diff --git a/qa/rolling-upgrade/src/test/resources/rest-api-spec/test/mixed_cluster/20_security.yml b/qa/rolling-upgrade/src/test/resources/rest-api-spec/test/mixed_cluster/20_security.yml
index 659d3db2d5e..03105f176fc 100644
--- a/qa/rolling-upgrade/src/test/resources/rest-api-spec/test/mixed_cluster/20_security.yml
+++ b/qa/rolling-upgrade/src/test/resources/rest-api-spec/test/mixed_cluster/20_security.yml
@@ -32,8 +32,8 @@
 ---
 "verify users for default password migration in mixed cluster":
   - skip:
-      version: "5.0.0 - "
-      reason: https://github.com/elastic/x-pack-elasticsearch/issues/1516
+      version: " - 5.1.1"
+      reason: "the rest enabled action used by the old cluster test trips an assertion. see https://github.com/elastic/x-pack/pull/4443"
   - do:
       xpack.security.get_user:
         username: "kibana,logstash_system"
diff --git a/qa/rolling-upgrade/src/test/resources/rest-api-spec/test/mixed_cluster/30_kibana_write.yml b/qa/rolling-upgrade/src/test/resources/rest-api-spec/test/mixed_cluster/30_kibana_write.yml
index cea5a8fa3ed..76c3100ca84 100644
--- a/qa/rolling-upgrade/src/test/resources/rest-api-spec/test/mixed_cluster/30_kibana_write.yml
+++ b/qa/rolling-upgrade/src/test/resources/rest-api-spec/test/mixed_cluster/30_kibana_write.yml
@@ -28,7 +28,8 @@ teardown:
         body: >
           {
             "doc": {
-              "enabled": false
+              "enabled": false,
+              "password": ""
             }
           }
   - do:
diff --git a/qa/rolling-upgrade/src/test/resources/rest-api-spec/test/upgraded_cluster/20_security.yml b/qa/rolling-upgrade/src/test/resources/rest-api-spec/test/upgraded_cluster/20_security.yml
index 5273efa8b31..5bfc47cbfc6 100644
--- a/qa/rolling-upgrade/src/test/resources/rest-api-spec/test/upgraded_cluster/20_security.yml
+++ b/qa/rolling-upgrade/src/test/resources/rest-api-spec/test/upgraded_cluster/20_security.yml
@@ -26,8 +26,8 @@
 ---
 "Verify default password migration results in upgraded cluster":
   - skip:
-      version: "5.0.0 - "
-      reason: https://github.com/elastic/x-pack-elasticsearch/issues/1529
+      version: " - 5.1.1"
+      reason: "the rest enabled action used by the old cluster test trips an assertion. see https://github.com/elastic/x-pack/pull/4443"
   - do:
       headers:
         Authorization: "Basic bmF0aXZlX3VzZXI6Y2hhbmdlbWU="