diff --git a/Documentation/config.txt b/Documentation/config.txt
index b4b01948d0..8c02e43483 100644
--- a/Documentation/config.txt
+++ b/Documentation/config.txt
@@ -2226,6 +2226,20 @@ push.gpgSign::
 	override a value from a lower-priority config file. An explicit
 	command-line flag always overrides this config option.
 
+push.recurseSubmodules::
+	Make sure all submodule commits used by the revisions to be pushed
+	are available on a remote-tracking branch. If the value is 'check'
+	then Git will verify that all submodule commits that changed in the
+	revisions to be pushed are available on at least one remote of the
+	submodule. If any commits are missing, the push will be aborted and
+	exit with non-zero status. If the value is 'on-demand' then all
+	submodules that changed in the revisions to be pushed will be
+	pushed. If on-demand was not able to push all necessary revisions
+	it will also be aborted and exit with non-zero status. If the value
+	is 'no' then default behavior of ignoring submodules when pushing
+	is retained. You may override this configuration at time of push by
+	specifying '--recurse-submodules=check|on-demand|no'.
+
 rebase.stat::
 	Whether to show a diffstat of what changed upstream since the last
 	rebase. False by default.
diff --git a/Documentation/git-push.txt b/Documentation/git-push.txt
index 85a4d7d6d5..4c775bcec4 100644
--- a/Documentation/git-push.txt
+++ b/Documentation/git-push.txt
@@ -257,16 +257,20 @@ origin +master` to force a push to the `master` branch). See the
 	is specified. This flag forces progress status even if the
 	standard error stream is not directed to a terminal.
 
---recurse-submodules=check|on-demand::
-	Make sure all submodule commits used by the revisions to be
-	pushed are available on a remote-tracking branch. If 'check' is
-	used Git will verify that all submodule commits that changed in
-	the revisions to be pushed are available on at least one remote
-	of the submodule. If any commits are missing the push will be
-	aborted and exit with non-zero status. If 'on-demand' is used
-	all submodules that changed in the revisions to be pushed will
-	be pushed. If on-demand was not able to push all necessary
-	revisions it will also be aborted and exit with non-zero status.
+--no-recurse-submodules::
+--recurse-submodules=check|on-demand|no::
+	May be used to make sure all submodule commits used by the
+	revisions to be pushed are available on a remote-tracking branch.
+	If 'check' is used Git will verify that all submodule commits that
+	changed in the revisions to be pushed are available on at least one
+	remote of the submodule. If any commits are missing the push will
+	be aborted and exit with non-zero status. If 'on-demand' is used
+	all submodules that changed in the revisions to be pushed will be
+	pushed. If on-demand was not able to push all necessary revisions
+	it will also be aborted and exit with non-zero status. A value of
+	'no' or using '--no-recurse-submodules' can be used to override the
+	push.recurseSubmodules configuration variable when no submodule
+	recursion is required.
 
 --[no-]verify::
 	Toggle the pre-push hook (see linkgit:githooks[5]).  The
diff --git a/builtin/push.c b/builtin/push.c
index 3bda430b6b..f9b59b49a5 100644
--- a/builtin/push.c
+++ b/builtin/push.c
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@
 #include "transport.h"
 #include "parse-options.h"
 #include "submodule.h"
+#include "submodule-config.h"
 #include "send-pack.h"
 
 static const char * const push_usage[] = {
@@ -20,7 +21,7 @@ static int thin = 1;
 static int deleterefs;
 static const char *receivepack;
 static int verbosity;
-static int progress = -1;
+static int progress = -1, recurse_submodules = RECURSE_SUBMODULES_DEFAULT;
 
 static struct push_cas_option cas;
 
@@ -452,22 +453,17 @@ static int do_push(const char *repo, int flags)
 static int option_parse_recurse_submodules(const struct option *opt,
 				   const char *arg, int unset)
 {
-	int *flags = opt->value;
+	int *recurse_submodules = opt->value;
 
-	if (*flags & (TRANSPORT_RECURSE_SUBMODULES_CHECK |
-		      TRANSPORT_RECURSE_SUBMODULES_ON_DEMAND))
+	if (*recurse_submodules != RECURSE_SUBMODULES_DEFAULT)
 		die("%s can only be used once.", opt->long_name);
 
