diff --git a/Documentation/arch/x86/mds.rst b/Documentation/arch/x86/mds.rst
index e73fdff62c0a..c58c72362911 100644
--- a/Documentation/arch/x86/mds.rst
+++ b/Documentation/arch/x86/mds.rst
@@ -95,6 +95,9 @@ The kernel provides a function to invoke the buffer clearing:
 
     mds_clear_cpu_buffers()
 
+Also macro CLEAR_CPU_BUFFERS can be used in ASM late in exit-to-user path.
+Other than CFLAGS.ZF, this macro doesn't clobber any registers.
+
 The mitigation is invoked on kernel/userspace, hypervisor/guest and C-state
 (idle) transitions.
 
@@ -138,17 +141,30 @@ Mitigation points
 
    When transitioning from kernel to user space the CPU buffers are flushed
    on affected CPUs when the mitigation is not disabled on the kernel
-   command line. The migitation is enabled through the static key
-   mds_user_clear.
+   command line. The mitigation is enabled through the feature flag
+   X86_FEATURE_CLEAR_CPU_BUF.
 
-   The mitigation is invoked in prepare_exit_to_usermode() which covers
-   all but one of the kernel to user space transitions.  The exception
-   is when we return from a Non Maskable Interrupt (NMI), which is
-   handled directly in do_nmi().
+   The mitigation is invoked just before transitioning to userspace after
+   user registers are restored. This is done to minimize the window in
+   which kernel data could be accessed after VERW e.g. via an NMI after
+   VERW.
 
-   (The reason that NMI is special is that prepare_exit_to_usermode() can
-    enable IRQs.  In NMI context, NMIs are blocked, and we don't want to
-    enable IRQs with NMIs blocked.)
+   **Corner case not handled**
+   Interrupts returning to kernel don't clear CPUs buffers since the
+   exit-to-user path is expected to do that anyways. But, there could be
+   a case when an NMI is generated in kernel after the exit-to-user path
+   has cleared the buffers. This case is not handled and NMI returning to
+   kernel don't clear CPU buffers because:
+
+   1. It is rare to get an NMI after VERW, but before returning to userspace.
+   2. For an unprivileged user, there is no known way to make that NMI
+      less rare or target it.
+   3. It would take a large number of these precisely-timed NMIs to mount
+      an actual attack.  There's presumably not enough bandwidth.
+   4. The NMI in question occurs after a VERW, i.e. when user state is
+      restored and most interesting data is already scrubbed. Whats left
+      is only the data that NMI touches, and that may or may not be of
+      any interest.
 
 
 2. C-State transition
diff --git a/arch/x86/include/asm/entry-common.h b/arch/x86/include/asm/entry-common.h
index ce8f50192ae3..7e523bb3d2d3 100644
--- a/arch/x86/include/asm/entry-common.h
+++ b/arch/x86/include/asm/entry-common.h
@@ -91,7 +91,6 @@ static inline void arch_exit_to_user_mode_prepare(struct pt_regs *regs,
 
 static __always_inline void arch_exit_to_user_mode(void)
 {
-	mds_user_clear_cpu_buffers();
 	amd_clear_divider();
 }
 #define arch_exit_to_user_mode arch_exit_to_user_mode
diff --git a/arch/x86/include/asm/nospec-branch.h b/arch/x86/include/asm/nospec-branch.h
index 077083ec81cb..2aa52cab1e46 100644
--- a/arch/x86/include/asm/nospec-branch.h
+++ b/arch/x86/include/asm/nospec-branch.h
@@ -540,7 +540,6 @@ DECLARE_STATIC_KEY_FALSE(switch_to_cond_stibp);
 DECLARE_STATIC_KEY_FALSE(switch_mm_cond_ibpb);
 DECLARE_STATIC_KEY_FALSE(switch_mm_always_ibpb);
 
-DECLARE_STATIC_KEY_FALSE(mds_user_clear);
 DECLARE_STATIC_KEY_FALSE(mds_idle_clear);
 
 DECLARE_STATIC_KEY_FALSE(switch_mm_cond_l1d_flush);
@@ -574,17 +573,6 @@ static __always_inline void mds_clear_cpu_buffers(void)
 	asm volatile("verw %[ds]" : : [ds] "m" (ds) : "cc");
 }
 
-/**
- * mds_user_clear_cpu_buffers - Mitigation for MDS and TAA vulnerability
- *
- * Clear CPU buffers if the corresponding static key is enabled
- */
-static __always_inline void mds_user_clear_cpu_buffers(void)
-{
-	if (static_branch_likely(&mds_user_clear))
-		mds_clear_cpu_buffers();
-}
-
 /**
  * mds_idle_clear_cpu_buffers - Mitigation for MDS vulnerability
  *
diff --git a/arch/x86/kernel/cpu/bugs.c b/arch/x86/kernel/cpu/bugs.c
index bb0ab8466b91..48d049cd74e7 100644
--- a/arch/x86/kernel/cpu/bugs.c
+++ b/arch/x86/kernel/cpu/bugs.c
@@ -111,9 +111,6 @@ DEFINE_STATIC_KEY_FALSE(switch_mm_cond_ibpb);
 /* Control unconditional IBPB in switch_mm() */
 DEFINE_STATIC_KEY_FALSE(switch_mm_always_ibpb);
 
