diff --git a/org.eclipse.xtext.maven.plugin/pom.xml b/org.eclipse.xtext.maven.plugin/pom.xml
index e4007c380bc..e8ee88384d2 100644
--- a/org.eclipse.xtext.maven.plugin/pom.xml
+++ b/org.eclipse.xtext.maven.plugin/pom.xml
@@ -158,6 +158,7 @@
 				<artifactId>maven-plugin-plugin</artifactId>
 				<configuration>
 					<goalPrefix>xtext</goalPrefix>
+					<requiredJavaVersion>${maven.compiler.release}</requiredJavaVersion>
 				</configuration>
 			</plugin>
 			<plugin>