diff --git a/nixos/modules/services/misc/paperless.nix b/nixos/modules/services/misc/paperless.nix
index 964c933989720..157ca12906db6 100644
--- a/nixos/modules/services/misc/paperless.nix
+++ b/nixos/modules/services/misc/paperless.nix
@@ -298,7 +298,7 @@ in
         ExecStart = "${cfg.package}/bin/celery --app paperless beat --loglevel INFO";
         Restart = "on-failure";
         LoadCredential = lib.optionalString (cfg.passwordFile != null) "PAPERLESS_ADMIN_PASSWORD:${cfg.passwordFile}";
-        PrivateNetwork = lib.mkIf cfg.database.createLocally true;
+        PrivateNetwork = cfg.database.createLocally; # defaultServiceConfig enables this by default, needs to be disabled for remote DBs
       };
       environment = env;