diff --git a/beets/autotag/__init__.py b/beets/autotag/__init__.py
index 8cfe534ab..4d107b3a1 100644
--- a/beets/autotag/__init__.py
+++ b/beets/autotag/__init__.py
@@ -16,15 +16,16 @@
 
 from __future__ import annotations
 
+import warnings
+from importlib import import_module
 from typing import TYPE_CHECKING, Union
 
 from beets import config, logging
-from beets.util import get_most_common_tags as current_metadata
 
 # Parts of external interface.
 from beets.util import unique_list
 
-from .distance import Distance
+from ..util import deprecate_imports
 from .hooks import AlbumInfo, AlbumMatch, TrackInfo, TrackMatch
 from .match import Proposal, Recommendation, tag_album, tag_item
 
@@ -33,10 +34,27 @@ if TYPE_CHECKING:
 
     from beets.library import Album, Item, LibModel
 
+
+def __getattr__(name: str):
+    if name == "current_metadata":
+        warnings.warn(
+            (
+                f"'beets.autotag.{name}' is deprecated and will be removed in"
+                " 3.0.0. Use 'beets.util.get_most_common_tags' instead."
+            ),
+            DeprecationWarning,
+            stacklevel=2,
+        )
+        return import_module("beets.util").get_most_common_tags
+
+    return deprecate_imports(
+        __name__, {"Distance": "beets.autotag.distance"}, name, "3.0.0"
+    )
+
+
 __all__ = [
     "AlbumInfo",
     "AlbumMatch",
-    "Distance",  # for backwards compatibility
     "Proposal",
     "Recommendation",
     "TrackInfo",
@@ -44,7 +62,6 @@ __all__ = [
     "apply_album_metadata",
     "apply_item_metadata",
     "apply_metadata",
-    "current_metadata",  # for backwards compatibility
     "tag_album",
     "tag_item",
 ]
diff --git a/beets/library/__init__.py b/beets/library/__init__.py
index 286b84189..b38381438 100644
--- a/beets/library/__init__.py
+++ b/beets/library/__init__.py
@@ -1,8 +1,21 @@
+from beets.util import deprecate_imports
+
 from .exceptions import FileOperationError, ReadError, WriteError
 from .library import Library
 from .models import Album, Item, LibModel
 from .queries import parse_query_parts, parse_query_string
 
+NEW_MODULE_BY_NAME = dict.fromkeys(
+    ("DateType", "DurationType", "MusicalKey", "PathType"), "beets.dbcore.types"
+) | dict.fromkeys(
+    ("BLOB_TYPE", "SingletonQuery", "PathQuery"), "beets.dbcore.query"
+)
+
+
+def __getattr__(name: str):
+    return deprecate_imports(__name__, NEW_MODULE_BY_NAME, name, "3.0.0")
+
+
 __all__ = [
     "Library",
     "LibModel",
diff --git a/beets/ui/__init__.py b/beets/ui/__init__.py
index 8b2419a07..b5e2cf579 100644
--- a/beets/ui/__init__.py
+++ b/beets/ui/__init__.py
@@ -28,6 +28,7 @@ import struct
 import sys
 import textwrap
 import traceback
+import warnings
 from difflib import SequenceMatcher
 from typing import TYPE_CHECKING, Any, Callable
 
@@ -104,6 +105,21 @@ def _stream_encoding(stream, default="utf-8"):
     return stream.encoding or default
 
