diff --git a/docker/startup_scripts/start.sh b/docker/startup_scripts/start.sh
index d1ecdb804..fa068a42f 100755
--- a/docker/startup_scripts/start.sh
+++ b/docker/startup_scripts/start.sh
@@ -141,6 +141,7 @@ write_env_file() {
 
 wait_for_pg() {
   : "${DATABASE_URL:=postgresql://sapl:sapl@sapldb:5432/sapl}"
+  export DATABASE_URL
   log "Waiting for Postgres..."
   /bin/bash wait-for-pg.sh "$DATABASE_URL"
 }