What is the purpose of exit criteria
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To define when a test level is complete
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To determine when a test has completed
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To identify when a software system should be retired
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To determine whether a test has passed
Exit criteria are predefined conditions that must be met to declare a test level complete, such as coverage targets or defect rates. They apply to the entire test level rather than individual test completion.
Per standard software testing terminology (ISTQB), exit criteria are the conditions agreed upon in advance that determine when a given test level (e.g., unit, integration, system testing) is considered finished — things like required pass rate, coverage achieved, or open defect thresholds. This is a planning/completion-definition concept applied to a phase of testing, not to an individual test case ('determine when a test has completed' or 'whether a test has passed'), and it has nothing to do with retiring a software system, which is an entirely different lifecycle decision.