diff --git a/src/memory/params.py b/src/memory/params.py
index 97272636..f7827b3d 100644
--- a/src/memory/params.py
+++ b/src/memory/params.py
@@ -373,6 +373,9 @@ class Params(object):
                         log.error(_(u'Parameter (%(cat)s, %(param)s) of type list has more than one default option!') % {'cat': cat, 'param': param})
                     raise exceptions.DataError
             elif node.getAttribute('type') == 'jids_list':
+                if not value:
+                    log.debug(u"jids list value is empty")
+                    return []
                 jids = value.split('\t')
                 to_delete = []
                 for idx, value in enumerate(jids):