diff --git a/django/middleware/common.py b/django/middleware/common.py
index 68fcb8a780..3d7f365af4 100644
--- a/django/middleware/common.py
+++ b/django/middleware/common.py
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import re
 from django import http
 from django.conf import settings
 from django.core import urlresolvers
+from django.core.exceptions import PermissionDenied
 from django.core.mail import mail_managers
 from django.utils.encoding import force_text
 
@@ -47,13 +48,7 @@ class CommonMiddleware(object):
         if 'HTTP_USER_AGENT' in request.META:
             for user_agent_regex in settings.DISALLOWED_USER_AGENTS:
                 if user_agent_regex.search(request.META['HTTP_USER_AGENT']):
-                    logger.warning('Forbidden (User agent): %s', request.path,
-                        extra={
-                            'status_code': 403,
-                            'request': request
-                        }
-                    )
-                    return http.HttpResponseForbidden('<h1>Forbidden</h1>')
+                    raise PermissionDenied('Forbidden user agent')
 
         # Check for a redirect based on settings.APPEND_SLASH
         # and settings.PREPEND_WWW
diff --git a/docs/releases/1.9.txt b/docs/releases/1.9.txt
index 3a105fd3b6..9b0fbb2a02 100644
--- a/docs/releases/1.9.txt
+++ b/docs/releases/1.9.txt
@@ -452,6 +452,12 @@ Requests and Responses
   <django.http.HttpRequest.urlconf>` to ``None`` to revert any changes made
   by previous middleware and return to using the :setting:`ROOT_URLCONF`.
 
+* The :setting:`DISALLOWED_USER_AGENTS` check in
+  :class:`~django.middleware.common.CommonMiddleware` now raises a
+  :class:`~django.core.exceptions.PermissionDenied` exception as opposed to
+  returning an :class:`~django.http.HttpResponseForbidden` so that
+  :data:`~django.conf.urls.handler403` is invoked.
+
 Tests
 ^^^^^
 
diff --git a/tests/middleware/tests.py b/tests/middleware/tests.py
index db9de1e9b4..eaa1308e64 100644
--- a/tests/middleware/tests.py
+++ b/tests/middleware/tests.py
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ from unittest import skipIf
 
 from django.conf import settings
 from django.core import mail
+from django.core.exceptions import PermissionDenied
 from django.http import (
     FileResponse, HttpRequest, HttpResponse, HttpResponsePermanentRedirect,
     HttpResponseRedirect, StreamingHttpResponse,
@@ -256,9 +257,8 @@ class CommonMiddlewareTest(SimpleTestCase):
         with patch_logger('django.request', 'warning') as log_messages:
             request = self.rf.get('/slash')
             request.META['HTTP_USER_AGENT'] = 'foo'
-            r = CommonMiddleware().process_request(request)
-            self.assertEqual(r.status_code, 403)
-            self.assertEqual(log_messages, ['Forbidden (User agent): /slash'])
+            with self.assertRaisesMessage(PermissionDenied, 'Forbidden user agent'):
+                CommonMiddleware().process_request(request)
 
     def test_non_ascii_query_string_does_not_crash(self):
         """Regression test for #15152"""