diff --git a/shared/repositories/tests/integration/conftest.py b/shared/repositories/tests/integration/conftest.py
index 30802c7..1c97d4e 100644
--- a/shared/repositories/tests/integration/conftest.py
+++ b/shared/repositories/tests/integration/conftest.py
@@ -33,7 +33,8 @@ random.seed(13)
 
 # load local test environment variables
 test_env_path = Path(__file__).parent.parent.parent.parent.parent / 'test.env'
-load_dotenv('test.env')
+if test_env_path.exists():
+    load_dotenv('test.env')
 
 # define test environment variables
 env_var_map = {