-	if (arg) {
-		if (!strcmp(arg, "check"))
-			*flags |= TRANSPORT_RECURSE_SUBMODULES_CHECK;
-		else if (!strcmp(arg, "on-demand"))
-			*flags |= TRANSPORT_RECURSE_SUBMODULES_ON_DEMAND;
-		else
-			die("bad %s argument: %s", opt->long_name, arg);
-	} else
-		die("option %s needs an argument (check|on-demand)",
-				opt->long_name);
+	if (unset)
+		*recurse_submodules = RECURSE_SUBMODULES_OFF;
+	else if (arg)
+		*recurse_submodules = parse_push_recurse_submodules_arg(opt->long_name, arg);
+	else
+		die("%s missing parameter", opt->long_name);
 
 	return 0;
 }
@@ -522,6 +518,10 @@ static int git_push_config(const char *k, const char *v, void *cb)
 					return error("Invalid value for '%s'", k);
 			}
 		}
+	} else if (!strcmp(k, "push.recursesubmodules")) {
+		const char *value;
+		if (!git_config_get_value("push.recursesubmodules", &value))
+			recurse_submodules = parse_push_recurse_submodules_arg(k, value);
 	}
 
 	return git_default_config(k, v, NULL);
@@ -532,6 +532,7 @@ int cmd_push(int argc, const char **argv, const char *prefix)
 	int flags = 0;
 	int tags = 0;
 	int push_cert = -1;
+	int recurse_submodules_from_cmdline = RECURSE_SUBMODULES_DEFAULT;
 	int rc;
 	const char *repo = NULL;	/* default repository */
 	struct option options[] = {
@@ -549,7 +550,7 @@ int cmd_push(int argc, const char **argv, const char *prefix)
 		  0, CAS_OPT_NAME, &cas, N_("refname>:<expect"),
 		  N_("require old value of ref to be at this value"),
 		  PARSE_OPT_OPTARG, parseopt_push_cas_option },
-		{ OPTION_CALLBACK, 0, "recurse-submodules", &flags, "check|on-demand",
+		{ OPTION_CALLBACK, 0, "recurse-submodules", &recurse_submodules_from_cmdline, N_("check|on-demand|no"),
 			N_("control recursive pushing of submodules"),
 			PARSE_OPT_OPTARG, option_parse_recurse_submodules },
 		OPT_BOOL( 0 , "thin", &thin, N_("use thin pack")),
@@ -580,6 +581,14 @@ int cmd_push(int argc, const char **argv, const char *prefix)
 	if (deleterefs && argc < 2)
 		die(_("--delete doesn't make sense without any refs"));
 
+	if (recurse_submodules_from_cmdline != RECURSE_SUBMODULES_DEFAULT)
+		recurse_submodules = recurse_submodules_from_cmdline;
+
+	if (recurse_submodules == RECURSE_SUBMODULES_CHECK)
+		flags |= TRANSPORT_RECURSE_SUBMODULES_CHECK;
+	else if (recurse_submodules == RECURSE_SUBMODULES_ON_DEMAND)
+		flags |= TRANSPORT_RECURSE_SUBMODULES_ON_DEMAND;
+
 	if (tags)
 		add_refspec("refs/tags/*");
 
diff --git a/submodule-config.c b/submodule-config.c
index afe0ea8156..fe8ceabf30 100644
--- a/submodule-config.c
+++ b/submodule-config.c
@@ -228,6 +228,35 @@ int parse_fetch_recurse_submodules_arg(const char *opt, const char *arg)
 	return parse_fetch_recurse(opt, arg, 1);
 }
 
+static int parse_push_recurse(const char *opt, const char *arg,
+			       int die_on_error)
+{
+	switch (git_config_maybe_bool(opt, arg)) {
+	case 1:
+		/* There's no simple "on" value when pushing */
+		if (die_on_error)
+			die("bad %s argument: %s", opt, arg);
+		else
+			return RECURSE_SUBMODULES_ERROR;
+	case 0:
+		return RECURSE_SUBMODULES_OFF;
+	default:
+		if (!strcmp(arg, "on-demand"))
+			return RECURSE_SUBMODULES_ON_DEMAND;
+		else if (!strcmp(arg, "check"))
+			return RECURSE_SUBMODULES_CHECK;
+		else if (die_on_error)
+			die("bad %s argument: %s", opt, arg);
+		else
+			return RECURSE_SUBMODULES_ERROR;
+	}
+}
+
+int parse_push_recurse_submodules_arg(const char *opt, const char *arg)
+{
+	return parse_push_recurse(opt, arg, 1);
+}
+
 static void warn_multiple_config(const unsigned char *commit_sha1,
 				 const char *name, const char *option)
 {
diff --git a/submodule-config.h b/submodule-config.h
index 9061e4ed38..9bfa65af03 100644
--- a/submodule-config.h
+++ b/submodule-config.h
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@ struct submodule {
 };
 
