diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index 5d46de20c..05780e4bf 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -822,6 +822,11 @@
                 "description": "Environment variables passed to the program.",
                 "default": {}
               },
+              "envFile": {
+                "type": "string",
+                "description": "Environment variables passed to the program by a file.",
+                "default": "${workspaceFolder}/.env"
+              },
               "console": {
                 "type": "string",
                 "enum": [
@@ -1884,6 +1889,11 @@
                 "description": "Environment variables passed to the program.",
                 "default": {}
               },
+              "envFile": {
+                "type": "string",
+                "description": "Environment variables passed to the program by a file.",
+                "default": "${workspaceFolder}/.env"
+              },
               "console": {
                 "type": "string",
                 "enum": [
diff --git a/src/configurationProvider.ts b/src/configurationProvider.ts
index bf48d0400..d6f456ce1 100644
--- a/src/configurationProvider.ts
+++ b/src/configurationProvider.ts
@@ -100,11 +100,79 @@ export class CSharpConfigurationProvider implements vscode.DebugConfigurationPro
         });
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Parse envFile and add to config.env
+     */
+    private parseEnvFile(envFile: string, config: vscode.DebugConfiguration): vscode.DebugConfiguration {
+        if(envFile) {
+            try {
+                let content: string = fs.readFileSync(envFile, "utf8");
+                let parseErrors: string[] = [];
+
+                // Remove UTF-8 BOM if present
+                if(content.charAt(0) === '\uFEFF') {
+                    content = content.substr(1);
+                }
+
+                content.split("\n").forEach(line => {
+                    const r: RegExpMatchArray = line.match(/^\s*([\w\.\-]+)\s*=\s*(.*)?\s*$/);
+
+                    if (r !== null) {
+                        const key: string = r[1];
+                        let value: string = r[2] || "";
+                        if ((value.length > 0) && (value.charAt(0) === '"') && (value.charAt(value.length - 1) === '"')) {
+                            value = value.replace(/\\n/gm, "\n");
+                        }
+
+                        value = value.replace(/(^['"]|['"]$)/g, "");
+
+                        if(!config.env) {
+                            config.env = {};
+                        }
+                        config.env[key] = value;
+                    }
+                    else {
+                        // Blank lines and lines starting with # are no parse errors
+                        const comments: RegExp = new RegExp(/^\s*(#|$)/);
+                        if (!comments.test(line)) {
+                            parseErrors.push(line);
+                        }
+                    }
+                });
+
+                // show error message if single lines cannot get parsed
+                if(parseErrors.length !== 0) {
+                    let parseError: string = "Ignoring non-parseable lines in envFile " + envFile + ": ";
+                    parseErrors.forEach(function (value, idx, array) {
+                        parseError += "\"" + value + "\"" + ((idx !== array.length - 1) ? ", " : ".");
+                    });
+                    showErrorMessage(vscode, parseError);
+                }
+            }
+            catch (e) {
+                throw new Error("Can't parse envFile " + envFile);
+            }
+        }
+
+        // remove envFile from config after parsing
+        if(config.envFile) {
+            delete config.envFile;
+        }
+
+        return config;
+    }
+
     /**
 	 * Try to add all missing attributes to the debug configuration being launched.
 	 */
     resolveDebugConfiguration(folder: vscode.WorkspaceFolder | undefined, config: vscode.DebugConfiguration, token?: vscode.CancellationToken): vscode.ProviderResult<vscode.DebugConfiguration> {
         // vsdbg does the error checking
+
+        // read from envFile and set config.env
+        if(config.envFile) {
+            config = this.parseEnvFile(config.envFile.replace(/\${workspaceFolder}/g, folder.uri.path), config);
+        }
+
         return config;
     }   
 }
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/tools/OptionsSchema.json b/src/tools/OptionsSchema.json
index 53367ba42..5d6b35910 100644
--- a/src/tools/OptionsSchema.json
+++ b/src/tools/OptionsSchema.json
@@ -317,6 +317,11 @@
           "description": "Environment variables passed to the program.",
           "default": {}
         },
+        "envFile": {
+          "type": "string",
+          "description": "Environment variables passed to the program by a file.",
+          "default": "${workspaceFolder}/.env"
+        },
         "console": {
           "type": "string",
           "enum": [ "internalConsole", "integratedTerminal", "externalTerminal" ],