diff --git a/src/interfaces/libpq/fe-connect.c b/src/interfaces/libpq/fe-connect.c
index 9b2839b..5c0d88a 100644
--- a/src/interfaces/libpq/fe-connect.c
+++ b/src/interfaces/libpq/fe-connect.c
@@ -184,6 +184,10 @@ static const internalPQconninfoOption PQconninfoOptions[] = {
 		"Database-Password", "*", 20,
 	offsetof(struct pg_conn, pgpass)},
 
+	{"pgpassfile", "PGPASSFILE", NULL, NULL,
+		"Database-Password-File", "", 64,
+	offsetof(struct pg_conn, pgpassfile)},
+
 	{"connect_timeout", "PGCONNECT_TIMEOUT", NULL, NULL,
 		"Connect-timeout", "", 10,		/* strlen(INT32_MAX) == 10 */
 	offsetof(struct pg_conn, connect_timeout)},
@@ -375,7 +379,7 @@ static int parseServiceFile(const char *serviceFile,
 				 bool *group_found);
 static char *pwdfMatchesString(char *buf, char *token);
 static char *PasswordFromFile(char *hostname, char *port, char *dbname,
-				 char *username);
+				 char *username, char *pgpassfile);
 static bool getPgPassFilename(char *pgpassfile);
 static void dot_pg_pass_warning(PGconn *conn);
 static void default_threadlock(int acquire);
@@ -806,8 +810,9 @@ connectOptions2(PGconn *conn)
 	{
 		if (conn->pgpass)
 			free(conn->pgpass);
+		/* We'll pass conn->pgpassfile regardless of it's contents - checks happen in PasswordFromFile() */
 		conn->pgpass = PasswordFromFile(conn->pghost, conn->pgport,
-										conn->dbName, conn->pguser);
+										conn->dbName, conn->pguser, conn->pgpassfile);
 		if (conn->pgpass == NULL)
 		{
 			conn->pgpass = strdup(DefaultPassword);
@@ -5699,14 +5704,15 @@ pwdfMatchesString(char *buf, char *token)
 	return NULL;
 }
 
-/* Get a password from the password file. Return value is malloc'd. */
+/* Get a password from the password file or the user-specified pgpassfile. Return value is malloc'd. */
 static char *
-PasswordFromFile(char *hostname, char *port, char *dbname, char *username)
+PasswordFromFile(char *hostname, char *port, char *dbname, char *username, char *pgpassfile)
 {
 	FILE	   *fp;
-	char		pgpassfile[MAXPGPATH];
+	char 		temp_path[MAXPGPATH];
 	struct stat stat_buf;
 
+
 #define LINELEN NAMEDATALEN*5
 	char		buf[LINELEN];
 
@@ -5731,8 +5737,13 @@ PasswordFromFile(char *hostname, char *port, char *dbname, char *username)
 	if (port == NULL)
 		port = DEF_PGPORT_STR;
 
-	if (!getPgPassFilename(pgpassfile))
-		return NULL;
+	if(!pgpassfile || pgpassfile[0]=='\0')
+	{
+		/* If no pgpassfile was supplied by the user or it is empty, we try to get a global pgpassfile */
+		if (!getPgPassFilename(temp_path))
+			return NULL;
+		pgpassfile = temp_path;
+	}
 
 	/* If password file cannot be opened, ignore it. */
 	if (stat(pgpassfile, &stat_buf) != 0)
diff --git a/src/interfaces/libpq/libpq-int.h b/src/interfaces/libpq/libpq-int.h
index 1183323..ae9317f 100644
--- a/src/interfaces/libpq/libpq-int.h
+++ b/src/interfaces/libpq/libpq-int.h
@@ -317,6 +317,7 @@ struct pg_conn
 	char	   *replication;	/* connect as the replication standby? */
 	char	   *pguser;			/* Postgres username and password, if any */
 	char	   *pgpass;
+	char 	   *pgpassfile;		/* path to a file containing the password */
 	char	   *keepalives;		/* use TCP keepalives? */
 	char	   *keepalives_idle;	/* time between TCP keepalives */
 	char	   *keepalives_interval;	/* time between TCP keepalive