-/* Control MDS CPU buffer clear before returning to user space */
-DEFINE_STATIC_KEY_FALSE(mds_user_clear);
-EXPORT_SYMBOL_GPL(mds_user_clear);
 /* Control MDS CPU buffer clear before idling (halt, mwait) */
 DEFINE_STATIC_KEY_FALSE(mds_idle_clear);
 EXPORT_SYMBOL_GPL(mds_idle_clear);
@@ -252,7 +249,7 @@ static void __init mds_select_mitigation(void)
 		if (!boot_cpu_has(X86_FEATURE_MD_CLEAR))
 			mds_mitigation = MDS_MITIGATION_VMWERV;
 
-		static_branch_enable(&mds_user_clear);
+		setup_force_cpu_cap(X86_FEATURE_CLEAR_CPU_BUF);
 
 		if (!boot_cpu_has(X86_BUG_MSBDS_ONLY) &&
 		    (mds_nosmt || cpu_mitigations_auto_nosmt()))
@@ -356,7 +353,7 @@ static void __init taa_select_mitigation(void)
 	 * For guests that can't determine whether the correct microcode is
 	 * present on host, enable the mitigation for UCODE_NEEDED as well.
 	 */
-	static_branch_enable(&mds_user_clear);
+	setup_force_cpu_cap(X86_FEATURE_CLEAR_CPU_BUF);
 
 	if (taa_nosmt || cpu_mitigations_auto_nosmt())
 		cpu_smt_disable(false);
@@ -424,7 +421,7 @@ static void __init mmio_select_mitigation(void)
 	 */
 	if (boot_cpu_has_bug(X86_BUG_MDS) || (boot_cpu_has_bug(X86_BUG_TAA) &&
 					      boot_cpu_has(X86_FEATURE_RTM)))
-		static_branch_enable(&mds_user_clear);
+		setup_force_cpu_cap(X86_FEATURE_CLEAR_CPU_BUF);
 	else
 		static_branch_enable(&mmio_stale_data_clear);
 
@@ -484,12 +481,12 @@ static void __init md_clear_update_mitigation(void)
 	if (cpu_mitigations_off())
 		return;
 
-	if (!static_key_enabled(&mds_user_clear))
+	if (!boot_cpu_has(X86_FEATURE_CLEAR_CPU_BUF))
 		goto out;
 
 	/*
-	 * mds_user_clear is now enabled. Update MDS, TAA and MMIO Stale Data
-	 * mitigation, if necessary.
+	 * X86_FEATURE_CLEAR_CPU_BUF is now enabled. Update MDS, TAA and MMIO
+	 * Stale Data mitigation, if necessary.
 	 */
 	if (mds_mitigation == MDS_MITIGATION_OFF &&
 	    boot_cpu_has_bug(X86_BUG_MDS)) {
diff --git a/arch/x86/kernel/nmi.c b/arch/x86/kernel/nmi.c
index 17e955ab69fe..3082cf24b69e 100644
--- a/arch/x86/kernel/nmi.c
+++ b/arch/x86/kernel/nmi.c
@@ -563,9 +563,6 @@ DEFINE_IDTENTRY_RAW(exc_nmi)
 	}
 	if (this_cpu_dec_return(nmi_state))
 		goto nmi_restart;
-
-	if (user_mode(regs))
-		mds_user_clear_cpu_buffers();
 }
 
 #if IS_ENABLED(CONFIG_KVM_INTEL)
diff --git a/arch/x86/kvm/vmx/vmx.c b/arch/x86/kvm/vmx/vmx.c
index 1111d9d08903..db8a5fe7edf6 100644
--- a/arch/x86/kvm/vmx/vmx.c
+++ b/arch/x86/kvm/vmx/vmx.c
@@ -7227,7 +7227,7 @@ static noinstr void vmx_vcpu_enter_exit(struct kvm_vcpu *vcpu,
 	/* L1D Flush includes CPU buffer clear to mitigate MDS */
 	if (static_branch_unlikely(&vmx_l1d_should_flush))
 		vmx_l1d_flush(vcpu);
-	else if (static_branch_unlikely(&mds_user_clear))
+	else if (cpu_feature_enabled(X86_FEATURE_CLEAR_CPU_BUF))
 		mds_clear_cpu_buffers();
 	else if (static_branch_unlikely(&mmio_stale_data_clear) &&
 		 kvm_arch_has_assigned_device(vcpu->kvm))