diff --git a/setup.py b/setup.py
index 0a4fe7d2..da7e6488 100644
--- a/setup.py
+++ b/setup.py
@@ -5,8 +5,12 @@ For full docs visit https://docs.bigchaindb.com
 
 """
 from setuptools import setup, find_packages
+import sys
 
 
+if sys.version_info < (3, 6):
+    sys.exit('Please use python version 3.6 or higher')
+
 # get the version
 version = {}
 with open('bigchaindb/version.py') as fp:
@@ -107,7 +111,7 @@ setup(
     author_email='dev@bigchaindb.com',
     license='Apache Software License 2.0',
     zip_safe=False,
-
+    python_requires='>=3.6',
     classifiers=[
         'Development Status :: 3 - Alpha',
         'Intended Audience :: Developers',