diff --git a/makefiles/lint/python.mk b/makefiles/lint/python.mk
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5aecd58
--- /dev/null
+++ b/makefiles/lint/python.mk
@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+# -*- makefile -*-
+# -----------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Copyright 2017-2022 Open Networking Foundation
+#
+# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+# You may obtain a copy of the License at
+#
+# http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+#
+# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+# limitations under the License.
+# -----------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+PYTHON_FILES ?= $(error PYTHON_FILES= is required)
+
+.PHONY: lint-python
+
+lint : lint-python
+
+# check deps for format and python3 cleanliness
+lint-python: vst_venv
+	source ./$</bin/activate \
+	    ; set -u \
+	    ; pylint --py3k $(PYTHON_FILES) \
+	    ; flake8 --max-line-length=99 --count $(PYTHON_FILES)
+
+help::
+	@echo "  lint-python          Syntax check using pylint and flake8"
+
+# [EOF]