diff --git a/nova/scheduler/host_filter.py b/nova/scheduler/host_filter.py
index 7d4b9ad9..9c396cc0 100644
--- a/nova/scheduler/host_filter.py
+++ b/nova/scheduler/host_filter.py
@@ -97,9 +97,13 @@ class InstanceTypeFilter(HostFilter):
         """Check that the capabilities provided by the compute service
         satisfy the extra specs associated with the instance type"""
 
+        if 'extra_specs' not in instance_type:
+            return True
+
         # Note(lorinh): For now, we are just checking exact matching on the
         # values. Later on, we  want to handle numerical
         # values so we can represent things like number of GPU cards
+        
         try:
             for key, value in instance_type['extra_specs'].iteritems():
                 if capabilities[key] != value:
diff --git a/nova/tests/test_host_filter.py b/nova/tests/test_host_filter.py
index 3361c7b7..438f3e52 100644
--- a/nova/tests/test_host_filter.py
+++ b/nova/tests/test_host_filter.py
@@ -67,7 +67,8 @@ class HostFilterTestCase(test.TestCase):
                 flavorid=1,
                 swap=500,
                 rxtx_quota=30000,
-                rxtx_cap=200)
+                rxtx_cap=200,
+                extra_specs={})
 
         self.zone_manager = FakeZoneManager()
         states = {}