 int parse_fetch_recurse_submodules_arg(const char *opt, const char *arg);
+int parse_push_recurse_submodules_arg(const char *opt, const char *arg);
 int parse_submodule_config_option(const char *var, const char *value);
 const struct submodule *submodule_from_name(const unsigned char *commit_sha1,
 		const char *name);
diff --git a/submodule.h b/submodule.h
index 5507c3d9a0..ddff512109 100644
--- a/submodule.h
+++ b/submodule.h
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ struct diff_options;
 struct argv_array;
 
 enum {
+	RECURSE_SUBMODULES_CHECK = -4,
 	RECURSE_SUBMODULES_ERROR = -3,
 	RECURSE_SUBMODULES_NONE = -2,
 	RECURSE_SUBMODULES_ON_DEMAND = -1,
diff --git a/t/t5531-deep-submodule-push.sh b/t/t5531-deep-submodule-push.sh
index 6507487c1a..9fda7b0c19 100755
--- a/t/t5531-deep-submodule-push.sh
+++ b/t/t5531-deep-submodule-push.sh
@@ -64,7 +64,12 @@ test_expect_success 'push fails if submodule commit not on remote' '
 		cd work &&
 		git add gar/bage &&
 		git commit -m "Third commit for gar/bage" &&
-		test_must_fail git push --recurse-submodules=check ../pub.git master
+		# the push should fail with --recurse-submodules=check
+		# on the command line...
+		test_must_fail git push --recurse-submodules=check ../pub.git master &&
+
+		# ...or if specified in the configuration..
+		test_must_fail git -c push.recurseSubmodules=check push ../pub.git master
 	)
 '
 
@@ -79,6 +84,151 @@ test_expect_success 'push succeeds after commit was pushed to remote' '
 	)
 '
 
