diff --git a/meson.build b/meson.build
index 04cb63d9217..68ead1f849f 100644
--- a/meson.build
+++ b/meson.build
@@ -533,6 +533,7 @@ foreach ident : [
                                  #include <signal.h>
                                  #include <sys/wait.h>'''],
         ['mallinfo',          '''#include <malloc.h>'''],
+        ['execveat',          '''#include <unistd.h>'''],
         ['close_range',       '''#include <unistd.h>'''],
 ]
 
diff --git a/src/basic/missing_syscall.h b/src/basic/missing_syscall.h
index 01fec6f2f5d..43d08bada72 100644
--- a/src/basic/missing_syscall.h
+++ b/src/basic/missing_syscall.h
@@ -735,6 +735,25 @@ static inline int missing_rt_sigqueueinfo(pid_t tgid, int sig, siginfo_t *info)
 #  define rt_sigqueueinfo missing_rt_sigqueueinfo
 #endif
 
+/* ======================================================================= */
+ 
+#if !HAVE_EXECVEAT
+static inline int missing_execveat(int dirfd, const char *pathname,
+                                   char *const argv[], char *const envp[],
+                                   int flags) {
+#  if defined __NR_execveat && __NR_execveat >= 0
+        return syscall(__NR_execveat, dirfd, pathname, argv, envp, flags);
+#  else
+        errno = ENOSYS;
+        return -1;
+#  endif
+}
+ 
+#  undef AT_EMPTY_PATH
+#  define AT_EMPTY_PATH 0x1000
+#  define execveat missing_execveat
+#endif
+
 /* ======================================================================= */
 
 #define systemd_NR_close_range systemd_SC_arch_bias(436)
diff --git a/src/shared/exec-util.c b/src/shared/exec-util.c
index a0bb1567ced..d4ebeea301b 100644
--- a/src/shared/exec-util.c
+++ b/src/shared/exec-util.c
@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@
 #include "fileio.h"
 #include "hashmap.h"
 #include "macro.h"
+#include "missing_syscall.h"
 #include "process-util.h"
 #include "rlimit-util.h"
 #include "serialize.h"
@@ -445,9 +446,9 @@ ExecCommandFlags exec_command_flags_from_string(const char *s) {
 }
 
 int fexecve_or_execve(int executable_fd, const char *executable, char *const argv[], char *const envp[]) {
-        fexecve(executable_fd, argv, envp);
-        if (errno == ENOENT)
-                /* A script? Let's fall back to execve().
+        execveat(executable_fd, "", argv, envp, AT_EMPTY_PATH);
+        if (IN_SET(errno, ENOSYS, ENOENT))
+                /* Old kernel or a script? Let's fall back to execve().
                  *
                  * fexecve(3): "If fd refers to a script (i.e., it is an executable text file that names a
                  * script interpreter with a first line that begins with the characters #!) and the