In Visual Basic .NET (VB.NET), the existence of a file in the file system can be verified using the `System.IO.File.Exists` method. This method takes a file path as an argument and returns a Boolean value indicating whether the file exists at the specified location.
Checking for file existence is a fundamental task in programming, as it allows developers to perform various operations based on the presence or absence of a file. For instance, a program may need to read data from a file if it exists, or it may need to create a new file if it does not exist. By utilizing the `System.IO.File.Exists` method, developers can efficiently determine the existence of a file and proceed accordingly.