+test_expect_success 'push succeeds if submodule commit not on remote but using on-demand on command line' '
+	(
+		cd work/gar/bage &&
+		>recurse-on-demand-on-command-line &&
+		git add recurse-on-demand-on-command-line &&
+		git commit -m "Recurse on-demand on command line junk"
+	) &&
+	(
+		cd work &&
+		git add gar/bage &&
+		git commit -m "Recurse on-demand on command line for gar/bage" &&
+		git push --recurse-submodules=on-demand ../pub.git master &&
+		# Check that the supermodule commit got there
+		git fetch ../pub.git &&
+		git diff --quiet FETCH_HEAD master &&
+		# Check that the submodule commit got there too
+		cd gar/bage &&
+		git diff --quiet origin/master master
+	)
+'
+
+test_expect_success 'push succeeds if submodule commit not on remote but using on-demand from config' '
+	(
+		cd work/gar/bage &&
+		>recurse-on-demand-from-config &&
+		git add recurse-on-demand-from-config &&
+		git commit -m "Recurse on-demand from config junk"
+	) &&
+	(
+		cd work &&
+		git add gar/bage &&
+		git commit -m "Recurse on-demand from config for gar/bage" &&
+		git -c push.recurseSubmodules=on-demand push ../pub.git master &&
+		# Check that the supermodule commit got there
+		git fetch ../pub.git &&
+		git diff --quiet FETCH_HEAD master &&
+		# Check that the submodule commit got there too
+		cd gar/bage &&
+		git diff --quiet origin/master master
+	)
+'
+
+test_expect_success 'push fails if submodule commit not on remote using check from cmdline overriding config' '
+	(
+		cd work/gar/bage &&
+		>recurse-check-on-command-line-overriding-config &&
+		git add recurse-check-on-command-line-overriding-config &&
+		git commit -m "Recurse on command-line overridiing config junk"
+	) &&
+	(
+		cd work &&
+		git add gar/bage &&
+		git commit -m "Recurse on command-line overriding config for gar/bage" &&
+		test_must_fail git -c push.recurseSubmodules=on-demand push --recurse-submodules=check ../pub.git master &&
+		# Check that the supermodule commit did not get there
+		git fetch ../pub.git &&
+		git diff --quiet FETCH_HEAD master^ &&
+		# Check that the submodule commit did not get there
+		cd gar/bage &&
+		git diff --quiet origin/master master^
+	)
+'
+
+test_expect_success 'push succeeds if submodule commit not on remote using on-demand from cmdline overriding config' '
+	(
+		cd work/gar/bage &&
+		>recurse-on-demand-on-command-line-overriding-config &&
+		git add recurse-on-demand-on-command-line-overriding-config &&
+		git commit -m "Recurse on-demand on command-line overriding config junk"
+	) &&
+	(
+		cd work &&
+		git add gar/bage &&
+		git commit -m "Recurse on-demand on command-line overriding config for gar/bage" &&
+		git -c push.recurseSubmodules=check push --recurse-submodules=on-demand ../pub.git master &&
+		# Check that the supermodule commit got there
+		git fetch ../pub.git &&
+		git diff --quiet FETCH_HEAD master &&
+		# Check that the submodule commit got there
+		cd gar/bage &&
+		git diff --quiet origin/master master
+	)
+'
+
+test_expect_success 'push succeeds if submodule commit disabling recursion from cmdline overriding config' '
+	(
+		cd work/gar/bage &&
+		>recurse-disable-on-command-line-overriding-config &&
+		git add recurse-disable-on-command-line-overriding-config &&
+		git commit -m "Recurse disable on command-line overriding config junk"
+	) &&
+	(
+		cd work &&
+		git add gar/bage &&
+		git commit -m "Recurse disable on command-line overriding config for gar/bage" &&
+		git -c push.recurseSubmodules=check push --recurse-submodules=no ../pub.git master &&
+		# Check that the supermodule commit got there
+		git fetch ../pub.git &&
+		git diff --quiet FETCH_HEAD master &&
+		# But that the submodule commit did not
+		( cd gar/bage && git diff --quiet origin/master master^ ) &&
+		# Now push it to avoid confusing future tests
+		git push --recurse-submodules=on-demand ../pub.git master
+	)
+'
+
+test_expect_success 'push succeeds if submodule commit disabling recursion from cmdline (alternative form) overriding config' '
+	(
+		cd work/gar/bage &&
+		>recurse-disable-on-command-line-alt-overriding-config &&
+		git add recurse-disable-on-command-line-alt-overriding-config &&
+		git commit -m "Recurse disable on command-line alternative overriding config junk"
+	) &&
+	(
+		cd work &&
+		git add gar/bage &&
+		git commit -m "Recurse disable on command-line alternative overriding config for gar/bage" &&
+		git -c push.recurseSubmodules=check push --no-recurse-submodules ../pub.git master &&
+		# Check that the supermodule commit got there
+		git fetch ../pub.git &&
+		git diff --quiet FETCH_HEAD master &&
+		# But that the submodule commit did not
+		( cd gar/bage && git diff --quiet origin/master master^ ) &&
+		# Now push it to avoid confusing future tests
+		git push --recurse-submodules=on-demand ../pub.git master
+	)
+'
+
+test_expect_success 'push fails if recurse submodules option passed as yes' '
+	(
+		cd work/gar/bage &&
+		>recurse-push-fails-if-recurse-submodules-passed-as-yes &&
+		git add recurse-push-fails-if-recurse-submodules-passed-as-yes &&
+		git commit -m "Recurse push fails if recurse submodules option passed as yes"
+	) &&
+	(
+		cd work &&
+		git add gar/bage &&
+		git commit -m "Recurse push fails if recurse submodules option passed as yes for gar/bage" &&
+		test_must_fail git push --recurse-submodules=yes ../pub.git master &&
+		test_must_fail git -c push.recurseSubmodules=yes push ../pub.git master &&
+		git push --recurse-submodules=on-demand ../pub.git master
+	)
+'
+
 test_expect_success 'push fails when commit on multiple branches if one branch has no remote' '
 	(
 		cd work/gar/bage &&