diff --git a/server/models/index.js b/server/models/index.js
index a7dcb09..10e0e57 100644
--- a/server/models/index.js
+++ b/server/models/index.js
@@ -1,5 +1,9 @@
 const { Sequelize } = require('sequelize');
-require('dotenv').config();
+
+// Only load .env in non-test environments
+if (process.env.NODE_ENV !== 'test') {
+  require('dotenv').config();
+}
 
 // Configure database based on environment
 let sequelize;
diff --git a/server/tests/test-env.js b/server/tests/test-env.js
index 6a5f360..4bfca03 100644
--- a/server/tests/test-env.js
+++ b/server/tests/test-env.js
@@ -1,4 +1,5 @@
 // Set test environment before any modules are imported
+// This MUST be set before any require() calls that might load .env files
 process.env.NODE_ENV = 'test';
 process.env.JWT_SECRET = 'test-jwt-secret-key-for-testing-only';
 process.env.DB_DIALECT = 'sqlite';
@@ -6,4 +7,7 @@ process.env.DB_STORAGE = ':memory:';
 process.env.DB_LOGGING = 'false';
 process.env.DATABASE_URL = 'sqlite::memory:';
 
-console.log('🧪 Test environment configured');
+// Clear any existing dotenv cache to prevent production .env from being loaded
+delete require.cache[require.resolve('dotenv')];
+
+console.log('🧪 Test environment configured - NODE_ENV:', process.env.NODE_ENV);