schema for timestamps."""
         from_str_schema = core_schema.chain_schema(
@@ -176,13 +176,13 @@ def __get_pydantic_json_schema__(
     @classmethod
     def validate(cls, value: Any) -> "Timestamp":
         """Parse any value and try to convert it into a timestamp."""
-        if isinstance(value, cls | date | str):
+        if isinstance(value, (cls, date, str)):
             return cls(value)
         raise TypeError(f"Cannot parse {type(value)} as {cls.__name__}")
 
     @staticmethod
     def _parse_args(
-        *args: int, tzinfo: tzinfo | None = None
+        *args: int, tzinfo: Optional[tzinfo] = None
     ) -> tuple[datetime, TimestampPrecision]:
         """Parse 0-7 integer arguments into a timestamp and deduct the precision."""
         if tzinfo is None:
diff --git a/mex/common/types/vocabulary.py b/mex/common/types/vocabulary.py
index ab9ce769..f519e2f7 100644
--- a/mex/common/types/vocabulary.py
+++ b/mex/common/types/vocabulary.py
@@ -31,8 +31,8 @@ class Concept(BaseModel):
     identifier: AnyUrl
     inScheme: AnyUrl
     prefLabel: BilingualText
-    altLabel: BilingualText | None = None
-    definition: BilingualText | None = None
+    altLabel: Optional[BilingualText] = None
+    definition: Optional[BilingualText] = None
 
 
 @cache
@@ -93,7 +93,7 @@ def find(cls, search_term: Union[str, "Text"]) -> Optional["VocabularyEnum"]:
             Enum instance for the found concept or None
         """
         language = getattr(search_term, "language", None)
-        search_term = normalize(str(search_term))
+        search_term = normalize(search_term)
         for concept in cls.__concepts__:
             searchable_labels = []
             for label in (concept.prefLabel, concept.altLabel):
diff --git a/mex/common/utils.py b/mex/common/utils.py
index f527bda5..facaf78a 100644
--- a/mex/common/utils.py
+++ b/mex/common/utils.py
@@ -1,18 +1,9 @@
 import re
-from collections.abc import Container, Generator, Iterable, Iterator
 from functools import cache
 from itertools import zip_longest
 from random import random
 from time import sleep
-from types import UnionType
-from typing import (
-    Annotated,
-    Any,
-    TypeVar,
-    Union,
-    get_args,
-    get_origin,
-)
+from typing import Container, Iterable, Iterator, Optional, TypeVar
 
 T = TypeVar("T")
 
@@ -25,7 +16,9 @@ def contains_any(base: Container[T], tokens: Iterable[T]) -> bool:
     return False
 
 
-def any_contains_any(bases: Iterable[Container[T] | None], tokens: Iterable[T]) -> bool:
+def any_contains_any(
+    bases: Iterable[Optional[Container[T]]], tokens: Iterable[T]
+) -> bool:
     """Check if any of the given bases contains any of the given tokens."""
     for base in bases:
         if base is None:
@@ -36,31 +29,13 @@ def any_contains_any(bases: Iterable[Container[T] | None], tokens: Iterable[T])
     return False
 
 
-def get_inner_types(
-    annotation: Any, unpack: Iterable[Any] = (Union, UnionType, list)
-) -> Generator[type, None, None]:
-    """Yield all inner types from annotations and the types in `unpack`."""
-    origin = get_origin(annotation)
-    if origin == Annotated:
-        yield from get_inner_types(get_args(annotation)[0], unpack)
-    elif origin in unpack:
-        for arg in get_args(annotation):
-            yield from get_inner_types(arg, unpack)
-    elif origin is not None:
-        yield origin
-    elif annotation is None:
-        yield type(None)
-    else:
-        yield annotation
-
-
 @cache
 def normalize(string: str) -> str:
     """Normalize the given string to lowercase, numerals and single spaces."""
     return " ".join(re.sub(r"[^a-z0-9]", " ", string.lower()).split())
 
 
-def grouper(chunk_size: int, iterable: Iterable[T]) -> Iterator[Iterable[T | None]]:
+def grouper(chunk_size: int, iterable: Iterable[T]) -> Iterator[Iterable[Optional[T]]]:
     """Collect data into fixed-length chunks or blocks."""
     # https://docs.python.org/3.9/library/itertools.html#itertools-recipes
     args = [iter(iterable)] * chunk_size
diff --git a/mex/common/wikidata/extract.py b/mex/common/wikidata/extract.py
index 7c5f33ed..3a15b7e3 100644
--- a/mex/common/wikidata/extract.py
+++ b/mex/common/wikidata/extract.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-from collections.abc import Generator
+from typing import Generator
 
 import requests
 
diff --git a/mex/common/wikidata/models/organization.py b/mex/common/wikidata/models/organization.py
index e7ee72ea..6ffea244 100644
--- a/mex/common/wikidata/models/organization.py
+++ b/mex/common/wikidata/models/organization.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-from typing import Annotated
+from typing import Annotated, Optional, Union
 
 from pydantic import ConfigDict, Field, model_validator
 
@@ -20,8 +20,8 @@ class DataValue(BaseModel):
     @model_validator(mode="before")
     @classmethod
     def transform_strings_to_dict(
-        cls, values: dict[str, str | dict[str, str]]
-    ) -> dict[str, dict[str, str | None]] | dict[str, str | dict[str, str]]:
+        cls, values: dict[str, Union[str, dict[str, str]]]
+    ) -> Union[dict[str, dict[str, str | None]], dict[str, Union[str, dict[str, str]]]]:
         """Transform string and null value to a dict for parsing.
 
