Your Smart Serve certificate is valid for 5 years from the date of issue. Recertify while it is still valid and you pay $29.95. Once it expires, the full course price of $44.95 applies.
Recertification is the full course again, and the purchase includes two test attempts. Pass, and Smart Serve issues a new eCertificate with a 5-year expiry date.
This page covers the dates, the prices, and what the recertification test involves. It also shows how to get ready before you pay.
How the 5-year clock works
Smart Serve certificates are valid for 5 years from the date of issue. Anyone certified on or after July 1, 2018 has 5 years from their issue date to recertify.
Your expiry date follows from your issue date, so start with the certificate itself. Your eCertificate, the digital certificate Smart Serve issues after a pass, sits in the My Results tab of your Smart Serve account.
AGCO, the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, sets the renewal rule. AGCO states that all liquor training certifications in Ontario need renewal every five years.
- Certificates are valid for 5 years from the date of issue.
- Anyone certified on or after July 1, 2018 recertifies within 5 years of that date.
- Your eCertificate and its dates sit in the My Results tab of your Smart Serve account.
- Recertify before the expiry date to hold on to the $29.95 rate.
What recertification costs
Smart Serve charges $29.95 to recertify online while your certificate is current. Once the certificate expires, the full cost of $44.95 applies.
The difference is $15, and the date on your certificate is the only thing that decides which price you pay.
Employers can buy course access with Online Course Tokens. Those tokens cost $44.95 each and include two test attempts. Ask your manager which route your workplace uses before you pay for your own.
- $29.95 to recertify online while your certificate is still valid.
- $44.95 for the full course once your certificate has expired.
- $44.95 for an employer Online Course Token, which also includes two test attempts.
What the recertification fee buys
Recertification is the full course and includes two test attempts. You work through the training again, then take the proctored Final Test.
Course access expires 30 days after purchase, so buy it when you have time to use it. Inside those 30 days the training is self-paced. You can start and stop as often as you like, and your progress is saved.
The test runs the same way it did the first time. It is proctored online, and you need a working web camera. You produce valid government issued photo identification before you launch it, then stay in camera view and finish in one sitting.
There is no time limit, and Smart Serve puts the average at about 30 minutes. You can launch the test 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, with no appointment. The full walk-through of buying, proctoring, and results sits on the Smart Serve test page.
Read the test rules before you launch. Smart Serve states that a flagged proctoring violation loses your test attempt, even if you passed the test.
- Two test attempts per purchase.
- 30 days of course access from the date of purchase.
- Self-paced training, with your progress saved between sessions.
- A proctored online test with webcam ID verification, taken in one sitting.
- 80% or higher to pass, with no test rule infractions.
- A list of the questions you answered incorrectly, shown right after the test. Smart Serve does not give the answers.
What you get after you pass
Passing issues a new eCertificate with a 5-year expiry date. The new 5 years run from the new issue date.
Allow about 2 hours after the test for the proctor review and the certificate to be issued. The eCertificate then appears in the My Results tab of your account.
Plastic cards are no longer mailed, so the digital certificate is the one you keep. Save a copy and send one to your manager.
AGCO recommends that licensees keep copies of staff certifications. AGCO inspectors may ask a licensee for proof of a staff member's certification at any time.
If your certificate has already expired
An expired certificate means you buy the full course at $44.95. The purchase still includes two test attempts, and the course and the test are the same.
AGCO states that valid certification is legally required for every person involved in the sale, service, sampling or delivery of liquor. Talk to your manager if your date has passed and you are still on the schedule.
If you use both attempts and still do not pass, you repurchase the course to get another two attempts. The repurchase sits in the Store tab of your account, and Smart Serve asks for about 30 minutes for the status to update.
- Certificate still valid: recertify online at $29.95, with two test attempts.
- Certificate expired: the full course at $44.95, with two test attempts.
- Two failed attempts: repurchase the course from the Store tab for another two.
Where the 5-year rule came from
AGCO announced mandatory Smart Serve recertification on November 9, 2021, and the requirement started on July 1, 2022.
Older certificates were given one deadline instead. Certificates issued before September 1, 2018 stayed valid until August 31, 2023 at 11:59 p.m., after AGCO extended the original June 30, 2023 date.
If you hold a certificate issued before September 2018, it expired on August 31, 2023. Every certificate issued since then runs on the 5-year clock from its own issue date.
How to get ready before you buy
Five years is a long gap, and recertification covers the same ground as your first course. Study before you buy, so your 30 days of access go to review instead of relearning.
You buy the course and the Final Test from Smart Serve's recertification page. Study Smart Serve is an independent study app with no connection to Smart Serve or AGCO. Our material is practice, and the course is free to read.
Start with a diagnostic so you know where you stand. The free practice test scores you in one sitting, with no account and no email. For how our questions are built and how to use them, read the Smart Serve practice test guide.
If you are helping someone certify for the first time, the Smart Serve certification guide covers who needs a certificate and how the first one works.
- Read the free course, 14 lessons across 5 modules.
- Drill the question bank in the app, 450 questions with worked explanations.
- Run the practice tests to find the topics you have lost since your first course.
- Sit a mock test close to your test date. Each one runs 33 questions, the published full-course length.
- Give the most time to the modules you use least at work: Alcohol and the Body, Checking ID and Minors, Laws and Liability, Responsible Service and Refusal, Delivery and Special Situations.
Frequently asked questions
How long is a Smart Serve certificate valid?
Smart Serve certificates are valid for 5 years from the date of issue. Anyone certified on or after July 1, 2018 recertifies within 5 years of that date. Your eCertificate and its dates sit in the My Results tab of your Smart Serve account.
How much does Smart Serve recertification cost?
It costs $29.95 to recertify online while your certificate is still valid. Once it expires, the full cost of $44.95 applies. Both purchases include two test attempts.
What happens if I let my Smart Serve certificate expire?
You buy the full course at $44.95 instead of recertifying at $29.95. The course and the test are the same, and the purchase still includes two test attempts. AGCO states that valid certification is legally required for every person involved in the sale, service, sampling or delivery of liquor, so talk to your manager if your date has passed.
Can I recertify before my certificate expires?
Yes, and that is how you get the $29.95 rate. You can recertify online at any time while the certificate is still current. Passing issues a new eCertificate with a 5-year expiry date, so the clock restarts from the new issue date.
How many questions is the recertification test?
Smart Serve does not publish a separate question count for recertification. The purchase is the full course, so plan for the published full-course format: 33 multiple choice questions, passing at 80% or higher. Treat that count as an inference from the full course, and see the Smart Serve test page for the rest of the format.
Do I get a new plastic card when I recertify?
No. Plastic cards are no longer mailed. Passing issues a digital eCertificate in the My Results tab of your account. Allow about 2 hours after the test for the proctor review and the certificate to be issued.
How long does the recertification course take?
Course access expires 30 days after purchase, and the training inside that window is self-paced. You can start and stop as often as you like, and your progress is saved. The Final Test has no time limit, and Smart Serve puts the average at about 30 minutes.