diff --git a/CMakeLists.txt b/CMakeLists.txt
index 23a8b5f19b..271631d012 100644
--- a/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -658,9 +658,15 @@ else()
   set(HDF5_USE_STATIC_LIBRARIES off)
 endif()
 
-find_package(HDF5 1.10 COMPONENTS C)
+find_package(HDF5 COMPONENTS C) # Note: minimum version check is done below to bypass find_package
+                                # and HDF5 version compatibility subtleties
 
 if(HDF5_FOUND)
+  if(HDF5_VERSION)
+    if (HDF5_VERSION VERSION_LESS 1.10.0)
+      message(FATAL_ERROR "QMCPACK requires HDF5 version >= 1.10.0")
+    endif()
+  endif(HDF5_VERSION)
   if(HDF5_IS_PARALLEL)
     if(HAVE_MPI)
       message(STATUS "Parallel HDF5 library found")