diff --git a/crypto/packet.c b/crypto/packet.c
index 661b59e84217acfd98bed7b2d9c4f1bab3114bec..6db97a5434444369d89db1a0f07e3f29dfd2cbdd 100644
--- a/crypto/packet.c
+++ b/crypto/packet.c
@@ -265,7 +265,10 @@ static int wpacket_intern_close(WPACKET *pkt, WPACKET_SUB *sub, int doclose)
                 && !put_value(&buf[sub->packet_len], packlen,
                               sub->lenbytes))
             return 0;
-    } else if (pkt->endfirst && sub->parent != NULL) {
+    } else if (pkt->endfirst && sub->parent != NULL
+               && (packlen != 0
+                   || (sub->flags
+                       & WPACKET_FLAGS_ABANDON_ON_ZERO_LENGTH) == 0)) {
         size_t tmplen = packlen;
         size_t numlenbytes = 1;
 
diff --git a/test/wpackettest.c b/test/wpackettest.c
index 08b5f976ca22592a93237a70639f9473f19ab1d8..b03dfcd2e04e42546b5ee62a1c722277c5f47b60 100644
--- a/test/wpackettest.c
+++ b/test/wpackettest.c
@@ -360,6 +360,8 @@ static int test_WPACKET_init_der(void)
     unsigned char testdata[] = { 0x00, 0x01, 0x02, 0x03 };
     unsigned char testdata2[259]  = { 0x82, 0x01, 0x00 };
     size_t written[2];
+    size_t size1, size2;
+    int flags = WPACKET_FLAGS_ABANDON_ON_ZERO_LENGTH;
     int i;
 
     /* Test initialising for writing DER */
@@ -370,6 +372,13 @@ static int test_WPACKET_init_der(void)
             || !TEST_true(WPACKET_memcpy(&pkt, testdata, sizeof(testdata)))
             || !TEST_true(WPACKET_close(&pkt))
             || !TEST_true(WPACKET_put_bytes_u8(&pkt, 0xfc))
+            /* this sub-packet is empty, and should render zero bytes */
+            || (!TEST_true(WPACKET_start_sub_packet(&pkt))
+                || !TEST_true(WPACKET_set_flags(&pkt, flags))
+                || !TEST_true(WPACKET_get_total_written(&pkt, &size1))
+                || !TEST_true(WPACKET_close(&pkt))
+                || !TEST_true(WPACKET_get_total_written(&pkt, &size2))
+                || !TEST_size_t_eq(size1, size2))
             || !TEST_true(WPACKET_finish(&pkt))
             || !TEST_true(WPACKET_get_total_written(&pkt, &written[0]))
             || !TEST_mem_eq(WPACKET_get_curr(&pkt), written[0], simpleder,