diff --git a/wcs/formdef.py b/wcs/formdef.py
index ce23d88ee..555bf4513 100644
--- a/wcs/formdef.py
+++ b/wcs/formdef.py
@@ -659,7 +659,7 @@ class FormDef(StorableObject):
                 formdef.max_field_id = max([lax_int(x.id) for x in formdef.fields])+1
 
         formdef.workflow_options = {}
-        for option in tree.find('options') or []:
+        for option in tree.findall('options/option'):
             formdef.workflow_options[option.attrib.get('varname')] = option.text
 
         if tree.find('last_modification') is not None: