The preparations that are normally carried out on the day before Pesach will be handled differently this year because the first Seder will commence after Shabbat on the night of Saturday 12th April 2025. The timing of Shabbat occurring the day before the first Seder affects the usual Erev Pesach procedures, so here is a guide to familiarize yourself with the various halakhic requirements.

Mechirat (Sale of) Chametz

The forms for mechirat chametz can either be emailed back directly to me (rabbi@pinnershul.org) or delivered to me in person by Thursday 10 April 2025, 9am at the latest.

The form is available as a Word document click here to make it editable on the computer and does not need to be signed by hand.  For those who prefer to print and fill it out by hand, here is a PDF version click here.

NB: Those travelling east for Pesach, including to Israel should note so on the form as chametz will need to be sold earlier in the day or even the day before.

The Fast of the Firstborn, Thursday 10 April/12 Nissan

All Jewish firstborn males, whether firstborn of mother or father, fast on Erev Pesach. However, this fast is observed on the Thursday before Pesach when Erev Pesach occurs on Shabbat. In practice, firstborn do not actually fast on this day as long as they attend a “siyum” (the meal celebrating the completion of a Talmudic tractate or an order of Mishnah) which usually takes place immediately after Shacharit. At Pinner Shul, Shacharit on Thursday 10 April begins at 6:50am and will be followed by a siyum.

As the Rabbi needs to sell your chametz before halachic midday on Friday, the form giving him authority to do this should be in his possession by Thursday morning at the latest (see above).

The search for chametz is usually carried out on the night before Pesach (14 Nissan) when all the places in a person’s domain into which chametz could have been brought are subject to a thorough search. When Erev Pesach occurs on Shabbat, the search for chametz is conducted on the Thursday night (13 Nissan) preceding Pesach. The search cannot take place on Shabbat when it is forbidden to carry the candle and it should not take place in the first instance on the Friday because one cannot search by light of day.  Before commencing the search, the blessing “asher ki-d’-sha -nu b’-mitz-vo-tav v’-tzi-va-nu al bi-ur chametz” (“who has sanctified us by his commandments, and has commanded us concerning the removal of chametz”) is recited, followed by the declaration: “All chametz, leaven or leavened bread in my possession that I have neither seen nor removed nor know about should be annulled and considered ownerless as dust of the earth.”

If one forgot to search for chametz on Thursday night, the search may be conducted on Friday, but not on Shabbat.

Friday 11 April/13 Nissan

With the exception of the chametz required for Shabbat morning, the chametz that is to be destroyed should be burned by 11:54am on Friday 11th April. If a person forgot to burn the chametz at this time, it can be burned any time before Shabbat. Once Shabbat begins, the chametz must not be burned but should be disposed of either by flushing it down the toilet or by giving it to a non-Jew.

After destroying the chametz, one should not recite the proclamation of annulling the chametz.

All chametz and chametz vessels not needed for Shabbat should be placed in a sealed area and remain there until after Pesach.

All materials needed for covering kitchen surfaces, shelves, as well as any other items needed for final Pesach preparations should be torn, cut and prepared before Shabbat. Tearing them on Shabbat is of course forbidden.

One should not cook food for Shabbat with chametz in it, which might stick to the pot, in order to avoid having to scrub the pot clean on Shabbat; this scrubbing would not be for the purpose of using the pot on Shabbat. If such food is cooked, the pot should be washed to remove the chametz.

It is preferable to cook Pesach food for Shabbat in Pesach utensils. If one wishes to transfer the cooked food from a Pesach utensil to a chametz utensil, the transfer should be made to a second Pesach utensil, and then to a chametz utensil.

The roasted bone that is placed on the Seder plate should be roasted before Shabbat. Likewise the roasted egg, the charoset and the saltwater  should all be prepared before Shabbat as should the checking of lettuce for insects. Those who purchase whole fresh horseradish for maror should make sure that it was not cut with a chametz knife and should grind it on Friday. It should then be placed in a sealed container until the beginning of the Seder in order to retain its sharpness.

The Seder plate, table and everything needed for the Seder should be prepared before Shabbat, and the room the table is in should not be used on Shabbat.

