Does the Hygieniapassi Expire?

No. The hygiene passport is valid until further notice. There is no renewal date and no retest cycle.

Why people expect it to expire

Many certificates do run out: first aid courses, some safety licences, certificates from other countries. So a lot of people assume the hygieniapassi does too. In Finland it does not. You pass the test once and the passport stays valid.

What "valid until further notice" means in practice

• A gap in food work does not affect it. If you took the test years ago and come back to a kitchen now, the passport still counts.
• Changing employers does not affect it. The passport is personal, not tied to a workplace.
• It does not matter who paid for the test. The passport belongs to you either way.

What the passport looks like

The passport consists of an A4 paper certificate and a bank-card-size plastic card. Either part proves your competence. When an employer needs to see it, you show the original card or the original paper certificate. Photocopies and photos do not count.

What can still change

The passport stays valid, but the world around it moves. Food rules change, your workplace's own-check changes, and your employer must make sure staff are supervised and instructed or trained in food hygiene for their actual work. That is separate from the passport and continues for as long as you work in food.

Not to be confused with the salmonella statement

Some workers must present a salmonella statement before starting work with unpackaged food served without heating. That is a different requirement from the passport, with its own rules.

If you are deciding whether to take the test now

Since the passport does not expire, there is no downside to getting it before a job asks for it. Preparing ahead means you are not rushing for a test slot with an employer waiting. The free quiz shows what the test statements look like, and how to get the passport explains the steps.