diff --git a/kernel/cpuset.c b/kernel/cpuset.c
index c27e53326bef..c08585ad996b 100644
--- a/kernel/cpuset.c
+++ b/kernel/cpuset.c
@@ -325,8 +325,7 @@ static struct file_system_type cpuset_fs_type = {
 /*
  * Return in pmask the portion of a cpusets's cpus_allowed that
  * are online.  If none are online, walk up the cpuset hierarchy
- * until we find one that does have some online cpus.  The top
- * cpuset always has some cpus online.
+ * until we find one that does have some online cpus.
  *
  * One way or another, we guarantee to return some non-empty subset
  * of cpu_online_mask.
@@ -335,8 +334,20 @@ static struct file_system_type cpuset_fs_type = {
  */
 static void guarantee_online_cpus(struct cpuset *cs, struct cpumask *pmask)
 {
-	while (!cpumask_intersects(cs->effective_cpus, cpu_online_mask))
+	while (!cpumask_intersects(cs->effective_cpus, cpu_online_mask)) {
 		cs = parent_cs(cs);
+		if (unlikely(!cs)) {
+			/*
+			 * The top cpuset doesn't have any online cpu as a
+			 * consequence of a race between cpuset_hotplug_work
+			 * and cpu hotplug notifier.  But we know the top
+			 * cpuset's effective_cpus is on its way to to be
+			 * identical to cpu_online_mask.
+			 */
+			cpumask_copy(pmask, cpu_online_mask);
+			return;
+		}
+	}
 	cpumask_and(pmask, cs->effective_cpus, cpu_online_mask);
 }