diff --git a/changelog.d/239.change.rst b/changelog.d/239.change.rst
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..f50cd999f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/changelog.d/239.change.rst
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+Added ``type`` argument to ``attr.ib()`` and corresponding ``type`` attribute to ``attr.Attribute``.
+This change paves the way for automatic type checking and serialization (though as of this release ``attrs`` does not make use of it).
+In Python 3.6 or higher, the value of ``attr.Attribute.type`` can alternately be set using variable type annotations (see `PEP 526 <https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0526/>`_).
diff --git a/conftest.py b/conftest.py
index be9968ce2..47e24c311 100644
--- a/conftest.py
+++ b/conftest.py
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 from __future__ import absolute_import, division, print_function
 
+import sys
 import pytest
 
 
@@ -16,3 +17,8 @@ class C(object):
         y = attr()
 
     return C
+
+
+collect_ignore = []
+if sys.version_info[:2] < (3, 6):
+    collect_ignore.append("tests/test_annotations.py")
diff --git a/docs/api.rst b/docs/api.rst
index 02fa5b237..45076c2b3 100644
--- a/docs/api.rst
+++ b/docs/api.rst
@@ -90,7 +90,7 @@ Core
       ... class C(object):
       ...     x = attr.ib()
       >>> C.x
-      Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=None, repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True, convert=None, metadata=mappingproxy({}))
+      Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=None, repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True, convert=None, metadata=mappingproxy({}), type=None)
 
 
 .. autofunction:: attr.make_class
@@ -202,9 +202,9 @@ Helpers
       ...     x = attr.ib()
       ...     y = attr.ib()
       >>> attr.fields(C)
-      (Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=None, repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True, convert=None, metadata=mappingproxy({})), Attribute(name='y', default=NOTHING, validator=None, repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True, convert=None, metadata=mappingproxy({})))
+      (Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=None, repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True, convert=None, metadata=mappingproxy({}), type=None), Attribute(name='y', default=NOTHING, validator=None, repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True, convert=None, metadata=mappingproxy({}), type=None))
       >>> attr.fields(C)[1]
-      Attribute(name='y', default=NOTHING, validator=None, repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True, convert=None, metadata=mappingproxy({}))
+      Attribute(name='y', default=NOTHING, validator=None, repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True, convert=None, metadata=mappingproxy({}), type=None)
       >>> attr.fields(C).y is attr.fields(C)[1]
       True
 
@@ -299,7 +299,7 @@ See :ref:`asdict` for examples.
       >>> attr.validate(i)
       Traceback (most recent call last):
          ...
-      TypeError: ("'x' must be <type 'int'> (got '1' that is a <type 'str'>).", Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=<instance_of validator for type <type 'int'>>, repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True), <type 'int'>, '1')
+      TypeError: ("'x' must be <type 'int'> (got '1' that is a <type 'str'>).", Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=<instance_of validator for type <type 'int'>>, repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True, type=None), <type 'int'>, '1')
 
 
 Validators can be globally disabled if you want to run them only in development and tests but not in production because you fear their performance impact:
@@ -332,11 +332,11 @@ Validators
       >>> C("42")
       Traceback (most recent call last):
          ...
-      TypeError: ("'x' must be <type 'int'> (got '42' that is a <type 'str'>).", Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=<instance_of validator for type <type 'int'>>), <type 'int'>, '42')
+      TypeError: ("'x' must be <type 'int'> (got '42' that is a <type 'str'>).", Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=<instance_of validator for type <type 'int'>>, type=None), <type 'int'>, '42')
       >>> C(None)
       Traceback (most recent call last):
          ...
-      TypeError: ("'x' must be <type 'int'> (got None that is a <type 'NoneType'>).", Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=<instance_of validator for type <type 'int'>>, repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True), <type 'int'>, None)
+      TypeError: ("'x' must be <type 'int'> (got None that is a <type 'NoneType'>).", Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=<instance_of validator for type <type 'int'>>, repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True, type=None), <type 'int'>, None)
 
