diff --git a/.github/workflows/github_actions.yml b/.github/workflows/github_actions.yml
index d3b3267415..87ea3afaec 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/github_actions.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/github_actions.yml
@@ -46,7 +46,7 @@ jobs:
             mpi_impl: openmpi
             armci_network: MPI-TS
             nwchem_modules: "xtb"
-            fc: gfortran
+            fc: gfortran-9
             blas: "build_openblas"
             use_tblite: 1
           - os: ubuntu-18.04
diff --git a/src/libext/tblite/build_tblite_cmake.sh b/src/libext/tblite/build_tblite_cmake.sh
index 91baaaa6bc..7ed7e81474 100755
--- a/src/libext/tblite/build_tblite_cmake.sh
+++ b/src/libext/tblite/build_tblite_cmake.sh
@@ -86,6 +86,18 @@ fi
 if [[ ! -z "$BUILD_OPENBLAS"   ]] ; then
     BLASOPT="-L`pwd`/../lib -lnwc_openblas"
 fi
+if [[ `${FC} -dM -E - < /dev/null 2> /dev/null | grep -c GNU` > 0 ]] ; then
+    let GCCVERSIONGT8=$(expr `${FC} -dumpversion | cut -f1 -d.` \> 8)
+fi
+# check gfortran version
+if [[ ${GCCVERSIONGT8} != 1 ]]; then
+    echo
+    echo you have gfortran version $(${FC} -dumpversion | cut -f1 -d.)
+    echo gcc version 9 and later needed for tblite
+    echo
+    exit 1
+fi
+
 
 cd tblite
 rm -rf _build