diff --git a/lisp/vc/vc-dispatcher.el b/lisp/vc/vc-dispatcher.el
index dc3ed52650..4348e42722 100644
--- a/lisp/vc/vc-dispatcher.el
+++ b/lisp/vc/vc-dispatcher.el
@@ -346,7 +346,7 @@ vc-do-command
         (vc-setup-buffer buffer))
       (cl-destructuring-bind (command file-or-list flags)
           (funcall vc-filter-command-function command file-or-list flags)
-        (when vc-tor
+        (when (and vc-tor (executable-find "torsocks"))
           (push command flags)
           (setq command "torsocks"))
         (let* (;; FIXME: file-relative-name can return a bogus result