Dominica - Obtain a Food Handlers Permit

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Procedure

• A candidate shall check with their respective state, province or municipality on the latest updates and regulations on getting a food handler certificate.
• The applicant may be asked to provide the blood sample along with the X-ray at the respective office for processing or the applicant may be asked to submit the blood report and X-ray as per the respective department norms.

Apply In-Person:

1. In order to obtain a food handler certificate, the candidate shall apply with the respective office of the “Department of Environmental Health”.
2. Contact Link
3. The candidate shall use the contact numbers from the given page as appropriate to find the respective office to apply for this certificate.
4. The candidate shall visit the respective office and meet the concerned authority. Don’t forget to take the required copy of documents along with originals to the office.
5. The process of certification takes place with food handler education session and a medical exam.
6. The applicant shall follow the guidelines of the department authority to apply.
7. Please collect the application form from the concerned authority or write on a plain A4 sheet as advised if required.
8. Please complete the application form with mandatory details. Attach the documents as per the “Required Documents” section of this page and submit it to the designated receiving authority.
9. The applicants are advised to pay the required fees as per the authority’s advice.
10. The authority will check the submitted application form and the attachments. If all are in place, the application will be considered for further processing. The applicants are advised to follow the guidelines of the authority.
11. The applicant will be guided for a session to learn about food industry basics, bacteria, types or organisms that make food go bad, general food safety, cleaning and sanitizing, the use of water and personal hygiene.
12. Followed by the learning session, the department will conduct medical examination. The applicants are advised to follow the instructions and go through the medical examination process as appropriate.
13. Once the above steps are completed, the department will assess the outcome of the above said activities and the application to decide on the approval of the application as per norms.
14. On approval, the department will grant a food handler’s certificate/licence/permit in the prescribed form immediately or as per the timeline provided by the authorities.

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Required Documents

• Application form (if required)
• Valid citizen proof (respective ID’s issued by respective nation)
• Applicant’s proof of identity (identity card / passport / driving licence)
• Passport size photograph (taken not more than three months from the applying date - 6 copies)
• Copy of passport
• A self-addressed envelope with or without stamps (as per requirement)

Note: Apart from the above documents, the authorities may ask for additional information or documents. Please provide them for processing.

Office Locations & Contacts

Ministry of Health, Wellness and New Health Investment,
4th Floor, Government Headquarters,
Commonwealth of Dominica.
Phone: (767) 266 3437
Fax: (767) 448 6086
E-mail: [email protected]
Contact Link

Eligibility

• All food handlers are eligible to apply.
  
• Any individual whose main duty involves preparing food, like a chef or cook or server, packing and labelling of food packets and bartenders are eligible to apply.
• The establishment owners of a food handling business are also eligible to apply.
• Those who are 18 years (or as per the age limit set by the department) and above are eligible to apply.

Fees

• The applicant shall pay the fee of $20 or please pay as per the authority’s advice.

Validity

• The certificate shall be valid for 1 year or as per the date mentioned on the certificate. The certificate needs to be renewed on regular basis as per the respective department norms.

Documents to Use

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Sample Documents

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Processing Time

• Once the application is accepted, the certificate can be obtained within 7 to 14 working days or as per the timeline provided by the authorities.
• In certain cases, the process can be completed within 2 days or immediately as per the need.

Related Videos

Videos explaining the procedure or to fill the applications.
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Please remove the '&' inside the tags during implementation.
Website = allocine, blip, dailymotion, facebook, gametrailers, googlevideo, html5, metacafe, myspace, revver,
sevenload, viddler, vimeo, youku, youtube
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e.g In the following url 'http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0US7oR_t3M' Video ID is 'Y0US7oR_t3M'.

Instructions

• A valid certificate holder is advised to undergo health examination by a registered medical practitioner once in every six months or as per the timeline fixed by the respective department.
• If the results of a medical examination indicates that the handler is suffering from a disease likely to contaminate food, the employer shall prohibit that person from being employed as a food handler.
• If the food handler is found by a medical practitioner to be suffering from a communicable disease, the department will suspend or revoke a food handler certificate.
• A valid certificate holder who prepares street food shall grant access to the premises in which the street food is prepared for the purposes of inspection.
• If the information given by the food handler in relation to his or her application has been found to be false in any material particular, the department will suspend or revoke a food handler certificate.
• If there are grounds to believe that the food handler poses a risk to food safety, the department will suspend or revoke a food handler certificate.
• A food handler certificate should be displayed at a prominent place and need to be presented when requested during the course of his/her duty.
• Please fill the candidate’s details as per the ID proof submitted.
• Don’t forget to take all the originals of the document along with a copy for applying.
• Incomplete application will be rejected.
• Avoid spelling mistakes while filling the application form.

Required Information

• Name of the applicant
• Valid citizen proof number (respective ID’s issued by respective nation)
• Passport number
• Address of the applicant
• Postal code
• Email ID
• Mobile number
• Date of the application
• Signature of the applicant

Need for the Document

• A food handler certificate is required to legally operate any business that handles or processes or serves food.
• Having a food handler certified staff in required numbers as per the respective area norms is mandatory to operate the business without any worry of fine, legal action and for a happy customer base.

Information which might help

• A food handler certificate is also often referred to as a food handlers licence, food handlers card, or food handlers permit.

Other uses of the Document/Certificate

Please explain what are other uses of obtaining this document/certificate.
e.g. Birth Certificate can be used as proof of identity.

External Links

• Please use the following link for additional information Link

Others

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