 .. autofunction:: attr.validators.in_
 
@@ -388,7 +388,7 @@ Validators
       >>> C("42")
       Traceback (most recent call last):
          ...
-      TypeError: ("'x' must be <type 'int'> (got '42' that is a <type 'str'>).", Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=<instance_of validator for type <type 'int'>>), <type 'int'>, '42')
+      TypeError: ("'x' must be <type 'int'> (got '42' that is a <type 'str'>).", Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=<instance_of validator for type <type 'int'>>, type=None), <type 'int'>, '42')
       >>> C(None)
       C(x=None)
 
diff --git a/docs/examples.rst b/docs/examples.rst
index 21c2e464e..4e888c1f0 100644
--- a/docs/examples.rst
+++ b/docs/examples.rst
@@ -368,7 +368,7 @@ This example also shows of some syntactic sugar for using the :func:`attr.valida
    >>> C("42")
    Traceback (most recent call last):
       ...
-   TypeError: ("'x' must be <type 'int'> (got '42' that is a <type 'str'>).", Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, factory=NOTHING, validator=<instance_of validator for type <type 'int'>>), <type 'int'>, '42')
+   TypeError: ("'x' must be <type 'int'> (got '42' that is a <type 'str'>).", Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, factory=NOTHING, validator=<instance_of validator for type <type 'int'>>, type=None), <type 'int'>, '42')
 
 Of course you can mix and match the two approaches at your convenience:
 
@@ -386,7 +386,7 @@ Of course you can mix and match the two approaches at your convenience:
    >>> C("128")
    Traceback (most recent call last):
       ...
-   TypeError: ("'x' must be <class 'int'> (got '128' that is a <class 'str'>).", Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=[<instance_of validator for type <class 'int'>>, <function fits_byte at 0x10fd7a0d0>], repr=True, cmp=True, hash=True, init=True, convert=None, metadata=mappingproxy({})), <class 'int'>, '128')
+   TypeError: ("'x' must be <class 'int'> (got '128' that is a <class 'str'>).", Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=[<instance_of validator for type <class 'int'>>, <function fits_byte at 0x10fd7a0d0>], repr=True, cmp=True, hash=True, init=True, convert=None, metadata=mappingproxy({}), type=None), <class 'int'>, '128')
    >>> C(256)
    Traceback (most recent call last):
       ...
@@ -401,7 +401,7 @@ And finally you can disable validators globally:
    >>> C("128")
    Traceback (most recent call last):
       ...
-   TypeError: ("'x' must be <class 'int'> (got '128' that is a <class 'str'>).", Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=[<instance_of validator for type <class 'int'>>, <function fits_byte at 0x10fd7a0d0>], repr=True, cmp=True, hash=True, init=True, convert=None, metadata=mappingproxy({})), <class 'int'>, '128')
+   TypeError: ("'x' must be <class 'int'> (got '128' that is a <class 'str'>).", Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=[<instance_of validator for type <class 'int'>>, <function fits_byte at 0x10fd7a0d0>], repr=True, cmp=True, hash=True, init=True, convert=None, metadata=mappingproxy({}), type=None), <class 'int'>, '128')
 
 
 Conversion
@@ -514,7 +514,7 @@ Slot classes are a little different than ordinary, dictionary-backed classes:
     ... class C(object):
     ...     x = attr.ib()
     >>> C.x
-    Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=None, repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True, convert=None, metadata=mappingproxy({}))
+    Attribute(name='x', default=NOTHING, validator=None, repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True, convert=None, metadata=mappingproxy({}), type=None)
     >>> @attr.s(slots=True)
     ... class C(object):
     ...     x = attr.ib()
diff --git a/docs/extending.rst b/docs/extending.rst
index e7a20ad93..ba612384d 100644
--- a/docs/extending.rst
+++ b/docs/extending.rst
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ So it is fairly simple to build your own decorators on top of ``attrs``:
    ... @attr.s
    ... class C(object):
    ...     a = attr.ib()
-   (Attribute(name='a', default=NOTHING, validator=None, repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True, convert=None, metadata=mappingproxy({})),)
+   (Attribute(name='a', default=NOTHING, validator=None, repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True, convert=None, metadata=mappingproxy({}), type=None),)
 
 
 .. warning::
diff --git a/src/attr/_make.py b/src/attr/_make.py
index 987e50be6..672f8c5e9 100644
--- a/src/attr/_make.py
+++ b/src/attr/_make.py
@@ -62,7 +62,7 @@ def __hash__(self):
 
 def attr(default=NOTHING, validator=None,
          repr=True, cmp=True, hash=None, init=True,
-         convert=None, metadata={}):
+         convert=None, metadata={}, type=None):
     """
     Create a new attribute on a class.
 
