diff --git a/builder/oracle/oci/config.go b/builder/oracle/oci/config.go
index dd2beaaba..d83fa6c15 100644
--- a/builder/oracle/oci/config.go
+++ b/builder/oracle/oci/config.go
@@ -94,7 +94,7 @@ func NewConfig(raws ...interface{}) (*Config, error) {
 
 	var keyContent []byte
 	if c.KeyFile != "" {
-		path, err := common.ExpandUser(c.KeyFile)
+		path, err := packer.ExpandUser(c.KeyFile)
 		if err != nil {
 			return nil, err
 		}
diff --git a/common/config.go b/common/config.go
index 9dffab23c..70ebc8452 100644
--- a/common/config.go
+++ b/common/config.go
@@ -4,7 +4,6 @@ import (
 	"fmt"
 	"net/url"
 	"os"
-	"os/user"
 	"path/filepath"
 	"regexp"
 	"runtime"
@@ -207,44 +206,3 @@ func FileExistsLocally(original string) bool {
 	}
 	return true
 }
-
-func ExpandUser(path string) (string, error) {
-	var (
-		u   *user.User
-		err error
-	)
-
-	// refuse to do anything with a zero-length path
-	if len(path) == 0 {
-		return path
-	}
-
-	// If no expansion was specified, then refuse that too
-	if path[0] != "~" {
-		return path, nil
-	}
-
-	// Grab everything up to the first filepath.Separator
-	idx := strings.IndexAny(path, `/\`)
-	if idx == -1 {
-		idx = len(path)
-	}
-
-	// Now we should be able to extract the username
-	username := path[:idx]
-
-	// Check if the current user was requested
-	if username == "~" {
-		u, err = user.Current()
-	} else {
-		u, err = user.Lookup(username[1:])
-	}
-
-	// If we couldn't figure that out, then fail here
-	if err != nil {
-		return "", err
-	}
-
-	// Now we can replace the path with u.HomeDir
-	return filepath.Join(u.HomeDir, path[idx:])
-}
diff --git a/helper/communicator/config.go b/helper/communicator/config.go
index 6c0477bf5..7d66254b5 100644
--- a/helper/communicator/config.go
+++ b/helper/communicator/config.go
@@ -8,10 +8,10 @@ import (
 	"os"
 	"time"
 
-	"github.com/hashicorp/packer/common"
 	packerssh "github.com/hashicorp/packer/communicator/ssh"
 	"github.com/hashicorp/packer/helper/multistep"
 	helperssh "github.com/hashicorp/packer/helper/ssh"
+	"github.com/hashicorp/packer/packer"
 	"github.com/hashicorp/packer/template/interpolate"
 	"github.com/masterzen/winrm"
 	"golang.org/x/crypto/ssh"
@@ -73,7 +73,7 @@ func (c *Config) ReadSSHPrivateKeyFile() ([]byte, error) {
 	var privateKey []byte
 
 	if c.SSHPrivateKeyFile != "" {
-		keyPath, err := common.ExpandUser(c.SSHPrivateKeyFile)
+		keyPath, err := packer.ExpandUser(c.SSHPrivateKeyFile)
 		if err != nil {
 			return []byte{}, fmt.Errorf("Error expanding path for SSH private key: %s", err)
 		}
@@ -262,7 +262,7 @@ func (c *Config) prepareSSH(ctx *interpolate.Context) []error {
 	}
 
 	if c.SSHPrivateKeyFile != "" {
-		path, err := common.ExpandUser(c.SSHPrivateKeyFile)
+		path, err := packer.ExpandUser(c.SSHPrivateKeyFile)
 		if err != nil {
 			errs = append(errs, fmt.Errorf(
 				"ssh_private_key_file is invalid: %s", err))
@@ -280,7 +280,7 @@ func (c *Config) prepareSSH(ctx *interpolate.Context) []error {
 			errs = append(errs, errors.New(
 				"ssh_bastion_password or ssh_bastion_private_key_file must be specified"))
 		} else if c.SSHBastionPrivateKeyFile != "" {
-			path, err := common.ExpandUser(c.SSHBastionPrivateKeyFile)
+			path, err := packer.ExpandUser(c.SSHBastionPrivateKeyFile)
 			if err != nil {
 				errs = append(errs, fmt.Errorf(
 					"ssh_bastion_private_key_file is invalid: %s", err))
diff --git a/helper/communicator/step_connect_ssh.go b/helper/communicator/step_connect_ssh.go
index 121a7c307..0a2a8c757 100644
--- a/helper/communicator/step_connect_ssh.go
+++ b/helper/communicator/step_connect_ssh.go
@@ -226,7 +226,7 @@ func sshBastionConfig(config *Config) (*gossh.ClientConfig, error) {
 	}
 
 	if config.SSHBastionPrivateKeyFile != "" {
-		path, err := common.ExpandUser(config.SSHBastionPrivateKeyFile)
+		path, err := packer.ExpandUser(config.SSHBastionPrivateKeyFile)
 		if err != nil {
 			return nil, fmt.Errorf(
 				"Error expanding path for SSH bastion private key: %s", err)
diff --git a/packer/config_file.go b/packer/config_file.go
index 043b40ae8..3bb9c8e51 100644
--- a/packer/config_file.go
+++ b/packer/config_file.go
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import (
 	"os"
 	"os/user"
 	"path/filepath"
+	"strings"
 )
 
 // ConfigFile returns the default path to the configuration file. On
@@ -84,3 +85,46 @@ func configDir() (string, error) {
 
 	return filepath.Join(dir, defaultConfigDir), nil
 }
+
+// Given a path, check to see if it's using ~ to reference a user directory.
+// If so, then replace that component with the requrested user's directory.
+func ExpandUser(path string) (string, error) {
+	var (
+		u   *user.User
+		err error
+	)
+
+	// refuse to do anything with a zero-length path
+	if len(path) == 0 {
+		return path, nil
+	}
+
+	// If no expansion was specified, then refuse that too
+	if path[0] != '~' {
+		return path, nil
+	}
+
+	// Grab everything up to the first filepath.Separator
+	idx := strings.IndexAny(path, `/\`)
+	if idx == -1 {
+		idx = len(path)
+	}
+
+	// Now we should be able to extract the username
+	username := path[:idx]
+
+	// Check if the current user was requested
+	if username == "~" {
+		u, err = user.Current()
+	} else {
+		u, err = user.Lookup(username[1:])
+	}
+
+	// If we couldn't figure that out, then fail here
+	if err != nil {
+		return "", err
+	}
+
+	// Now we can replace the path with u.HomeDir
+	return filepath.Join(u.HomeDir, path[idx:]), nil
+}