All seals on wine bottles and matzah boxes needed for the seder should be opened.

The candles to be lit for Yom Tov when Shabbat goes out should be placed in the candlesticks before Shabbat.

The Shabbat candlesticks should not be placed on the tablecloth intended to be used for eating challah, as the tablecloth will have to be shaken out to ensure removal of all chametz crumbs.

Shabbat Meal Preparations

Purchase sufficient challah for the Shabbat meals. If necessary, it is permitted to use (but not eat) a matzah instead of a second challah. It is a good idea to use disposable dishes, utensils and tablecloths to avoid kashrut problems with chametz dishes or washing up problems with Pesach dishes.

A chametz broom should be available for sweeping up after the morning meal.

Friday Night (11 April)/Shabbat Morning Meals (12 April) – 14 Nissan

If the Shabbat meals are going to be eaten in a carpeted room, a disposable tablecloth should be spread on the floor of the area where chametz will be eaten. If the room is not carpeted, it is sufficient to sweep the floor once the Shabbat morning meal has been eaten. The table should be covered with two new or disposable tablecloths. The challot should be on the table in a closed bag.

An alternative to using challot with all the attendant chametz complications is to use matzah ashirah, commonly known as egg matzah. This is a special type of matzah made with eggs or fruit juice instead of water. Since it is not real matzah it can be eaten on Erev Pesach and thus avoids all the difficulties of using chametz when the home and the rest of the food is Kosher for Pesach. Please note, however, that matzah ashirah must be purchased from a Kosher shop with a reliable hechsher (such as Aviv Egg Matzah), and that the Ashkenazi ruling is that matzah ashirah may not be consumed on Pesach at all. It may also not be consumed on Erev Pesach after 10:45am (this year).

Kiddush should be made with a Pesach wine cup. All cups and wine bottles should be Kosher for Pesach. All Pesach items must be removed fom the table before cutting the challot.

It is advisable for each person to eat the challah over a spread out serviette to catch the crumbs. The serviette and the crumbs should then be flushed down the toilet.

The top tablecloth and the disposable one on the floor can be put away for use at the Shabbat morning meal after they have been cleaned of crumbs which are flushed away.

After eating the challah, it is important to clean the face and hands of crumbs and rinse out the mouth thoroughly. This should be done in the bathroom and not over the Kosher for Pesach sink. When leaving the bathroom the hands should be washed in the same manner as for “netilat yadayim”, but without saying the beracha. The Shabbat meal is now eaten with Pesach food and Pesachdik or disposable utensils.

The second Shabbat meal must be completed by 10:45am on Shabbat morning.

There are varying halachic opinions as to whether the third meal on any Shabbat requires bread and whether it must be eaten after minchah. Chametz may not be eaten after minchah, and matzah may not be eaten the entire day. Therefore, it is advisable to divide the Shabbat morning meal into two parts by reciting Grace after Meals in the middle, waiting for half an hour, and then washing and saying the Grace after Meals again.

After eating the Shabbat morning meal and concluding it by 10:45am, any left over chametz may be given to a non-Jew or crumbled and flushed down the toilet.

The tablecloth and utensils, if disposable, should be discarded. If not disposable, the tablecloth should be shaken out, the dishes and cutlery minimally washed, so the chametz is removed, and the floor swept.

The tablecloth, dishes and cutlery should then be placed with the other chametz utensils.

Clothing should be brushed to get rid of any crumbs as well as the washing of the face and hands mentioned earlier.

By 11:54am, the declaration which annuls all ownership of chametz should be recited.

Although, technically speaking, the third meal has already been eaten, one should again eat a meal in the afternoon after mincha which should be concluded by approximately 3:30pm. However, since bread or matzah cannot be eaten, one should eat meat, fish, or fruit.

After the conclusion of this meal, only small amounts of fruit or vegetables may be eaten so as to maintain a healthy appetite for the Seder meal.

The Yom Tov candles should be lit from a flame that was burning before Shabbat at 8:41pm.

I hope this guide is clear, but if you have any further queries, feel free to email me at rabbi@pinnershul.org                    .

May we all enjoy a happy and kosher Pesach.