diff --git a/docs/manpage.rst b/docs/manpage.rst
index 6862ee181a..a416ad56cf 100644
--- a/docs/manpage.rst
+++ b/docs/manpage.rst
@@ -615,10 +615,6 @@ Options controlling ReFrame execution
 
    Skip sanity checking phase.
 
-.. option:: --strict
-
-   Enforce strict performance checking, even if a performance test is marked as not performance critical by having set its :attr:`strict_check` attribute to :class:`False`.
-
 
 ----------------------------------
 Options controlling job submission
diff --git a/docs/tutorial_tips_tricks.rst b/docs/tutorial_tips_tricks.rst
index 807379d6c6..74261bd709 100644
--- a/docs/tutorial_tips_tricks.rst
+++ b/docs/tutorial_tips_tricks.rst
@@ -177,7 +177,7 @@ The following configuration defines an execution mode named ``maintenance`` and
            'options': [
                '--unload-module=reframe',
                '--exec-policy=async',
-               '--strict',
+               '-S strict_check=1',
                '--output=/path/to/$USER/regression/maintenance',
                '--perflogdir=/path/to/$USER/regression/maintenance/logs',
                '--stage=$SCRATCH/regression/maintenance/stage',
diff --git a/reframe/frontend/cli.py b/reframe/frontend/cli.py
index b2c877d856..fe72e0a7d9 100644
--- a/reframe/frontend/cli.py
+++ b/reframe/frontend/cli.py
@@ -443,10 +443,6 @@ def main():
         '--skip-system-check', action='store_true',
         help='Skip system check'
     )
-    run_options.add_argument(
-        '--strict', action='store_true',
-        help='Enforce strict performance checking'
-    )
 
     # Environment options
     env_options.add_argument(
@@ -1238,7 +1234,6 @@ def module_unuse(*paths):
             printer.error("unknown execution policy `%s': Exiting...")
             sys.exit(1)
 
-        exec_policy.strict_check = options.strict
         exec_policy.skip_sanity_check = options.skip_sanity_check
         exec_policy.skip_performance_check = options.skip_performance_check
         exec_policy.keep_stage_files = site_config.get(
diff --git a/reframe/frontend/executors/__init__.py b/reframe/frontend/executors/__init__.py
index acdd687c9e..19631c2a58 100644
--- a/reframe/frontend/executors/__init__.py
+++ b/reframe/frontend/executors/__init__.py
@@ -591,7 +591,6 @@ def __init__(self):
         self.keep_stage_files = False
         self.only_environs = None
         self.printer = None
-        self.strict_check = False
 
         # Local scheduler for running forced local jobs
         self.local_scheduler = LocalJobScheduler()
@@ -613,6 +612,3 @@ def exit(self):
     @abc.abstractmethod
     def runcase(self, case):
         '''Run a test case.'''
-
-        if self.strict_check:
-            case.check.strict_check = True
diff --git a/unittests/test_policies.py b/unittests/test_policies.py
index d653fafc07..cbaf0f4da8 100644
--- a/unittests/test_policies.py
+++ b/unittests/test_policies.py
@@ -360,8 +360,11 @@ def test_runall_maxfail(make_runner, make_cases, common_exec_ctx):
 
 def test_strict_performance_check(make_runner, make_cases, common_exec_ctx):
     runner = make_runner()
-    runner.policy.strict_check = True
-    runner.runall(make_cases())
+    cases = make_cases()
+    for c in cases:
+        c.check.strict_check = True
+
+    runner.runall(cases)
     stats = runner.stats
     assert 9 == stats.num_cases()
     assert_runall(runner)