 
+def decargs(arglist):
+    """Given a list of command-line argument bytestrings, attempts to
+    decode them to Unicode strings when running under Python 2.
+
+    .. deprecated:: 2.4.0
+       This function will be removed in 3.0.0.
+    """
+    warnings.warn(
+        "decargs() is deprecated and will be removed in version 3.0.0.",
+        DeprecationWarning,
+        stacklevel=2,
+    )
+    return arglist
+
+
 def print_(*strings: str, end: str = "\n") -> None:
     """Like print, but rather than raising an error when a character
     is not in the terminal's encoding's character set, just silently
diff --git a/beets/util/__init__.py b/beets/util/__init__.py
index 58b08c844..e2f7f46bd 100644
--- a/beets/util/__init__.py
+++ b/beets/util/__init__.py
@@ -27,6 +27,7 @@ import subprocess
 import sys
 import tempfile
 import traceback
+import warnings
 from collections import Counter
 from collections.abc import Sequence
 from contextlib import suppress
@@ -1191,3 +1192,26 @@ def get_temp_filename(
 def unique_list(elements: Iterable[T]) -> list[T]:
     """Return a list with unique elements in the original order."""
     return list(dict.fromkeys(elements))
+
+
+def deprecate_imports(
+    old_module: str, new_module_by_name: dict[str, str], name: str, version: str
+) -> Any:
+    """Handle deprecated module imports by redirecting to new locations.
+
+    Facilitates gradual migration of module structure by intercepting import
+    attempts for relocated functionality. Issues deprecation warnings while
+    transparently providing access to the moved implementation, allowing
+    existing code to continue working during transition periods.
+    """
+    if new_module := new_module_by_name.get(name):
+        warnings.warn(
+            (
+                f"'{old_module}.{name}' is deprecated and will be removed"
+                f" in {version}. Use '{new_module}.{name}' instead."
+            ),
+            DeprecationWarning,
+            stacklevel=2,
+        )
+        return getattr(import_module(new_module), name)
+    raise AttributeError(f"module '{old_module}' has no attribute '{name}'")
diff --git a/docs/changelog.rst b/docs/changelog.rst
index 39af2f7c3..23672f2bd 100644
--- a/docs/changelog.rst
+++ b/docs/changelog.rst
@@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ Bug fixes:
   e.g. non latin characters as 盗作. If you want to keep the legacy behavior
   set the config option ``spotify.search_query_ascii: yes``.
   :bug:`5699`
-  
+
 For packagers:
 
 * Optional ``extra_tags`` parameter has been removed from
@@ -68,7 +68,7 @@ For plugin developers:
   source registration in the process of introducing typings to the code.
   Custom art sources might need to be adapted.
 * We split the responsibilities of plugins into two base classes
-    #. :class:`beets.plugins.BeetsPlugin` 
+    #. :class:`beets.plugins.BeetsPlugin`
         is the base class for all plugins, any plugin needs to inherit from this class.
     #. :class:`beets.metadata_plugin.MetadataSourcePlugin`
         allows plugins to act like metadata sources. E.g. used by the MusicBrainz plugin. All plugins
@@ -77,7 +77,20 @@ For plugin developers:
         ``album_for_id``, ``candidates``, ``item_candidates``, ``album_distance``, ``track_distance`` methods,
         please update your plugin to inherit from the new baseclass, as otherwise your plugin will
         stop working with the next major release.
-        
+* Several definitions have been moved:
+    * ``BLOB_TYPE`` constant, ``PathQuery`` and ``SingletonQuery`` queries have
+      moved from ``beets.library`` to ``beets.dbcore.query`` module
+    * ``DateType``, ``DurationType``, ``PathType`` types and ``MusicalKey``
+      class have moved from ``beets.library`` to ``beets.dbcore.types`` module.
+    * ``Distance`` has moved from ``beets.autotag`` to
+      ``beets.autotag.distance`` module.
+    * ``beets.autotag.current_metadata`` has been renamed to
+      ``beets.util.get_most_common_tags``.
+
+  Old imports are now deprecated and will be removed in version ``3.0.0``.
+* ``beets.ui.decargs`` is deprecated and will be removed in version ``3.0.0``.
+
+
 Other changes:
 
 * Refactor: Split responsibilities of Plugins into MetaDataPlugins and general Plugins.
@@ -85,7 +98,7 @@ Other changes:
   Autogenerated API references are now located in the `docs/api` subdirectory.
 * :doc:`/plugins/substitute`: Fix rST formatting for example cases so that each
   case is shown on separate lines.
-* Refactored library.py file by splitting it into multiple modules within the 
+* Refactored library.py file by splitting it into multiple modules within the
   beets/library directory.
 
 2.3.1 (May 14, 2025)