diff --git a/lib/ansible/module_common.py b/lib/ansible/module_common.py
index 062ec0e036..02a028eae4 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/module_common.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/module_common.py
@@ -222,6 +222,8 @@ class AnsibleModule(object):
         path = params.get('path', params.get('dest', None))
         if path is None:
             return {}
+        else:
+            path = os.path.expanduser(path)
 
         mode   = params.get('mode', None)
         owner  = params.get('owner', None)