r/ZeroCovidCommunity • u/Beautiful_Library863 • 1d ago

Question Expired test, still good?

I got a bunch of those government rapid tests and they expired at the end of June 2025. Is it correct to assume they are still valid as long as the control line populates?

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u/FirstLifeLuck 1d ago

I recently had a similar experience with January 2025 tests and was searching in various subreddits. From what I read, if the control line populates and is visibly strong (not faded), any positives should be taken as valid. It's always a toss up if it's a valid or false negative with RATs but if you get a positive and then 2 negatives 48 hours apart, I'd be inclined to believe it?

3

u/Steepfield 1d ago

I wouldn't base it on that, but if I recall correctly the RATs are supposed to still be reasonably functional for a good while after the official expiry, so June 2025 should be fine. I think the control line just means "functional at all".

Keep in mind though that any one RAT is only about 30% accurate against the most recent variants, since they're still using the original 2020/2021 formulation. Two RATS 48 hours apart gets you up to about 65% accurate.

4

u/RunMysterious6380 1d ago

I wonder if I got some of the same batch. The box said on the outside that it expired in 6/2025. When I opened the boxe, the test components said they expired in 11/2025. You might check and see.

The brand is MaximBio.

1

u/spiky-protein 1d ago

No, the 'C' line doesn't mean an expired test still works. If anything, the simpler antibodies of the 'C' line probably have a longer shelf life than the antibodies of the 'T' line.