@@ -125,10 +125,17 @@ def attr(default=NOTHING, validator=None,
         value is converted before being passed to the validator, if any.
     :param metadata: An arbitrary mapping, to be used by third-party
         components.  See :ref:`extending_metadata`.
+    :param type: The type of the attribute.  In Python 3.6 or greater, the
+        preferred method to specify the type is using a variable annotation
+        (see `PEP 526 <https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0526/>`_).
+        This argument is provided for backward compatibility.
+        Regardless of the approach used, the type will be stored on
+        ``Attribute.type``.
 
     ..  versionchanged:: 17.1.0 *validator* can be a ``list`` now.
     ..  versionchanged:: 17.1.0
         *hash* is ``None`` and therefore mirrors *cmp* by default .
+    ..  versionadded:: 17.3.0 *type*
     """
     if hash is not None and hash is not True and hash is not False:
         raise TypeError(
@@ -143,6 +150,7 @@ def attr(default=NOTHING, validator=None,
         init=init,
         convert=convert,
         metadata=metadata,
+        type=type,
     )
 
 
@@ -191,8 +199,11 @@ def _transform_attrs(cls, these):
                    for name, ca
                    in iteritems(these)]
 
+    ann = getattr(cls, "__annotations__", {})
+
     non_super_attrs = [
-        Attribute.from_counting_attr(name=attr_name, ca=ca)
+        Attribute.from_counting_attr(name=attr_name, ca=ca,
+                                     type=ann.get(attr_name))
         for attr_name, ca
         in sorted(ca_list, key=lambda e: e[1].counter)
     ]
@@ -212,7 +223,8 @@ def _transform_attrs(cls, these):
     AttrsClass = _make_attr_tuple_class(cls.__name__, attr_names)
 
     cls.__attrs_attrs__ = AttrsClass(super_cls + [
-        Attribute.from_counting_attr(name=attr_name, ca=ca)
+        Attribute.from_counting_attr(name=attr_name, ca=ca,
+                                     type=ann.get(attr_name))
         for attr_name, ca
         in sorted(ca_list, key=lambda e: e[1].counter)
     ])
@@ -853,11 +865,11 @@ class Attribute(object):
     """
     __slots__ = (
         "name", "default", "validator", "repr", "cmp", "hash", "init",
-        "convert", "metadata",
+        "convert", "metadata", "type"
     )
 
     def __init__(self, name, default, validator, repr, cmp, hash, init,
-                 convert=None, metadata=None):
+                 convert=None, metadata=None, type=None):
         # Cache this descriptor here to speed things up later.
         bound_setattr = _obj_setattr.__get__(self, Attribute)
 
@@ -871,22 +883,30 @@ def __init__(self, name, default, validator, repr, cmp, hash, init,
         bound_setattr("convert", convert)
         bound_setattr("metadata", (metadata_proxy(metadata) if metadata
                                    else _empty_metadata_singleton))
+        bound_setattr("type", type)
 
     def __setattr__(self, name, value):
         raise FrozenInstanceError()
 
     @classmethod
-    def from_counting_attr(cls, name, ca):
+    def from_counting_attr(cls, name, ca, type=None):
+        # type holds the annotated value. deal with conflicts:
+        if type is None:
+            type = ca.type
+        elif ca.type is not None:
+            raise ValueError(
+                "Type annotation and type argument cannot both be present"
+            )
         inst_dict = {
             k: getattr(ca, k)
             for k
             in Attribute.__slots__
             if k not in (
-                "name", "validator", "default",
+                "name", "validator", "default", "type"
             )  # exclude methods
         }
         return cls(name=name, validator=ca._validator, default=ca._default,
-                   **inst_dict)
+                   type=type, **inst_dict)
 
