diff --git a/libavcodec/vvc/vvcdec.c b/libavcodec/vvc/vvcdec.c
index d5704aca25..e72bb48a50 100644
--- a/libavcodec/vvc/vvcdec.c
+++ b/libavcodec/vvc/vvcdec.c
@@ -939,6 +939,9 @@ static int vvc_decode_frame(AVCodecContext *avctx, AVFrame *output,
     if (ret < 0)
         return ret;
 
+    if (!fc->ft)
+        return avpkt->size;
+
     ret = submit_frame(s, fc, output, got_output);
     if (ret < 0)
         return ret;