diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci.yml b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
index 4977f32..63fc5a9 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
@@ -52,6 +52,11 @@ jobs:
     - name: Run PHPUnit
       run: vendor/bin/phpunit
 
+    - name: Run PHPUnit as a created project (with .env from .env.example)
+      run: |
+        cp .env.example .env
+        vendor/bin/phpunit
+
     - name: Smoke test (built-in server)
       run: |
         php -S 127.0.0.1:8000 -t public > /dev/null 2>&1 &
diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 08682fe..342b1d6 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -5,6 +5,15 @@ All notable changes to the PivotPHP Skeleton project will be documented in this
 The format is based on [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.0.0/),
 and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0.html).
 
+## [2.0.1] - 2026-10-10
+
+### Fixed
+
+- Tests no longer depend on the project's `.env`: they set `APP_ENV=testing`, `APP_DEBUG=false` and
+  `CORS_ALLOWED_ORIGINS` as real environment variables (which take precedence over `.env`). In a project
+  created with `create-project`, `testStatusReadsConfiguration` failed because `.env` sets
+  `APP_ENV=development`.
+
 ## [2.0.0] - 2026-10-10
 
 Template for the PivotPHP 4 ecosystem (SPEC-089).
diff --git a/tests/ApiTest.php b/tests/ApiTest.php
index e15696b..999570e 100644
--- a/tests/ApiTest.php
+++ b/tests/ApiTest.php
@@ -19,10 +19,22 @@ final class ApiTest extends TestCase
     private Application $app;
     private Psr17Factory $factory;
 
+    /**
+     * Real environment variables take precedence over .env, so the tests do not depend on the
+     * project's .env file.
+     */
+    private const ENV = [
+        'APP_ENV' => 'testing',
+        'APP_DEBUG' => 'false',
+        'CORS_ALLOWED_ORIGINS' => self::ORIGIN,
+    ];
+
     protected function setUp(): void
     {
-        putenv('CORS_ALLOWED_ORIGINS=' . self::ORIGIN);
-        $_ENV['CORS_ALLOWED_ORIGINS'] = self::ORIGIN;
+        foreach (self::ENV as $key => $value) {
+            putenv("{$key}={$value}");
+            $_ENV[$key] = $value;
+        }
 
         $this->app = require __DIR__ . '/../bootstrap/app.php';
         $this->factory = new Psr17Factory();
@@ -30,8 +42,10 @@ protected function setUp(): void
 
     protected function tearDown(): void
     {
-        putenv('CORS_ALLOWED_ORIGINS');
-        unset($_ENV['CORS_ALLOWED_ORIGINS']);
+        foreach (array_keys(self::ENV) as $key) {
+            putenv($key);
+            unset($_ENV[$key]);
+        }
     }
 
     /**
@@ -77,7 +91,7 @@ public function testStatusReadsConfiguration(): void
         $body = self::body($this->request('GET', '/api/status'));
 
         $this->assertSame('PivotPHP Skeleton API', $body['name']);
-        $this->assertSame('production', $body['environment']);
+        $this->assertSame('testing', $body['environment']);
     }
 
     public function testListAndShowUsers(): void