diff --git a/ocrmypdf/__init__.py b/ocrmypdf/__init__.py
index b33d4279..2fc3017e 100644
--- a/ocrmypdf/__init__.py
+++ b/ocrmypdf/__init__.py
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ import pkg_resources
 
 PROGRAM_NAME = 'ocrmypdf'
 
-VERSION = pkg_resources.get_distribution('ocrmypdf').version
-
+# Official PEP 396
+__version__ = pkg_resources.get_distribution('ocrmypdf').version
 
+VERSION = __version__