diff --git a/pelican/tools/pelican_import.py b/pelican/tools/pelican_import.py
index ef4a20e0..25fc45e5 100755
--- a/pelican/tools/pelican_import.py
+++ b/pelican/tools/pelican_import.py
@@ -160,8 +160,11 @@ def wp2fields(xml, wp_custpost=False):
 
             content = item.find('encoded').string
             raw_date = item.find('post_date').string
-            date_object = time.strptime(raw_date, '%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S')
-            date = time.strftime('%Y-%m-%d %H:%M', date_object)
+            if raw_date == u'0000-00-00 00:00:00':
+                date = None
+            else:
+                date_object = time.strptime(raw_date, '%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S')
+                date = time.strftime('%Y-%m-%d %H:%M', date_object)
             author = item.find('creator').string
 
             categories = [cat.string for cat