Saint Kitts and Nevis - Obtain a Food Handlers Permit

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Procedure

• In general the applicant may be asked to complete the course and obtain a certificate or the applicant may be asked to attend a session on food hygiene as part of the certification process.
• Apart from the training course / session, the applicant will be required to provide samples (blood/stool/urine etc) as per the department norms or provide the results from the government approved labs or private labs as per norms.
• 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 permit, the candidate shall approach the respective office of the “Ministry of Health” (Department of Environmental Health (Public Health Department)).
2. Contact Link the contact information is provided under “Ministry of Health” section AND link1
3. The candidate shall use the contact numbers from the given pages as appropriate to find the respective office to apply for this certificate or get certified.
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. Please submit 2 passport size photograph along with a valid medical certificate to the designated authority. Please complete the application form if provided and submit it.
6. The applicants are advised to pay the required fees as per the authority’s advice.
7. The authority will check the submitted documents. If all are in place, the request will be registered for further processing.
8. The applicant shall request the authorities to provide the next set activities and the probable time line for obtaining the permit and follow accordingly.
9. The applicants are advised to attend session with the food handler’s clinic upon appointment given at registration.
10. On the scheduled date, the applicant shall visit the food handler’s Clinique and meet the concerned medical authority and follow their instruction to complete the session.
11. Once the above said activities are completed, the applicant shall contact the office where they submitted the request for the issue the food handler permit.
12. The department will process the request internally to issue the permit as per applicable norms.
13. The department will grant a food handler’s permit in the prescribed form 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.

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Required Documents

• Application form
• Valid citizen proof (respective ID’s issued by respective nation)
• Applicant’s proof of identity (identity card / passport / driving licence)
• A photocopy of the original certificate denoting completion of food handler’s course
• Copy of fitness and medical certificate from a medical practitioner
• Copy of blood test report
• X-ray as per requirement
• Passport size photograph (taken not more than three months from the applying date - 2 copies)
• Copy of passport
• A self-addressed envelope with or without stamps (as per requirement)
• Copy of the police record of the applicant 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

Please list down the office locations that can be approached for applying. External links can also be used for specifying office locations.

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 $20 as fee or the value as per the authority’s advice.

Validity

• The permit 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

Please attach documents that can be used by people. e.g. links

Sample Documents

Please attach sample completed documents that would help other people.

Processing Time

• The permit can be obtained as per the timeline provided by the authorities at the time of applying.

Related Videos

Videos explaining the procedure or to fill the applications.
Attach videos using the following tag <&video type='website'>video ID|width|height<&/video&> from external websites.
Please remove the '&' inside the tags during implementation.
Website = allocine, blip, dailymotion, facebook, gametrailers, googlevideo, html5, metacafe, myspace, revver,
sevenload, viddler, vimeo, youku, youtube
width = 560, height = 340, Video ID = Can be obtained from the URL of webpage where the video is displayed.
e.g In the following url 'http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0US7oR_t3M' Video ID is 'Y0US7oR_t3M'.

Instructions

• A valid permit 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 result 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 permit.
• 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 permit.
• 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 permit.
• A food handler permit 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 permit is required to legally operate any business that handles or processes or serves food.
• Having a food handler permit 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 permit is also often referred to as a food handlers licence, food handlers card, or food handlers certificate.

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

More information which might help people.