diff --git a/src/babel/transformation/transformers/deprecated.json b/src/babel/transformation/transformers/deprecated.json
index 8961cf2731..3677c988f5 100644
--- a/src/babel/transformation/transformers/deprecated.json
+++ b/src/babel/transformation/transformers/deprecated.json
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
   "selfContained": "runtime",
   "unicode-regex": "regex.unicode",
   "spec.typeofSymbol": "es6.spec.symbols",
-  "es6.spec.symbols": "es6.symbols",
+  "es6.symbols": "es6.spec.symbols",
   "es6.blockScopingTDZ": "es6.spec.blockScoping",
 
   "utility.inlineExpressions": "minification.constantFolding",
diff --git a/src/babel/transformation/transformers/es6/spec.symbols.js b/src/babel/transformation/transformers/es6/spec.symbols.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..953b29a18f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/babel/transformation/transformers/es6/spec.symbols.js
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+import * as t from "../../../types";
+
+export var metadata = {
+  optional: true
+};
+
+export function UnaryExpression(node, parent, scope, file) {
+  if (node._ignoreSpecSymbols) return;
+
+  if (node.operator === "typeof") {
+    var call = t.callExpression(file.addHelper("typeof"), [node.argument]);
+    if (this.get("argument").isIdentifier()) {
+      var undefLiteral = t.literal("undefined");
+      var unary = t.unaryExpression("typeof", node.argument);
+      unary._ignoreSpecSymbols = true;
+      return t.conditionalExpression(
+        t.binaryExpression("===", unary, undefLiteral),
+        undefLiteral,
+        call
+      );
+    } else {
+      return call;
+    }
+  }
+}
+
+export function BinaryExpression(node, parent, scope, file) {
+  if (node.operator === "instanceof") {
+    return t.callExpression(file.addHelper("instanceof"), [node.left, node.right]);
+  }
+}
+
+export function VariableDeclaration(node) {
+  if (node._generated) this.skip();
+}
+
+export { VariableDeclaration as FunctionDeclaration };
diff --git a/src/babel/transformation/transformers/es6/symbols.js b/src/babel/transformation/transformers/es6/symbols.js
deleted file mode 100644
index 7e071a9129..0000000000
--- a/src/babel/transformation/transformers/es6/symbols.js
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,44 +0,0 @@
-import * as t from "../../../types";
-
-export var metadata = {
-  group: "builtin-pre"
-};
-
-const BINARY_COMPARISON_OPERATORS = ["!=", "==", "!==", "==="];
-
-export function UnaryExpression(node, parent, scope, file) {
-  if (node._ignoreSpecSymbols || node.operator !== "typeof") return;
-
-  if (t.isBinaryExpression(parent) && BINARY_COMPARISON_OPERATORS.indexOf(parent.operator) >= 0 && t.isLiteral(parent.right)) {
-    // don't touch binary comparisons with a string that doesn't equal symbol, we can statically determine
-    // that this condition will never be met which means faster code!
-    if (parent.right.value !== "symbol") return;
-  }
-
-
-  var call = t.callExpression(file.addHelper("typeof"), [node.argument]);
-  if (this.get("argument").isIdentifier()) {
-    var undefLiteral = t.literal("undefined");
-    var unary = t.unaryExpression("typeof", node.argument);
-    unary._ignoreSpecSymbols = true;
-    return t.conditionalExpression(
-      t.binaryExpression("===", unary, undefLiteral),
-      undefLiteral,
-      call
-    );
-  } else {
-    return call;
-  }
-}
-
-export function BinaryExpression(node, parent, scope, file) {
-  if (node.operator === "instanceof") {
-    return t.callExpression(file.addHelper("instanceof"), [node.left, node.right]);
-  }
-}
-
-export function VariableDeclaration(node) {
-  if (node._generated) this.skip();
-}
-
-export { VariableDeclaration as FunctionDeclaration };
diff --git a/src/babel/transformation/transformers/index.js b/src/babel/transformation/transformers/index.js
index b9a98fdefa..903bd084b1 100644
--- a/src/babel/transformation/transformers/index.js
+++ b/src/babel/transformation/transformers/index.js
@@ -16,7 +16,6 @@ export default {
   "spec.functionName":                     require("./spec/function-name"),
   "es6.spec.templateLiterals":             require("./es6/spec.template-literals"),
   "es6.templateLiterals":                  require("./es6/template-literals"),
-  "es6.symbols":                           require("./es6/symbols"),
 
   //- builtin-basic
   // this is where the bulk of the ES6 transformations take place, none of them require traversal state
@@ -52,6 +51,7 @@ export default {
   "es7.exportExtensions":                  require("./es7/export-extensions"),
   "spec.protoToAssign":                    require("./spec/proto-to-assign"),
   "es7.doExpressions":                     require("./es7/do-expressions"),
+  "es6.spec.symbols":                      require("./es6/spec.symbols"),
   "es7.functionBind":                      require("./es7/function-bind"),
   "spec.undefinedToVoid":                  require("./spec/undefined-to-void"),
 
diff --git a/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.symbols/instanceof/actual.js b/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.spec.symbols/instanceof/actual.js
similarity index 100%
rename from test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.symbols/instanceof/actual.js
rename to test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.spec.symbols/instanceof/actual.js
diff --git a/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.symbols/instanceof/exec.js b/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.spec.symbols/instanceof/exec.js
similarity index 100%
rename from test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.symbols/instanceof/exec.js
rename to test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.spec.symbols/instanceof/exec.js
diff --git a/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.symbols/instanceof/expected.js b/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.spec.symbols/instanceof/expected.js
similarity index 100%
rename from test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.symbols/instanceof/expected.js
rename to test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.spec.symbols/instanceof/expected.js
diff --git a/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.spec.symbols/options.json b/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.spec.symbols/options.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..e007f6a10a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.spec.symbols/options.json
@@ -0,0 +1,4 @@
+{
+  "externalHelpers": true,
+  "optional": ["es6.spec.symbols"]
+}
diff --git a/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.symbols/typeof/actual.js b/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.spec.symbols/typeof/actual.js
similarity index 100%
rename from test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.symbols/typeof/actual.js
rename to test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.spec.symbols/typeof/actual.js
diff --git a/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.symbols/typeof/exec.js b/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.spec.symbols/typeof/exec.js
similarity index 100%
rename from test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.symbols/typeof/exec.js
rename to test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.spec.symbols/typeof/exec.js
diff --git a/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.symbols/typeof/expected.js b/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.spec.symbols/typeof/expected.js
similarity index 100%
rename from test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.symbols/typeof/expected.js
rename to test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.spec.symbols/typeof/expected.js
diff --git a/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.symbols/options.json b/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.symbols/options.json
deleted file mode 100644
index 7d6e6cda1c..0000000000
--- a/test/core/fixtures/transformation/es6.symbols/options.json
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,3 +0,0 @@
-{
-  "externalHelpers": true
-}