diff --git a/include/kernel-defaults.mk b/include/kernel-defaults.mk
index 1e0b28b2ed..55e6ccab93 100644
--- a/include/kernel-defaults.mk
+++ b/include/kernel-defaults.mk
@@ -22,6 +22,7 @@ endif
 KERNEL_MAKEOPTS := -C $(LINUX_DIR) \
 	CROSS_COMPILE="$(KERNEL_CROSS)" \
 	ARCH="$(LINUX_KARCH)" \
+	KBUILD_HAVE_NLS=no \
 	CONFIG_SHELL="$(BASH)"
 
 INITRAMFS_EXTRA_FILES ?= $(GENERIC_PLATFORM_DIR)/image/initramfs-base-files.txt