     # Don't use _add_pickle since fields(Attribute) doesn't work
     def __getstate__(self):
@@ -929,7 +949,7 @@ class _CountingAttr(object):
     likely the result of a bug like a forgotten `@attr.s` decorator.
     """
     __slots__ = ("counter", "_default", "repr", "cmp", "hash", "init",
-                 "metadata", "_validator", "convert")
+                 "metadata", "_validator", "convert", "type")
     __attrs_attrs__ = tuple(
         Attribute(name=name, default=NOTHING, validator=None,
                   repr=True, cmp=True, hash=True, init=True)
@@ -942,7 +962,7 @@ class _CountingAttr(object):
     cls_counter = 0
 
     def __init__(self, default, validator, repr, cmp, hash, init, convert,
-                 metadata):
+                 metadata, type):
         _CountingAttr.cls_counter += 1
         self.counter = _CountingAttr.cls_counter
         self._default = default
@@ -957,6 +977,7 @@ def __init__(self, default, validator, repr, cmp, hash, init, convert,
         self.init = init
         self.convert = convert
         self.metadata = metadata
+        self.type = type
 
     def validator(self, meth):
         """
diff --git a/tests/test_annotations.py b/tests/test_annotations.py
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..8cba682d3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_annotations.py
@@ -0,0 +1,57 @@
+"""
+Tests for PEP-526 type annotations.
+"""
+
+from __future__ import absolute_import, division, print_function
+
+import pytest
+
+from attr._make import (
+    attr,
+    attributes,
+    fields
+)
+
+import typing
+
+
+class TestAnnotations(object):
+    """
+    Tests for types derived from variable annotations (PEP-526).
+    """
+
+    def test_basic_annotations(self):
+        """
+        Sets the `Attribute.type` attr from basic type annotations.
+        """
+        @attributes
+        class C(object):
+            x: int = attr()
+            y = attr(type=str)
+            z = attr()
+        assert int is fields(C).x.type
+        assert str is fields(C).y.type
+        assert None is fields(C).z.type
+
+    def test_catches_basic_type_conflict(self):
+        """
+        Raises ValueError type is specified both ways.
+        """
+        with pytest.raises(ValueError) as e:
+            @attributes
+            class C:
+                x: int = attr(type=int)
+        assert ("Type annotation and type argument cannot "
+                "both be present",) == e.value.args
+
+    def test_typing_annotations(self):
+        """
+        Sets the `Attribute.type` attr from typing annotations.
+        """
+        @attributes
+        class C(object):
+            x: typing.List[int] = attr()
+            y = attr(type=typing.Optional[str])
+
+        assert typing.List[int] is fields(C).x.type
+        assert typing.Optional[str] is fields(C).y.type
diff --git a/tests/test_make.py b/tests/test_make.py
index a9e400f5e..540663309 100644
--- a/tests/test_make.py
+++ b/tests/test_make.py
@@ -194,7 +194,7 @@ class C(object):
             "default value or factory.  Attribute in question: Attribute"
             "(name='y', default=NOTHING, validator=None, repr=True, "
             "cmp=True, hash=None, init=True, convert=None, "
-            "metadata=mappingproxy({}))",
+            "metadata=mappingproxy({}), type=None)",
         ) == e.value.args
 
     def test_these(self):
@@ -406,6 +406,19 @@ def __attrs_post_init__(self2):
         c = C(x=10, y=20)
         assert 30 == getattr(c, 'z', None)
 
+    def test_types(self):
+        """
+        Sets the `Attribute.type` attr from type argument.
+        """
+        @attributes
+        class C(object):
+            x = attr(type=int)
+            y = attr(type=str)
+            z = attr()
+        assert int is fields(C).x.type
+        assert str is fields(C).y.type
+        assert None is fields(C).z.type
+
 
 @attributes
 class GC(object):