         Args:
@@ -72,8 +72,8 @@ class Label(BaseModel):
 class Labels(BaseModel):
     """Model class for Labels."""
 
-    de: Label | None = None
-    en: Label | None = None
+    de: Optional[Label] = None
+    en: Optional[Label] = None
 
 
 class Alias(BaseModel):
diff --git a/mex/common/wikidata/transform.py b/mex/common/wikidata/transform.py
index 7c6230df..501ce616 100644
--- a/mex/common/wikidata/transform.py
+++ b/mex/common/wikidata/transform.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-from collections.abc import Generator, Iterable
+from typing import Generator, Iterable
 
 from mex.common.models import ExtractedOrganization, ExtractedPrimarySource
 from mex.common.types import Text, TextLanguage
diff --git a/tests/connector/test_http.py b/tests/connector/test_http.py
index 3cd17df3..5716c469 100644
--- a/tests/connector/test_http.py
+++ b/tests/connector/test_http.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-from typing import Any
+from typing import Any, Optional
 from unittest.mock import MagicMock, Mock, call
 
 import pytest
@@ -115,7 +115,7 @@ def test_connector_reset_context() -> None:
 )
 def test_request_success(
     monkeypatch: MonkeyPatch,
-    sent_payload: dict[str, Any] | None,
+    sent_payload: Optional[dict[str, Any]],
     mocked_response: Response,
     expected_response: dict[str, Any],
     expected_kwargs: dict[str, Any],
diff --git a/tests/identity/conftest.py b/tests/identity/conftest.py
index 38594f59..a5e391a3 100644
--- a/tests/identity/conftest.py
+++ b/tests/identity/conftest.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-from collections.abc import Generator
+from typing import Generator
 
 import pytest
 
diff --git a/tests/ldap/conftest.py b/tests/ldap/conftest.py
index d137e03c..3ec43570 100644
--- a/tests/ldap/conftest.py
+++ b/tests/ldap/conftest.py
@@ -1,5 +1,4 @@
-from collections.abc import Callable
-from typing import Any
+from typing import Any, Callable
 from unittest.mock import MagicMock, Mock
 
 import pytest
diff --git a/tests/models/test_base.py b/tests/models/test_base.py
index 3f6a12f9..88e4416c 100644
--- a/tests/models/test_base.py
+++ b/tests/models/test_base.py
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 from enum import Enum
-from typing import Annotated, Any, Literal
+from typing import Annotated, Any, Literal, Optional, Union
 
 import pytest
 from pydantic import Field, ValidationError
@@ -11,9 +11,9 @@
 class ComplexDummyModel(BaseModel):
     """Dummy Model with multiple attributes."""
 
-    optional_str: str | None = None
+    optional_str: Optional[str] = None
     required_str: str = "default"
-    optional_list: list[str] | None = None
+    optional_list: Optional[list[str]] = None
     required_list: list[str] = []
 
 
@@ -24,13 +24,6 @@ def test_get_field_names_allowing_none() -> None:
     ]
 
 
-def test_get_list_field_names() -> None:
-    assert ComplexDummyModel._get_list_field_names() == [
-        "optional_list",
-        "required_list",
-    ]
-
-
 class Animal(Enum):
     """Dummy enum to use in tests."""
 
@@ -66,7 +59,7 @@ class Animal(Enum):
     ],
 )
 def test_base_model_listyness_fix(
-    data: dict[str, Any], expected: str | dict[str, Any]
+    data: dict[str, Any], expected: Union[str, dict[str, Any]]
 ) -> None:
     try:
         model = ComplexDummyModel.model_validate(data)
@@ -91,7 +84,7 @@ class Shelter(Pet):
 
 
 class DummyBaseModel(BaseModel):
-    foo: str | None = None
+    foo: Optional[str] = None
 
 
 def test_base_model_checksum() -> None:
diff --git a/tests/models/test_model_schemas.py b/tests/models/test_model_schemas.py
index 7bf4fb42..5c98b974 100644
--- a/tests/models/test_model_schemas.py
+++ b/tests/models/test_model_schemas.py
@@ -1,10 +1,9 @@
 import json
 import re
-from collections.abc import Callable
 from copy import deepcopy
 from importlib.resources import files
 from itertools import zip_longest
-from typing import Any
+from typing import Any, Callable
 
 import pytest
 
diff --git a/tests/test_cli.py b/tests/test_cli.py
index 1440af8f..57fa53d9 100644
--- a/tests/test_cli.py
+++ b/tests/test_cli.py
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 import logging
 import re
 from enum import Enum
-from typing import Any
+from typing import Any, Union
 
 import pytest
 from click.testing import CliRunner
@@ -168,7 +168,7 @@ class MyEnum(Enum):
                 "UnionFieldSettings",
                 __base__=BaseSettings,
                 union_field=(
-                    bool | str,
+                    Union[bool, str],
                     Field(True, description="String or boolean"),
                 ),
             ),
diff --git a/tests/test_utils.py b/tests/test_utils.py
index 12d64329..820cc680 100644
--- a/tests/test_utils.py
+++ b/tests/test_utils.py
@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
 import json
 import time
-from collections.abc import Iterable
-from typing import Any
+from typing import Any, Iterable
 
 import pytest